This week we take a deeper dive inside a variety 12 pack from Otter Creek Brewing. The beer we sampled this week is called Over Easy. 

The light straw color is the first indication that this is not going to be one of the more robust offerings from Otter Creek. 

This impression is somewhat offset when the aroma has that slight citrus scent associated with heavily hopped brews such as an IPA. 

The first taste also contains a definite hint of citrus. There is also a slight bitterness and a tingle in your mouth accompanying the citrus taste as first impressions.

As you continue drinking the bitterness in the aftertaste stays with you as you swallow. Ultimately what you end up with is a brew light in color and light in body, but very hopped. 

For all that the beer, as the name implies, does go down easy. It is definitely an enjoyable brew for the warm days of summer. And yes folks it is still summer.

The intent seemed to be to create a simple, light, easily drinkable ale that would not be heavy. Probably one better suited to warmer weather or a night of drinking. Hence the 4.6% alcohol content. But then to pack it full of hops to make it more complex and interesting than a beer with that low alcohol level would normally be. 

If that's the case, then mission accomplished. Just seems that the hops overwhelm the light body from a balance perspective.

Still I had no problem drinking it and reaching for another!

I give Over Easy from Otter Creek 5 mugs out of 10.

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.

 

I find that I have this ongoing love/hate thing with Magic Hat Brewing. Well not love/hate. It's more like love/like. I find myself continually drawn to the offerings from this brewery, although I seldom rank them among my favorites.

Maybe it's the inventiveness, the courage they show to be different and stand out from many other craft and microbreweries. Maybe it's the joy that comes across in the descriptions of the brews and the clever off-beat names. Maybe it's that even though their brews don't tend to be at the top of my list, they are consistently on it. I know I'm going to get something that is both intriguing and up to a certain standard. Whatever the reason they keep me coming back.

The latest brews from Magic Hat I've been sampling are from the 12 pack variety pack they call the IPA Playlist Variety Pack. As you may have gathered IPAs are generally my favorite brews, so I was instantly drawn to this when I spotted it in a local package store.

One of the four varieties in that group is called Encore. As the cloudiness may suggest, this is a cross between a wheat beer and an IPA. Besides the cloudiness the other characteristic first noticed was a subtle citrus aroma. Less striking than with a typical IPA, but it was still present.

Then came the taste. The wheat malt was readily apparent. There was however a silky feeling in the mouth when you drank it in, and the silkiness stayed through the swallow. As with the aroma the citrus flavor was muted compared to a more traditional IPA.

As the ale warmed in the glass the wheat malt flavor became even more pronounced. There was the slightly prickly feeling on the tip of the tongue I've often noticed with wheat beers. 

At 6.4% ABV Encore is no shrinking violet, still it is not as powerful as a typical IPA or at least an IPA that I would personally rank higher.

The word that kept showing up in my tasting notes was "pleasant". Encore is a very smooth, very pleasant glass of beer. It's not the most memorable IPA, or hybrid IPA, you will ever sample. But it is very good, easy to drink, and it will keep you coming back. Just like Magic Hat.

I'm giving Encore from Magic Hat 6 mugs out of 10.

So last week found us in Cincinnati and Kentucky. We were going to Kentucky for my sister's wedding, but decided to turn the trip into our summer vacation. So we flew into Cincinnati which is a little less than two hours from where my sister and partner live in Kentucky. And yes I know you don't actually fly into Cincinnati. The airport is across the Ohio River on the Kentucky side.

We had tickets to see the Reds play the night we got into town. They were playing the Cardinals. We don't have a strong opinion regarding either team, but we want to try and get to as many big league ball parks as possible. And we figured this was probably the best opportunity we would have to see the Great American Ball Park in Cincinnati. All I know is between the two teams there was a lot of red in the stadium that night.

Our hotel was also on the Kentucky side in a town called Newport. Prior to walking over the pedestrian bridge that you can use to cross the Ohio into Cincinnati (the locals call it the "People Purple Bridge") we decided to find a place to eat on the Kentucky side. Having done a little pre-trip research we were able to find an establishment in Newport called The Hofbrauhaus. 

