On tap at Taphouse Grille – Wayne, fine hybridized witbier brings stylish orange-peeled coriander sweetness to saison-like lemondrop souring and hefeweizen-like banana-clove sugaring. Honeyed pale wheat malts provide soft bed for cotton-candied fruiting at elegant finish.
All posts by John Fortunato
FOUNDERS DARK PENANCE IMPERIAL BLACK IPA
On tap at Taphouse Grille, noirish full-body layers dry black-malted dark chocolate resin above wood-smoked charcoal singe and relegated piney citric bittering. Nut-charred black coffee, dark cocoa, raw molasses and fudge tones secure heavy mocha theme. Solidly robust.
RESIGNATION KCCO GOLD LAGER
On tap at Taphouse Grille, crisply soft-tongued German pils-styled moderation allows delicate honeyed biscuit malting and spicy hop tingle to get watery by musky vegetal midst. Resigned cereal grain finish lacks luster.
CLOWN SHOES ROYAL STANDARD WEE HEAVY
On tap at Taphouse Grille – Wayne, smoothly sweet wee heavy brings subtle heather tips florality to soothing Scotch serenity, caramelized brown chocolate malting and dried fruited pleasantries. Soured prune, sugared fig and mild burgundy illusions softly subsidize mild mocha finish. Wispy almond, creme brulee, maple molasses and toffee illusions shuffle across dewy peat bottom.
CLOWN SHOES CRUNKLE SAM AMERICAN BARLEYWINE (2014)
Elaborate barleywine carefully blends gooey cookie dough yeast with toasted caramel malts, dry Citra hops and brown chocolate spicing, leaving orange-bruised floral fruiting in its lightly pungent alcohol wake. Chewy brown chocolate sugaring sweetens honey-glazed walnut, pecan, and almond nuttiness as well as vintage Chardonnay, Bordeaux and sherry wining. Floral-bound orange zest, grapefruit, brown pear, red cherry, nectarine, raspberry and peach tang brightens the busy mix.
(BORG) GARUN ICELANDIC STOUT
Intensely rich dark ale (with well-disguised 11.2% ABV) brings aromatic anise sweetness to chewy dark-roasted chocolate malt smokiness and tarry coffee bittering. Creamy chocolate-caked sugaring allows vanilla, espresso, black cherry and marshmallow illusions to gather steam above light bourbon-burgundy wining. A fascinating Icelandic elixir!
FLYING DOG MEXICAN HOT CHOCOLATE STOUT
Less challenging than most ‘Brewhouse Rarities,’ yet still quite engaging. Advertised jalapeno peppering and dark cocoa-powdered chocolate creaminess seem undone by carbolic aridity. Wispy cinnamon-toasted vanilla sweetness gets lost in the shuffle as well, leaving raw molasses astringency to saddle its anise-nipped mocha finish.
SHINER HAPPY BIRTHDAY CHOCOLATE STOUT
Sweet-toothed 106th anniversary dessert treat begins fabulously, overloading black chocolate and dark cocoa upon oily hop-charred resin. But as the dark-roasted mocha malt frontage declines, its richness and body fades. So instead of tasting like candy-sugared M & M’s or a Milky Way, the chocolate-caked cocoa bean, chocolate mint, milked coffee; Kahlua and syrupy molasses illusions lose luster, leaving some phenolic astringency in its wake.
ST. LAWRENCE RUBY CANOE BOCK
Ill-defined dunkel bock tastes like cheap sharp cider. Tart green apple, sour lemon and oaken cherry provide mouth pucker as stylish fig-date conflux takes a backseat to oncoming green grape esters. Murky toasted nut influence and unwanted veggie snip further confound things.
UPLAND BAD ELMER’S PORTER
Thin ‘traditional brown porter’ with nut brown leanings affixes roasted nuttiness to musty mocha malting. Dry peanut-shelled cola and walnut resonance goes astray as murky black chocolate, dark cocoa and light-roast coffee illusions fail to ignite. Tertiary soy sauce, burnt toast and black tea nuances are spotty.
UPLAND CV PRE-PROHIBITION PILSNER
Enjoyable 2013 pilsner-styled pale lager (a.k.a. Champagne Velvet) celebrates Upland’s 15th anniversary with homage to Indiana’s ‘most beloved beer’ from defunct Terre Haute Brewery. Clear-yellowed German pils brings corn-sugared cereal graining to crisp lemon-soured spritz, mild grassy hop bittering and buttery pale malt toastiness. Musky yeast pungency reminiscent of Heineken.
FOUNTAIN SQUARE SOUL RIDE INDIA PALE ALE
Perfectly balanced nickel-hued IPA brings bright yellow and orange fruiting to creamy cookie dough malts. Sunny yellow grapefruit bittering takes the lead as orange-bruised tangerine, peach, pineapple, cantaloupe, nectarine, red apple, brown pear, mango, papaya and melon tang prospers. Furthermore, resinous piney hop freshness contrasts honeyed spruce juicing and chewy caramel sugaring in fine fashion. An underrated fave!
