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NoDa Brewing Company Fusion Series Vol. III with Passion Fruit

Posted on by Evan

A while back on this blog, I reviewed Vol. II from this NoDa Brewing Company Fusion Series. This beer is Vol. III with Passion Fruit, 9.4% ABV. This beer is an imperial, hazy IPA brewed here in Charlotte, North Carolina. This IPA pours a hazy yellow with a two-finger white steady head. The aroma is tropical (passion fruit) and bitter. The flavor or taste is tropical passion fruit, bitter/hoppy, and more alcoholic tasting than some imperial IPAs. It has a smoothness to it, along with a resting quality. The mouthfeel is on the fuller side, but I would say that it is fuller. Then this big IPA finishes with bitterness but is slightly smooth and tropical. The aftertaste is tropical with bitterness. This beer is tasty for high alcohol hazed IPA. I would recommend it! The overall beer flavor reminded me of a tropical orange juice if there is a thing. Please be kind, stay safe, and remember to enjoy responsibly! Cheers!

NoDa Brewing Company Pitchside Pils

Posted on by Evan

This German-style Pilsner, Pitchside Pils, 4.1%, is a beer to celebrate the Charlotte Football Club. This Pilsner is from NoDa Brewing Company in Charlotte, North Carolina. Pitchside Pils pours a gold color with a two-and-a-half finger white head. The head slowly fades away. The aroma is lightly sweet, fruity, bread, and crisp. The flavor is fruity, cracker, and crisp. The mouthfeel is light. Then this beer finishes light and refreshing with a fruitiness. The aftertaste is a light cracker. This beer is a good solid beer that gets an A+. I like the Pilsner style because every beer I see is either an IPA or a Hazy IPA. This Pils is the beer you want to have during a CLTFC match. I highly recommend it, especially now during this massive heatwave. Please be kind, stay safe, and remember, always enjoy responsibly! Cheers!

Bell’s Brewery Official Hazy IPA

Posted on by Evan

I have seen Official Hazy IPA, 6.4%, around for a while now. I haven’t decided to buy a package of it until now. This beer is a New England hazy IPA from Bell’s Brewery in Comstock, Michigan. It is a dry-hopped combination of Mosaic, Citrus, Azacca, Amarillo, and El Dorado hops. This hazy IPA pours a golden yellow with a two-finger white head. There is good retention on the head. The aroma is of citrus fruit, tropical fruit, and bitter notes. The taste is also of citrus fruits and tropical fruits. You find mango, peach, pineapple, orange, and melon. There is a nice bitter note on the back of the tongue. The mouthfeel is on the lighter side. Then this IPA finishes with tropical citrus fruit and bitter flavor. Then comes an aftertaste of bitterness with hints of fruits. This beer is good. This beer got better and better the more I drank it. I give this an A. It has all the right flavors and has a nice balance with good drinkability. I recommend you have this. It will not disappoint. Please be kind, stay safe, and remember to enjoy responsibly! Cheers!

Stone Brewing Company Stone IPA

Posted on by Evan

This beer from El Segundo, California, is Stone Brewing Company Stone IPA, 6.9% ABV. This IPA has Magnum, Chinook, Centennial, Azacca, Calypso, Ella, and Vic Secret hops. Stone IPA pours a copper color with a three-finger steady white head. The aroma is bitter, dank, and tropical. There is a little pineapple, lemon peel, and mango. The taste is also tropical, lemon peel, bitter, and dank. The mouthfeel is medium. Then this IPA finishes with a bitter fruit hop note. Then you get a fruited bitter aftertaste. This Stone IPA is an old-school west coast style IPA. It gets a B- from me. It’s a little too much at first, but then you get used to it being a bigger IPA. I recommend it, but there isn’t a need to rush out for it either. It’s solid, but there are better west coast style IPA. Please be kind, stay safe, and remember to enjoy responsibly! Cheers!

NoDa Brewing Company Watermelon Gose

Posted on by Evan

This locally made beer, Watermelon Gose, 4.0% ABV, is from NoDa Brewing Company in Charlotte, North Carolina. This sour beer fermented on watermelon puree with NoDa’s original Gose base. This beer pours a golden color with a thick two-finger white head that fizzy away rather quickly. The aroma is light watermelon, tart, and a bit salty. The taste is similar to its smell, with light watermelon tartness, and salt. The mouthfeel is light and refreshing. Then it has a tart and salty finish with a faint watermelon flavor. The watermelon flavor fades into a tart flavor, salty-sweet fruity flavor aftertaste. The whole watermelon flavor is very light, as is the entire beer. This NoDa Brewing Company Watermelon Gose is terrible. It’s a B-. It slowly grows on you as you drink this, and I found it refreshingly easy to drink. Yes, this would be a good summer recommendation. But I think there are better examples of a Gose beer out there. But NoDa wasn’t going for the best traditional Gose here. They were making a tasty summer beer, and watermelon plus a Gose was their best idea. It did not disappoint. Please be kind, stay safe, and remember to enjoy responsibly! Cheers! 