It is modeled after the famous Hofbrauhaus in Munich, Germany. The decor is supposedly very similar. They also brew their own beer on premises under license and supervision of Staatliches Hofbräuhaus in Munich. 


It definitely had that beer hall vibe going right down to the modern "oom-pah" band playing. We were both hungry and knew we didn't have a long time before needing to get to the ball park. So we kept it simple and opted for burgers rather than the more complex and varied German dishes on the menu. If we make it back there we will at least try the Sauerkraut Balls appetizer. A group of gentlemen seated at the same long table got an order and it looked great!


For beer I went with the Dunkel, a dark lager. It had a slightly roasted taste and a good body. Definitely not a light weight. But I did find it a little too bitter to call it a great beer.


We made our way across the river to Cincinnati and followed the crowd the few blocks to the stadium. I had read that there is a craft beer revival in the city which had a thriving brewing tradition before Prohibition. So I was determined to be sure I sampled local brews at the game.


I'll admit the first one I tried escapes me. It was decent, but again a little too bitter for my taste. The second beer I got though came from Rhinegeist brewing. They have been brewing for a couple of years now having set up shop at the site of one of Cincinnati's larger pre-Prohibition breweries named Christian Moerling Brewing Company. Just to keep it confusing a new craft brewer in Cincinnati has revived the Moerling naming and is brewing under it as well. 


Rhinegeist, means "ghost of the Rhine" and refers to the area of Cincinnati where the brewery is located. It is a section called Over the Rhine. In the past it was the home of a large German population and dozens of breweries. Let the comeback continue!


The particular beer I tried at the game is called Truth, which is an IPA. Now drinking a beer in a plastic cup surrounded by thousands of people on a steamy Ohio summer night may not be the best way to gauge the quality of a brew, but I gave it a go. The citrus aroma from the hops was noticeable. The beer was tasty and went down pretty easily. It was no shrinking violet having plenty of body and backbone. Yet I did not find it too bitter or too strong. Even in a plastic cup it was well balanced.


I'm not going to rate either of the beers I tried that night as I'll admit the tasting and sampling was not under ideal conditions. And I did not take extensive notes either!


Still I would not hesitate to drink either again.


The biggest recommendation I can give Rhinegeist is that I was suitably impressed with their IPA at the ball park that the next day when we got to my sister's and we went to the local store, I picked up a six pack of another Rhinegeist offering to sample. This was Cougar, which is a blond ale and definitely much lighter. (I've since seen that while Truth, the IPA, has a 7.2% ABV, the Cougar is only 4.8%) I knew I was getting something not as bold or flavorful, but it was summer in eastern Kentucky and I figured refreshing and light might be the way to go.


Unfortunately Rhinegeist is only available in the Cincinnati and Dayton areas of Ohio and northern Kentucky. Their web site makes it sound like they may push as far north as Columbus, but I didn't see Connecticut mentioned in their expansion plans. But if they're looking for a distributor for the area...


And I suppose this gives us an excuse to visit my sister on a somewhat regular basis.


As for who won the game? Beats us. It was tied, 3-3 after 9 innings and it had been a long day traveling from Connecticut to Cincinnati. So we left the park and crossed the Purple People Bridge back to Newport, Kentucky and our beds for the night. 


Okay, I did check the score the next morning. The Cardinals won 4-3 and I believe it took 12 or 13 innings.

One of my idols growing up was George Carlin. The comedian had a line that went something like this: "Some see the glass as half empty. Some see the glass as half full. I see a glass that is not the right size."

Which is apropos of nothing, except the name of today's beer and brewery gives me the opportunity to work in a reference of one of my heroes. 

Half Full Brewery is another in the growing list of Connecticut breweries whose output I've been sampling this spring and summer. It is in Stamford, CT and has been dispensing brews since August 2012. It was founded by someone who gave up a career on Wall Street to do something more meaningful. And if there is anything more meaningful than providing good beer to people I don't know what it is. (Okay perhaps that was a slight exaggeration.)

The beer pictured above, Pursuit IPA, is one of their regular offerings. It is found in the variety 12 pack from Half Full that is becoming more ubiquitous in local package stores around my part of the state. As you can see this brewery is comfortable with craft beer in cans which is definitely a growing trend.

