RATING:
4/5
These flavor notes are getting regoddamndiculous. The label on this beer says it tastes like "gooseberry pie, passionfruit, meringue, and tea leaf" leaving me to ask: what in holy hell is gooseberry pie? I can envision a group of hipster "connoisseurs" sitting around a distressed rustic Pottery Barn table, nodding enthusiastically as Brent spits beer into a pail and exclaims, "It's like drinking my grandma's gooseberry pie!"
I like this beer despite the ridiculousness on the label. It's a bit more tart than the current West Coast IPA style, but goes down smooth. The next time I'm invited to a hipster picnic, I'll definitely bring some along.
RATING:
4/5
To be honest, I had never heard of wheatwine before this beer. I found it to be similar to barleywine, but with less of the offensive malty sweetness. This beer is only for the unfaint? of heart. At 12% ABV, it will put hair on your chest (don't worry, your breath will burn the hair right back off). This wheatwine would pair well with sharp cheddar cheese or toffee candy.
RATING:
2.5/5
Floral, a little sour. Save your money--there are way too many choices out there to waste your money on this below average beer.
RATING:
3/5
Session beer has style, but it's not a session style beer (Session was Session before sessions got popular). Session is okay, but I found it kind of stale and a little bitter. I have to give a shout-out to the label though. The logo looks like it could be for a surf company. Also, I remember back in the day that Session bottle caps had word games on them, and I believe they now have rock-paper-scissors pictures to play with friends. So that's pretty cool.
RATING:
2/5
Apparently back in "simpler times," beer tasted pretty shitty. Simpler Times is cheap, and in this case you get what you pay for. It starts out okay, but the aftertaste is fairly terrible. In addition, this beer has the unique characteristic of actually getting worse the longer you drink it.
RATING:
5/5 –
4.5/5
Fantastic. The standard by which all IPAs should be judged. I know it's super popular and widely distributed, but it wouldn't be right to deduct points for that. While the bottle version is a solid 5/5, the canned variety loses a half point for loss of carbonation.
RATING:
4/5
Smooth. This beer is a nice change-up from all the lagers and IPAs out there. Would pair well with an olive plate, an antipasto dish, or a meat and cheese tray. I don't love the sour aftertaste, but I appreciate this beer for its unique and refreshing taste.
RATING:
4/5
If Stone Brewing Company made a Stone IPA Light, I'd expect it to taste pretty much like this. I like the flavor, but it's not a standout.
RATING:
4/5
The title of this beer is a lot, but thankfully so is its flavor. I mean its flavor is a lot. Does that make sense? I don't know, I'm tired. Anyway, I tasted the cinnamon and raisin. All this bad-boy needs is some oatmeal flavor and it'd be like drinking a cookie. The only downside is that it leaves a kind of a stinging aftertaste on the tongue.
RATING:
3/5
Good, but not as good as your basic non-alcoholic apple cider. It starts strong with a genuine cider flavor, but the follow up is all cheap wine. This drink would be good if you hate beer, or if you like to drink really fast (so you'd stay ahead of the aftertaste).
RATING:
2/5
Yikes. Tasted a tiny bit of pumpkin and lots of habanero. If anyone drank an entire 6 pack they'd end up looking like the dude on the label. I love spicy food and hot sauce, but this is way too much pepper for a beer.
RATING:
4.5/5
I realized that I've been rating a lot of new and random beer, but I haven't covered some of my favorites. Racer 5 is an IPA lover's IPA (whatever that means). I visited this brewery way back in the 20th century and I remember being blown away by Racer 5's balanced, complex, floral berry flavor. The only thing lacking is the bold bitter aftertaste that many modern IPAs bring to the table.
RATING:
3.5/5
I'm going to say something that will send the heads of hipsters around the world spinning: Natty Ice is better than PBR.
Pabst Blue Ribbon has gotten a reputation for being the best "cheap" beer money can buy, which has resulted in it no longer being that cheap. In addition to costing less than PBR, Natural Ice is stronger, and it tastes better. Wake up sheeple!
*Note: When you buy this beer everyone will judge you for being kind of a dirtbag (including me).
RATING:
3/5
Nice basic lager with a bit of a grapefruit bite at the end. I like that it's brewed locally in Los Angeles and I appreciate its reference to our awesome weather, but at twice the price of other domestics, I'm picking Bud Light every time.
RATING:
4.5/5
The aptly named Pace Car, is a "session" beer, meant to be enjoyed over a long period of time without getting you too tipsy. I applaud the idea of this type of beer, but have a hard time getting around the fact that it costs the same as other beers that have a fuller flavor and contain twice as much alcohol.
I have been a fan of this brewery's Racer 5 IPA for almost two decades, and their new offering does not disappoint. Pace Car Racer starts with a smooth, almost candy like taste, and finishes with a classic IPA bite.
