Devious Imperial Pumpkin Ale

Brewer : Bethlehem Brew Works (Penn.)
Style : Pumpkin Ale
ABV : 9%

With Thanksgiving being last week I though it be only right to break open my last bottle of Pumpkin ale of the year to help wash down some dessert. I had heard about this pumpkin beer from a fellow beer lover CrazyCatLady who stated that it was a must try for a pumpkin beer lover such as myself. 
I had recently tried the regular version of this beer and was planning on comparing notes side by side but for some reason or another that didn't happen, but I my mind is pretty sharp and I could easily tell the difference between the two.
This version, the imperial, had a good amount of spice and nutmeg in the aroma, but not enough to blow me away. The color was darker then the normal version and there seemed to be much more foam when poured into my Dogfish snifter. The flavor had a good amount of pumpkin and spice, but yet again, nothing that really blew me away. Everything else, the carbonation and head retention, seemed fairly good, but then again I don't pay that much attention to the carbonation and head retention. 
All in and all the pumpkin beers for this year were 50/50. Some were outstanding and others were not. My top 2 pumpkin beers this year would have to be:
1.TREAT by Midnight Sun
2.Southern Tier Pumking 

This one was a good attempt, better then most, but still nothing super special, but I'm glad that I was able to try it.

Grade B

 

Cascade Kriek Ale

Brewer : Cascade Brewing Co. (Oregon)
Style : Sour/Wild Ale
ABV : 6.6%

First off I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving and got their fill on turkey and such. I for one know I did, probably a little too much. I was fortunate enough to celebrate Thanksgiving twice. Once down here in Lighthouse Point with my parents and again up in Port Orange with my girlfriends family. I love going up to Port Orange to escape the madness of South Florida, plus they get a lot of different beers that we don't get. I was lucky enough to snag a bottle of Cigar City Seabass while I was up there, which I will probably trade away, but who knows, I might get greedy and just keep it for myself. 

While in Port Orange I decided to check out more of the local beer scenes that are within close proximity of where I was staying. The Abbey in Deland has been a place I've heard a lot about so I decided to check it out, and the entire family, all 8 of us, decided to make the 30 minute drive together. I'll save the Abbey experience for another blog, but I  will go into the gem of a beer I got to try while I was there.

I walked in the Abbey and immediately saw the bottle of Cascade Kriek calling my name. I've been big into sour beers lately so I knew I couldn't pass this up. The bottle was a little pricey, but how often do I get to taste a great sour beer in Deland? 
Simply put this beer was just outstanding. Super intense sour flavors. It was almost like biting into a Jolly Rancher. The fruity, tart flavors just made the cheeks and lips pucker with joy. I took the liberty of pouring everyone a small sample to see their reactions. The reaction was probably 50/50, which is just about what I expected. They aren't beer people, but I love spreading the love around. 
I will definitely be getting this one again.

Grade A++

 

Trout River Knight Slayer

Brewer : Trout River Brewing (Vermont)
Style : Imperial Stout
ABV : 9.5%

Big imperial stouts are probably one of my biggest achillies heel when it  comes  to beer. One of my first imperial stout moments would have to be my first Dogfish World Wide Stout. Though I'd never had a beer with such a high ABV before that I remember getting a dose of chocolate flavor. From then on I guess I was just plane hooked on stouts in general.
This one was an extra in a trade, and a very generous one at that. I was told that up until a few weeks ago this stout was only available on draft at the brewery and a few select high end beer joints in Vermont. I had the pleasure of sharing this one with Mike from www.mikelovesbeer.com and I'm glad I did because he shared some insight on the flavor that I may not have caught. 

The pour was completely pitch black, with an almost syrup texture to it. There's a good amount of coffee bean in the aroma, which I always love, swiftly followed by dark chocolate, my favorite combo in stouts. The flavor has a good amount of dark malts, but with a milky/lactose taste that Mike pointed out. If he hadn't of mentioned it I probably wouldn't have noticed it. I'm still learning a lot about detecting flavors on the palate. 

