Blog

Olde Mecklenburg Brewery Fat Boy Baltic Porter

Posted on by Evan

Fat Boy Baltic Porter has been in the back of the beer refrigerator for a while now. I bought this in Olde Mecklenburg Brewery’s Christmas mixed twelve-pack. It was the last beer of that pack. This porter is 8.3% ABV. This porter is not a year-round beer. It’s around between fall and mid-winter time. This porter pours black with a two-finger steady tan head. The aroma is sweet, chocolatey, malty, dark, and rich. The flavor is sweet, toffee, caramel, chocolates, and malty. There is a light taste of raisins. The mouthfeel is full but not overly full. Then this porter comes to a nice sweet malted finish. Then you get an aftertaste of roasted chocolate, toffee, and light raisins. This beer was still good for sitting in the refrigerator for so long. Fat Boy Baltic Porter is an A+. I recommend you try it. This dark beer is fantastic and delicious. Please stay safe, be kind to everyone, and remember to enjoy responsibly! Cheers!

Amor Artis Brewing Chai Milk Stout

Posted on by Evan

Brewed in Fort Mill, South Carolina, by Amor Artis, Chai Milk Stout is 6.5& ABV and uses Lactose and Chai spice from Savory Spice in Southend Charlotte, North Carolina. This stout pours a black color with a two-and-quarter finger of khaki head. The head fades steadily. The aroma is sweet, spicy (Chai), and some chocolate-like aromas. The taste is Chai spiced, malted, and bittersweet. The mouthfeel is fuller and coats the mouth. Then it finishes with roasted spiced notes from the Chia. Then you get a bitter Chia aftertaste. I am not a fan of Chai spices. So I give Chai Milk Stout a C-. The lactose does have some sweetness that takes the edge off the Chai spice. But it just does a little. If you like Chai spice and milk stouts, this stout is for you. But otherwise, I wouldn’t recommend it. The Chai spice is a little harsh. Please stay safe, be kind to everyone, and enjoy responsibly! Cheers! 

Birdsong Brewing Co. Lemon Glow Saison

Posted on by Evan

I am a big fan of Saison beers. I like Belgian traditional, craft Saison and everything in between. This Saison is Lemon Glow Saison from Birdsong Brewing. This beer is 5.5% ABV and is local, made here in Charlotte, North Carolina. This beer has malts such as Bohemian Pilsner, White Wheat, and Light Munich. This beer uses hops like CTZ, Willamette, and Saaz. There is Lemon zest and lemon grass too. This Saison pours a yellow/gold color with a big fluffy three-finger white head that slowly fades. The aroma is lemony, tart, yeasty, light wheat, and slightly floral. The flavor has lemon, and there is a faint wheat note. The mouthfeel is medium. Then this b\eer finishes with a lemony tart flavor. It has a little yeast to it. Then comes a yeasted lemon aftertaste with hints of floral notes. Adding lemons to a Saison is a great idea, and Birdsong nailed it with Lemon Glow Saison. I’d give this beer a B. The tartness can be a little too tart. But that is the only real complaint toward this good Saison. I would have this again, and so should you. Please stay safe, be kind to everyone, and enjoy responsibly! Cheers! 

Southern Strain Brewing Company Move Me Brightly Helles Lager

Posted on by Evan

This beer is Move Me Brightly, a Helles Lager from Southern Strain Brewing Company in Concord, North Carolina. It comes in at 5.7% ABV. This Helles Lager has Epiphany Malting’s Helles Malt. This beer is in the style of a traditional Munich Helles Lager. This beer pours a yellow color with a two-finger white head. The aroma is bread, spice, and a light hoppy aroma. The flavor of this beer is also ready, spiced. This beer has a low bitter/hoppy flavor too. Then this Helles Lager finishes with a trace of light bitterness and light floral notes. The aftertaste is light bitterness and some spiced bread. This Helles Lager beer is okay. I would say it is a C. This beer starts fine, then ends with an average flavor. It’s worth a try. But I would not rush out for it. It does have the traditional flavors of a Munich Helles Lager. But it is just an average-tasting beer. Please stay safe, be kind to everyone, and enjoy responsibly! Cheers!Sou

Collective Arts Brewing Collective Lager

Posted on by Evan

This Lager beer is called Collective Lager and is 4.9% ABV from Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. It is from Collective Arts Brewing. I don’t think that I’ve reviewed a lot of Lager beers. But this beer pours a yellow color with a two-and-a-half-finger white head. The aroma is a stereotypical beer smell. This lager is crisp, lithe floral, with bread notes. The taste is light, breaded, crisp, and clean, with some floral notes. This beer finishes with a crisp dryness. The aftertaste is also dry, with a little bread flavor. The mouthfeel is light and refreshing. This lager beer is okay but not the best, and I give it a C+. I would recommend this, but the flavor is halfway memorable. It’s refreshing and not terrible. The dryness and the floral notes held this Collective Lager down. But I would have this again. It’s just a beer-flavored beer. Please stay safe, be kind to everyone, and enjoy responsibly! Cheers! 

