Category: Beer Review

Brewelist Advent Calendar Day 25: DuClaw Brewing Company Sweet Baby Jesus

Here we are, on the final day of the Brewelist Advent Calendar! It’s been a full twenty-five days of games, beer and sharing, which is what the season is all about.

The beer that inspired this entire project is about to be reviewed – Sweet Baby Jesus from DuClaw Brewing Company. So steal a few seconds, grab a cold one and read on.

Where to find it: Mid Atlantic Region Supermarkets, Beer Shops, Gas Stations, etc.

ABV: 6.2%

Style: Porter

Availability: Year-Round

Taste/Smell: The beer smells and tastes like dark chocolate. If you remember the dark chocolate Reese’s cups, that’s pretty much what it’s like. The beer is thick and dark and offers both flavors without being sweet at all. You may be left with some bitter notes but they do not detract from the overall flavor.

Rating (out of 10): 9/10

Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays and Happy New Year from the Brewelist Crew!

JackieLeave a comment

Brewelist Advent Calendar Day 24: Ellicottville Brewing Co.’s Lloyds Christmas Ale

Lloyd’s Christmas Ale – Festively brewed ale with fresh ginger and fig.

Where to find it: They distribute locally near the brewery and to select locations in New York and Pennsylvania. You can find their distribution map here: http://www.ellicottvillebrewing.com/find-us/find-our-breweries-retailers-and-distributors/

ABV: 8%

Style: Belgian Brown Ale

Availability: seasonally in the winter

Taste/Smell: Smell- this had a very light and airy smell with a hint of ginger. Not a lot of extra flavor going on here. You can get some of the fig, just because it’s a unique flavor that isn’t normally in beer. The ginger was there, but just as a slight “bite” on your tongue.

Rating (out of 10): 7 out of 10 but this is the first year they’ve released it, so expect some tweaking of the recipe in the years to come.

Lloyds Christmas Ale

Brian Beer God: Please follow me on Facebook and on my website to see more great pictures and read more reviews on your favorite brews.

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Brewelist Advent Calendar Day 19: Blue Point Brewing Company Blueberry Ale

I first had this beer over the Summer, when fruity beer and shandys are all the rage. I had wanted to try something that was imbued with Blueberry flavoring, as it’s one of my favorite fruits and why not just mix it into alcohol? After trying a lot of disappointing offerings, I came across the Blue Point Brewing Company Blueberry Ale and just loved it. I had one and then went out and bought a six pack. It has the right kind of fruit to malt ratio that it’s competitors didn’t offer. As of right now, I have not found a better Blueberry beer.

Brewery Name/Location: Blue Point Brewing Company, Long Island NY

ABV: 4.60%

Style: Frut/Vegetable Beer

Where to find: Your local beer Store

When to find: Seasonal

Taste/Smell: Tastes like a blueberry pie and smells like your grandma’s house if she was someone who baked pies. Otherwise it just smells like a nice bake shop.

Rating (out of 10): 9/10

Blue Point Brewing Company Blueberry Ale

Casey BowkerLeave a comment

Brewelist Advent Calendar Day 23 – Naught Reawakening and Silversmith Brewing Black Lager

On the 23rd day of Advent, we bring you Naught Awakening and Black Lager from Silversmith Brewing! This episode of the podcast goes through an unusual pairing of craft beer and indie game. Enjoy the episode below and let us know what you think!

Grab the game on STEAM or on Mobile devices and the brew exclusively at Silversmith Brewing.

Check our Facebook page for updates, along with our Twitter and Instagram. We also have an UnTappd account where you can see what we’re drinking; and you can catch us on iTunes for your listening pleasure.

Any ideas you have for a game to play and a drink to go along with it? Email us: brewelist@gmail.com.

Stay Thirsty and Play Indie!

~Casey and Jackie

JackieLeave a comment

Brewelist Advent Calendar Day 21: Kona Brewing Company Pipeline Porter

Beer: Pipeline Porter

Brewery Name/Location: Kona Brewing Company, Hawaii

ABV: 5.3%

Style: Porter

Where to find: Beers of The World, Wegmans

Taste/Smell: Rich Earth flavor, with a light coffee scent.

Thoughts: When my company sent me on a day trip to California I found a brewing company called Kona Brewing Company and had some of the most amazing beer I have ever had with Koko Brown. I hunted and hunted for it in Rochester with no luck before finding Kona’s Longboard Lager which was a good beer from this company. Viewing Kona’s selection this winter I was excited to find they brought a new beer to the Rochester area, the Pipeline Porter. This may be the best beer from Kona yet, made using coffee beans from Kona Coffee, which may be the best coffee bean out there. The coffee flavor is quite strong and earth, but really makes this beer a great porter from the Kona Brewing Company. One things for sure, Hawaii sure knows how to do drinks right, so take some time to grab a 6 pack and your longboard, and go ride the pipeline.