It was a great beer to say the least. A good after dinner sipping outside with a big fat cigar type of stout. 

Grade A

Brew Works Pumpkin Ale

Brewer : Brew Works (Pennsylvania)
Style : Pumpkin Ale
ABV : 5%

The pumpkin beer season is not over yet, for me at least. Not till the last piece of turkey has been consumed and the last piece of pumpkin pie feasted upon will I officially change my view towards Christmas beers. That might be a bit extreme actually. I've already got my eyes on a Christmas beer I missed out on last year, or just didn't get around to trying. You might know it as the St. Bernardus Christmas Ale. I've heard lots of good things and I've located a few bottles in some of the local stores, so it's only a matter of time. 

This bottle from Brew Works, Pumpkin Ale, was actually a side thought because I was initially after the Imperial Pumpkin Ale from Brew Works, but the trader suggested I try the normal Pumpkin Ale as well, and I couldn't refuse. With that being said, I hope the Imperial Pumpkin holds a lot more of the pumpkin flavor than the regular pumpkin ale. 
The color holds true to most pumpkin ales I've tried this year, darkish orange with a very thin head. Little to no foam collects in the glass. The aroma was on the spicier side but missed a lot of the pumpkin/nutmeg. With not a whole lot of pumpkin in the aroma I didn't expect there to be much pumpkin in the flavor and I turned out to be right. The flavor was malty and spicy with a little bit of nutmeg in there, but sadly, only a little  bit  of pumpkin. Needless to say I was less then impressed with this one.
My last few attempts at pumpkin beers as come up short, but hopefully Brew Works can redeem themselves when I crack open the Imperial Pumpkin Ale in a few days. 

Grade C

Ithaca Flower Power IPA

Brewer : Ithaca Brewing Co. (New York)
Style : IPA
ABV : 7.5%

So Saturday is upon us and what better way to start the day then with a nice IPA before all the college football begins. That actually makes me think of a question : If your watching football all day, college or pro, what style of beer could you easily drink throughout the day and not get bored of it?
I love imperial stouts, but they do tend to fill me up much quicker then any other style. Pumpkin beers are another favorite of mine, and I know that many of my fellow beer friends despise them, but those too can get boring after a while. I'd have narrow my selection down to two styles.
1.IPA
2.Sour/Wild

I don't have any sour's on hand for today, but I do have a pretty good IPA.
This one was shared with Mike last weekend. It seems as though a majority of the IPA's I've been having lately are coming my way through extra's in trades and if there's one thing better then buying a good beer it's getting a good beer for free. 

I'll keep this review brief and to the point. This IPA had many good qualities you would typically find in a good beer. A good goldish brown color, not too dark but still nice to look at, with a bubbly head. Hoppy aroma's but with a strong malt backing. Good mouth feel and good balance of flavors. And not to forget easily to drink. The ABV is 7.5% so you might want to take it a little bit easy. Just drink some water in between and you should be fine. 

Cheers and enjoy the  football today

Grade B

Mikkeller/Brewdog I Hardcore You

Brewer : Mikkeller (Denmark)/ Brewdog (Scotland)
Style :  Double IPA
ABV : 9.5%

So it's Friday, which always brings a smile to my face, but tomorrow I have to work (bring in the soft violin music), so I decided I review a beer from a brewer that has yet to let me down.......
Who might you ask? Mikkeller of course. This one is actually a collaboration with Brewdog brewery out of Scotland who make some really great beer as well. 
I had my good friend Mike from MikeLovesBeer over this Saturday to try out some beer and I decided it was a good time to break this one out. I've slowly been trying to convert others over towards Mikkeller. Well not covert, but more or less show them the light. Everyone has a brewery or brewer their particular to and Mikkeller just happens to be mine. 

