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Mahoning posted:Saw some other Ballast Point offerings besides Sculpin here in Ohio for the first time. I'm actually going to head back there on Tuesday. Anyone recommend any of their other brews? I think they pretty much had everything between the bombers and the six packs. Victory at Sea is so good. I also really like the Yellowtail Pale Ale, it's a great Kolsch. Go into it not expecting a "pale ale", or anything hoppy in the slightest, and it's a really enjoyable beer.
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Apr 2, 2012 03:32
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I just think LAB really isn't that bad. If you're doing dinner in Asheville, I recommend it. They've got decent beer, in my opinion. And if it comes out too cold? You can let it sit for a minute, you know. Serving certain styles too warm would be far worse. The food is fantastic there, and if the weather is nice, they'll have the front open - it's a great place to hang out on warm evenings. Wedge is down in the middle of the River Arts district with tons of parking near the train tracks. Swing by some of the studios to walk off the beer after - there's a cool glassblower right across the street and all sorts of artists scattered throughout the buildings in the area. cryme posted:Has anyone had White Birch's Barleywine? I'm drinking some now (bottled Jan 2011), and it's completely uncarbonated. Not Cool. Honestly, they're a perfect example of a brewery that has gone in too many relatively expensive and difficult to produce directions at once without really nailing down a solid lineup to call their own. They're all over the map, with something like 40+ beers, and having only started like two years ago. And they're hosting small craft fests. I'm sure they're having a great time, but what it comes down to is that the bottled beers are unpredictable and many are expensive. I have not had a BW from them, but I have gone through a few American Wilds and some Belgian-style offerings. Some had great potential, but none were exceptional - which was a shame, given the price and the production complexity that they went through. If they could just settle on maybe one wild ale or saison and a solid dubbel, tripel, etc and just really fine tune those - they'd be great. It's like they've got ADHD when it comes to brewing. FreelanceSocialist fucked around with this message at 03:47 on Apr 2, 2012 |
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Apr 2, 2012 03:44
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Kudosx posted:I tried Left Hand Milk Stout Nitro last night, and let me tell you... I'd give my left testicle for 6 pack of it, and I mean that literally for reasons I won't go into here. Regular Milk Stout is super loving delicious and a more creamy body would probably put this at a drat near perfect beer for me. Mahoning posted:Saw some other Ballast Point offerings besides Sculpin here in Ohio for the first time. I'm actually going to head back there on Tuesday. Anyone recommend any of their other brews? I think they pretty much had everything between the bombers and the six packs. Big Eye IPA is fantastic, Calico Amber was decent but for the price I wouldn't buy it again. Victory at Sea is probably the best imperial porter in the world (opinion) and Sea Monster is the thickest beer I've ever drank. As for White Birch, their labels are wonderful, but nothing seems to be worth buying.
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Apr 2, 2012 03:46
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air- posted:Thanks for all the suggestions! I had it in my mind that Asheville has all these breweries within walking distance but Pisgah and Wedge require driving, so I'll have to try and find a bar that serves their beer. I was hoping to just take it easy and have that stop for unwinding a little, and was planning on staying at this hostel right by LAB, then walk to a few places. Possibly get a cab for Appalachian Vintner. But if they're really worth a drive I'll adjust plans. If you're looking to relax and have a good selection of NC beer available, walk down to the Thirsty Monk. Plus, they've just started brewing recently, although I haven't gotten to try their stuff, so I don't know how good it is. Still, they usually have plenty of local stuff on tap, and their downstairs Belgian bar is fantastic. And Jack of the Woods, Green Man's brewpub, is just down the road from them. Upstairs tap list Downstairs tap list Retemnav fucked around with this message at 03:53 on Apr 2, 2012 |
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Apr 2, 2012 03:50
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Midorka posted:Big Eye IPA is fantastic, Calico Amber was decent but for the price I wouldn't buy it again. Victory at Sea is probably the best imperial porter in the world (opinion) and Sea Monster is the thickest beer I've ever drank. Calico is a pretty fantastic amber ale, if you ask me. Agree on White Birch though, I've had a bunch of them recently and they were all pretty underwhelming.
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Apr 2, 2012 03:55
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I missed what day you're in Asheville - but if it's Thursday, definitely hit up Jack in the Wood for bluegrass!
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Apr 2, 2012 03:57
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Midorka posted:I'd give my left testicle for 6 pack of it, and I mean that literally for reasons I won't go into here. ISO: Nitro Milk Stout FT: Cancerous(?) nut Although I must say, nitro milk stout is really god drat good.
