In February of 2011, after a prolonged hiatus we made back to a beer festival. The 2011 Cincy Winter Beer Fest was a great representation of local and regional brews. Also some cool announcements from the revitalized Christian Moerlein Brewing folks. We had a few guest reviewers on hand for a new perspective.
North Peak Brewing Co. - Diabolical IPA Good IPA Strong flavor but not a standout.
Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. - Glissade Bock - This is a really good Bock that straddles the line between a Maibock and a Helles Bock. I really like this one in particular, due to the lighter feeling overall. Not a beer you would have a problem consuming in quantity !
Dogfish Head - Indian Brown Ale - I am a big fan of the Brown Ales, but this one just did not work for me. They say it is a Scotch Ale and IPA and American Brown Ale, I think they might have been reaching too far.
Great Divide Brewing Co. - Espresso Oak Yeti Imperial Stout - Have had this on a number of occasions now and have not been disappointed. It really does need to be at the end of the drinking session......
Christian Moerlein - OTR American Pale Ale. This is the beer that will get Moerlein attention in a mass market arena. It is a great tasting session beer that will appeal to the mass market "lite" beer drinkers.
Hudepohl Festival Bock - Loved the balanced Malt flavor.
Listermann's Friar Bacon Smoked Bock - BACON !!!!! We really enjoyed this one ! The bacon is part of the smoked flavor, but in no way overwhelming. Good Malt / Sweet balance. After reading some other reviews, I believe draft is the way to go with this one.
Listermann's Bourbon Stout - This one got a big thumbs up from all of us that were willing to take on the very high abv ( unknown %) Great hearty stout with that characteristic Bourbon finish.
Rivertown Brewing Co. Munich Dunkel Lager - Wasn't my favorite beer of the night by a long shot, flavor is OK, the malt aftertaste isn't the greatest either.
Rivertown Brewing Co. Ellzebelle Belgian Tripel Stout - another favorite
Wooden Shoe Brewing Co. Helles Bock - Decent Bock, not outstanding. Good effort for this revived brewery.
Wooden Shoe Brewing Co. Lager - Nice basic Lager. Pretty plain, nothing special.
Thirsty Dog Twisted Kilt Scotch Ale - Not a big winner, missing that full malt flavor of a good scotch ale.
Quaff Bros. Jones' IPA - If you ever enjoyed any IPA you really owe it to yourself to track this one down. This stuff is aged in a Bourbon Barrel to give it a really amazing and unique taste.
Quaff Bros. Figgy Pudding Winter Warmer - All the great variety of flavors from spices to figs, also aged in not one but two different Bourbon Barrels.
Mt. Carmel Nut Brown Ale - I have enjoyed this all the way back to the days when it was only available in growlers and people would look at me strangely when I would show up at parties with one or two growlers, clearly Joe sixpack was not ready for a solid local brew.
Mt. Carmel IPA - Barely a passing grade on this one, and by this point in the evening we were definitely grading on a curve! I will have to try this one again at some point.
Goose Island Pepe Nero Black Rye Saison - This one got and A++++ from all of us and everyone else we talked to at the Goose Island Booth. This Belgian Ale has a complex full flavor and has a very full and rich taste.
2/11/2011
Review: Bluegrass Brewing Co. Jefferson Reserve Bourbon Barrel Stout
A bit of a surprise. For the hype and price ( $15 for a 4 pack???) I expected more. Not a overwhelming stout, heavy on the roasted malts but pretty average for a normal stout much less one that had aged in a top shelf bourbon barrel
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