Russian River Blind Pig IPA: This was a bucket list beer of mine that I was super excited to try and it did really live up to its name. Brewed in Santa Rosa, CA to a strength of 6.1% with 70 IBUs this beer is meant to be drank as fresh as possible, my bottle was…
Dogfish Head Indian Brown Ale: Brewed in Delaware to a strength of 7.2% abv with 50 IBUs, this year round Brown Ale is well hopped and brewed with caramelized sugar as per the description on the bottle. Aroma and Appearance: Pours a very dark brown with a thin layer of foam and no visible carbonation. Its aroma is…
Stone Enjoy By 02-14-15 IPA: Yes, finally the Stone Brewing Enjoy By series has made it into British Columbia with a $10 price tag which is about right for the market, albeit almost a joke because it hit shelves like 3 days before it technically expires (we all blame our Liquor Distribution Board for this). This…
View this post on Instagram Another solid coffee stout from the west coast #instabeer #beergeek A post shared by Terry Hickey (@westcoastbeergeek) on Feb 10, 2015 at 11:42am PST Craft Beer Review – Coronado Blue Bridge Coffee Stout: Brewed in Coronado, California to a strength of 5.4% abv using dark roast coffee from San Diego,…
New Holland Dragon’s Milk Bourbon Barrel Stout: Brewed in Michigan to a strength of 11% abv, this stout is aged in Bourbon barrels for at least 90 days prior to bottling. Aroma and Appearance: It pours a very dark brown colour with some red hues, hardly any foam and no visible bubbles. The aroma is oak, chocolate, bourbon,…
Traquair Jacobite Ale: Brewed in Scotland at the Traquair House in Innerleithen, this house ale is brewed to a strength of 7.2% abv in a historical landmark that was originally a hunting lodge for the Nobility of Scotland. I enjoyed this beer as a simple homage to Robbie Burns Day on Jan 25th, who never apparently…
Coronado Brewing Black Sails IPA: Brewed in Coronado, CA at a strength of 6.8% abv this was the first beer from this company that I purchased in Canada since they recently started distributing here in British Columbia. It’s great to see all of these interesting beers in BC, although I bet the local brewers are feeling…
Hopworks Urban Brewery (HUB) Abominable Winter Ale: A contender for the Best Can Art Ever, this Oregon brewed winter IPA comes in at a strength of 7.3% abv and 70 IBUs. This is a standard purchase for me annually, I tend to pick up a four pack to enjoy over the holidays since it is a nice…
Goose Island Bourbon County Brand Stout 2013: A bucket list beer that I obtained (and have since stocked up on), this monster is brewed to an amazingly high 14.9% abv and is aged in bourbon barrels for 8 to 12 months. This beer was originally brewed in honour of the 1000th batch at their original brewpub many…
Delirium Christmas (aka Noël): I got this beer as part of a 4 pack that was released around Christmas time, which included this super awesome glass that I will cherish for years to come. I mean who doesn’t love pink elephants with Santa hats on them right? This is a Belgian Strong Ale brewed to a…
Rogue Santa’s Private Reserve Ale: A traditional beer that manages to repeatedly appear in my stocking on Christmas Day, this 5.1% abv and 74 IBU Christmas Ale is brewed in Newport, Oregon. I love the festive logo, the fact that it isn’t another gingerbread ale (which I enjoy, just not all the time), and since I have been…
Samuel Adams New World Tripel: Day 24 of my Advent Calendar exchange with my father, featuring a 10% abv Oak Barrel Aged Tripel from the Boston Beer Company itself. This is one of those beers I have seen on the shelves many times and for whatever reason I simply passed it by thinking it was a fancy bottle…
Dick’s Brewing Company Barleywine: Day 23 of my Advent Calendar exchange with my father, this barleywine from Centralia, WA is brewed to a strength of 9.9% abv and comes in a manageable 12 oz bottle. I love to try new Barleywines, so it was nice to see a new one pop up in my calendar as Christmas neared.…