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Apr 2, 2012 04:16
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funkybottoms posted:are you going to be in DC, or nearby? also, depending on your route, i might have suggestions for another stop or two Nearby (Rockville, MD is where I'll be staying for now) and I'm leaving Wednesday and shooting to be there by Friday. So gonna be in Asheville on a Thursday.
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Apr 2, 2012 04:51
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I just finished a sampler of Left Hand stuff. I was already familiar with the Milk Stout (it makes ridiculous ice cream), but was much less familiar with the other beers included. 400 Lb Monkey IPA, Sawtooth Ale, and Black Jack Porter. All of them were pretty decent, the porter probably a fair bit more interesting than the other two. I thought that all three shared a kind of sweet character but yet were still really drinkable and refreshing. My wife described them as "friendly", which I think fit pretty well. I'd easily drink any of them again, but I don't think I'd really go out and look for anything but the milk stout or porter.
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Apr 2, 2012 04:57
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RobBorer posted:Calico is a pretty fantastic amber ale, if you ask me. Agree on White Birch though, I've had a bunch of them recently and they were all pretty underwhelming. It was solid, but in New Jersey it's $13 for a 6 pack which is way outside of my year round 6 pack range. Docjowles posted:ISO: Nitro Milk Stout Something like that. Either way I loving love their Milk Stout, if there's a better year rounder in the same vein I'd love to know. I want a nitro bottle so bad. I think I'm going to buy a case of their Milk Stout and make it my go-to beer as I love stouts and it's probably the easiest drinking stout I've ever had. On the topic of Left Hand, is anyone else wondering where the bottled on stamp is? There's a section on every 12 ounce, but no stamp.
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Apr 2, 2012 05:29
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nominal posted:I just finished a sampler of Left Hand stuff. I was already familiar with the Milk Stout (it makes ridiculous ice cream), but was much less familiar with the other beers included. 400 Lb Monkey IPA, Sawtooth Ale, and Black Jack Porter. All of them were pretty decent, the porter probably a fair bit more interesting than the other two. I thought that all three shared a kind of sweet character but yet were still really drinkable and refreshing. My wife described them as "friendly", which I think fit pretty well. I like 400lb Monkey just cause it's a change of pace, getting an English style IPA is nice. Polestar Pilsner is pretty good, too. But yeah, Milk Stout is the only one of their beers I buy more often than every few months. They loving struck gold with that and everything else is a bit hit-and-miss. I did post a glowing review of Smokejumper imperial porter the other night, snag that if you see it.
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Apr 2, 2012 05:35
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I don't often go for stouts, but tonight I just randomly grabbed a bottle of Brooklyn's Black Chocolate Stout. Dear god is that gross. I'd like somebody to tell me that it was just a terrible stout to try, but I'm pretty sure it's just me and I don't like stouts. I want to, but they just taste like liquor to me because they're so strong. I think I'll try some other stouts just to see if there's maybe something I like, but I have a feeling stouts just aren't my thing and that's kind of a shame because I feel like I'm missing out on a lot of good stuff.
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Apr 2, 2012 05:48
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I've been really impressed by their Polestar Pilsner. The 400# monkey gets away with being called an IPA since it's more of a british style, and that's nice in it's own right, and... well poo poo i spend too long with this window open and Docjowles wrote the exact same thing.
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Apr 2, 2012 06:02
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Mahoning posted:I don't often go for stouts... In OH you should be able to track down some good stouts. Bell's Kalamazoo and Sierra Nevada's Stout are both excellent and usually widely-available. For imperial stouts, North Coast's Old Rasputin is the bottled heavywieght of the category, but also look for Victory's Storm King and Stone's Imperial Russian. If none of those do it for you then, nope, you don't like stouts.
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Apr 2, 2012 06:24
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FreelanceSocialist posted:In OH you should be able to track down some good stouts. Bell's Kalamazoo and Sierra Nevada's Stout are both excellent and usually widely-available. For imperial stouts, North Coast's Old Rasputin is the bottled heavywieght of the category, but also look for Victory's Storm King and Stone's Imperial Russian. If none of those do it for you then, nope, you don't like stouts.
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Apr 2, 2012 07:17
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Angry Grimace posted:Stone's RIS is about 3 weeks out, but holy crap is it good. This. Stone's RIS is loving outstanding. Founders makes a great one too, but that's pretty much off the shelves now outside of the one store by me that charges 4 bucks a bottle for it (with no 4-pack discount).
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Apr 2, 2012 07:43
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I am 100% in this to get rich. Also Craggies beers suck so loving bad.
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Apr 2, 2012 08:21
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Not for any reason other than it's a pet peeve of mine, but it's Stone IRS. But yes, it's delicious and one of my favorite beers. Still sitting on some 05 bottles.