Burial Beer A Gateway to Vast Magnificent Worlds

Posted on by Evan

This beer with a long name is from Burial Beer. This ale is A Gateway to Vast Magnificent Worlds. This beer is a Kolsch that is 4.9% ABV. This beer is American wheat with Hallertau Mittefuh and German Hallertau Blanc. This beer is not aged. That is so it is fresher. It is fermented with German Ale yeast. After reviewing a lot of dark beer. I thought it might be time for something lighter. This beer pours bright yellow with a crisp white foamy three-finger head. The beer has a fruity, biscuity, grainy aroma. The flavor is biscuity, tea flavored,, and also fruity. The overall flavor is light. This Kolsch goes down easy. This beer has a light and semi-sweet finish and a light aftertaste of fruity biscuits. This Kolsch is a great beer, and I would not accept anything less from Burial Beer. This Kolsch beer gets an A+. I highly recommend this one. It’s one taste, delicious beer. Stay safe, be kind to everyone, and enjoy responsibly! Cheers! 

Westbrook Brewing Co. Gates of S’mordor Stout

Posted on by Evan

This beer from Westbrook Brewing Co. is Gates of S’mordor Stout. This beer is 11% ABV from Mt. Pleasant, South Carolina. This boozy stout has marshmallows, graham crackers, cocoa nibs, and cinnamon. Westbrook is going for s’mores with this stout. This beer pours a deep black color with two fingers’ brown head that fades steadily into a little island. The aroma is sweet, chocolate, marshmallow, and light cinnamon. The flavor is chocolate, marshmallow, graham cracker, and cinnamon. It does taste like a s’more. There is a light burnt cinnamon on the back of your tongue. The mouthfeel is full and rich. Then it comes to a chocolate-covered marshmallow finish and an aftertaste of sweet cocoa. This stout is delicious. I give Gates of S’mordor an A+. This stout does not feel like it’s 11% ABV, but feels lower than that. I highly recommend this one. So try it. If you love s’mores then this will hit the spot. Please stay safe, be kind to everyone, and remember to enjoy responsibly! Cheers! 

Victory Brewing Company Juicy Monkey Hazy Imperial IPA

Posted on by Evan

Victory Brewing Company in Donnington, Pennsylvania, brews a few beers with the monkey moniker. This is Juicy Monkey Hazy Imperial IPA. It’s 9.5% ABV, and that’s why it’s an imperial IPA. This IPA has Sabro, Lotus, & Sultana hops. This Monkey IPA pours orange with a quick one-finger white head. The aroma is fruity with peaches, oranges, and pineapples. The beer is a solid but sweet smelling, with some bitterness. The flavor is also peachy, with pineapples, light grapefruit, and oranges. I also found this beer to be a bit boozy and bitter. This beer then finishes with a boozy tropical fruity flavor. Then it ends with an aftertaste of peaches, oranges, and bitterness. This beer is solid and fruity overall. I give Juicy Monkey Hazy Imperial IPA an A-. I love the peach notes and most of the fruity flavors. But the solid alcoholic booziness slightly clashes with the rest of the beer, hindering it down to A-. But this IPA is good otherwise. If you like real fruit-forward IPAs, then I highly recommend this one, but just one. Please stay safe, be kind to everyone, and remember to enjoy responsibly! Cheers!

Burial Beer Drowning in Habits India Pale Ale

Posted on by Evan

Burial Beer from Asheville, North Carolina, has recently gained a new distributor. That means I’ve been seeing more of their beer in places like Whole Foods, where I found Drowning in Habits India Pale Ale. The IPA is 7% ABV. This beer is world pooled with Incognito hops. It has barley and oats. It’s double-dry hopped with Eclipse, Citra, Simcoe, and Strata hops. It is aged with lime, cinnamon, and vanilla bean. There are a lot of ingredients to this IPA. I lot of these ingredients I have not seen in an IPA. According to the blurb on the can, this beer is trying to go for a fruity candy-like flavor. This beer pours a bright cloudy yellow with a one-finger white head. The aroma I sweet, limey, vanilla, orange, oat scented, and there’s some pineapple. The taste is fruity with orange, lime, and light pineapple. There is some sweet vanilla and faint cinnamon with some bitterness. The beer’s Flavor is a kind of cream probably from the vanilla beans. The mouthfeel is on the fuller side. Then this beer comes to a bittersweet fruited finish. Then you get a nice bitter aftertaste that is somewhat fruit candy-like. I give it a B. The flavor is kind of good together. I can barely tell the flavors apart. But I still would recommend this and I’d have another. Please stay safe, be kind to everyone, and remember to enjoy responsibly! Cheers!

Westbrook Brewing Co. Mexican Cake Imperial Stout

Posted on by Evan

This beer is an Imperial Stout called Mexican Cake from Westbrook Brewing Co. in Mt. Pleasant, South Carolina. This stout is 10.5% ABV and has cocoa nibs, vanilla, cinnamon, and habanero peppers. This beer pours a thick obsidian color with a two-finger brown head. The aroma is chocolate, spiced/spicy, and lightly roasted. The flavor is malted, lightly sweet, chocolaty, cinnamon, and pepper spice. The overall flavor is not that spicy. It’s not ‘habanero’ hot. But it has a light heat. The mouthfeel is thick and full. Then this big stout finishes with a dry-ish spiced chocolate flavor. Then you come to an aftertaste of spices and lighter chocolate. It is a good beer that I give an A. It has all the flavors that you think it would be. It’s not overly hot and spicy. That is good. This beer is a beer you have once. It’s big on flavor and ABV. I recommend Mexican Cake from Westbrook Brewing Co. Please stay safe, be kind to everyone, and remember to enjoy responsibly! Cheers!