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Raleigh Brewing Company Holiday Bash Spiced Winter Warmer

Posted on by Evan

This spied winter warm is Holiday Bash from Raleigh Brewing in Raleigh, North Carolina. According to the brewery, they are using Mulling spice. This beer is 6.6% ABV. This winter warmer pours a dark brown color with a two-finger beige quick head. This beer has lighter brown edges. The aroma is spiced, roasted, nutty, molasses, and lightly bitter. The flavor is also spiced and nutty. There are cinnamon, molasses, and chocolate flavors with bitter-sugar cookies. This beer is fuller on the mouth. This beer has a slightly bitter finish. Then you get an aftertaste of burnt sugar and molasses. This beer is not something I liked, I give Holiday Bash Spiced Winter Warmer a D. I don’t think the bitterness is helping anything here, and it clashes with the chocolate that makes the molasses taste funny. I would not drink again, and neither should you. Please stay safe, be kind to each other, and remember to enjoy responsibly! Cheers!

Trader Joes Josephs Brau Winter Ride Double Bock

Posted on by Evan

Out of all the places that brew beer a grocery store or supermarket would not be my first thought of a brewery. But apparently, Trader Joe’s brews beer. They brew beer in San Jose, California under the Josephs Brau. This is Winter Ride, Double Bock. This beer is 7.5% ABV. This double bock uses dark roasted Caramel Munich malts. This bock pours a dark brown color with a tow finger off-white head. The aroma is nutty, roasted, malty, and caramel. The flavor has similarities to the aroma. There is roasted caramel and malty flavors, and a light bitterness. There is a slight metallic flavor. This beer has a semi-sweet finish. That leads to a caramel-roasted flavor with a metallic bitterness. This beer is okay, a C+. I think the metallic flavor keeps this beer from being any better. It’s not the end of the world if you have or don’t have this beer. It is just slightly above average. Please stay safe, be kind to each other, and remember to enjoy responsibly! Cheers!

Hi-Wire Brewing Elated Winter IPA

Posted on by Evan

The beer is Elated Winter IPA from Hi-Wire Brewing in Asheville, North Carolina. It is 6.2% ABV with Michigan Chinook and Idaho 7 hops. This beer is a wintertime seasonal beer. Elated IPA pours a darker orange color with a marshmallow white two-and-a-quarter finger head. The head is slow to fade. The aroma is piney, citrusy, orange peel, and bitter. The flavor is citrusy with orange and orange peel. There is a pine note with malts, caramel, toasted bread, and bitter notes. This beer has a near-full feeling in your mouth. Then it has a piney bitter citrusy finish. Then comes an aftertaste of bitter pine with light citrus fruit. This Elated Winter IPA was good and reminded me of a more traditional IPA. This winter IPA is an A-. The malt and pine notes could have been a little more pronounced. Other than that it was good. I recommend Elated Winter IPA. Please stay safe, be kind to each other, and remember to enjoy responsibly! Cheers!

NoDa Brewing Co. Slurp Surfin West Coast India Pale Ale

Posted on by Evan


Slurp Surfin is a West Coast India Pale Ale produced by NoDa Brewing Co. and is part of the Slurp Series of IPAs. This IPA is 6.5% and is dry-hopped with Mosaic, Simcoe, and Centennial hops. NoDa Brewing uses the same mash hopes and Thiol (a type of yeast) as the Lil Slurp and mash hops; Experimental 177701. Mosiac Incognito is used in the whirlpool. This beer pours a yellow color with a three-and-a-quarter fluffy white head. The head is very slowly fading. The aroma is pineapple, grapefruit, tangerine, orange, bitterness, and light pine. The flavor is also tropical pineapple, tangerine, orange, and grapefruit. There is a good amount of bitter notes there. This beer has a lighter feel in the mouth. This IPA has a tropical fruity bitter finish. The aftertaste is bitter with tropical fruits. Slurp Surfin is a delicious beer and one that is an A. I enjoyed the tropical bitter flavors. So go find NoDa Brewing Co. Slurp Surfin, and the rest of the Slurp Series beers. I have previously reviewed the rest of the series. Please stay safe, be kind to each other, and remember to enjoy responsibly! Cheers!

Brouwerij St. Bernardus Christmas Ale

Posted on by Evan

Christmas is coming soon, and it might be too early for a Christmas beer. But here is St. Bernardus Christmas Ale. This beer is produced by Brouwerij St. Bernardus in Watuo, Belgium. This Christmas Quadruple ale is 10% ABV. St. Bernardus uses a unique yeast that dates back to 1946. The beer pours a dark brown color with a one-and-a-half-finger sticky beige head. The aroma is of Aniseed, dried fruits, sweetness, and light caramel. The flavor is on the rich side. The beer tastes sweet, dried fruits, boozy, roasted chestnuts, and hints of chocolate. This beer feels full in your mouth. This ale finishes with a little boozy, sweet, nutty, and light fruitiness. The aftertaste is semi-sweet and boozy with some light fruity and nut notes. This beer is tasty and sneaks up on you. Yes, it is on the boozy side. It does not feel strong on alcohol. St. Bernadues Christmas Ale is an A+. I highly recommend this one. It has no flaws and it is delicious. Please stay safe, be kind to each other, and remember to enjoy responsibly! Cheers!

