Murphy's Irish Stout

The store was out of Guinness so I had to go with Murphy's. While its not a bad stout, it is too watery and isn't as good as Guinness out of the can. That's all I got. Happy post hurricane Sunday!

Keegan Ales Hurricane Kitty

This American IPA screamed out to me in the store since it has a hurricane name. I'm currently drinking it at Gallaghers Pub while watching the Bucs-Dolphins preseason game and I'm not disappointed. It has an interesting smell for an IPA, its not citrusy or overly hoppy but has some slight hops mixed with a mostly pine malty base. Taste is piney with a good amount of hops kicking in late. Had a slight citrus taste to it at the end, but nothing really sweet or powerful. Its not a bad IPA, but isn't great and doesn't make me want more. Its very malty for an IPA and is very separated between malts and hops instead of mixing them together in a balanced way. Overall, a good IPA to drink during a hurricane, but in nice weather I'd leave it on the shelf. Stay dry on thd outside, but make sure your filled with beer inside.

Pumpkin Beer Time!

The brewing of Paddy's Pumpkin Porter has begun! The above picture shows the wort that I created tonight which is the first step towards creating a delicious brew. After this picture was taken, the wort was poured into the fermentation keg and the yeast was added. Expect this beer to be a slice of pumpkin pie in a bottle if all goes well. It'll be a few weeks before it gets bottled with the release coming in mid-October.

In the meantime I've decided to add another aspect to the Blog being that we are approaching the Fall season. I will be reviewing Pumpkin beers over the next two months and will rank my three favorites on Halloween. If you have a Pumpkin beer that you love please post it so that I can add it to the list of ones to try. Happy Thirsty Thursday!

Rate that Beer Pad!

Courtesy of my cousin-in-law Alison Mahoney, I now can document my reviews on paper via this pad. Definitely taking this to a new level.

Shock Top Belgian White

Grabbed a six pack of this Belgian White from Anheuser Busch at a liquor store in Lavallette, but you can find this one almost anywhere. I poured it into a pint glass with an orange and it came out very blonde with no head. Smell was of oranges and sweet malt, very similar to a Blue Moon. Being that Blue Moon is made by Coors I suspect that Shock Top is AB's response to add some competition. The taste is all orangey with no hops or any kind of bitterness. Very easy to drink and refreshing in the summer, but not a beer drinker's kind of beer. Definitely would be popular with the ladies.

Otter Creek Alpine Black IPA

Was fortunate enough to stop by the Spirits Unlimited in Pt Pleasant and discover their amazing growler filling counter with 10-12 different craft beers on tap. They let you taste the beers before you decide which ones to fill your growler with and also sell growlers if you don't have your own. If you're in the area you have to check it out, its right on 35 South before you get into Bay Head.

After trying 4 or 5 beers, I settled on the most intriguing one, Otter Creek's Black IPA. Most IPAs are an orangy amber color so for this one to look basically black made for an interesting brew. It poured with a huge head that grew for the first few seconds and tricked me into overflowing my pint glass. A sad rookie mistake, but one that really caught me offguard. After the head settled to form a creamy brown thumb sized top I gave it a smell and enjoyed the citrusy hops and roasted malt that dominated the aroma. It was weird to smell a beer this dark have that scent. The taste was citrusy at first with some piney nodes, but didn't blow me away. It finished a bit harsh, but not too bad and packed some nice hops. Overall its not an amazing IPA, but one that's worth trying because of the dark color and roasted malt flavors which set it apart from most of the other more mainstream IPAs. Its growler time!

Blue Point Brewery Rastafa Rye Ale

Shout out to Michaela Hennessy for buying this beer for me. In honor of Jimmy Buffett playing at Jones Beach tonight it was necessary for me to review a beer from a Long Island brewery. Poured an amber orange with a nice head that hung around the whole time I drank it. Smell was earthy and rye with a tad if malty sweetness. Taste at first was earthy with some floral nodes that quickly turn to rye bread finished off with some nice hops and sweetness. It finishes a lot smoother than I expected, but packs some solid hops in. Not sure that rye beers are up my ally, but this one is not too bad. Worth a shot and the Bob Marley lookalike on the label is sick. One love!

Kane Brewing Company Head High IPA

Ladies and gentlemen, this is by far my most enjoyable review. About one year ago my brother-in-law John brought to my attention that there was a brewery opening up the road from him in Ocean Township. Well, after more than a year of anticipation, the brewery is finally open and distributing. John grabbed me a growler filled with Kane's Head High IPA from Brickwall Tavern in Asbury Park today and after two pints of it, I'm sold. The smell is citrus and floral mixed with hops. Taste is delicious at first with a citrusy sweetness that does not overbear you with maltiness. It quickly turns slightly piney, but with some amazing hops coming through. It is very well balanced and not hard to drink at all. For a brewery's first distributed batch this is extremely impressive. It reminds me a lot of Ithaca's Flower Power IPA and definitely comes close to being my favorite beer. It just might be my favorite IPA. A great beer that you need to get your hands on. As of right now Kane is only distributing kegs to bars and liquor stores with taps. I know its on tap at the Cranford Buy Rite so if you're around there check it out. They also have put out a Pale Ale and Summer Seasonal which I hope to try very soon. For more info on Kane see the below link. Cheers!
Http://borntobrew.blogspot.com