Longwood Brewery Full Patch Pumpkin Saison: Day 22 of my Advent Calendar exchange with my father, featuring a Nanaimo beer brewed to a strength of 9.0% abv that I thought I had missed out on this year, however it magically showed up in my advent calendar. Most of the local pumpkin beers are simply pumpkin ales, there are…
Rodenbach Grand Cru: Day 20 of my Advent Calendar exchange with my father, featuring a Belgian sour red/brown ale brewed to a strength of 6.0% abv. This is a blend of 1/3 young beer and 2/3 beer aged in oak vats for 2 years to make this unique blended sour beer. Aroma and Appearance: It pours a slightly…
Dieu Du Ciel – Rigor Mortis Abt: Day 19 of my Advent Calendar exchange with my father, featuring This Belgian Quad Abbey Ale from Montreal, Quebec. This ale brewed at a robust strength of 10.5% alcohol and has been aged for 1.75 years (bottled in March 2013). Aroma and Appearance: This a pours hazy brown with a thin…
Unibroue Grand Reserve 17: Day 18 of my Advent Calendar exchange with my father, featuring a 3 year old bottle of this limited release beer. I have always enjoyed this beer and for the longest time it was one of the few Canadian beers you could actually find and cellar for a period of time until recent…
Goose Island The Muddy Imperial Licorice Stout: Day 21 of my Advent Calendar exchange with my father, featuring a black licorice infused beer – oh, oh! Black licorice is a flavour I generally don’t appreciate in beer so I was hoping it would only be a subtle note and not an overpowering one like some beers out there. Aroma…
Almanac Dark Pumpkin Sour: Day 16 of my Advent Calendar exchange with my father, featuring a sour pumpkin beer aged in wine barrels that is brewed to a strength of 7% abv by these gypsy brewers who do a lot of barrel aging. I have seen this brewery’s beers on the shelves in the USA a…
Brower Witnica Black Boss Porter: Day 15 of my Advent Calendar exchange with my father, featuring a Polish 9.4% abv Baltic Porter (which is typically bottom fermented and lagered). This bottle has been cellared for one year and since I have never had a craft beer from Poland before (and this style is apparently a popular brew…
North Coast Grand Cru: Day 14 of my Advent Calendar exchange with my father, featuring North Coast’s Grand Cru which is a beer brewed with agave nectar, fermented with a Belgian yeast and is aged in oak Bourbon barrels. This beer comes in a 500 mL caged and corked bottle and has an abv strength of 12.9%, which is…
Spoetzl Shiner Holiday Cheer: Day 13 of my Advent Calendar exchange with my father, featuring a Dunkleweizen from Shiner, Texas brewed with peaches and roasted pecans at a strength of 5.4% abv. This is a pretty festive looking beer, perfect for a Christmas Advent Calendar! Aroma and Appearance: This pours a dark clear red-brown amber colour with a bit…
Fremont Kentucky Dark Star Bourbon Barrel Aged Oatmeal Stout: Day 12 of my Advent Calendar exchange with my father, featuring a 11% abv Imperial barrel aged beauty of a beer made in Seattle, Earth (just saw this now). This is the 2014 release so it is pretty fresh, however I have another for the cellar that I’ll…
San Miguel Brewery Red Horse Beer: Day 10 of my Advent Calendar exchange with my father, featuring a pale lager from the Philippines that was cellared for 1 year in a “what the heck, why not” kind of way. This is actually a malt liquor and if you read through online ratings will give you some good…
Day of the Dead Amber Ale, Death Becomes You: Day 9 of my Advent Calendar exchange with my father, featuring a beer from Mexico that is brewed at a strength of 5.5% abv and features some pretty cool artwork on the bottle. I had never heard of this brewery before, but it turns out the also…
