Thomas Neeson's SMaSH IPA

A good friend of mine started homebrewing about a year and a half ago. I've tried some of his beer and it is quite good. He's a grad student up in Vermont studying Education and he is a talented musician as well. He doesn't have a brewing website yet but as soon as there is something I will put a link in here.

The most recent batch he gave me to try was an all-grain brew of an IPA that was dry hopped. This was his first all-grain brew and he had been doing extract brews before that. For those who don't know what that means: extract brewing means that you are brewing using prepackaged malt extract where as in all-grain brewing, you are creating the extract yourself by creating the extract yourself by mashing different grains to create the wort.

The beer poured a hazy, gold color with a thin white head. There wasn't very good retention of the head and very little lacing in the glass as the beer was consumed. The nose was surprisingly mild for a dry hopped IPA but there were still a few hop and citrus notes to be found. The beer was very much a full bodied IPA with a lot of good hop flavor with some nice, light lemon notes as well. The finish of the beer was a lingering of the hop bitterness which left you wanting more of the beer.

A great example of DIY in the beer industry, this was very much a successful homebrew.

Saranac Blueberry Blonde Ale

So I was without internet for awhile as I moved into my new apartment but I didn't stop taking notes or trying new beers. One that made a particular impression on me was from Saranac's 12 Beers of Summer Pack, Saranac Blueberry Blonde Ale. Now in the past, I had found one of their seasonal beers a bit strong for my taste but one of my friends was raving about it so I decided to try it. Also, I was still on the hunt for the mystery blueberry beer that I HAVE FOUND and will review at a later date.

The beer poured a hazy, gold color with a bright white head. The head had good retention throughout and there was some excellent lacing. The nose of the beer had some very strong blueberry notes with just a hint of some citrus. Normally, this sort of nose is the hint of bad things to come but the flavor was pleasantly mild. It had a very nice blueberry flavor that was well balanced with a touch of hop and citrus notes. The finish was very mellow with a bit of blueberry lingering at the very end.

This beer is available, as I said, in the 12 Beers of Summer Pack but also in its own 6 pack if you want just this one. I highly recommend it.

Franklin's Brewery

A few weeks ago was the Family Hootenanny where we sat around most of a Saturday, drank beer, talked, played music and were generally awesome. My cousin Emma and her boyfriend Paul brought up some beers from their local brewery, Franklin's Brewery, for me to try. I'll probably do a more formal review when I go to visit this summer but for a sampling of what this brewery has to offer, I figure this is a good start.

First one up was the Anacostia Ale. The beer was a deep copper color with a cream colored head. The nose was very well balanced between hops and malt with a few very light citrus notes. The flavor reflected the nose with a bit of a pleasant hop bite. The finish was smooth and refreshing with the sweetness of the malt lingering just a bit.

The second beer I tried was the 10th Anniversary Ale. This one poured a hazy gold color with a bright white head that had a good retention throughout. This was also a very well balanced beer though much more mellow than the Anacostia. The nose was mild and citrusy. The flavor was a good balance between good bready malts and nice, light hop notes. It was a lingering finish.

Overall, I think this was a great sampling from a small brewery. I would love to get the chance to try more and hope to do so soon!

Deadwood Nut Brown Ale

This weekend my parents and I went to Boston to see the Red Sox play the Orioles. We stayed at a Comfort Inn not too far from downtown. Inside the inn, there were signs for a Deadwood Cafe and Brewery so, being me, I twisted everyone's arm into going.

When we arrived, the place wasn't exactly what we expected. It was in a bowling alley but who am I to judge? This could be some fantastic beer that no one knows about. Unfortunately, this was not the case.

They were out of their stout but the replacement offering was a nut brown ale so I ordered that. On the website, it's described as a blend of a Pilsner and a Stout. The beer came out a dark brown, nearly black color. There was a small head that was cream to white in color but it dissipated very quickly to a very thin layer of foam. The nose was muted but a few floral and hop notes were present. The flavor was thin and overhopped for the style of beer. It was nearly identical to my dad's IPA in the amount of hoppiness. It was very disappointing since malty beers are my favorite and that's what this was supposed to be in part. There was no real aftertaste which was good but the beer overall was lacking. I'm sorry to say I won't be recommending this to anyone because I wouldn't want them to face the same disappointment that I faced here. 

Buffalo Bill's Blueberry Oatmeal Stout

The quest for the elusive blueberry beer I had two summer ago continues. This time I decided to get out of the ales and try a stout. Unfortunately, it still wasn't a success in finding the magical purple beer but in any case, this one was still very good. Buffalo Bill's Brewery was the source of our most recent blueberry beer in the form of their Blueberry Stout. 

Their label held a lot of promise for my search which is why I bought it. I mean, look at all the berries on the label! Needless to say, that while the beer wasn't purple, it certainly did not disappoint in blueberry flavor. Even though this wasn't the beer I was looking for, I would certainly look for it again. 

Dad wanted to be fancy since it was a tulip glass

I poured the beer into a tulip glass from the Spiegelau collection that I have. The beer poured a deep brown, nearly black, color with a tan head that dissipated rather quickly. The nose of the beer was full of blueberry notes with just a hint of toasted malts and chocolate. The flavor matched the nose wonderfully with the classic stout flavor standing up wonderfully to the sweetness of the blueberries. The finish was clean with no real flavor lingering. There were a few hints of chocolate. The beer was remarkably smooth with little carbonation. It was overall a very good experience. As I said earlier, I strongly recommend this to anyone who enjoys both blueberries and oatmeal stouts.