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Apr 2, 2012 10:49
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FreelanceSocialist posted:I just think LAB really isn't that bad. If you're doing dinner in Asheville, I recommend it. They've got decent beer, in my opinion. And if it comes out too cold? You can let it sit for a minute, you know. Well next time just say that instead of being all 'well clearly you can't appreciate a small brewery'  Also there's no excuse for serving the beers as cold as LAB does. If I order a beer, eat my entire meal and the beer is still cold enough it's muting the taste of the beer that's too loving cold.
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Apr 2, 2012 11:24
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air- posted:Nearby (Rockville, MD is where I'll be staying for now) and I'm leaving Wednesday and shooting to be there by Friday. So gonna be in Asheville on a Thursday. well, since you're gonna want to take your time and not drive into DC during rush hour on a Friday.... if, after Asheville, you're jumping back onto 81, you could stop at Wolf Hills in Abingdon, VA, for a growler or two- they're small and relatively new, but have some excellent beer- and the timing might work out well for lunch at Blue Mountain in Afton. if you take 40 to 85 and go through NC, the drive won't be as pretty, but you'll have a lot more awesome beer-related shopping and eating options (although at this point you'll probably just want the driving to be over with).
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Apr 2, 2012 12:11
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Did New World Porter season come and go already? I miss that beer.Docjowles posted:I like 400lb Monkey just cause it's a change of pace, getting an English style IPA is nice. Polestar Pilsner is pretty good, too. But yeah, Milk Stout is the only one of their beers I buy more often than every few months. They loving struck gold with that and everything else is a bit hit-and-miss. Don't forget Oktoberfest. I think it comes out in October.
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Apr 2, 2012 13:29
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Mahoning posted:I don't often go for stouts, but tonight I just randomly grabbed a bottle of Brooklyn's Black Chocolate Stout. Dear god is that gross. I'd like somebody to tell me that it was just a terrible stout to try, but I'm pretty sure it's just me and I don't like stouts. I want to, but they just taste like liquor to me because they're so strong. if brooklyn is too strong, then you might want to avoid anything but dry/irish stouts for now. then maybe move into imperials and others. personally, i think brooklyn's is a solid, complex stout that isn't at all overpowering. and speaking of overpowering... at a bbq this weekend, a buddy opened one of his bottles of black tuesday for us. first, we probably lost 10% of the bottle when it practically exploded when opened. second, as someone who loves booze heat in his BA beers, holy crap did they go overboard with it. too sweet, too strong, too much. so i'm still looking for something that's as good as bourbon county (parabola is the closest i've found).
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Apr 2, 2012 13:54
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I'm so drat bummed that we don't get bourbon county at all in OH. I wish we didn't have our stupid 12% ABV cap on beer.
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Apr 2, 2012 14:20
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Mahoning posted:I don't often go for stouts... that stuff is delicious, but, yeah, you might need to build up to it. i would suggest snagging a nitro can (or four) of Young's Double Chocolate Stout and some sort of lower-ABV oatmeal stout- New Holland's The Poet and Anderson Valley's Barney Flats are both good and relatively easy to find. all of these have a good bit of sweetness to them and practically no booziness, and the latter two exhibit the roast/bitter tastes that you'll find in most stouts. Old Rasputin, Storm King, and Stone RIS are not beers you're going to enjoy just yet. if you don't like stouts, though, that's fine- less chasing poo poo down and dropping tons of cash for ultra-limited $15 barrel-aged bombers. a little less variety in the winter, maybe, but i deal with IPA season pretty well.
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Apr 2, 2012 14:34
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Bourbon Co is only worth it if you're sharing with at least two other people. I can barely finish a 12oz bottle by myself. Last time I got it I ended up using the last couple ounces as steak marinade.
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Apr 2, 2012 14:35
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Kudosx posted:I'm so drat bummed that we don't get bourbon county at all in OH. i live in chicago and i barely can find it when it comes out now...
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Apr 2, 2012 14:36
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Bottle shop got ONE bottle of Firestone Walker XV in... saving it for me. Hopefully it's as good as I hope it is.
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Apr 2, 2012 15:11
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Vertigo posted:Bottle shop got ONE bottle of Firestone Walker XV in... saving it for me. eh. had it on tap and out of a bottle and would've been much happier drinking something else, as it tasted mostly like alcohol and barrel to me. had XIV at a tasting the other night (wanted to post about it, but don't have a list of everything we drank), though, and it was loving amazing, but it was a very different blend. so, yeah, maybe sit on it for a bit?
