Night Shift and The North – North by Northeast

Tags

Beer, Beer Review, Everett, Massachusetts, New England, New York, Night Shift Brewing, The North Brewery

Even though the weather suggests my unofficial stout season is at end, I won’t let that stop me from seeking out one of my favorite styles.  I caught this on draft while visiting Night Shift last week and had to give it a try.

Beer Name: North by Northeast

Brewery: Night Shift Brewing Company (Everett, MA) and The North Brewery (Endicott, NY)

Style: Stout

ABV: 5.5%

Description: Since the brewery was kind enough to offer a description I will share that.  They have it listed as a stout brewed with chocolate, salt, and raspberries.  Brewed in collaboration with New York state’s The North Brewery, whom I have admittedly not heard of before.  My 16 oz. pour cost me $6 at the brewery.

Appearance: Deep, dark brown body with a foamy light tan head.

Smell: Notes of light, roasty cocoa.

Taste: Slightly sweet bitter chocolate upfront, followed by roasted malt and a touch of caramel sweetness and salt.  There was also a mildly sweet and tart raspberry presence that drifted on the periphery of the beer when first poured.  After sitting for a bit, the beer settled into a combination of raspberries and roast, with the other elements occasionally sneaking in on the finish.

Mouthfeel: Medium bodied with a light carbonation level.

Hype: I’m always partial to trying out new stouts, but I think that’s about the extent of the hype on this one.

Overall: I’m generally not a huge fan of roastiness in my beers, but something about this one was really enjoyable.  The addition of raspberry and salt really worked out well here, cutting into the roast a bit and giving the beer an intriguing flavor profile.  Nice brew and a successful collaboration.

Brewery Ommegang – Gnomegeddon Blonde Ale

Tags

Beer, Beer Review, Brewery Ommegang, Craft Beer, New York

This beer came to me via my wife, who surprised me with it after work one day because she’s just that awesome.

Beer Name: Gnomegeddon Blonde Ale

Brewery: Brewery Ommegang (Cooperstown, NY)

Style: Blonde Ale

ABV: 9.5%

Description: I couldn’t find anything on the official brewery website, but a careful reading of the label revealed this to be a blonde ale that underwent secondary fermentation with Brett yeast and got a few months extra conditioning in the bottle before hitting shelves.

Appearance: Poured a dark golden-yellow/almost amber body.  There was fluffy head of slight off-white foam that formed with the pour and lazily bubbled away.

Smell: Sweet upfront, with some linger herbal/floral spices in the back.

Taste: Sweet malts and bubblegum sweetness to start.  From there the beer took on a subtle barnyard funk in the background as banana esters, herbs, and a light peppery yeast came on for the finish.  Very mellow and smooth drinking.

Mouthfeel: Medium-plus bodied and creamy to start.  Ended in a flurry of tiny bubbles.

Hype: Always happy to drink a beer from this brewery.  I don’t seek them out as often as I probably should.

Overall: I really like this, though it did creep up on me a bit.  I started drinking without paying much attention to the label and was well into my second glass before realizing it was 9.5%.  This was a tasty, quality that brew that made for some great drinking on a warm spring evening.

Third Anniversary Imperial IPA – Other Half Brewing Company

Tags

Beer, Beer Review, Brooklyn, Craft Beer, New York, Other Half Brewing Company

I am probably fashionably late in celebrating this occasion, but I figure I’m OK since this wasn’t exactly a personal milestone.

Beer Name: Third Anniversary Imperial IPA

Brewer: Other Half Brewing Company (Brooklyn, NY)

Style: DIPA

ABV: 10.0%

Description: I’ll just come out and say it: I got lazy this time.  Given the lack of clear and easy to locate official information about this release I went to Beer Advocate for my description.  This triple dry-hopped features “copious” amounts of Citra, Motueka, Galaxy, Simcoe, and Citra Lupulin powder.  The can was dated 01/27/2017.

Appearance: The body was a hazy, juice-like yellow/orange color.  A thin, foamy white head sat up top.

Smell: Lots and lots of tropical fruit sweetness with a touch of bitterness in the background.

Taste: Bursting with fruit upfront, lead by pineapple, mango, and apricot.  A sweet and piney bitterness gradually built up toward the end and lingers for a bit after the sip.  There was also a hint of bready malts underneath this all, giving the flavors a nice smoothness which gave absolutely no indication of the higher ABV.

Mouthfeel: Medium, slightly creamy body with a moderate carbonation level.  Finish was a little bit sticky.

Hype: It sounded like there was a ton of hype around this release, which I guess is to be expected when a popular brewery makes a special release these days.  Based on the ratings I saw in the link above, it looks this was well received.