 The color on this baby just seemed perfect and very inviting. Dark brown tints with a fluffy head that quickly disappeared. A large amount of hops prevail in the aroma swiftly followed by citrus, such as grapefruit. The flavor is somewhat over consumed by the hop presence but you get a good amount of the malt backing with a sweet, but bitter finish. Well balanced and easily drinkable. Anyone who likes DIPA's would easily drink this beer and be completely satisfied. Maybe that's a bit of a pretentious statement, but it's a damn good DIPA in my opinion. 

Grade A

 

Allagash Confluence Ale

Brewer : Allagash Brewing Co. (Maine)
Style : Belgian Ale
ABV : 7.4%

Allagash has been good to me in so many ways. I remember 2 years ago when I visited Maine with my girlfriend and her family. The streets were carved from brick and the port constantly gives off the ocean smell, plus the cooler weather. We went in the summer, but it was still nice and chilly. But the best part was getting off the airplane and grabbing a lobster roll at a restaurant in downtown Portland. I didn't know anything about Allagash at the time, but I checked out the draft list and said "I'll have an Allagash." Could have been one of the best decisions I've made. Lobster roll and an Allagash beer, life couldn't get any better at that moment. 

Since that time there have been highs and lows for Allagash in the South Florida area. I've got to try a good portion of what they offer down here, that would be the highs. The lows would be the fact that Allagash is being pulled from the South Florida beer market, as many of you may or may not know. So getting hold of hard to come by Allagash beers has become somewhat of a quest for me. 

This one, Allagash Confluence, sort of had me a little bit confused. I get a majority of my beer info from two sites. RateBeer and BeerAdvocate . One site had it listed as a Belgian Ale and the other had it listed as a Wild Ale. I didn't know what to make of this conundrum of sorts so I let the beer do the talking.

The color was pretty light, but with light goldish tints. It had a very thin, bubbly head but quickly said bye bye after a short period of time. There were very faint sour aromas going. Possibly a little bit of lemon zest, but mostly a lot of belgian yeast prevailed in the aroma. The flavor was just like the aroma, belgian yeast, but with a little bit of tartness to it. 

What style do I consider it to be. Well it has some sour qualities but not enough to bare the name Wild Ale. I'd go more with Belgian Ale myself. The yeast really came through a lot more then the sour tartness. A good enjoyable, sipping beer. 

Grade B

 

The Dogfather

Brewer : Laughing Dog Brewery (Idaho)
Style : Imperial Stout
ABV : 10.85%

This was another one I shared with friends on Friday night. Sometimes I stroll through Total Wine Ft. Lauderdale not really looking for anything in particular and I find something on my want list. This was one of those occasions. I knew that The Dogfather was from Laughing Dog, which we (South Florida beer scene) just picked up, but I didn't know that we were gonna get any of this as soon as we did. I was planning on making a trade for this in the future, but screw all that mess now. Saving time and money, my two favorite things. With that being said let me describe this delicious brew........


750ml bottles are great, but I always need a wing man to help me finish it. Lucky for me I had 3 Friday night. 4 people total is probably the limit for a bomber. Everyone gets a fair share, probably less then 12oz, that's for sure, but a fair share none the less.
The pour is pitch black with a light brown bubbly head. The aroma has dark chocolate malt notes with subtle hints of coffee bean. The taste is a little sweet with a good amount of malt backing, with a medium body to it. It was a good drink, and everyone seemed to be pleased with it, but I suppose after seeing The Ferm and Crazy Cat Lady on DosBeerigos rate this one and really like it I guess I was expecting a little bit more. It's still a great beer, don't get me wrong, but it was lacking a little...I don't what. 


Grade A

What happened to Monday!?

I apologize for not posting anything Monday. I was tied up with school and work and other things of that nature, but hopefully that won't  happen again.
Well Friday rolled around last week and I was super  pumped to  crack open the cellar to pull out some gems, or what I hoped to be gems, since 90% of the beer in the cellar are  beers I haven't tried yet. Believe it or not much happens on a Friday night these days. By the time I'm done with work I just want to re charge my  batteries on the couch with  some beers. So last Friday  being one of those types of days I had my fellow beer drinkers come over, that being my brother and Pat, since that are in close proximity and don't do too much on Friday either. 
We opened up a few bottles that night, most of them I'll get to in the next few days, but this one I was pretty excited about. 