Besides the darker than average color, the first thing noticed right off the bat was the citrus aroma characteristic of an IPA. It struck me as more pronounced than many IPAs I've experienced. The first impression from tasting the beer also revealed a stronger citrus flavor. This IPA was not shy. I "Immediately Pursued Action" (Half Full's phrase for IPA) and continued drinking.

Despite the initial hints of strength overall I found Pursuit IPA well balanced. There is a slight bitterness, especially in the aftertaste when you swallow. The hoppiness seemed more pronounced in the swallow as well.

There was a good body to the beer. Looking it up after my tasting notes I found it has an ABV of 7% which explains it not being a lightweight. But it was not at all heavy. This could definitely be a session IPA.

Half Full's Pursuit IPA is extremely drinkable. I give it 7 mugs out of 10.

I would definitely encourage beer lovers to seek out and sample some offerings from Half Full. And if you're in Connecticut and anywhere near Stamford you might want to check them out. Their web site has their hours for tours and pours.

Today we return to one of my favorite Connecticut brewers, Two Roads Brewing Company out of Stratford. 

One of the beers in their summer variety Road Pack is a nifty little number called Road Jam. It is a wheat ale brewed with raspberries and touched off with some lemongrass. 

The raspberry component is evident in the reddish tint of the brew. It is also very apparent in the aroma. There is a strong, somewhat sweet, berry scent when you hold the glass close.

The first thing noticed when taking the first sip was a subtle malty flavor with just a hint of the raspberry taste. But unlike the aroma, there was not any sweetness in the beer. Rather there was just enough tartness to make for a refreshing drink. Overall well balanced between the sweet scent and the tart taste.

This is definitely a warm weather summer brew. It was especially enjoyable after coming in from working outdoors on a hot, humid day. 

As an experiment about half way through my glass of Road Jam I threw in about a half dozen raspberries which had been freshly picked that day from behind a friends house. (The picking was by invitation, just to be clear). I did not notice any impact on the overall taste of the beer. There was definitely a stronger raspberry aroma afterwards and a somewhat stronger fruitiness to the aftertaste. But the general character of the beer was unchanged.

The raspberries at the bottom of the glass were sure delicious and fun to eat though! 

No one is going to claim this is a great beer, or a classic or a standard. But that is not the aim of a summertime brew, at least not in my mind. They should be lighter and aim to be refreshing. Balance if you will should trump complexity.

And by that standard I find Road Jam from Two Roads Brewing a success. It is on the lighter side (5% ABV). But it is well balanced, the fruit adding enough tartness to make the beer refreshing. 

I give it 7 mugs out of 10.

I'm trying my best this summer to focus my attention on local brews from my state of Connecticut. But when that is not possible I endeavor to stay as close to home as possible. One brewery that has caught my attention this year is Jack's Abby Brewing out of Framingham, Massachusetts.

My introduction to Jack's Abby was inauspicious but intriguing. We were at one of our favorite local pizza joints, and they tend to always have a couple of good brews on tap. They also have a great "refill for a nickel" policy that I always take advantage of. This particular night one of the beers written up on the board was Jack's Abby Berliner Style Lager. Both I and our friend's son, who was visiting and is also a lover of good beer, ordered it. Probably it was our choice because we had tried or heard of everything else on the beer board.

The beer came to our table, we both took a sip and pow! Right in the kisser! It was very sour. Neither of us liked it. Gamely we finished our glasses, but both ordered something a little more conventional with our nickel refill. Of course we both went immediately to our phones to google Berliner Style lager and discovered we should have known what we were getting ourselves into. A sour style meant specifically for summer was what the Berliner should be. We both decided maybe if we had known what to expect we would have found the brew more to our liking.

I have not tried the Berliner since then, but I did want to try more Jack's Abby beers after that. Putting that style of beer out there and being true to that style, that took moxie. This was not a brewery for the faint of heart or the fearful.

So this summer I have come across the variety 12 pack from Jack's Abby. One of my favorites is their IPL, which they call Hoponius Union.  That is the other thing about Jack's Abby. They are committed to lagers. They do lagers. Period.

