It's not every time when the contents of what is inside one of my beer glasses matches the glass. But that is the case this time as we find Backstreet Berner IPA from Otter Creek Brewing inside an Otter Creek glass.

The glass was purchased a few years back when my wife and I went to Middlebury, Vermont with a friend of ours. While we were there we visited the Otter Creek brewery and store. Unfortunately their schedule of tours didn't match up with the weekend plans of our hosts. But we did get to sample some fine brews in the tasting room. I purchased a nice 12 pack of beer, the glass in the picture above, and a large heavy duty canvas bag to tote it all home in.

Otter Creek was one of the first craft brewers I came across as my education in all things hoppy grew more adventuresome. Their Copper Ale (which I notice is no longer offered) was one of the first microbrews that was readily available at stores and bars around Connecticut that caught my attention. Since then I have enjoyed many of their offerings.

As you can tell from the photo the Backseat Berner has a golden brown and somewhat hazy appearance. If you visit the website at the link above the haziness is explained. We are assured it is cosmetic only with no impact to taste and I certainly detected none.

After the color the next thing noticed was a subtle citrus aroma to be expected from something labeled as an IPA. 

The first impression upon tasting Backseat Berner was the strong body or backbone of the beer. There was some maltiness to it and of course the slight citrus taste from the hops. You would not expect an IPA to have a light body, and the Berner definitely does not. I'm sure the 7% ABV has something to do with that.

For an IPA there were two characteristics that really stood out to me. One was how smooth the aftertaste was. It was extremely balanced with little or no hint of bitterness. The second was the silky feel the beer seemed to have in my mouth. Perhaps this has something to do with the haze their website speaks of.

I've had stronger IPAs, and IPAs with more pronounced hoppiness. But I've had few IPAs, especially one with this alcohol content, that were this smooth or went down this easy.

I'm giving Otter Creek's Backseat Berner 7 mugs out of 10.

 

Last weekend my wife and I took some time and headed up north to Montpelier, Vermont. 

The occasion was our anniversary. Also we like Vermont. And we have a nephew and his girlfriend who have a house in Montpelier. So the lodging price was right.

We went up on a Friday and it was a beautiful day to walk around downtown Montpelier. They were having an Artwalk celebration. About two dozen venues around town were displaying works of art of local artists. One of them happened to be our nephew. And he had also solicited entries from his brother and his brother's fiancee so they also had works on display.

The other draw of course is the vibrant brewing scene in Vermont. I've been a fan of the larger Vermont breweries whose offerings are readily available further south in Connecticut. Long Trail, Otter Creek and Magic Hat have often filled my refrigerator and coolers. But I also knew there were many smaller breweries worth checking out.

Our trip was too much of a quick hitter to visit any breweries (another time for sure). But the brews from these smaller breweries are readily available throughout the state.

One of our first stops (after visiting the local library to use their rest rooms after the drive up from CT) was a place called the Three Penny Taproom. It's a great bar with nice wooden floors and plenty of tables and chairs. It was getting busy late on a Friday afternoon as we waited for our nephew's girlfriend to meet us. (Our nephew had to work late that night unfortunately).

There was a large chalkboard on the wall displaying all the brews available on tap. They came from all over but most were from Vermont, with a smattering of brews from New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Michigan, California, etc. Being in Vermont I wanted to try something local, and also something I hadn't tried before.

I started with a brew called Edward. It is an American Pale Ale from Hill Farmstead Brewery in Greensboro, Vermont. It was somewhat on the light side which was anticipated given the 5.2% alcohol level. But it was very smooth and tasty. It went down very easily and I could have drunk it all night. So I did end up having a second. By then our nephew's girlfriend had joined us. She joined us in a round and then we decided to go elsewhere to eat.

We ended up at restaurant called Sarducci's. As you might guess it is an Italian restaurant. Without reservations it was about a half hour wait. But the food was worth the wait. All three of us enjoyed our meals. While there I sampled one of their tap offerings, the IPA from Fiddlehead. For those who may not have heard, Fiddlehead Brewing is legendary among Vermont microbrews. The brewmaster, Matt Cohen, is known and far wide and goes by "Matty O". I guess from the long "o" in Cohen. 