RATING:
4/5
Nice basic IPA with a hint of chocolate on the finish. A solid offering, but nothing to write home about.
RATING:
4/5
Watered down wheat flavor with a shot of citrus at the end. Not bad, but I definitely didn’t taste that much guava. I detected more of an orange rind flavor. While traveling years ago in South America I came across a place that served beer mixed 50/50 with orange soda. This tastes a lot like that, except this is about 3 times as strong.
RATING:
4.5/5
A very solid offering from Stone. It has a surprisingly fruity taste, like a beer fruit punch. Okay it's not that crazy, but it was definitely not what I expected. It'd be great if Stone started selling half IPA, half Ghost Hammer twelve packs. It'd be nice to go back and forth between the two brews, switching between the bold and bitter IPA and the lighter sweeter Ghost Hammer.
RATING:
4/5
A good summertime beer that pairs well with summertime food. Light malty-sweet flavor. I can't help feeling that if this beer wasn't in such a cool bottle, it'd be "just okay." But aesthetics count, and the whole presentation is cool, including but not limited to the Hawaiian islands raised in the glass.
RATING:
3/5
Smooth like carbonated water. A weak beer with a weak flavor. Nothing to make it stand out. This could be the most average beer I've ever drank.
RATING:
4/5
Pssst. Do you want to know a secret? I'm just now watching Breaking Bad. I'm trying to keep this on the DL because I'm sure that if I tell anyone they are going to ruin the ending for me. Anyway, I drank this beer while watching Breaking Bad (and while cooking meth!!!!!). Talk about an immersive experience!
This beer smells like weed, and tastes like weed. I actually checked the label to see if I had accidentally purchased some type of beer/weed fusion drink. It's piney smooth flavor would pair great with a blue cheese burger and fries. If it was cheaper I could see myself putting it into my regular beer rotation.
RATING:
3/5
This novelty act tastes nothing like an IPA. Shipwrecked Double IPA has a distinctive stout taste with hints of tobacco, coffee, and dark chocolate followed by a stinging "what did I just drink--is this carbonated motor oil?" aftertaste.
The fact of the matter is that this beer isn't bad, but is way too expensive and tastes way too much like a stout to get a higher rating from me. With the strength of 9.25% ABV, and sold in a 32 ounce can this thing should come with a bottle of Tylenol taped to the side. Pairs well with dehydration and regret.
RATING:
3.5/5
In addition to having a title that will break your spellcheck, Hobnelch'n Hoppy Saison Ale serves up a citrus explosion for your face mouth! Fizzy up front with a bold lemon zest. At first blush, this beer tastes like bubbly lemonade that's been strained through a pile of fresh barnyard hey. After a while though, it starts to grow on you.
RATING:
3.5/5
Although Busch has long been seen as inferior to the Budweiser/Coors/Miller triumvirate, I say it's gotten a bad rap. Busch is a refreshing mellow beer with a slightly sweet finish. Perfect for summertime barbecues and poolside drinking. And at a price point cheaper than its domestic competition, Busch deserves a second look.
RATING:
4.5/5
Doesn't taste like a traditional IPA, which isn't necessarily a bad thing. This beer has more of a pale ale taste, but at 8.1% ABV it can stand up to the big boys. I found Whispering Pine to be very smooth and easy to drink. I could definitely taste the pine, but not the whisper. I guess my palette isn't as refined as I thought.
RATING:
4/5
Starts off bold and fades to a kind of generic sugary finish. I was hoping this beer would be a little more exciting, but it's nice to know it's out there when I want a break from the IPAs of the world. Plus, at 8.5% ABV, this is the strongest red ale I've seen.
RATING:
3/5
Okay. Nothing special. A little too light with not a lot of wheat beer taste. Not bad, but not great either (kind of like the contents of this review).
RATING:
4/5
This beer is very light and has a crisp sweetness to it. It's good, and very easy to drink, but could use a little more flavor. Great for someone who enjoys the occasional beer, but isn't looking for anything too fancy.
RATING:
3.5/5
A nice chocolate porter. While I appreciated that this porter didn't weigh me down, or stick me with a malty sweet aftertaste, I would have liked a little more complexity in the overall flavor.
RATING:
2.5/5
Wheat flavor up front with a cheap sweet finish. The aftertaste is what I'd imagine a "light" malt liquor might taste like. Big Bear Lake Brewing Company needs to step up their game to make this beer worthy of its "Goldmine" name.
RATING:
1/5
Think of the grossest thing you could put in your mouth. Okay, back off a little, not that dirty. What I’m trying to say is that this stuff is vile. Imagine throwing up and asking for water and instead being handed back your own puke in the form of a cold carbonated beverage. That’s what this tastes like. Sierra Nevada has an incredible track record for putting out new beers, but this one is so off the mark it boggles the mind.
So don’t let the cool cactus label fool you! You’d be better off trying to drink water straight from a cactus than paying to drink this junk.
