Website description: A balanced blend of hops and roasted barley with citrus accents.
ABV: 5.8%
My thoughts: This has an unfortunate smell! It’s sort of metallic and has just the slightest hint of hops. It tastes pretty interesting. I’ve never had a nitro IPA before. Guinness did fairly well, but I don’t think the style of beer really lends itself to being a nitro. I don’t really taste any hops, which is quite surprising for an IPA. It tastes a bit smokey and a bit tangy. It’s of course quite viscous and creamy, as expected from a nitro. It’s a pretty decent experiment, but I don’t think I’m a huge fan.
Website description: This new winter beer is full-bodied with a smooth malt character; accented with ginger, cloves and cinnamon.
ABV: 4.6
My thoughts: A light, sweet aroma reminiscent of molasses. For such a darker beer, it’s remarkably light bodied. It’s got a pretty good gingerbread taste, almost like the cookies themselves. Carbonation is extremely low, which gives it a nice smoothness. It’s got a clean finish and has a hint of a wheaty cookie flavor. It’s decent, but there’s not much to it. A nice novelty, but nothing more.
Website description: Strawman combines a distinct blend of juices from culinary and bittersweet apples, and is aged on oak, resulting in a complex, wine-like cider with apple and citrus notes and an earthy finish.
ABV: 10%
My thoughts: This has a great cinnamon and nutmeg scent. You’d think it would be sweet given the aroma, but its surprisingly tart! Like a fresh fall apple, it’s crisp and tart with just a bit of sweet juiciness. It’s quite carbonated and feels light on the tongue. It tastes almost like a Granny Smith apple at the very end, which lingers for a bit. Like all great beers and ciders, you don’t get a sense of how strong it is. This is definitely an excellent fall cider that would be great in any occasion.
Number of times I’ve had it: 1 (750 mL bottle)
Rating: 4.5/5
Location: Bought at Bottle Values, drank at home during Thanksgiving with the family.
My thoughts: This has a mild scent that I’m having trouble pinning down. It’s sort of malty and a little sweet. The flavor is interesting. It’s got that boozy rum barrel flavor, but the pumpkin adds an interesting counterpoint and there’s a nice sweet touch from the pumpkin spices. This is an interesting blend of styles and definitely something I’d like to try more of. Carbonation is higher than average and it adds a good texture that goes well with the boozy, barrel aged flavor.
Bottle description: Slightly tart with notes of peach and coriander.
ABV: 5.6%
My thoughts: This has a mild peach scent with slight undertones of malt. It tastes pretty peachy, which is nice. Its always a plus when a fruit based beer actually tastes like the fruit its allegedly made with instead of… well… nothing. Its got a sweet base with the promised slight tartness. You can taste the coriander as well (also surprising!) and it makes for a very nice contrast with the sweet fruit taste. Strong carbonation gives it a nice zing. Its got a very full body and is remarkably rich feeling. The color bears noting; its a rich, almost golden red color. It’s pretty eye catching and unique, which matches the unique flavor well. It leaves a very light and pleasant aftertaste that is reminiscent of its namesake fruit. I tore through a six pack of these pretty quick. It’s one of the more enjoyable beers I’ve had from Blue Moon. Their seasonals tend to be really hit or miss. I’m happy to say that this one was a solid hit.
Number of times I’ve had it: 6 (a six pack of 12 ounce bottles)
Rating: 5/5
Location: Bought the six pack at 7-Eleven and drank them at home.
Website description: Torpedo Extra IPA is an aggressive yet balanced beer with massive hop aromas of citrus, pine, and tropical fruit.
ABV: 7.2%
My thoughts: This is a pretty solid IPA. It’s got a nice, mildly hoppy aroma. It’s a beautiful and somewhat dark amber color. There’s a hint of something slightly sweet and floral that I can’t quite put my finger on. It’s pretty smooth with the typical IPA bite at the end. There’s not much more to say. Its a bit above average with a good hop flavor and won’t let you down, but it’s not one of those beers that really wows you.
Website description: It’s made from delicious apple and pear juices. We use champagne yeast in all our ciders and ferment for them 10-14 days. We then cold-filter 4 times and carbonate them before bottling or kegging. It is 5% alcohol by volume with a lovely pear nose and a smooth semi-sweet mouth feel with a dry finish.
ABV: 5%
My thoughts: This has a weird scent. It’s sort of a sickly sweet scent that almost smells like fruit at the very edge of ripeness. This is only the 2nd pear cider I’ve had and it couldn’t be more different. It’s got the perfect level of sweetness. The pear flavor is super strong! It’s not very carbonated and has a moderately clean finish. Pretty solid if you’re into ciders, but its not gonna win any converts if you aren’t a cider fan.
Website description: A light, refreshing blonde ale crafted for the California lifestyle. Subtle malt sweetness is balanced by a touch of hops,creating a versatile beer with a clean finish.
ABV: 4.7%
My thoughts: WTF! The first really local beer I try and its this watery Bud wanna be? Son, I am disappoint. There’s no aroma to speak of. It’s a nice golden color and is pretty transparent, which while it looks nice, is sadly indicative of its lack of body. It doesn’t taste all that bad, but that’s because there’s not much to the flavor. To me the flavor is a lot like Budweiser, but its not as outright awful. It’s just not very good. I’ve had other great California beers before (including my all time favorite beer, Sierra Nevada!), so I was disappointed with how this turned out to taste. Alas! I’ll have to look to other breweries for my quality CA fix.
Website description: It is brewed in the traditional “old world” manner, using premium two-row malted barley, hops and our own special proprietary yeast strain. It is an amber ale with a rich complex refreshing flavor and a crisp dry finish.
ABV: 6%
My thoughts: It’s got a hell of a bite! Smells nice, slightly floral. For all of the hop overload at the end, the flavor is actually kind of mild. It’s a pretty good and fairly crisp beer, but if you can’t handle the bitterness of hops, this isn’t for you!
UPDATE: It looks like Wells sold off some of their breweries and beer recipes to Eagle Brewery. This beer is now known as Eagle Brewery Sticky Toffee Pudding Beer.
Website description: Using traditional British desserts as our source of inspiration, we discovered that the natural, rich flavours of Sticky Toffee Pudding could be exquisitely combined with darker malts to create a truly distinctive ale. With toffee and caramel hints and rich fruit aromas, Sticky Toffee Pudding Ale is an intensely satisfying beer.
ABV: 5%
My thoughts: This tastes just like toffee! It’s a lot more like one of those gourmet fancy sodas than it is a beer. The carbonation is pretty strong and its a very sweet beer. It’s aroma is quite sweet as well and is reminiscent of pudding, hence the name I suppose. I like it, but my uncle isn’t a big fan. I don’t think he likes beers that skew towards being sweet or fruity. With these last few beers, I’ve been trying to get him to expand his beer palette. When I got here, he was drinking Bud Light Lime, as if that was the pinnacle of beers! Clearly I had to set him straight, and although this one missed the mark, the misses do help me get a feel for what his preferred tastes are.
One time, at band camp work, I gave a bunch of good restaurant recommendations. One of my friends was all like “You’ve given us some great recommendations! We’re coming to you whenever we’re going out to eat.” Because I don’t always think things through, I decided to create a website where I can review local (LI/NY at the time) restaurants. Also I am a fatty, hence the name of the site.
That was how it started. I am notoriously lazy and didn’t update more than once or twice a year, if that. There were some dark times, but I am setting off on a renewed venture (Narrator: he stalled almost as soon as he started up again) to bring you not only food reviews from wherever I am stuffing my face (I’ve been to CA and back to NY!), but also infinite beer reviews, because who doesn’t like beer?
