Review: Cottonwood High Gravity Frostbite

 

This medium bodied beer has a deep amber color, a slight caramel-like sweetness and extreme hop bitterness and flavor. This is not for the timid! This beer is for devoted Hop Heads! It also has a higher 8.5% alcohol by volume. Carolinabeer.com

Analysis: 

     Found this one on draft at the local bar. At first I was a was a little confused with this one. I couldn't seem to put my finger on what I was tasting. As I continued to drink it the words started to come to me. It was the lack of balance that stumped me. The sweet and bitter flavors just don't seem to get along.  It's a good beer overall not overpowering and the alcohol flavor is well disguised. I believe it will be the last Frostbite I partake in though.

Review: Bell's Porter

Brewed with a generous mix of chocolate malt and roast barley, our Porter matches subtle coffee aromas to a solid malt finish. Lighter in body than its stouter cousins, Porter earned a prominent place in our portfolio of beers with its balance of roasted flavors. First brewed in 1987, Porter remains a favorite among both our brewers and Bell's drinkers alike.

Alcohol 5.6% by volume 

Bellsbeer.com

 Analysis:

     Porters and stouts are my two favorite styles so whenever I come across one I haven't tried I can't resist pouring it into my face. When I saw this Bell's porter I thought it says "Bell's" on the bottle its got to be good and it was. It's a good porter not one of the best , but good.  It's a lighter porter that has light roasted flavors which I believe are the best attribute of this beer. My expectations were really high and it didn't quite live up to them.     

     As a porter man I tend to enjoy a thick rich full bodied porter. I certainly love the Bell's line of beers but next time I grab a Bell's I will reach around this one and grab a Double Cream Stout! DCS is a money shot!

Review: Lagunitas Hop Stoopid

Hop Stoopid Ale
For those mornings when you have to cut right to the chase, this is the one. Sure to blast through just about anything still lingering from the night before, this mouthful of Hops and huge rich Malt has a gaurantee built right into the name!

102 IBU
Alcohol 8% by volume 

lagunitas.com

 Analysis:

   I wouldn't say I am a hop head  but I do like a good hopped up beer from time to time. So when my eyes locked on to this label in the old beer store I was compelled to try it. When I cracked it open the scent was orgasmic in nature. I could hardly stop sniffing it long enough to pour it into the glass. If I had known what I was in store for I would have just chugged it out of the bottle, but I took the time to pour it into my favorite beer glass then drank it. The bitter hop flavor quickly attacked my mouth and continued all the way to my stomach. The hop flavor continued to resonate in my mouth. What a beautiful thing. This beer lives up to its name that's for sure. This beer was more than I expected and I highly recommend it.

New Brewery Ready to Roll

     Baxter Brewing is the first craft brewery in New England to can its entire line of beers. They started distribution throughout the state of Maine in September and will start distributing across northern New England in 2011.
     Right now they have to beers available according to their website Pamola Extra Pale Ale and Stowaway IPA.  Can't wait to get my first taste. Oskar Blues Dale's Pale Ale proved to me that you can make a great beer in a can hopefully Baxter will reassert my belief.

Rogue Chateau Dirtoir Black Lager

The description: This beer pours a jet black with a thick khaki head. Aromas of toasty bread and sweet molasses with hints of chocolate and oak. Flavors are balanced but extreme, burnt malt, hops, licorice and coffee with smooth silky sweet malt finish. 6% ABV
The analyst says: This beer is delicious not just beer delicious but delicious for any drink. The sweet chocolate coffee flavors shine through in this delightful lager. Rogue is a truly unique brewer which makes each of their beers an experience to look forward to.

Bell's Kalamazoo Stout

How can Bell's not be one of your favorite breweries? This stout sticks to Bell's standard of high quality beer. They manage to totally eliminate releasing a beer just for the sake of releasing it. I compare Bell's to a CD with 12 great tracks on it. It sure is a rare find.

The Kalamazoo stout is another treasure a fantastic full-bodied  stout. A nice strong roasted malt front with a bitter bite and a sweet finish. Looks great smells great!

Unibroue Trois Pistoles

The description: Deep, dark mahogany color with a tremendous tan colored head. Amazingly floral and fruity with sweet malt notes complimenting. Full-bodied and perfectly balanced, concealing its obvious strength behind a wall of fresh fruit flavors accented by fresh herbs and spices.

The analyst says: So much fruit taste. I would consider this a cider not a beer.

Stone Double Bastard

The description: Pours a deep gold with red highlights, subtle sweetness in the aroma, hints of pineapple as it warms. Big sweet malt presence, dark fruit, grape, hints of red wine. Big hop taste and finish, but smoother than Arrogant Bastard. Strong, but not over bearing alcoholic taste. Another success from Stone. 10% ABV.
The analyst says: Sweet at first then extremely bitter. I prefer the single bastard. Alcohol taste is STRONG!!

Smuttynose Old Brown Dog

Smuttynose Old Brown Dog

The description: Amber in color, this beer has a great sweet, strong malt flavor, but not overpowering. Only slight hop aroma and flavor. Nice low bitterness, and slightly fruity flavor. Compared to a typical English Brown Ale, this beer is full-bodied. The analyst says: Brown done right! Smutty is the master of all styles. They can do no wrong in my eyes.

Circus Boy Is Back!

Circus Boy Is Back!

Con is on it's WAY

Conway's Irish Ale
Coming soon!
Conway's Irish Ale, GLBC's malty Irish ale with a notable toasty flavor derived from lightly roasted malt, will soon be hitting the shelves and taps of your local retailers and taverns!

Conway's Irish Ale is a "meat and potatoes" beer that goes well with shepherd's pie, corned beef, stews and other Irish fare.  Known as the "proud and mellow patriarch" in GLBC's exceptional family of beers, Conway's Irish Ale is a great companion during the winter months.  Look for Conway's Irish Ale later this month!

Sexual Chocolate is on its Way!

Mark your calendars: Sexual Chocolate 2011 is nearly upon us.  Try it on draft starting at 4 pm on Friday, January 28 and then (after a brief nap) get in line.  Bottles go on sale at 11am on January 29.

 

For those of you new to our beer, the Sexual Chocolate is an award-winning Russian Imperial Stout infused with organic cocoa nibs.  Deep opaque black in color, it offers notes of espresso, blackstrap molasses, toffee, and dark fruits that serve to mask an alcohol content approaching ten percent.

 

Some of the accolades for the Sexual Chocolate include a silver medal at the ultra-prestigious Brewer's Association World Beer Cup earlier this year, a bronze medal at the Great American Beer Festival in 2009, and a gold medal from the same festival in 2010 for Sexy C's bourbon barrel-aged cousin.

 

As in years past, the Sexual Chocolate is $15 per 22-ounce bottle, with a limit of four bottles per customer.  Lines can start forming at 4 am, and bottles will go on sale at 11 am.  Please keep in mind that we cannot hold bottles for anyone, and that cutting places in line or holding places for other people is strictly prohibited.  With that said, we can't wait to see you here!

 

Can't make it to Winston-Salem for the release?  All is not lost.  Look for on-premise Sexual Chocolate draft releases all over North Carolina from February 1-4 and a Virginia debut on February 7 at Jack Brown's Joint in Harrisonburg, VA.  We'll keep you posted on all the Sexual Chocolate releases as more information becomes available. 


Foothills Brewing Co.

Found some Smuttynose Ipa at the local grocery. Exciting stuff! The label is great. The beer is better!