Heady golden stout loads cascara, coffee and cacao nibs adjuncts over pale malt base. Bittersweet husk-dried coffee cherry tartness (cascara) confronted by slightly harsh ethanol burn (of 11.1% ABV). Espresso coffee finish lets chocolate-spiced vanilla sweetness gain mild influence.
CARTON PRIMOODONNA LACT-OAT PORTER
Bustling carrot cake-inspired porter (in collab with Bolero Snort) goes way beyond rarefied hybridized style. Creamy dark chocolate syruping adds bittersweet crescendo to carrot-sugared walnut flouring. Ancillary Sambuca, Kahlua, creme brulee, Turkish coffee, cinnamon bark and vanilla illusions as well as cherry-pureed dried fruiting climb aboard in the midst above lactic milk-sugared oats base.
FOOLPROOF VANILLA ESPRESSO RAINCLOUD PORTER
Expressively full-bodied porter brings creamy vanilla enchantment to espresso-milked ground coffee bittering. But soon, roasted coffee distinction overwhelms any discernible vanilla beaning. Way below the surface, caramelized toffee sugaring smothered by Blackstrap molasses, tobacco chaw and charred walnut bittering to its recessive oats-malted base.
THREES VOLUNTARY EXILE BARREL-AGED BALTIC PORTER (WILLETT)
On tap at Ambulance, bourbon vanilla spicing enlivens Willett-aged Baltic Porter. Dark chocolate syruping drapes ancillary molasses cookie, cocoa nib biscotti, Black Russian, sweet Swisher cigar, milked espresso and chocolate pastry illusions as well as nifty plum-date dried fruiting. Meanwhile, Willett Kentucky bourbon influence and creamy vanilla-chocolate conflux never flounder.
FAT ORANGE CAT BLOOD ORANGE BILLY INDIA PALE ALE
On tap at Poor Henry’s, pureed blood orange adjunct lightly affects New England-styled IPA. Bitter Mosiac-hopped lemony grapefruit sharpness overrides blood orange tartness as timid wood lacquering provides musky counterpoint to delicately creamed vanilla froth.
SIXPOINT BINARY
On tap at Stone & Rail, dryer-than-usual Imperial IPA promotes sharp grapefruit and orange rind bittering above moderate herbal hop dankness, resinous pine and floral whims.
EQUILIBRIUM UNLIKELY FORAGERS
On tap at Ambulance, likable saison with subtle heather-honeyed dandelion adjunct lets zesty lemon spritz accommodate sour green grape esters, leaving light acidity upon leathery hay acridity.
EQUILIBRIUM FLUCTUATION DOUBLE IPA
On tap at Ambulance, ‘perfectly unbalanced’ medium body stays crisply clean. Bitter yellow grapefruit rind and brisk orange rind sharpness guide spicily tangy tropical fruit punch. Mild vanilla creaming sweetens ancillary mango, guava, peach, tangerine, papaya and peach juiciness to contrast minor wood tones and herbal nips settling below its splashy citric core.
EQUILIBRIUM THE BEAST ARISE LIKE YEAST DOUBLE IPA
On tap at Ambulance, well-balanced Imperial India Pale Ale does fine job re-creating “creamy fruit salad,” as sweet honey malts drape tangy grapefruit, orange, pineapple and mango juiciness above resinous pine slumber.
TROEGS HOP KNIFE HARVEST IPA
Sunshiny orange zest and mildly spiced lemony grapefruit tang lead easygoing tropicalia. Bright citrus luster gains teasing piney hop resin and latent herbal astringency to contrast crisp amber-grained pale malt toasting.
ZERO GRAVITY BING BING INDIA PALE ALE
Easygoing lemony yellow grapefruit vibrancy and sweet orange peel auxiliary lie above dry pilsner-malted oats base of crisply clean golden-hazed moderation. Sweetly floral-bound pineapple, peach and canteloupe illusions dip inside serene citrus entry. Delicate crystalline mouthfeel never undermines body and character.
BARRIER IT’S A SWEATER INDIA PALE ALE
On tap at Ambulance, mildly hazed orange-yellowed IPA brings dry-hopped Citra-Centennial blend to bitter yellow grapefruit rind pucker, piquant lemon-peeled orange tang and sweetly soured pineapple reminder. Light wood tones contrast pale malt sugaring beneath the brisk citrus surface.
