On tap at Poor Henry’s, straightforward moderation retains lemony grapefruit tang, orange-dried tartness and grassy hop astringency above pilsner-malted wheat breading. A tad bolder than usual pale ale fare.
Category Archives: Beers A-Z
CARTON GILDED LILY TRUFPEL
On tap at Plank Pizza, opulently updated Belgian tripel (2018) with earthen white truffle-perfumed flavor back-ending candi-sugared fruit mélange. Rum-spiced banana liqueur, lemon meringue, botanical gin, vanilla vodka, butterscotch schnapps and citron illusions reinforce loud 10.6% ABV.
SHMALTZ DEATH HOPPY BLACK ALE
Ultra-hoppy black ale brings piney hop-charred citrus pleasantry of an IPA to the chunky mocha overload of a dry stout. Kiln coffee, chalky chocolate, dark cocoa and ashen walnut illusions gather against grapefruit-peeled orange sedation above earthen wood-burnt grain roast.
SHMALTZ STAR TREK SYMBIOSIS 30TH ANNIVERSARY ALE
Basic easygoing pale ale designed for 30th Anniversary celebration in conjunction with Star Trek: Next Generation. Dry orange-spiced tang and honeyed lemon herbage struggle to the fore above biscuity caramel-Vienna malting, picking up a sour citric edge when warmed. Stylistically unresolved but quite quaffable.
CYPRESS MIIGWETCH PALE ALE
Subtle cranberry adjunct guides pinkish amber pale ale hybrid (with billowy white head). Full-blown sour candied citrus assault boasts sharp lemony grapefruit-seeded orange peel entry that bitterly lingers. Tart cranberry juicing lays low alongside unripened papaya-pineapple-guava souring, revealing sourer India Pale Ale comparisons. Setback piney hop oiling contrasts mild oats malting.
WICKED WEED XIBALBA IMPERIAL PUMPKIN ALE
Complexities abound as polite cacao-nibbed chili peppering gains autumnal pumpkin spicing over toffee-sugared mocha malts. Delightful pumpkin-daubed cocoa, dark chocolate and cold-press coffee continuance proves prominent as sedate nutmeg, cinnamon, allspice and cardamom seasoning recedes and delicate ancho-serrano-habanero peppering subsides (and mild aridity ensues). A deliriously adventurous dessert treat.
ALMANAC GRAND CRU IMPERIAL SOUR BLONDE ALE – 2016
On tap at Ambulance, second edition (2016 vintage) oak-aged sour blonde ale spreads white wine tannins and desiccated apricot-skinned tartness way beyond expectant orange-spiced witbier styling. In the midst, sun-ripened Muscat Blanc grape vinegaring sharpens lemony Granny Smith apple pucker to its hay-dried grain spine.
RIGHT PROPER SCOTT 5 DRY-HOPPED FARMHOUSE ALE
On tap at Ambulance, homage to Brit singing legend, Scott Walker, features floral-bound yellow grapefruit tang and perfumed lemon spritz given light lactobacillus acidity a la mixed culture wild yeast. Below the polite citric-soured surface, mild white peach, mango and guava illusions pop up alongside dry earthen funk.
FIDDLEHEAD SNOWFLAKE BENTLEY SCHWARZBIER
On tap at Ambulance (and named after a popular children’s picture book), dewy fig-spiced black lager malting provides fine initial impression for scaled-up German-styled schwarzbier. Bittersweet chocolate-seeded toffee spell quickly conquered by latent coffee-roasted burnt breading. Much neglected black lager category well served by this rangy moderate-medium body.
ICARUS BLANC-IT DUDE, PILSNER
On tap at Poor Henry’s, “ultraclean” dry-hopped German-styled pilsner flanks light grain musk and brisk lemon-rotted pungency with Hallertau Blanc-hopped lemongrass herbage and white grape tannins. A slightly bitterer pils.
LEELANAU ANTIDOGMA STOUT AGED IN BOURBON BARRELS
Seemingly unvaried takeoff of brewers’ Illuminati (bottle conditioned at Jolly Pumpkin) tosses wild yeast bacteria into bourbon-aged stout, creating sour-fruited raw molasses template over leathery cocoa musk. Dry whiskey waft consumes the nose as oaken cherry-vanilla tartness nearly conceals tannic red wine vinegaring and dry bourbon-burgundy whir while curdled soy milking gains lactic mocha edge.
SLOOP BOURBON BEAN BAKED BARREL AGED OATMEAL MILK STOUT
On tap at Ambulance, subtle dry bourbon aging creeps into light-roast coffee bean thicket. Serene bourbon coffee continuance enjoined by milk chocolate sweetness, mild espresso trinket and slight vanilla wisp. Benaeth, brown-sugared oats sweeten against ashen hop char.