Brooklyn Brewery East India Pale Ale

Had a bottle of this craft brew from one of my favorite breweries the other night and forgot to send my review and I have to say that I'm a fan. Smell was caramel and floral with some slight hops mixed in. Taste was malty at first with the sweetness of the caramel coming through strong mixed with some floral nodes. It quickly turned to hoppy bitterness after that, but never completely lost the sweetness of the malt. Definitely a very interesting beer that differed from most of the IPAs I've had and liked it, but didn't absolutely love it because of the lingering malty taste. That being said its definitely worth trying like everything Brooklyn puts out. Happy Weekend!

Gallagher's Brewing Company Fall Seasonal

When I started this blog I said that I would also feature some of my adventures in home brewing, and after a few months the time has finally come. After much deliberation, I decided that the next beer would have to be a pumpkin flavored one to be released in mid-October. Officially, it will be called Paddy's Pumpkin Porter and is expected to be released on October 15 at Rutgers Homecoming. There will be more details on the official release and brewing process in the next few days and weeks, but for now prepare yourself for a pumpkin pie tasting porter that is perfect for the Halloween season. The initial boiling and beginning of fermentation should began this week and I will have all the updates right here on the blog, so stay tuned.

How to Pour the Perfect Guinness from a Can

I haven't been able to get this video directly on the blog here, but for now I'll post it as a link to Youtube. I have experimented with various ways of pouring a can of Guinness into a pint glass and found that this is by far the best way. Enjoy!

Perfect Guinness can pour

Leinenkugel's Sunset Wheat

My sister-in-law Mary Beth bought a six pack of this wheat beer to review on a warm summer afternoon in Stirling, NJ. Most people describe this beer as "Fruity Pebble tasting" and I can definitely see why. It smells like sweet berries and tastes almost exactly like Fruity Pebbles cereal. Its not annoyingly fruity but is hard to drink more than two of these. Definitely a favorite for the ladies, but drinking this beer makes me feel like a girly man. Overall, a decent fruity beer but if you're a guy I wouldn't go around bragging that you had it. Its Saturday people, let's jump on the booze train.

Guinness @ Johnny Macs in Asbury Park

The best cure to a hangover is a nice pint of the black stuff. Got this delicious pint on tap in Asbury Park at one of my favorite bars, Johnny Macs. The pour was perfectly done and left a beautiful looking glass. Taste was very lovely, silky smooth and not overly bitter. Also must note that it was served at the perfect temperature. I'd rate Johnny Macs Guinness in the top 3 with Tierney's and Dublin House, but its not quite the best. Bottoms up!

Guinness @ Boyle's in Monmouth Beach

Had my first trip to Boyle's last night and enjoyed a delightful pint of Guinness. I'm writing this a day late because some people think its rude for me to blog while I'm with people. Pour was done perfectly by the bartender Chris with the proper time being taken to produce the divine black beauty in a glass. It was served in a regular pint glass that was chilled so the beer was a bit too cold, but not too chilled for a summer night. Taste was smooth and very enjoyable. Overall I'd rank Boyle's right behind the top leaders so far, not terrible by any means but not better than Dublin House.

Proper form

This is how you properly drink a Guinness

Guinness @ Connolly Station

I'm making this one short because I wanna get back to drinking. Pour looked good but taste was a little too foamy. Beet had a nice head but it grew too big which seems to happen at places that don't have a perfect tap system. Overall the taste wasn't bad, but not on the level of Dublin House. Ladies and Gentlemen its Friday night and Daddy NoBux is on stage....let's drink beers!!

Wells Banana Bread Beer

This is definitely one of those brews that you see and need to try but wouldn't have more than once. It poured a much darker copper color than I expected, I was thinking it would be a lighter fruity type beer. The smell was all bananas and malt, very sweet. Taste was mostly banana followed by some more maltiness. Was a little more watery than I thought and did not satisfy my need for hops. It certainly lived up to its banana bread name, but left much to be desired besides the smell amd initial taste. Overall, I aint going bananas over it. Cheers guys!

Guinness @ Puffy's in NYC

Grabbed this pint at Puffy's on Hudson St in Tribeca. Pour was almost perfect and led to a nice white head forming on top of that delicious black base. Taste was silky smooth with a tad of bitterness and was served at a very nice temperature. This one loses a few points for being served in a NY Giants Bud Light glass, but overall is really solid. Doesn't get on the level of the Dublin House but is a good pint of Ireland's finest brew. Cheers to the weekend!

Flying Fish Farmhouse Summer Ale

Had this one on tap at Brix in Bellevile, served to me by my greasy Italian friend Ant. Beer is darker than most summer beers and had a slightly hoppy aroma with no fruit smell. Taste was kind of sweet with a nice kick of hops coming in late. Its definitely not a typical lemony summer beer and has some great hops. Taste is very smooth and easy to drink. A great summer beer for hopheads like me and still easy to drink for the average beer drinker. I recommend you try this one from Jersey's own Flying Fish brewery.