Weihenstephaner Korbinian

Doppelbock, abv 7.4%

Appearance: Very dark brown, reddish, body. Red mahogany cherry when held up to the light. Large off white head that settles to a nice brown layer on top. Moderate lacing 

Smell: Strong dried fruit on the nose. Raisins, figs, plums, and some dates. Its sweet but you can still smell the chocolate and coffee notes from the malt, but not all the much. 

Taste: Not much in the beginning. A lot going on once it gets going. There is subtle tobacco. The dried fruits continue nicely: raisins, plums, figs, and dates. Some coffee and dark caramel.

Mouthfeel: It coats the mouth lightly. Perfectly carbonated. 

Overall: Great beer. Even thought is had a 7.4 abv, you can not taste it at all. The dark malts give it a great complexity. The hops could be a little more present but that might be solved if it is consumed closer to the source. Just a great balanced beer.

4.4/5 

Saison de Lente by The Bruery

Saison/Farmhouse ale, abv 6.5%

Appearance: Body was an amber color. Head was about a finger, very fluff. A tad hazy. 

Smell: Nice earthy smell, as one would expect from the brett. There are also a lot of fruit smells like: banana, apricot and lemon. 

Taste: The tartness is right upfront and you get some citrus at the finish. In the middle there is all the sweeter fruits and some breadyness. Throught out the whole thing you can really taste the nice funk from the brett, although its kinda subdued. 

Mouthfeel: This is a very light beer. It doesn't linger much. The carbonation is on the lighter side of medium. 

Overall: Very impressive beer. Its a nice saison that gives you a lot of the funk you would expect but its not overpowering. The fruit flavors in there balance the sournessness nicely and the finish ends very cleanly. Give your a lot to taste while you are drinking it but does not linger. Overall a great beer from The Bruery.

4.1/5

En el Bosque by Omnipollo and Nomada

Imperial Red Ale, abv 7.0%

Appearance: Dark amber red. Very large off white head with great retention. Dissipates to a very billowy head. 

Smell: Carmel malts very prominent. Some nuttiness and some hops. The varied malts and grains are mostly what you can smell. 

Taste: The hops really come into play here. Nice hoppy taste upfront and a nice long bitter finish. The malts are all though out. There is a sweet malt taste upfront also, and in the middle there is some fruit taste, very little though. THe rye is noticeable towards the end with the hops. As it warms up the hops bitterness subsides and the malt flavors come out. There is a lot going on with the malt flavors from the carmel to somewhat of a coffee taste.

Mouthfeel: High carbonation and dry towards to the end. 

Overall: Good beer with a different nose from what it taste in the mouth. It gets better as it warms up but the excessive carbonation makes it hard to get a nice taste on it. 

3.3/5 

Mikkeller Hoppy Lovin' Christmas

Imperial IPA, abv 7.8%

Appearance: Light orange golden color. Large 2 finger head. Settles to one finger that is foamy on top and tighter towards the bottom. Good lacing.

Smell: Pine is very prominent. Lots of tropical fruits and sweet grain smell also. Citrus and pineapple are the first things to come to mind. 

Taste: Not a traditional Imperial IPA taste. The have a very soft hit but develop in your month. The flavors stay in your mouth for a long time. Pine upfront with a bitter finish. Fruits are in the middle but lacking. Smell and taste are different. 

Mouthfeel: Very oily and the flavors seems to envelop your mouth. 

Overall: Very interesting overall. Good beer but the taste seems to be lacking the fruitier flavors that can be had with hops. To me, this lack of roundedness in the hops does not make it an imperial ipa, its missing too much. Although it is said to have ginger, I can not detect it in the nose or mouth. Even while being super critical of this beer, it is a good beer and very drinkable. For the price, a better buy can be had.

3.4/5 

To Øl Yeastus Christus

Farmhouse IPA, abv 7.4%

Appearance: Hazy brown-orange body. Big head that ends up being extremely lacy.

Smell: Extremely fruity with a brett funk. Hops up front. Dried peach smell. Very tropical nose. Smells like fresh pineapple juice. 

Taste: Similar notes as the nose. Its not a timid IPA. It does have a strong hops presence. Very fruity with more pineapple but now some stronger wild yeast funk. Very hoppy upfront. Milder in the middle, where the fruity yeasty parts are able to come through. Finishes with a nice tartness and sourness. 

Mouthfeel: Higher carbonation but it works. The yeast tartness is present.

Overall: Very impressive beer. The ipa wild yeast combo are always fun to taste. Definitely a good beer. Higher in the abv but its a beer you will have an easy time tasting. Not too complex where you will have to think too much but its not one you can just through back. Another solid beer, from a solid brewery. 

4.1/5 

Tierra De Frontera Pale Ale

Pale Ale, abv 4.5%

Appearance: Red body. with a large head. Settles to a finger creamy head. 

Smell: Light hops smell. Sweet with some small citrus. 

Taste: Nice round body of the hops but definitely more hops than a pale ale should have. A long thinning bitterness finish from the hops. Not much else going on.

Mouthfeel: Highly carbonated. Really affects the taste. Medium body. 

Overall: This is overall an drinkable beer (thats if you can be lucky like me and not find a contaminated beer). It has pretty much one note it keeps strumming. Its not anything special but it also isn't bad. The hop flavor is good but suffers of the downfalls of single-hopped beers, not much to round it out. The carbonation is a tad odd since it is very sharp and muted anything upfront. I am unaware if there is any flavors or character in the taste upfront because of the carbonation. The water was not filtered since you can taste quite a bit of minerals in the beer. 

2.2/5 

d'Achouffe N'ice Chouffe

Belgian Strong Ale, abv 10%

Appearance: Deep brown-amber with a large tall head. Settled to a very thing head with good lacing. 

Smell: Carmel apple, spices (small cinnamon and cloves), and dark malts. Some spicy yeast smell, and a bit of oranges. 

Taste: Thyme, yeast, and dark malts. Lots of spices that are very well balanced. Starts up sweet with the thyme, has a body made up of malts, yeast, and generally made up spices. Finished up with a soft hop bitterness.

Mouthfeel: A little heavier than a medium body beer. Moderate carbonation. 

Overall: The thyme and curaçao are certainly interesting pairing. They balanced out the rest of the beer, which had a lot spices and yeast smell. 

4/5