Brewer : Dogfish Head (Delaware)
Style  : Belgian White
ABV : 5%


I've come to admire Dogfish and Sam Calagione for his out of the box thinking towards beer and the ingredients use, but I didn’t really know what to expect from this one, so I went in with an open mind. It had a good amount of spicy, dried fruit in the aroma, which I  was pleasantly surprised by since the color was very light and the body was just as light. If I  had done my research I would have known that Belgian White beers are typically lighter in color, but then again I enjoy being surprised every now and again. The carbonation was pretty strong, which is one of those things I look for in a beer, unless it's a big stout, like  say Marshal Zukhov. 
All in all everyone seemed to enjoy it, which is probably what I liked most about it. I hate, well not always, pulling  out a beer that only I find enjoyable. I try to spread the love around. 

Grade A

Captain Lawrence Captain's Reserve DIPA

Brewer : Captain Lawrence Brewing Co. (New York)
Style : Double IPA
ABV : 8%

Well Friday is finally here, thank God, and that means it's time to crack  open some more brews to rate, but before that can happen let's talk about a good DIPA from Captain Lawrence. 
I got this a few weeks ago as an extra in a trade. Now I don't know any about Captain Lawrence Brewing Co. besides the Smoke from the  Oak porters they make, which I hear are really tasty. 
This was a really good DIPA but something really odd struck me as I poured it into my glass. The color was really light. Similar to any typical lighter beer, well maybe not that light, but pretty frickin' light. I went to take a whiff thinking that it might not hold too much quality but I was pretty wrong. 
The aroma was full of hops and malt backing. The foam was pretty thick and held it's own for quite a while. As I took the first sip a lot of the flavors really seemed to spring out from everywhere. It had a little bit of a woody character along with floral hops. The malts gave it a sweet kick to it, but nothing too overpowering. 
Overall it was a very easy sipping, drinkable beer, but I've probably had better. 

Grade B

 

Allagash Hugh Malone

While I'm sitting here waiting for a beer package to arrive, via Fedex, I'll write about the a good Allagash beer I had over the weekend. I'm truly sadden by the news of Allagash being pulled from  the shelves in the South Florida region. They're great beers, but for some reason they just don't seem to fly off the shelves here, as they might in other parts of the state, or country for that matter. While at the Cigar City night at Coffee District in Delray I talked briefly with Adam Fine of Fresh Beer and asked him this question "What's the deal with Allagash being pulled from the South Florida shelves?" And he responded with this question "How often have you gone into a bar and seen Allagash on tap?" I reflected on that for a moment and responded with "I guess I haven't really seen it on tap at all down here." So I suppose of majority of the sales from Allagash are  done with keg sales and bars and such. I mean you can go out to World of Beer and order a bottle of one up no problem,  but I doubt they have any Allagash beers on tap. I can see Adam's point. But lucky enough for me I was able to snag a bottle of Hugh Malone while in Orlando a few months back. It was a little pricey,  but  since Allagash will be harder and harder to come by down south, I figured with was well worth it. 

Brewer : Allagash Brewing (Maine)
Style : Belgian Strong Ale
ABV : 8.5%

Has a darkish pour with a thick, fluffy head. The carbonation is pretty good as is the head retention. The aroma has a good amount of hop presence and the malts aren't shy either. Both the hops and the malts are prevalent in the flavor, which is more on the sweet side, but nothing too too sweet. It was a good sipping beer. I can see this bottle doing really well paired with some seafood,  such as lobster. I mean if  your drinking a beer from Maine you gotta go with the lobster, am I right?


Grade B+

 

Otter Creek Black IPA + Cigar City needs our help!!!

