Pour Me #2: Tripel by Allagash Brewing Co.

Never had the chance to check out Allagash's highly regarded Tripel. Check it out here! Like what you see? Then get out there and find it!

Cheers & can I get an amen?!

Check out the YouTube channel @: http://www.youtube.com/user/beerismychurch

Pour Me #1: Out of Bounds Stout by @AveryBrewingCo

Enjoy the first entry in the Pour Excuse video series meant to give you a visual introduction to great craft beers.  Don't be shy to drop a note with any brews you'd like to see poured!  Many more to follow!

Cheers & Amen!

Check out the YouTube channel @:  http://www.youtube.com/user/beerismychurch

Weyerbacher Verboten @weyerbacher

Weyerbacher, while relatively local to me, consistently produces some of the finest tasting craft beers I've ever had...from anywhere.  Not only is Verboten no exception, it just may be their finest brew.

Originally part of their NATO alphabet series and known as "Alpha", this beer made it into the regular rotation as Verboten.  It pours a nice orange/amber with mild clouding and a firm light head.

There may not be a more drinkable Belgian-style pale ale around.  So crisp and refreshing yet it doesn't let you forget that this is a true, bottle conditioned, craft brew with it's amazing flavors.  Try it to replace any of the other "non-light domestic lagers" from the big boys that you may be drinking now.  It may make you a craft convert!

Ignore the name...this beer is not forbidden.  In fact, it's required drinking for the craft beer lover.

Amen & Cheers!

Weyerbacher / Easton, PA
Verboten / Belgian Pale Ale / 5.9% ABV / 12 oz. bottle

Flying Fish Exit 13 @jerseyfreshale

Well lookie here...right in my own NJ backyard the folks at Flying Fish Brewing Co. are cooking up some of the tastier craft brews in the country!  Their Limited Series Exit 13 Chocolate Stout is a smooth, dark stout with a thick pour.  A thin, parchment-colored head leave a nice, "lacy" residue on the sides of the glass.

If chocolate and/or stouts call your name then this craft brew is for you.  Deep, dark, rich cocoa notes on the nose and complex chocolate and coffee notes await you.  This flavored stout gives the more nationally known craft brewers' chocolate stouts a serious run for their money.  And in fact, beats a lot of them in the quality category.

Check with your local liquor store, and if you can still find this increasingly hard-to-find bev, snap it up quickly & enjoy!


Amen & Cheers!

Flying Fish Brewing Co. / Cherry Hill, NJ
Exit 13 / Stout / 7.5% ABV / 1 pint 9.4 oz. bottle

Ten Months of Hard Work!

What you're looking at here is nearly 10 months of my beer drinking life captured in one epic collage.  I tried to record each new beer I drank.  My journey began in the early spring of 2010.  I tried to focus on domestic (U.S.) craft brews, though you'll see a few imported brews, and tried to span the full range of quality, craft brews available to me here in the Northeast.

Over the following many, many posts I plan to describe (quickly at first) each beer.  I don't like to say I'll be reviewing them.  That seems crass.  Each of these beer crafters has made these beers with love.  Who am I to pooh-pooh any of them?  Nobody!

Keep your head on a swivel....plenty more to come!

Cheers!

Oskar Blues Ten Fidy @oskarblues

A DARK and thoroughly opaque imperial stout not for the faint of heart.

Pouring like some of the finest motor oil you can’t mistake this for anything other than a world class beer.  Don’t ask me how Oskar Blues Brewery works this smooooth stout into a can. Dark magic? (Pun mildly intended.)

Chocolate and coffee notes reign supreme.  A touch of bitterness, not uncommon with imperial stouts, hits the back of your throat on the way down.  Don't let the drinkability of this brew fool you.  You're looking at a full 10.5% ABV in a very nice package.  Pace yourself!

Sweet, dark and desirable. Oskar Blues Ten Fidy? It’s Lando Calrissian in a can.


Amen & Cheers!

Oskar Blues Brewery / Lyons, CO

Ten Fidy / Stout / 10.5% ABV / 12 oz. can