IPA ~ STONE BREWING

RED, WHITE & BREW ~ Sampled on draught, Stone IPA poured a slightly hazy amber golden colour with a soapy off white head. The head had great retention and left lots of lacing as it crawled down the glass. The aroma was hop heavy with piny and citrusy hops mixing with bright notes of orange and grapefruit, subtle cracker malt and an earthiness. The taste too was fairly hop heavy with piny hops dominating a more subtle malt backbone and an earthy grassiness. The flavour had some complexity as sweetness mixed with the bitterness. The carbonation was crisp and moderate and the body was medium to full-bodied. The beer was smooth and slightly sticky and the finish was dry and clean. An excellent offering, really enjoyed this one!

Hops: Magnum, Chinook & Centennial

6.9% from Escondido, California 77 IBU

IPA ~ LAGUNITAS

RED, WHITE & BREW ~ Sampled on draught, this beer poured a clear amber gold colour with lots of bone white head, that had good retention and then left some nice lacing. The somewhat muted nose contains toasted malts and piny citrus hops and some fruitiness in the back (both stone fruit and citrus). Flavours follow the nose; a nice balance between hops and malts. The beer has notes of citrus (orange and lemon) along with piny hops and a biscuity graininess. The carbonation was moderate and the body medium. IPA’s aren’t my go-to beer – I have had some mouth shredding hops that have left me unable to taste anything else, but this is a really pleasant, easy drinking IPA.

6.2 from Petaluna, California 46 IBU

BIG WAVE GOLDEN ALE ~ 

KONA BREWING COMPANY

RED, WHITE & BREW ~ This light bodied golden ale was sampled on draught. The beer poured a crystal clear golden yellow, with a white soapy head, that left traces of lacing. The nose contained notes of tropical fruit (mango and pineapple), some orchard fruits, lemon citrus with hints of caramel malts and piny hops. The taste too is very mild: sweet subtle notes of fruits, lemons and other citrus, subtle caramel malt and piny hops are most noticeable. The body is quite thin and then carbonation is lively. This is perfect beach beer on a super hot day – low in alcohol – innocuous - easy drinking – refreshing.
4.4 % Kailua, Kona, Hawaii IBU 21
Malts: Pale (Premium 2-Row), Caramel
Hops: Galaxy, Citra

AUDIBLE ALE ~ RED HOOK BREWERY

RED, WHITE & BREW ~ Sampled on draught Audible Ale, a pale ale, poured a slightly hazy golden amber with a frothy white head. The head left some lacing as it dissipated. The aroma had notes fruits and malty grains with a light citrus and subtle piny hop. Sweets malts and orange peel are up front, followed by citrusy and subtly piny hops. The body was medium-light and the carbonation was moderate. . I found the taste to be quite mild, thought the hops and malts blended smoothly and were well balanced. A nice summer brew, perfect for a BBQ, inoffensive and refreshing.
4.7% from Portsmouth, New Hampshire (or Woodinville, Washington) 24 IBU

TOASTED LAGER ~ BLUE POINT BREWING COMPANY 

(owned by Anheuser Busch)

RED, WHITE & BREW ~ Toasted Lager is Blue Points flagship beer and most popular brew. The brew was made with six different malts (English Pale, Crystal, Munich, Carapils, Wheat and Belgian Caravienna) in a direct fire brew kettle, which gives the beer its toasted flavour. Sampled on draught, this Vienna style lager poured a slightly hazy coppery amber colour with generous beige head, which left minimal lacing. The nose is quite muted with notes of bready malts, caramel and a bit of hops. The taste too is also very mild, with biscuit malts and a touch of caramel. There is some hop presence to balance the sweetness of the malts with a dry finish. The body is medium,as lively and refreshing. Though this has won many awards in Beer Awards and Cups, his is a simple brew. It is refreshing and would pair with many foods, but lacks any kind of complexity.

5.5 % Patchogue, New York 28 IBU

HAZELNUT BROWN NECTAR ~ ROGUE 

RED, WHITE & BREW ~ Rogue has finally had the opportunity to redeem itself to me. Previous to this the only Rogue I’d had had been a Voodoo Doughnut creation, and that went down the sink. Sampled on draught, this beer poured a slightly opaque reddish dark brown with an off white head. There was little retention and lacing. Hazelnuts dominate the aroma, but there are also notes of coffee, caramel, cocoa and sweet malts (kind of like Nutella in a beer). Huge syrupy hazel-nutty flavours hit you right off the bat. I found this brew very sweet, as praline, caramel, sweet malts and chocolate follow the nuttiness. A slight hop presence finishes the beer, but the aftertaste is all sweet hazelnut. The carbonation was in the medium low range and the body medium. The mouthfeel was smooth but seemed to coat the palette giving it a stickiness. This definitely was not a sink pour but not a session beer for me either. I felt like I was drinking dessert – a little too sweet for me.