Overall: Very impressive.  Something about this beer just made it really relaxing to sit down and drink it.  It managed to impart all the juicy highlights of the style without being overly aggressive in the process.  

Other Half Brewing Company/Industrial Arts Brewing Company – Nummy Nug Nug

Tags

Beer, Beer Review, Craft Beer, Industrial Arts Brewing Company, New York, Other Half Brewing Company

My wife and I had friends in town last weekend and during their time here we shared a some great brews.  Being the awesome people that they are, I also ended up with a few treats from the Mid-Atlantic region left behind in my beer fridge.  Guess I know what I’ll be drinking for my next few posts.

Beer Name: Nummy Nug Nug

Brewer: Other Half Brewing Company (Brooklyn, NY) / Industrial Arts Brewing Company (Garnerville, NY)

Style: DIPA

ABV: 8.3%

Description: It was tough to track down an official description of this release, so I’ll start out with the obvious statement that this was a collaboration between two New York State brewers.  You can get a bit more of that story from Instagram.  It looks like there were two canning runs of this, mine coming from the initial 01/27/2017 batch.

Appearance: Cloudy yellow/orangish amber body underneath a fluffy white layer of foam.

Smell: A whole lot of sweet tropical fruits.  I picked up on mango, apricot, and pineapple in particular.

Taste: There was a haze of dank, bitter piney hops that hung over this beer right from the start.  It began somewhat mildly and steadily built up to giving a bit of bite on the end of each sip.  Underneath this was a subtle tropical fruit and melon sweetness, along with some light bready malts.  On the finish, the hops were joined by grapefruit bitterness and a touch of heat that maintained itself at a pretty low-level throughout the pour.

Mouthfeel: Medium-plus body, with a moderate amount of carbonation that was most noticeable towards the end of each sip.

Hype: Elevated.  Other Half seem to have, rightly so from my experiences, Trillium levels of excitement within their sphere of influence and a collaboration beer is especially interesting.  I also know that the person who gave me this doesn’t mess around with her beer, giving me another reason to be excited.

Overall: I suppose I ended up coming across this brew a bit later than a lot of other people drinking or reviewing it, but that didn’t stop me from really enjoying it.  I was actually a bit surprised by the taste, I had gone in expecting a juice-bomb based and ended up with something a bit more balanced.  Sure the hops were on the aggressive side, but never to the point that they were overbearing, leaving the beer somehow more balanced than not despite the relative subtlety of the other flavors.  Overall a very nice brew that maintained my opinion of Other Half and made me really curious to try out something from Industrial Arts.

 

Sixpoint Brewery – Resin

Tags

Beer, Beer Review, Craft Beer, DIPA, New York, Sixpoint Brewery

The last round of work beer brought me back to another old favorite.  We’ve been drinking some real gems lately and I must say that it has been refreshing to take a slight break from all those “New England Style” IPAs I’d been going through the last few months.

Beer Name: Resin

Brewer: Sixpoint Brewery (New York, NY)

Style: DIPA

ABV: 9.1%

Description: According to the brewery, this beer is best “loosely” described as a double IPA that makes use of hops at their peak maturity to impart as much sticky, resiny goodness as possible.  The six-pack of skinny 12 oz. cans cost $15.99 at the convenience store by our office, which I suspect is a touch high even for the area.

Appearance: Poured a see-through copper body topped by a bubbly off-white head.

Smell: Sticky sweet and resinous.

Taste: Caramel malts give this beer a nice sweetness underneath a huge dose of pine sap bitterness.  There is a hint of alcohol in there, especially towards the finish, with some bready malts that can be picked up at colder temperatures.  Packs a balanced yet intense sweet, bitter, boozy punch.

Mouthfeel: A creamy body left this feeling a touch on the thicker side.  The sticky finish accentuated both hops and sweetness nicely, as did a pretty moderate level of carbonation.

Hype: There’s no doubting that this beer and brewery have a solid reputation, but people don’t exactly go crazy over it.

Overall: Strong, but very good.  The brewers went all in on going big with this one, and it paid off.  Each flavor in this beer was intense, but in a way that ultimately achieved a nice balance.  Good pickup and a pleasure to drink.

Other Half Brewing Company – Broccoli

Tags

Beer, Beer Review, Brooklyn, Craft Beer, New York, Other Half Brewing Company

Checking in with the final review from my New Jersey haul.  Feeling very fortunate to have received so much great beer this past holiday season.