Before I begin with today's review I have just  found out that Cigar City's tasting room in Tampa may be shut  down. This  would  mean no more special events, no  more special tastings, and no selling of  beer from the tasting room.  I, like  many beer drinkers out there, am completely blown away and shocked by this. This post from the Cigar City website goes into greater detail then I can : 

Last Thursday we went to get our temporary wet-zoning made permanent and to extend our hours of operation. Since we have operated for two years without incident this should have been a rubber stamp. But, due to politics, a willful lack of understanding and what I personally believe is just a downright embracing of unfair practices, we got a 3-3 vote (you need 4 yes votes) and had to reschedule.

Our next trip in front of the Tampa City Council will be December 2nd. My birthday. We need 4 votes at this meeting and a following one or we lose our wet-zoning on the 16th of December. This means no more Tasting Room, no more special events, no more limited release parties, no beer for sell, at all, at the Tasting Room.

We have had no incidents at the Tasting Room. There has never been a police call for the brewery. We have never been cited for any violations. In short, we have shown, through our actions not our words, that we are a responsible business and neighbor. And oh by the way, while the economy has been stumbling along we have gone from 2 employees to 22. And some of those employees are in danger of losing their jobs because some members on the city council lack leadership and critical reasoning skills.

I don't know if we can change any minds. Some bias runs too deep. But I am humbly asking of everyone that supports craft beer in the Bay Area to help us. If you ever wondered why Florida is often considered a beer wasteland, dealing with provincial politicians and unfair laws is one of the reasons.  And we have run headlong into that fact many times. This is just another iteration of the climate breweries have to operate in here.

This is what you can do to try to help. Contact ALL of the members of City Council. If you live in the city and vote, tell them so. If you live outside the city or the state, tell them Cigar City Brewing is one of the reasons you come into the city to spend money. In short, let the council know that Tampa having a craft beer scene is important to you. Handwritten letters (addresses are int he links) are always more personal, but if you simply do not have time there is an online contact for each member. And there is a phone # for each member as well. Feel free to call and let the members know that CCB and craft beer are important to you.

These are the three members of Council who voted against us.

Gwen Miller
Thomas Scott
Curtis Stokes

These are those Council members who voted for us, let them know that you appreciate that they looked at evidence and fact and were not swayed by unsubstantiated claims.

Mary Mulhern
Yvonne Yoli Capin
Joseph Caetano

Finally, the member who was absent. Let Charlie Miranda know you support CCB and craft beer and are counting on his yes vote on December 2nd.

Charlie Miranda


I want to thank everyone for their support. When I look back at the last two years and see the growth we have had it both amazes and humbles me. And I know that any success we have had is due to our loyal supporters who buy our beer and spread the word to others. We appreciate and value that support and regret that we must lean on you again, but we truly do need your help again desperately.

Cheers,
The CCB Staff and Joey Redner


If you care at all about Cigar City beer you help by writing to those council members and let them know how  you feel about this situation. 


Brewer : Otter Creek (Vermont)
Style : Black IPA
ABV : ?

I never really heard about, or tasted, any black IPA's until a month or so ago, but since that time I've had the chance to taste a few and I can't seem to get enough. They seem hold a lot of qualities that I love in beer. Creaminess, hoppiness, great aromas, and not to mention taste. 
This one was an extra from SFLpunk, who I've traded with a few times, and always comes through with some great local stuff. This one was a great way to start off my Friday night after a long day at work. From the first pour I got a good amount of roasted malts in the aroma, plus creamy coffee and hops. The body wasn't super heavy, but it wasn't wimpy either. The flavors were a combination of roasted coffee bean and bitter hops, with a touch of malty flavor in there as well. Since this was a 12oz bottle I entertained the idea of keeping it all to myself, but my brother walked into the room and  I had to share the wealth. Overall it was a great tasting beer. 