Naturally for an IPL my inclination is to compare it to my favorite IPAs. And sure enough Hoponius Union shares many of the IPA traits. There is the customary citrus aroma, just more subdued than in an IPA. There is also the strong hop flavor of the brew.

As you may tell from the photo this beer is unfiltered, but also lighter in color and body than most IPAs. The bitterness is there but more subtle. The overall effect is a clean, refreshing beer. 

It has a good flavor, reminiscent of a western style IPA, but a little lighter. I'm thinking it would be easier to make Hoponius Union an all-night session beer than it would most IPAs. 

Along with some of the local Connecticut breweries I've been discovering this summer, Jack's Abby is towards the top of my favorite "local" breweries. I'll even give the Berliner another try now that I know what to expect.

I give Hoponius Union from Jack's Abby 8 mugs out of 10. It has become one of my favorites for drinking or recommending.

Until next time, have a good one!

My feelings about this beer are as unclear as the picture.

First of all allow me to reintroduce myself. Have been away quite a bit the last few weeks which meant no new postings to Views on Brews. There was a nephew's wedding, the 4th of July extended weekend, and in between those two events we picked up a rescue dog. It's been six years since our beloved yellow lab had passed, but we were finally ready to take the plunge again. So now we have a rescue who came to us from a shelter in Mississippi. He was treated for heartworm and generally seems to have had a fairly joyless life. But he is a sweet thing and very loving to us. He was advertised as a yellow lab/cocker spaniel mix, but we detect beagle in the face and eyes as well.

And now down to business.

Shebeen Brewing Company in Wolcott, CT has been on my radar for a while now. They opened recently just a couple of years ago to some real notice here in the local press. Maybe it was the articles in the local papers. Or maybe it was the fact that they were making a brew called Cannoli Beer. I mean come on that's not fair - two of my favorite things in the whole world combined into one? Did I make it to heaven after all? Whatever the reason I've been on the lookout for their offerings ever since.

So it was with great pleasure that I came across a six pack of cans at one of my local package stores. It was the Irish Pale Ale. Even the can had a different look to it. 

Should have known I was in for a unique experience as soon as I brought it to the register. The owner asked me if I had tried this before. I said that no, I had come across the Black IPA, but had been wanting to try anything from Shebeen for a while now. He gave me this non-committal look. He warned me to be prepared for a different taste. It's definitely different, or words to that effect were what he told me. So just be ready.

Of course that made me want to sample the Irish Pale Ale as soon as possible. Unfortunately I did have to put some cans in the fridge and let them rest and reach a suitable temperature. But then I did give it a shot.

First thing I noticed, and you might as well even from a fuzzy picture, is that the color is not at all pale. At least not if you're used to an American style pale ale. 

Then there was the aroma. Very subtle, not overpowering, but a definite hint of sweetness.

After that I took my first swallow. The first sensation that greeted me wasn't the flavor, but the texture. There was a silkiness to this brew I had not come across before. This beer has a totally different feel to it. The feel wasn't necessarily good or bad, but it was unique.

As for the taste, just as with the aroma, there was the hint of sweetness. It bordered on a roasted sweetness, almost like some domestic Vanilla Porter's I've sampled. Just not as sweet. Maybe it was the "Irish" in the name but I swear I detected some smoky peat-like accents in the aftertaste.

So what to make of this brew? Having checked out their site since I see Irish Pale Ale advertised as a session beer. It is light and only 4.9% ABV. Maybe it's just my personal prejudice but anything that is sweet, or even has hints of sweetness, strikes me as too rich or too heavy for a session beer.

I had no problem finishing the six pack, though not in one sitting! And I would get it again (after trying some of their other brews first!), but it's not a session beer. It is a very unique brew and should be approached in that spirit. It would be a good beer for sharing a six pack between 2 or 3 of your fellow beer enthusiasts. And I'm betting it's one where they either really like it or hate it.

Overall I give Shebeen's Irish Pale Ale 7 mugs out of 10. Points for achieving that unique velvety, silky feel. Points for a unique beer overall in color and taste. Be warned though, heed the words of my local package store owner, "be prepared for something different".