11 Ingredients: Great Western 2-Row, Brown, Carastan 13/17, Crystal 70/80, Crystal 135/165, Beeston Pale, Chocolate Malts; Perle & Sterling Hops; Hazelnut Extract, Free Range Coastal Water & Pacman Yeast.

6.2 % from Newport, Oregon 33 IBU

HENNEPIN SAISON ~ BREWERY OMMEGANG  

RED, WHITE & BREW ~ My local bar managed to secure 21 American micro/craft beer taps – or pretty close too it. I was excited to taste some of the brews I have often seen reviewed. Ommegang is a an American Brewer of Belgian ales. This saison is brewed with: Grains of paradise, ginger, coriander and sweet orange peel. This showstopper was sampled on draught. The poured a beautiful rich golden yellow, with a slight haze and a small white head. The nose contained scents of hay and orchard fruits, Belgian yeasts, peppery spice and citrus (lemon and orange). The taste is has slight malt sweetness with notes of fruit (apple, pear and citrus), spice (pepper and clove), bread, hay and funk. The finish is crisp dry and has a slight floral bitterness. The carbonation was moderate and slightly prickly. The mouthfeel was medium-full bodied. This was a fabulous introduction Ommegang brews and American craft beers. Loved this, wish it was more accessible.

7.7% Cooperstown, New York     24 IBU

BROOKLYN LAGER~BROOKLYN

RED, WHITE & BREW ~ New York in the 1800’s was a hub of brewing. Vienna style lager was a favourite among the locals. This beer is brewed in the Vienna style but has been dry hopped (a more English technique) to increase its aromatic qualities. Sampled on draught, this Lager poured a clear coppery amber colour with a good head. It had good retention and left some frothy lacing. The nose contained citrus, grainy malts, orange and other citrus peel and some floral hops. I found this beer to be on the sweet side. The beer starts with sweet malts and honey with citrus brightness and finishes with a herbal/floral taste followed by a slight toasty bitterness. The beer has medium-light body and slightly higher than average carbonation. Though a little sweet for me, I found this beer to be easily drinkable, smooth and refreshing, but lacked complexity.

5.2 % from Utica, New York 33 IBU

Malts: American Two-row Malts
Hops: Hallertauer Mittelfrueh, Vanguard and Cascade

VANILLA JAVA PORTER ~ ATWATER

RED, WHITE & BREW ~ Vanilla Java Porter is Atwater’s bestseller. Sampled on draught, this porter poured a very dark brown with a thin tan head that dissipated very quickly. Roasted coffee and vanilla extract dominate the nose. My first impression of the taste was that I was drinking an ice cream float. I found this to be very sweet. The coffee flavour was not of strong brewed coffee, but more of a watery coffee with vanilla extract. The mouthfeel was watery and I was expecting much more of a hop presence at the finish. I was expecting much stronger flavours and complexity from this one. If you like a drinkable dessert this would be it. Pleasant enough but in small quantities.
Ingredients: Brewed 2 row malt, Cara-80, Coffee and Black malt and Magnum hops.

4.5% from Detroit, Michigan 12 IBU

TRADITIONAL LAGER ~ YUENGLING

A shout out to my friend Heather for bringing me a bottle to sample. Yuengling is the oldest operating brewery in the United States, founded in 1829. It also brews one of the largest volumes of beer in the U.S. Traditional Lager is an amber beer commonly found before prohibition, and is also Yuengling’s flagship brew. It is cheap and very popular in Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware. Sampled from a bottle the beer poured a clear amber colour, with lots of carbonation and a white head. The aroma was very light but did contain sweet corn, grass, sweet grains, light caramel malt and a little breadiness. The taste was as simple as the aroma: Caramel, corn, buried citrus and light bread dough. The finish was lightly hopped but had no bitterness and the malts and corn gave it sweetness. The mouthfeel is carbonated and thin but not watery. This brew is inoffensive, easy to drink, and has more personality than many other mass-produced beers. Not terrible, not great, but definitely OK.

4.4% from Pottsville, Pennsylvania