Widmer Brothers Barrel Aged Brrrbon 2012: Day 8 of my Advent Calendar exchange with my father, featuring Widmer Brother’s Barrel Aged Brrrbon (2012 version), which is a barrel aged imperial version of their seasonal all. It is brewed at a strength of 9.4% abv and is part of their Alchemy Project lineup of barrel aged beers.I have…
North Coast Old Rasputin Russian Imperial Stout: Day 7 of my Advent Calendar exchange with my father, featuring North Coast’s Russian Imperial Stout which is brewed at a strength of 9% abv. This beer pays homage to the 18th century Russian Imperial Stouts brewed for Catherine the Great as a means of trade between Britain and Russia.…
Gilgamesh Brewing Vader CDA with Coffee: Day 6 of my Advent Calendar exchange with my father, featuring a 6.5% abv coffee infused Cascadian Dark Ale named Vader which combines three of my favourite things: beer, coffee and what could be considered a Star Wars tribute. This beer is so me, it took me all of 2 seconds…
Dogfish Head Saison du Buff: Day 5 of my Advent Calendar exchange with my father, featuring a Dogfish Head Saison herbal beer brewed at a strength of 6.8% abv with parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme herbs. This is actually a collaboration between Stone, Victory and Dogfish head an BUFF stands for Breweries United for Freedom of Flavour aka…
AleSmith Old Numbskull Barleywine: Day 4 of my Advent Calendar exchange with my father, this barleywine is brewed to a strength of 11% abv and literally had me falling asleep in my chair as I finished it. I love barleywines, they are one of my favourite styles so it was great to get one of these in my…
Uncommon Brewers Bacon Brown Ale: Is a nut brown ale brewed with buckwheat and bacon cured pork coming in at a strength of 6.8% abv and was my day 3 beer in the Advent Calendar exchange I did with my father. I haven’t had this beer for a few years and even then I only had a…
Widmer 30th Anniversary Craftylicious Gigantic Collaboration: Day 2 of my Advent Calendar exchange with my father, featuring a Widmer collaboration with Gigantic to celebrate Widmer’s 30th anniversary. This is the 4th special collaboration release related to their 30th anniversary, it was brewed at a strength of 5.7% abv and is considered a wild ale. Aroma and…
Brooklyn Brewing Black Chocolate Stout (Aged 1 Year): This is one of those beers that I have seen on the shelf year over year and never picked up, yet low and behold I got it on the first day of my Beer Advent Calendar Exchange with my father. You see my dad and I in years…
Uinta Oak Jacked Imperial Pumpkin Barrel Aged Ale: Brewed in Salt Lake City, UT at a strength of 10.3% abv this monster 750mL bottle of beer was aged in oak barrels and is very highly rated online. I think the art on the label is pretty great, and t was nice to see this bottle corked with…
Epic Brewing & DC Brau Imperial Pumpkin Porter: aka Fermentation without Representation, this very limited Imperial Pumpkin Porter is brewed in Salt Lake City, UT at a strength of 8% abv and is a collaboration beer that is a part of their Exponential Series,. Interesting enough they use Madagascar Vanilla beans in this one as well…
Oakshire Big Black Jack Imperial Chocolate Pumpkin Porter: Brewed in Eugene, OR at a strength of 7.5% abv, I saw a few good reviews for this single batch release on twitter so I thought it was worth seeking a bottle out on my last trip to Oregon. Chocolate pumpkin porters have become one of my favourite versions…
Elysian Punkuccino Coffee Pumpkin Ale: Brewed in Seattle, WA at a strength of 5% abv and infused with Stumptown Coffee, this new Elysian release has already cracked the Top 10 Spice/Herb/Vegetable Beer Category of Ratebeer.com so I was excited to find this and add it to my annual pumpkin beer lineup to see what all the fuss was…
Southern Tier Warlock Imperial Pumpkin Stout: Brewed in Lakewood, New York at a strength of 8.6% abv, this imperial stout is brewed with pumpkins and ‘natural flavour’. This is part of their Blackwater Series of beers which includes three other beers worth checking on on their site, including one Creme Brulee beer that keeps eluding me . Aroma…