Grade A

 

Rock Art Imperial Pumpkin Spruce Stout

Brewer : Rock Art Brewery (Vermont)
Style : Imperial Stout
ABV : 8%

Pumpkins, pumpkins, pumpkins. I can't seem to get  enough of them, especially in my beer. I was lucky enough to land a bottle  of this in a trade I made last week with SFLpunk. Most pumpkin beers that  I've tried this year have been somewhat hit or miss. My high has got  to be Midnight Sun TREAT, while unfortunately, this would have to be my low. 
This was another bottle that I shared with my brother and buddy Pat. After cracking the top on the bottle I didn't really catch any aromas straight from the bottle like I normally would  with a strong pumpkin beer. So far not so good. I poured three glasses and inspected mine a little closer. It was definitely dark, that's for sure, but not as dark as a imperial stout should look in my opinion. I stuck my nose in trying to find a hint of pumpkin, but sadly came up with nothing. My brother could see what  I was thinking and said "So how disappointed are you with this one?" How disappointed am I? Well if this were a typical brown ale I would be just fine with it, but since it bares the title of Pumpkin and Imperial stout I definitely was expecting more. 
I finished off the glass and was sort of reluctant to pour another,  but being one not to waste/drain a bottle I finished it off.

Grade C

 

Dogfish Wrath of Pecant

Brewer : Dogfish Head (Delaware)
Style : Brown Ale
ABV : 6%

I have to give mad props to The Ferm over at www.dosbeerigos.com for giving me this hard to find beer for my birthday. I've heard threw the grape vine that this beer has a bacon flavor to it. Now I've had a few brown ales in my time, but I can't say that bacon has really been prevalent in any beer that I've tried. So needless to say I was a bit skeptical, but I was sorely wrong. 
I split the bottle with my brother and buddy Pat Friday night. It seemed to be the right time since the first cold front of the year had come through. The windows of the apartment were open, the AC was turned off, and the breeze was flowing throughout the entire house. I had a pretty good feeling that I was about to be blown away by this beer. 
The aroma had bacon quality to it, but more like maple bacon. As if you were having a stack of pancakes and you have your bacon right next to them. You don't just get the pancakes drenched with syrup, you get the bacon as well. That's sort of the feeling I got. The color wasn't all that brown, in the tradition sense, but I could see plenty of dark browning tints to it. The flavors were sweet and malty, but once the again the maple bacon took center stage here. My brother and Pat were just as blown away by the maple bacon flavor as I was, which is always a good that I had a real winner on my hands with this one.

Grade A

#700!!! Doris The Destroyer

Brewer : Hoppin Frog (Ohio)
Style : Imperial Stout
ABV : 10.5%

Happy Friday everyone out there in cyberspace beer world. Well today's review is somewhat of a milestone in my drinking career. Anyone who reads this and isn't a drinker would probably think "drinking career, ummm, yeah he's an alcoholic". This is not true folks. I limit my intake of beer very strictly, it's how I keep my slim girlish figure. I've got to look good for the ladies, or just lady (Kim) really. Anyways I really enjoyed this beer for a few reasons. Short story. I was sitting around on Saturday waiting for a beer package to arrive and I wanted to get over to my buddy Pat's house to  watch the FL vs. GA game, which we, FL, ending up winning in overtime by a field goal. It was half an hour before kick off and my package arrived in safe condition. I grabbed a few bottles and headed over to his place to relax and crack this bad boy open. I mentioned to Pat that this was my 700th beer and thanks for sharing in on this occasion. He simply responded "700th beer, dude your a fag". That's the Pat I've know forever. Comical and quite condescending, but that's just  how he is. He means well in the long run. So we cracked open the bottle and I poured a round for myself, Pat and his dad. We had a great little talk about Yuengling beer and the  owner Dick Yuengling. Apparently Pat's dad is good friends with Dick and he informed me that he has a house in Fort Lauderdale. Maybe a possible meet and greet in the future, who knows. The beer was great and the conversations were good as well. I'm glad I had those two there to help me finish this bomber because it would have been really tough on my own. 

A few notes on the beer.....

A definite destroyer of the palate. This one is pretty big, so be warned. The aroma is big and robust, with a large amount of oatmeal, dark chocolate, and coffee aromas. The pour is super thick, almost like motor oil. Soft, brown, bubbly head with a good retention. The mouth feel is pretty heavy, but hey, man up. A very enjoyable. beer. Crack it open and share, don't be a greedy bastard. 