El Segundo Brewing Company Steve Austin’s Broken Skull IPA

Posted on by Evan

This beer is Steve Austin’s Broken Skull IPA, 6.7% AVB, is a collaboration between WWE wrestler Stone Cold Steve Austin and the El Segundo Brewing Company. These two also have a lager. I have only seen this beer in my area. The El Segundo Brewing Company is in California. This beer has Cascade, Citra, and Chinook hops in it. This IPA pours a yellow color with a three-finger thick white head. The aroma is bitter, and citrusy, with lite earthy notes. The flavor of this beer is not unlike the way it smells. There is an excellent bitter citrus fruit (orange and some grapefruit), and hoppy earth notes. Then mouth feel is medium. Then this beer comes to a smooth bitter finish and gives a bitter citrus aftertaste. This beer is delicious, and it is easy to drink. I give Steve Austin’s Broken Skull IPA from El Segundo Brewing Company an A+. It’s not trying so hard to be good and different. That is much needed these days with all the IPA trying to be so out there and overly interesting. That sometimes does make for a good IPA. I highly recommend this IPA, so find it and drink one, two, or four. Please be kind, stay safe, and remember to enjoy responsibly! Cheers!

Triple C Brewing Pils of Funk Foeder Aged Pilsner

Posted on by Evan

So naturally, I bought it along with another beer. That will be a review later on in the week. When I got home, I found that it was only a pint (sixteen ounces). This pilsner comes from Charlotte’s Triple C Brewing and is foeder aged. Foeder is a Dutch word for a large wooden tank where beer is fermented. This beer pours a yellow color, with a half finger of white. The head is gone as soon as it meets the outside air. This beer’s aroma is slightly tart and a little fruity. It is bright, and the fruit aroma is lemony. This pilsner beer tastes yeasty, bright, floral, lemony tart, funky, and overall light. The mouthfeel is light but on the higher side of light. Then this beer comes to a tart and yeasty finish. Then you get a funky dry aftertaste. I was expecting this to be more flavorful than it was, and I’ve also had better-aged pilsners than this beer. I give Triple C Brewing Pils of Funk a B-. It wasn’t the worst beer. I believe there is a better version of this beer. I would recommend this beer, but I also wouldn’t get this as soon as possible. Please be kind, stay safe, and remember to enjoy responsibly! Cheers!

Amor Artis Brewing & JJ’s Red Hots Decaphonic Pale Ale

Posted on by Evan

This beer Decaphonic Pale Ale is a collaboration between Amor Artis Brewing in Fort Mill, South Carolina & the fast-casual hot dog restaurant JJ’s Red Hots here in Charlotte, North Carolina This pale ale coming in at 6.6% ABV is in celebration of JJ’s Red Hot tenth anniversary. JJ’s is one of my favorite restaurants. This pale ale purchased at the restaurant. This beer pours an orange color with a one-finger white head. The aroma is hoppy, orange-scented, and bitter. The flavor is lightly pine, orange, grapefruit, bitter, and hoppy. The mouthfeel is medium. Then this Decaphonic Pale Ale finishes hoppy and bitter, more IPA like that pale ale. The aftertaste is bitter, juicy with citrus. This ale is a full-on flavorful pale ale. It is a B+, I think. It does become too much at the end. Its flavor is too much on the taste buds at the end of the pint. I don’t think I could have another right away. It’s not a wrong choice. I would recommend drinking this. Please be kind, stay safe, and remember to enjoy responsibly! Cheers!

Partake Brewing Cherry Gose

Posted on by Evan

We’re back after a break of no reviews! Here is a different kind of beer that I don’t usually review here. This beer is Cherry Gose a non-alcoholic craft beer from Partake brewing. Partake Brewing is in Toronto, Canada. It is a non-alcoholic cat beer brewery. This Cherry Gose pours a pale yellow color with a one-and-half-finger fizzy white head. The head fades quickly into itself. The aroma is a big cherry aroma. But it’s a fake cherry candy scent and not much else there. The flavor is not like its own aroma. It’s light on cherry, and there is light coriander. This beer is thin and weak overall. I thought it was watery as well. It is easy to drink. The mouthfeel is light. Then it has a very light aftertaste and finishes of cherry that fades quickly, leaving a metallic taste in your mouth. The beers smells fine. But it was not a great beer. I give Partake Brewing Cherry Gose a D-. I didn’t get through the entire twelve ounces. I got only to nine and couldn’t finish the last three ounces. It tasted artificial and light. I don’t recommend this. Please be kind, stay safe, and remember to enjoy responsibly! Cheers!

Unibroue La Fin Du Monde

Posted on by Evan

I’ve had La Fin Du Monde (The End of The World), 9% ABV, but it’s been a long time since I’ve had/reviewed it. So I thought I would rereview it. This beer is a Belgian Golden Tripel from Unibroue in Chambly, Québec, Canada. The brewery named the beer the end of the world because explorers, thought ] they had traveled so far north in what is now known as Canada that they had reached the end of the world, La Fin Du Monde, which is French. This ale pours a dark yellow/golden color with a big four-finger bight, pillowy, fluffy, white head. It’s so slow to fade. The aroma is spiced, fruity, floral, and sweet. This ale has honey, and coriander on the nose. The flavor is mildly hoppy with fruit and grains. There is a sweetness. That is probably from the fruit notes or sugar. There is a bitterness in the middle, toward the back of the mouth. The mouthfeel is full but not heavy. Then this beer has a spiced, low bitter finish. The aftertaste is strong and has a tiny bitter note with a hint of sweetness. La Fin Du Monde is so good. I’d give this tripel an A+. If you have not had this Unibroue beer, then your missing out on a magical beer. So yes, I am highly recommending it. It has the best balance of delicious flavors. La Fin Du Monde is the best Belgian golden tripel outside of Belgium. Please be kind, stay safe, and always remember to enjoy responsibly! Cheers!