Beer Name: Broccoli

Brewer: Other Half Brewing Company (Brooklyn, NY)

Style: DIPA

ABV: 7.9%

Description: We’re 3 for 3 in having to go to social media for more info on my Mid-Atlantic brews.  Per Instagram, this Imperial IPA was brewed with a mix of Mosaic, Simcoe, Hallertau Blanc and Cascade hops.  My can was dated 12/15/2016 and I opened almost exactly one month later.

Appearance: Poured a hazy yellowish-orange body with a thick white foamy head that left some impressive lacing on the sides of the glass as I drank the beer down.

Smell: Juicy sweetness backed up by a sticky hop bitterness.

Taste: Lots of tropical fruit upfront, with mango standing out pretty clearly above more mellow hints of pineapple, melon, and perhaps a bit of grapefruit that snuck in.  The finish brought on a strong mix of grassy bitterness beneath a mostly sticky and resinous hop profile.  While not overly boozy, this did taste pretty much on par with the ABV.

Mouthfeel: Medium bodied overall, the beer managed to feel sticky, creamy, and fluffy all at once.  The carbonation level was moderate and the playful bubbles really accentuated the various tastes quite nicely.

Hype: Elevated.  I tend to equate this brewery with Trillium in my mind, probably in no small part due my first experiences with them outside of a beer festival having been a collaboration between the two.

Overall: Very good beer, one that I would appropriately enough put on par with my last few Trillium offerings.  I’ve been absolutely spoiled in the DIPA department this past month.

Other Half – !, an Imperial IPA

Tags

Beer, Beer Review, Craft Beer, New York, Other Half Brewing Company

Here we are with another offering from Brooklyn, NY’s Other Half Brewing Company.  This was a leftover gift beer from a few weeks ago; the demands of raising an infant and severe seasonal allergies prolonged the can’s life for a little bit longer than I had originally anticipated.

Beer Name: !

Brewer: Other Half Brewing Company

Style: Double IPA

ABV: 8.3%

Description: I had to do a bit of work on this one.  In addition to naming the beer something nearly unsearchable, the brewery apparently doesn’t do descriptions on their website.  I was, however, finally able to track down an Instagram post in which they shed some light on the situation.  Featuring Nelson Sauvin, Wai-iti and Topaz hops, they called it a New Zealand juice bomb.  Canned on date was 7/28/2016.

Appearance: Poured out a hazy golden-yellow, ever so slightly amber body that was in real life a bit lighter than the picture above suggests.  A bubbly white foam gradually settled in across the top.

Smell: Lots of juicy tropical fruits, from both the can and the glass.

Taste: There was a mellow melon taste up front that got quickly overcome by an aggressively bitter boozy quality.  The finish was rather dry, allowing tastes of grapefruit, lemon zest, and earthy/floral hop resin to take over.  Without a significant malt or fruit presence to stand up to it, the bitterness easily dominated the beer and its aftertaste.

Mouthfeel: Medium, juicy body with a slightly more than moderate amount of carbonation.

Hype Factor: I always appreciate a gift beer, especially one from a well-regarded brewery that I wouldn’t be able to try otherwise.

Overall: This might not have been the beer for me.  The bitter finish was a bit astringent for my taste and I’m not sure it mixed well with the booziness.  Hardcore hop heads might really go for it, but I thought this one ended up being a bit much.  Definitely see where they got the name from though.

Summer Session: Other Half Brewing Company – Baby Diamonds

Tags

Beer, Beer Review, Craft Beer, New York, Other Half Brewing Company, Session, Summer Session

With the unofficial end of summer approaching I wanted to make sure I got in at least one more session beer before the season changed and fall seasonals take over the shelves.  This next one was a very timely gift from friends that just so happened to have a very relevant name.

Beer Name: Baby Diamonds

Brewer: Other Half Brewing Company

Style: Session IPA

ABV: 4.8%

Description: Listed as a smaller, session version the brewery’s Green Diamonds double IPA, this offering features Galaxy and Amarillo hops.  I gave it the usual snifter glass treatment, with a few leftover sips coming right out of the can.

Appearance: It poured a hazy (but of course) golden-yellow body with some tinges of amber underneath a thin layer of white foam.

Smell: Bursts of sticky sweet tropical fruit the instant the can was popped open.  The aromas were more subdued in the glass, but pretty intense upon first opening the can.

Taste: The taste continued where the smell left off, starting out with tropical fruits that quickly blended into a strong mixture of earthy and piney bitterness.  Going into the finish the beer picked up more of a bready malt and grapefruit character that subtly changed the nature of the underlying sweetness.  The hops lingered throughout, so much so that they left a lingering aftertaste.

Mouthfeel: Medium sticky body with a moderate amount of carbonation.

Hype Factor: I always hear a lot of great things about Other Half, but I so rarely get to try any of their beers.  It sounds like their releases can be in pretty high demand as well, so additional thanks to the friends who hooked me up with this.