Grade A

 

Real Ale Sisyphus

Brewer : Real Ale Brewing Co. (Texas)
Style : Barley Wine
ABV : 11.5%

Like I've mentioned in the past I love trying different beers that I've never heard of, or random beers that have been sent to me as extra's in a trade. This beer was an extra I got not too long ago, so far so good. The only thing that sort of let me down was that it was a barley wine. I'm warming up to barley wine's one bottle at a time, but they aren't my go to beer style of choice. I suppose they're a lot like DIPA's, which I love, but with a bigger malty flavor to it.  I don't know, I guess I just haven't had one yet that has blown me away. On with the review.

Definitely a big boy beer that's for sure. The aroma is hoppy swiftly followed by malts. The hops attack the palate first, somewhat heavy but nothing a pro can’t handle. Has faint citrus notes, but nothing too intense. A nice color of orange with brown tints. Good fluffy head which leaves a nice oily lacing. I actually enjoyed sipping this beer. The ABV is more on the bigger side, so it took me a little bit to finish this beer. 

Grade B

 

 

Mikkeller From/To

Brewer : Mikkeller (Denmark)
Style : Imperial/Strong Porter
ABV : 8%

So I didn't post anything yesterday, but I had good reason. My computer was getting worked on. The CD drive on it seems to not be reading anything and I had some new guitar software that I wanted to install. Long story short, I got the software installed but didn't get the CD drive fixed. Oh well, I'm not complaining.  So today I have a day off from  work, even though I don't really consider teaching guitar work,  I do enjoy it, and even more so, getting paid for it. But it gives me time to get back on with the blog and get some much needed/overdue guitar practice time in. 
So with today's blog I went with yet another Mikkeller beer. Now a majority of the beer that I've  had from them have been IPA's, so I was pretty excited to get a hold of From/To,  which happens to be a porter. Porters and stouts are probably two of my favorite styles to drink, I suppose it  has to do with the love of the  barley,  the thickness, and the sweet aroma. To each his own my friend. 

Has a dark brown pour with a thin head. Has somewhat of spicy aroma with a sweet sugar backing to it. It leaves a nice oily lacing around the rim as well. The flavor has a lot of dark chocolate in there, along with malts and possibly some coffee bean. Has a good amount of carbonation, but the head retention is somewhat minimal. It’s a great beer and incredibly smooth. Not the best porter I've had, but definitely one of the better ones. I was lucky enough to share this with some good friends at the Funky Buddha and everyone seemed to enjoy it. 


Grade B+

La Parcela

Brewer : Jolly Pumpkin (Michigan)
Style : Pumpkin Ale
ABV : 5.9%

Now that it's November 1st and Halloween is over, should we put away with the pumpkin beers and move on to Christmas beers? Hell no!!! As far as I'm concerned pumpkin beers don't stop until the day after Thanksgiving, when the Christmas tree lots open their doors and the trees are up for sale. That to me is when the Christmas season truly begins. 
With this past weekend being the Halloween weekend I figured it would only be in good fashion to have a pumpkin beer, since I know longer go door to door and trick or treat. I do that at the age of 27 and my neighbors will have me arrested. So I decided to crack this baby open, which got here just in for Halloween. 

Now I have been told that Jolly Pumpkin is primarily a sour/wild type beer producer, with the type of yeast they use in a majority of their batches, but I was hoping that the pumpkin flavor would prevail on this one. Well sadly it didn't. It was much like a sour beer, which I love, but I was hoping for much more of pumpkin/spice presence. The aroma and taste were dominated by the sour flavors and I was only able to get a little bit of pumpkin on the back end. But I can't say that I was too surprised though, as Mike from mikelovesbeer.com had told me a few days  prior that he had recently tried this one was not impressed with the pumpkin balance, and he doesn't even like pumpkin beers. So I guess I was a little disappointed but I was glad that I got the chance to try it. 

Grade C