Triple C Brewing Co. x Birdsong Brewing Co. Three in Flight New Zealand-Style Kellerbier Lager

Posted on by Evan

You don’t see Kellerbier Lagers from New Zealand. But Three in Flight is one. This beer is a collaboration between Triple C Brewing Co. & Birdsong Brewing Co., both here in Charlotte. This Kellerbier Lager is 4.8% ABV and has Motueka, Nelson Sauvin, and Nectaron hops. This beer pours a yellow color with a two-finger white head. The aroma is light hops, light sweetness, and light white bread. The flavor is lightly sweet, bitterness on the middle and back of the mouth, spicy, and clean. This beer has a light feeling in the mouth. This beer finishes with a bitter spiced note. The aftertaste is lackluster bitterness but not overly bitter. There is a bit of a sweetness in the aftertaste. This beer starts off well, then just fizzles out on average, making Three in Flight a C grade. It sounded interesting on the label, being a New Zealand-style Kellerbier Lager. But it is not great nor it’s bad.

Hardywood Craft Brewery Great Return IPA

Posted on by Evan

Hardywood Craft Brewery in Richmond, Virginia produces Great Return IPA. This IPA is 7.5% and uses Apollo, Cascade, Centennial, Columbus, and Simcoe hops. This IPA pours yellow with a one-finger white head. The aroma is bright, citrus, piney, and malted. The flavor is piney, citrusy, hoppy, and smooth. This beer is lighter on the mouth. Then it has a bitter hop finish. Then you get an aftertaste of piney grapefruit. The bitterness is stronger in the aftertaste than when it initially hits the tongue. This is just average in my opinion, so I give this a C. Nothing bad and nothing really stands out. This IPA is something that you can drink a few of without having the flavor overpower your mouth. The bitter aftertaste is a little off but not terrible. Great Return is not the worst IPA I’ve had. Please stay safe, be kind to each other, and remember to enjoy responsibly! Cheers!

Cabarrus Brewing Co. Rocky River IPA

Posted on by Evan

This IPA hopped with Comet, Citra, and Mosaic hops is Rocky River IPA from Cabarrus Brewing Co. in Concord, North Carolina, which is thirty-five minutes outside Charlotte. I first had this IPA at the Charlotte Motor Speedway during the NASCAR Bank of American Rovel 400. I thought I should find some for a review. I did. This beer is 6.5% ABV. The brewery is named for the county in which Concord is located. This IPA pours a light yellow with a one-and-a-half-finger white head. The aroma is grass, light citrus, bitter, and lightly malted. The taste is grassy, bitter, light citrus, hoppy, and with a touch of sweetness. This beer has a medium feel on the mouth. Then this IPA has a bitty/hoppy, grassy citrus finish. The aftertaste is light grass and light grapefruit. This is a fabulous IPA that I’d say is A+. The grassy citrus is great and this beer doesn’t overpower your tastebuds. Rocky River IPA is a beer that you need to have. Please stay safe, be kind to each other, and enjoy responsibly! Cheers!

Schlenkerla Dopple Bock Oak Smoked

Posted on by Evan

Coming from Bramberg Germany this Dopple Bock of Double Bock is Schlenkla Dopple Bock Oak Smoked. This beer is 8% ABV and the malts are smoked with Oak instead of Beechwood. This smoked Doppel Bock uses Hallertau hops. This beer pours a brownish color with a two-finger beige head. The aroma is smokey, malted, and sweet. The flavor is smokey, sweet, malty, and lightly rich. This beer has a fuller feeling in the mouth. Then this beer has a smoked malt finish with light sweetness. Then comes a light smokey aftertaste with touches of malted flavors. This Smoked Dopple Bock is an A+. I’ve had the Marzen variety from Schlenkerla, and this is just as good, with a bit of a deeper overall flavor. I really suggest you try this and all of Schlenkerla’s beers. This beer is not heavy on the smoke flavor. It has just the right amount to make this a delicious beer. Please stay safe, be kind to each other, and remember to enjoy responsibly! Cheers!

Birdsong Brewing Co. Party Starter Festbier Marzen Lager

Posted on by Evan

Here is another Festbier. This is Party Starter from Birdsong Brewing Co. This seasonal Marzen Lager is 5% ABV. This lager pours a deep orange/copper color with a one-and-a-half finger beige head. The aroma is semi-sweet with toffee, malts, and bread. The flavor is toffee, malty flavors, bread, light sweetness, and crisp/smooth. This Marzen lager had a medium feel on the mouthfeel. This beer has a smooth and crisp finish with some sweetness. The aftertaste is a lingering of toffee and bread. This is a good Marzen Lager. I give this a B-. But Burial Beer Fest is better than this, but I recommend them both. I suggest you have this one, then have Burial Beer Fest and have your own comparison. This Birdsong Festbier is lighter than some Festbiers I have, and that is not bad. Please stay safe, be kind to everyone, and remember to enjoy responsibly! Cheers!