 

Call me a homer, but this summer I've been on a kick of sampling craft and microbrews from the Nutmeg State I call home. For those scurrying through their atlases to find Nutmeg on a map of the U.S., the Nutmeg State is Connecticut. I know, it's still difficult to locate.

I will occasionally "settle" for brews from other New England states, but have been focusing on CT brews for a number of weeks now.

Connecticut has been lagging behind other New England states, especially Vermont and Massachusetts, when it comes to craft brewing. But the state is working hard to make up for lost time.

One of the breweries that has become one of my overall favorites, not just among Connecticut breweries, is one called Two Roads Brewing Company in Stratford. They even have their own beer pavilion at the Harbor Yard ballpark in Bridgeport. You can sample their brews there before games of the Bridgeport Bluefish. As you can see they are fully into the trend of craft beer in cans, though their brews are also available in bottles. 

I have been working my way through their sample twelve pack which includes the beer above, Honeyspot Road. 

Honeyspot Road is a white IPA. It is made with wheat, hence the lighter color and cloudy appearance typical of a wheat ale. The hoppiness usually associated with an IPA is very present. There is the aroma of grapefruit so characteristic of an IPA. And the citrus notes continue subtly in the first tasting impressions.

The brew is very smooth and goes down easily. The flavor is a bit on the light side compared to a traditional IPA, and does not linger in the swallowing or aftertaste. At 6% abv it is not entirely surprising to have this be a beer with a lighter side. It also struck me as sweeter than a normal IPA.

What did seem more like an IPA and unlike your regular wheat ale was the absence of the prickly sensation on the tongue that I've often found in wheat based brews. Also there was a lack of spiciness. Many wheat ales add spices to the brew but none were detected here. I learned later from their web site that this is deliberate on the part of the brewery. They wanted a clean, crisp taste so did not add spices.

Overall I found this a very drinkable and pleasing offering. Definitely a beer to be enjoyed on a warm, summer day. 

I give Honeyspot Road white IPA from Two Roads Brewery 7 mugs out of 10. 

Or should that be 7 cans out of 10? 

 

Here in northwest Connecticut we seem to skip very quickly from winter to summer. Spring is very short-lived. One day it's gray and the temperatures struggling to hit 50 degrees. The next day it's in the 80s and humid as can be. Or so it seems.

So it's time to switch over to summer brews. I don't believe I even sampled any spring seasonals this year. The transition in the weather has been so quick that the beer transition has gone just as fast.

One thing I'm noticing is how many more of the craft brews are coming to us in cans. In fact just about every summer brew I am currently sampling is in a can. Case in point is this week's beer which comes to us from Magic Hat, the erstwhile Vermont craft brewer located in South Burlington, VT.

One of the offerings in their summer seasonal sampler (try saying that three time fast!) is a wheat ale they call Stealin' Time. I suppose the intent behind the name is to capture the lazy, hazy days of summer that should be passed contentedly sipping a brew such as this one.

There is definitely the cloudy appearance one often sees in wheat ales. A quick whiff brings a somewhat sweet malty aroma. 

Then you take the first sip. You get a slight prickly sensation on the tip of the tongue. But then there is the spicy snap in the flavor. That is when you read the can a little more carefully and discover that Stealin' Time is a wheat ale brewed with ginger. And the pieces fall into place. That taste sensation was akin to a ginger snap cookie, or maybe even a hint of pumpkin pie. Not as sweet of course. Just a hint, but not enough to destroy the balance or the tasting experience.

The spicy ginger snap flavor lingers a while in the aftertaste as you swallow. Not overpowering or too sweet. Just enough to remind you there is ginger in this here brew.

Stealin' Time is a simple concoction perfect for summer time. Complex enough to be interesting, not so complex as to get in its own way and destroy the light mood. At 5.5% abv it's what you would expect from Magic Hat in the summer. Interesting enough to keep you drinking it. But unpretentious as befitting the season and the warmer weather.

I give Magic Hat's Stealin' Time 6 mugs out of 10.

Will return in future weeks with more summer brews.