On tap at Dog & Cask, sessionable amber lager brings raw-honeyed lemon rot souring to the fore. Mild grapefruit bittering contrasts sassy sugared spicing just below pale-malted grassy hop stead. Baked bread, barley biscuit and toasted caramel undertones fade abruptly.
CIGAR CITY DRY-HOPPED ON THE HIGH SEAS CARIBBEAN-STYLE IPA
Well balanced limited edition 2013 Caribbean-styled IPA (in a can) drapes subdued tropical fruiting atop wood-dried grassy hop bittering. Soft-toned lemony orange-tangerine-clementine tartness and tangy grapefruit-mango-pineapple tropicalia sit atop tepid tea-leafed herbage. This version utilized the lesser-known Kohatu hop varietal.
VICTORY HOP TICKET PALE SAISON
On tap at Growler & Gill, limited edition draft-only ’14 saison offers expectant sour-fruited tartness to light white peppered herbage and raw vanilla bittering. Pale malted dryness picks up earthen fungi nip.
WEYERBACHER BOOTES STRONG ALE
Unspecific ruby-browned limited edition (2014) American strong ale never truly suffices, defying easy categorizing by mismanaging enormous 100 IBU hop char. Mish-mashed black chocolate roast, black-breaded pumpernickel bittering and ashen nuttiness lose firm footing as distant fig-date-pecan conflux picks up tobacco-dried crisping. Simply imprecise.
WEYERBACHER TINY
Aggressive ‘velvety concoction’ loads sugary Belgian-styled brown chocolate spicing atop sticky anise sweetness and lilting bourbon subtleties. Dark-roasted mocha malting picks up charred hop bittering (and chalky cocoa reminder). Light black cherry undertones find room beneath syrupy molasses sapping.
GREAT LAKES CHILLWAVE DOUBLE IPA
On tap at Andy’s Corner Bar, well-received tropical-fruited strong ale (formerly Alchemy Hour) hides lusty 9.1% alcohol volume behind luscious grapefruit-peeled pineapple, mango, guava and papaya juiciness (generated by Mosaic hops) as well as pungently resinous pine needling. Ancillary peach, pear and apple nuances pick up the pace alongside subtle herbal-tinged floral bouquet.
HARPOON BOSTON IRISH STOUT
On tap at Andy’s Corner Bar, easygoing nitro-based dry stout retains mild eggshell-headed creaming and soft-toned mocha bittering. Delicately dark-roasted black patent malting and relegated toasted hop char pick up distant roasted nuttiness. Dark chocolate, black coffee and espresso notes linger. Despite commonplace comparisons, it’s not nearly as flavorful as Guinness Extra Stout.
SAMUEL ADAMS REBEL IPA
Enticingly sessionable West Coast-styled IPA stays perfectly centrist. Lemony orange-peeled bittering spiking subtle piney hop resin preludes sweet honey-spiced fruiting. Tangy peach, pineapple, apple and red grape tones gain momentum, limiting its minor astringent alcohol burn. In the bottle, vibrant yellow grapefruit, candied red apple, sweet orange peel, peach, mango and pineapple tang overlaid sugary caramel malting. Spruce and pine nuances simmer beneath.
GOOSE ISLAND SIXTH DAY FESTIVE BROWN ALE
Though its brown ale styling may be a misnomer, pleasantly crystalline holiday seasonal (2014) wisely keeps it simple. Toasted almond, roasted chestnut and walnut-shelled pecan nuttiness fleetingly affects delicately wintry nutmeg-cinnamon spicing and red-fruited caramel malting. Subtle cherry, grape, peach and apple illusions forge forth above ashen nuttiness and soft spruce salience. Delicate hop zip adds mild finishing astringency.
CENTRAL WATERS BOURBON BARREL STOUT
Lusty full-bodied oak-aged stout leaves heavy bourbon mark on sweet brown chocolate and cream-sugared coffee overtones. Fudgy cookie dough yeast sinew melts into dark-roasted mocha malting, acrid hop-charred bittering and back-throated peat smoke. Benevolent vanilla, coconut and cola nut illusions deepen chocolate bourbon truffle finish.
DYCKMAN BREW PILSNER
On tap at Blue Ribbon Tavern, musky moderate-bodied flagship pilsner brings gluey cardboard-like pale malting to raw-honeyed sour lemon putridity. Lusty carbolic citric spritz negates musty vegetal herbage that wispily seeps into roughhewn bruised orange finish.
ELLICOTTVILLE CHOCOLATE CHERRY BOMB
On tap at Blue Ribbon Tavern, richly creamed fruited stout loads fudgy dark chocolate syrup atop pureed black cherry insistence with exceedingly good results. Plush vanilla overtones sweeten black patent malting. Ancillary black cocoa, chocolate cake and cocoa butter illusions settle alongside cherry-dried blackberry, blueberry and boysenberry fruiting.