Rating (out of 10): 9/10

 

By: Jake Duell, @snakesbeard

JackieLeave a comment

Brewelist Advent Calendar Day 18: Flying Bison’s Bison Warmer

Where to find it: They distribute locally near the brewery and to Western, NY. Outside of that their distribution is unknown (not listed on their website)

ABV: n/a

Style: Winter Warmer

Availability: seasonally in the winter

Taste/Smell: Lots of malts going on with this. But that’s typical of a winter warmer. A slight roastiness with a lot of background flavors going on here I can’t pinpoint.

Rating (out of 10): 8 out of 10

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Brian Beer God: Please follow me on Facebook and on my website to see more great pictures and read more reviews on your favorite brews.

Casey BowkerLeave a comment

Brewelist Advent Calendar Day 15: Uinta Yard Sale Winter Lager

Beer: Yard Sale

Brewery Name/Location: Uinta Brewing, Salt Lake City, UT

ABV: 4%

Style: Winter Lager

Where to find: Beers of The World, Wegmans

Taste/Smell: Light hints of winter flavors like vanilla and caramel in both taste and smell.

Thoughts: After fall comes the winter beers which may be even better than the fall beers. Usually I like my beers dark, closer to stouts. However being an amber lager this beer falls into the darker category of lagers. This is a delicious beer that paired very well with my pasta and meatballs, and I have also had it with steak and potatoes. I could very easily see myself downing a six pack in front of a fire on a cold snowy day. According to Uinta’s website the term Yard Sale is when you fall off your skis and all your gear falls all over the mountain. So this winter take a chance to fall down the mountain and take a sip of the Yard Sale.

Rating (out of 10): 9/10

Submitted by Jake Duell

JackieLeave a comment

Brewelist Advent Calendar Day 14: Shmaltz Brewing Company – He’Brew Messiah Nut Brown Ale

messiah-bottle-and-label

Not to leave out our friends who are celebrating Hanukkah at this time of year, I picked up a Shmaltz Brewing Company He’Brew Messiah Nut Brown Ale.

At 5.2%, it’s a beer that’s good for socializing. It tastes like a brown ale, nothing fancy. It feels fairly thick on the tongue and pours a caramel brown color.

It’s also Kosher certified.

Where to find it: Supermarkets, Beer Shops

ABV: 5.2%

Style: Brown Ale

Availability: Rotating

Taste/Smell: Tastes like a brown beer. Smooth, not too hoppy. Slight notes of nut flavor and pours a caramel brown.

Rating (out of 10): 8/10

JackieLeave a comment

Brewelist Advent Calendar Day 10: Three Heads Brewing Bromigo Smoked Maple Amber Ale

I was excited to taste the Bromigo Smoked Maple Amber Ale because who doesn’t like the combination of Maple Syrup and Bacon? It’s the perfect breakfast blend, and even though I was drinking this in the evening; breakfast for dinner is one of the best things ever. I was warned at the bar that I wasn’t going to like it, and they were absolutely right. I usually am a fan of the stuff that Three Heads Brewing puts out, but I could not get into this beer. Maybe my expectations for ‘breakfast in a glass’ were a bit high, but I was very let down. Putting a piece of bacon in this drink would definitely help, but it wouldn’t revolutionize the drink.

Where to Find it:  Three Heads Brewing Company, Honeoye Falls, NY

ABV: 7%

Style: Smoked Beer

Availability: Seasonal

Taste/Smell: Smells like smoked maple syrup. It tastes like bacon, if it were very bitter. It lingers with a hint of smokiness, not leaving the tongue for a while.

Rating (out of 10): 6/10

Casey BowkerLeave a comment

Brewelist Advent Calendar Day 8: Troegs Independent Brewing Mad Elf Ale

Where to find it: They distribute in the following states: CT, DC, DE, MA, MD, NC , NJ, NY, OH, PA and VA. Locally Wegmans usually carries this.

ABV: 11%

Style: Belgian Strong Dark Ale

Availability: seasonally in the winter

Taste/Smell: Belgian yeast smell (it’s a very specific smell). Also hints of cherry/sweetness. Taste is a punch on the tongue of flavor. Lots of Belgian candied malts, a hint of honey and a good amount of cherry flavor (but this isn’t sweet by any means)

Pairing: Be sure to pair this brew with Viscera Cleanup Detail: Santa’s Rampage. Find it HERE.

Rating (out of 10): 10 out of 10 but be warned – it is 11% so only take this out if your family is getting hard to deal with this holiday season!

Troegs Mad Elf Ale

Brian Beer God: Please follow me on Facebook and on my website to see more great pictures and read more reviews on your favorite brews.

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