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Apr 2, 2012 15:16
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Vertigo posted:Bottle shop got ONE bottle of Firestone Walker XV in... saving it for me. The place I go has a big floor display of 2 or 3 cases of it... I just drank my bottle of it last night. Lots of oak and a touch of barleywine undertones, I think at least 4 of the beers in the blend are BA barleywines of sorts. The first glass of it was good but I should have tried to finish off the bottle. I just can't enjoy 12% bombers any more.
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Apr 2, 2012 15:24
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Kudosx posted:I'm so drat bummed that we don't get bourbon county at all in OH. I wish we didn't have our stupid 12% ABV cap on beer. I'll be heading back up to NE Ohio for about a week next Monday, if you want I can check over the river in KY for it since I'm going to make a big beer run before I leave anyways. You can PM me if you want me to grab it for you. I'll probably be going either tomorrow or Wednesday.
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Apr 2, 2012 15:57
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Mahoning posted:I'll be heading back up to NE Ohio for about a week next Monday, if you want I can check over the river in KY for it since I'm going to make a big beer run before I leave anyways. You can PM me if you want me to grab it for you. I'll probably be going either tomorrow or Wednesday. It's a limited beer unfortunately, and it sells out quickly when it's released so there's no way you'd be able to find it 
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Apr 2, 2012 16:10
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CalvinDooglas posted:Don't forget Oktoberfest. I think it comes out in October. It's decent. But now any time I drink an Oktoberfest, I find myself thinking "welp shoulda bought Ayinger".
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Apr 2, 2012 16:19
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I always forget about Ayinger. I think Celebrator is the only Ayinger I've had, actually. Every time I'm thinking of getting a half liter of German ale, I get Wiehenstephaner because why take the risk of buying something that's not as good as Weihenstephaner?
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Apr 2, 2012 19:52
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Ayinger Jahrhundert, Oktober Fest-Märzen (LOL at BA putting Sam Adams above it), and Bräu-Weisse are all good.
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Apr 2, 2012 20:10
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Ayinger simply doesn't make any bad beers, as far as I can tell - everything I've had from them has been universally excellent. And they have one of the most incredibly beautiful brewhouses I've ever seen.
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Apr 2, 2012 20:54
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I picked up a 4 pack of Hoptimum, and a bottle of Maharaja. I'm drinking the Hoptimum right now, and it's pretty good. I think it was priced very reasonably at $9.99/4 pack, considering the high ABV. I also saw bottles of Oak Aged Unearthly, and Gemini. Any thoughts on those? I still haven't tried the regular Unearthly, but having never tried a barrel aged IPA, the Oak Aged version really intrigued me. In other news, a grocery store 12 minutes away from my house is getting a growler station. They already had them at other locations for the same chain, but now I'll have one about 20 minutes closer! I'm pretty excited, they're going to be tapping a limited GLBC red ale the first day it's up. Kudosx fucked around with this message at 21:02 on Apr 2, 2012 |
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Apr 2, 2012 20:59
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Kudosx posted:I also saw bottles of Oak Aged Unearthly, and Gemini. i like the standard unearthly better. haven't had gemini.
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Apr 2, 2012 21:15
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I just moved into a new apartment with two friends, and one of them brought along a kegerator that he inherited from his brother, but has never used. Last night I cleaned everything out, refilled the CO2, and picked up a sixtel of Troegs Hopback. Oh baby.
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Apr 2, 2012 21:18
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Kudosx posted:I picked up a 4 pack of Hoptimum, and a bottle of Maharaja. I'm drinking the Hoptimum right now, and it's pretty good. I think it was priced very reasonably at $9.99/4 pack, considering the high ABV. Is this years Hoptimum drinkable? Last year being the premiere for it, it was a boozy, bitter mess. As one goon once said about drinking unbalanced IPAs, it "was like being throat hosed by an ethanol-soaked hop dildo".
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Apr 2, 2012 22:10
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Huge_Midget posted:Is this years Hoptimum drinkable? Last year being the premiere for it, it was a boozy, bitter mess. As one goon once said about drinking unbalanced IPAs, it "was like being throat hosed by an ethanol-soaked hop dildo". That's a perfect description of this years, too. I am not impressed at all by it. I honestly like beers that are hop bombs, but this one is just too over-the-top for me. I never thought I'd say that about a hoppy beer, but it's true. I'm hoping that Maharaja makes up for this mess of a beer. Edit: I'm just rereading my first comment about it, and it's kind of funny. I said "it's pretty good", but that's only because I had taken one sip. I had a really hard time putting down an entire glass, it was way too boozy, and the overpowering amount of hops got to me. I don't really like beers that are overly malty, but this beer could definitely use a bit more of anything-but-hops taste. Kudosx fucked around with this message at 22:24 on Apr 2, 2012 |
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Apr 2, 2012 22:21
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