Overall: An aggressively hopped beer that had all the taste and mouthfeel of a much larger DIPA.  As such, I’m not sure how sessionable I would consider this on my palate, but it definitely was tasty.  All I can say is that it’s bigger brother, Green Diamonds, must be one hell of a beer.  I recommend this for sure if you can get it, though I wouldn’t plan on making a day out of drinking these unless you need to fulfill a serious hop fix with your session brews.

Summer Session: Collaboration Edition – Trillium & Evil Twin’s Trillikini IPA

Tags

Beer, Beer Review, Collaboration, Evil Twin Brewing, Massachusetts, New England, New York, Trillium Brewing Company

I’ll admit that this beer was a complete impulse buy.  I did not know about this release until the morning it went up for sale and made a last-minute decision to see if I could pick up some cans during my lunchtime walk.  Luckily for me, at the time I stopped by the brewery there was no line to speak of and I got in and out in the time it took to process my payment.  Since session beers are going to be my running theme for the near future (hopefully more on that soon) I couldn’t have asked for a luckier trip.

Beer Name: Stray Dog Lager

Brewer: Trillium Brewing Company/Evil Twin Brewing

Style: Session IPA

ABV: 3.3%

Description: For their first canned beer release, Trillium teamed up with Brooklyn, NY brewers Evil Twin to create what sounds like the ultimate session IPA in celebration of the first day of summer.  As usual, the full details are available on Trillium’s website.  The can I drank for this review was poured into one of my trusty snifter glasses and came in a four pack at a cost of $13.

Appearance: It had a hazy golden/straw yellow body topped off by a fluffy white head.

Smell: A juicy mix of citrus fruits and sweet-scented hops.

Taste: Similar to the smell, the front end of the beer was packed full of sweet fruits; I got a mix of peaches, grapefruit, and perhaps a bit orange zest.  The finish brought forth a dank, resinous, yet also slightly sweet hoppy bitterness atop a crisp grainy and biscuity malt presence.  Bold and assertive throughout, this beer packed all the punch flavor-wise of a much larger brew.

Mouthfeel: Medium bodied with a nice fluffy character to start, it took on a juice-like thickness towards the finish with some tingly bubbles from the moderate carbonation.

Hype Factor: New Trillium releases always seem to come with a certain amount of hype and excitement attached.  Not sure a session IPA commands quite the same levels as a DIPA three times its ABV, but this is beer appeared to be exactly what I have been looking for these days.  It also seems like Eccentrica Gallumbits herself may have endorsed this brew judging by the label.

Overall: An exceptional beer in any category, this is now my new favorite session IPA.  I can’t believe they packed all that flavor into a beer that is a super mellow 3.3%.  Once again, Trillium delivered an outstanding hop-forward beer that I am really glad I got a chance to try.

Summer Session: SingleCut Billy 18 Watt IPA

Tags

Beer, Beer Review, New York, Session, SingleCut Beersmiths, Summer

It’s just about that time of the year for me to start thinking about session beers.  These friendly, refreshing, low-ABV offerings seem to have become quite a thing in the last year or two and for a variety of reasons now is the perfect time for me to start getting into them.  Appropriately enough, I had my first official session beer of the year on a hot, humid 90 degree day while enjoying a burger and some shaded patio seating at a local restaurant.

Beer Name: Billy 18 Watt IPA

Brewer: SingleCut Beersmiths

Style: Session IPA

ABV: 5.0%

Description: The brewers (and the beer menu) described this as a sessionable IPA packed full of “all the orange zest, pine and tropical lupulin crunch you demand.”  Sounded good to me.  I got to try this on tap and it was served in a snifter glass.

Appearance: It had a golden pale straw body with a thin bubbly head that left some wispy white lacing across the top and sides.

Smell: Sweet citrus fruit aroma with an underlying bitterness.

Taste: There was a refreshing blend of citrus and tropical sweetness upfront, accompanied by a surprisingly bold piney hoppiness that got enhanced by just a touch of orange zest.  On the finish the sweetness faded a bit and was replaced by a light, biscuity malt taste.  Very well executed.

Mouthfeel: Medium bodied with a moderate amount of carbonation, just about what you would expect for the style.

Hype Factor: I had heard some good things about this brewery recently and was wanting to try something on the lighter side when I saw this on the menu.  Seemed like it was meant to be.

Overall: I really enjoyed this beer and got out of it exactly what I hoped for.  It had a lot of flavor and was really refreshing to drink, especially outside.  Would definitely order this again and also consider picking up some for home if I see it around.  Excellent brew regardless of how it is categorized.