Red Hook Brewing Out of Your Gourd Pumpkin Porter: Brewed in Woodinville, WA at a strength of 5.8% abv this pumpkin porter features pureed pumpkin, nutmeg, cinnamon, maple syrup and ginger in its recipe.I enjoy the name, pretty creative with the wording and the label is pretty nice so good on them for decent marketing. Aroma and…
Dogfish Head Punkin Ale: Brewed in Milton, Delaware at a strength of 7% abv, this awesomely labeled pumpkin beer has a pretty good reputation and was on my buy list this year for pumpkin beers. I have to admit, I really like how Dogfish Head has re-branded their beer labels, this is equally creepy and awesome at…
Brooklyn Brewery Post Road Pumpkin Ale: Brewed in Brooklyn, NY at a strength of 5% abv this pumpkin beer, according to their description, is brewed with hundreds of pumpkins and the usual cinnamon & nutmeg that pretty much everyone adds. The hop profile is 24 IBUs worth of American Fuggle and Willamette and it contains some specialty malts…
Southern Tier Imperial Pumking: Brewed in Lakewood, New York at a strength of 8.6% abv, this is one of the top rated pumpkin beers in the world. Interesting enough, they also were one of the first to be released in like August this year which is a pretty serious example of seasonal creep in the beer world…
Firestone Walker DBA (Double Barrel Ale): Is brewed in Paso Robles, CA at a strength of 5% abv and is a blend of both oak and steel fermented ale. This is a tribute to British cask fermented beers. featuring my favourite base malt (Maris Otter) and apparently was their original beer . Aroma and Appearance: It pours a clear…
Double Mountain Killer Red Fresh Hop IPA: Brewed in Hood River, OR at a strength of 7.2% abv and 88 IBU’s of fresh Perle and Sterling hops this beer was a product of a good hop season for their grower so they expanded their Killer line to include an India Red Ale which I was excited…
Sierra Nevada Estate Homegrown Wet Hop Ale: Brewed in Chico, CA at a strength of 6.7% abv with 67 IBUs this wet hopped ale is made completely from organically grown hops featuring Chinook, Cascade and Citra hops and malts at the brewery farm which is pretty impressive. I managed to snap this up during a recent visit to…
Silver City Brewery Citra Wet Hop Pale Ale: Brewed in Bremerton, WA at a strength of 6.1% with 21 IBUs this fresh hop craft beer features Citra hops in their un-kilned cone form. This was it’s first release by this brewery, it only has one rating on ratebeer.com so I was excited to try something completely…
Deschutes Chasin’ Freshies: Brewed in Bend, OR at a strength of 7.4% with 65 IBUs featuring fresh Mosaic Hops (yeah that’s right, fresh Mosaic people!), I was super excited to see this beer make it’s way into my fridge and oh my it delivered! Aroma and Appearance: It pours with a clear golden yellow, some minor carbonation and…
Deschutes Hop Trip Fresh Hop Pale Ale: Brewed in Bend, Oregon this fresh hop pale ale comes in at a strength of 6.1% abv with 38 IBUs featuring Bravo, Centennial and fresh Crystal hops. As labelled, these hops are picked fresh and rushed to the brewery and used within 4 hours of harvesting. I’ve updated the picture…
Sierra Nevada Celebration Fresh Hop IPA: Brewed in Chico, CA at a strength of 6.8% abv with 65 IBUs, I enjoyed this fresh hop IPA approximately three weeks after it’s September 30th bottling date featuring fresh Cascade, Centennial and Chinook hops. They have apparently been brewing this beer since the year I was born so they’ve…
Fremont Brewing Cowiche Canyon Fresh Hop Ale: Brewed in Seattle, WA at a strength of 6% abv, this fresh organic hop ale featuring Citra and Simcoe was a nice change of pace from the local BC fresh hopped beers just to try some different fresh hops more than anything since there aren’t a lot of fresh varieties available…
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