The IPA is Fiddlehead's signature brew. And isn't that how it should be for just about any brewery? I certainly think so.

Their IPA did not disappoint. It had the nice amber color. The aroma of citrus and pine you come to know and love from IPA's. And it was flavorful and very smooth as well. It is worth the trip to Vermont just to find all the places that have it available on tap.

So it was a very productive trip to Vermont. Montpelier is a funky little town. It is the smallest state capital in America. And the variety of beers available in its bars and restaurants and liquor stores is astounding. Definitely worth the journey and worth getting caught in a downpour on Saturday at a local outdoor tag sale being held on Main St. 

And for any interested you can visit this site to see some art work from our nephew. Some of the paintings were among those on display around town.

Until next time - keep drinking!

See what happens when you pour the brew from a 12 ounce American bottle into a pint glass from the Guiness brewery in Dublin? Look at that wasted space on top!

The contents of the glass are Wildflower Wheat from Wolaver's. For those not familiar, Wolaver's is a line of organic ales brought to you by Otter Creek Brewing of Vermont. I've enjoyed many of their offerings in the past (as I also generally appreciate brews from Otter Creek) so I looked forward to this one as well.

Wildflower Wheat as you can tell from the name and the photo is an unfiltered wheat ale. It is also brewed with a touch of wildflowers and honey.

Not surprisingly there is a flowery aroma as you bring the glass to you. As you might also suspect from the effervescent appearance of the beer in the glass there is a prickly sensation on the tip of your tongue as you first taste it. 

The first impression is a fruity sensation as you drink in the beer. Then as you hold the ale in your mouth you get the shot of honey taste loud and clear. It's not too sweet to be cloying, nor overwhelming, but there's no mistaking what you're tasting.

Then as you swallow the initial prickly sensation returns for a final bow. 

Overall this is a balanced and tasty brew. It is not for you if you do not like anything sweet or flowery in your beers. But again it is done in a way where the flavors balance out. Still it is not a beer where I would buy an entire six-pack or 12-pack of just this ale. It's fine though as a member of a variety pack and an interesting, different and refreshing offering.

I give Wolaver's Wildflower Wheat 6 mugs out of 10.

Hope the warm weather starts showing up with more regularity so we can dive into some summer brews.

First of all you are looking at two gifts here. The glass was a present from my brother and sister-in-law from a recent trip they took to Ireland. It came from the Guinness brewery. The beer is too dark or you'd be able to make out the harp logo on the glass. It's a really cool glass, I must say.
As for what is inside the glass that happens to have been a holiday gift, from the same brother and sister-in-law as it turns out. My nephew is in his first year at a school in Burlington, Vermont. For those not aware, Vermont, for a small state, is pretty big in the microbrew biz. One of the more popular is Switchback Brewing and its signature offering is Switchback Ale. 
As you can tell it is an amber-hued brew and pours with a nice head. It is an unfiltered beer that was originally only available in kegs. It has more recently been sold in bottles as you can see. I was careful with the first pour so it is fairly clear. The suggestion on the bottle though is not to worry about such things and let the unfiltered matter come through so you can enjoy the beer as originally intended. By the time I replenished the glass to finish the bottle the beer was not only amber, but hazy as well per the brewer's wishes.
I found the beer enjoyable, but ultimately not a brew that would be towards the top of my favorites. The beer has a decent flavor and hits the mouth with a slight, tingly, prickly feeling. The overall sensation though is not of a very strong beer, rather one on the lighter side for the color and pedigree. The taste leaves your mouth about the same time the beer does, and even leaves a slight bitter aftertaste that might interfere with drinking this beer through a long, cold winter night.
It was good, glad I tried it, but it didn't exactly knock my socks off. 
Maybe it was because it was a bitterly cold night and I was looking for something a bit more robust and so this struck me as being a bit on the light side. With a nephew in Burlington, Vermont (and a second nephew about 45 minutes away in Montpelier), I'm sure I'll have the opportunity to re-evaluate this ale at another time.
For now, I give it 6 mugs out of 10.