Goose Island Beer Company

Stanley and I are very excited to announce that Born 2 Brew will be taking it's first road trip this weekend to Chicago. In addition to the beers that we will be trying all weekend, we have a reservation at 1:30pm (CST) on Sunday for a tour and tasting at Goose Island Beer Company located in the heart of Lincoln Park, Chicago. The only beer that I have had from Goose Island is their IPA which was absolutely delicious (and is actually served at Yankee Stadium). Stay tuned for pictures, reviews and possibly a video or two from the Windy City!

Goose Island Beer Company

Harpoon Grateful Harvest Cranberry Ale

Happy early Thanksgiving! In the spirit of the holiday, I'm reviewing one of the only Thanksgiving themed beers that I have seen. In fact, its the only one I've seen. Harpoon's Grateful Harvest is a Cranberry Ale that raises money for food banks by having $1 of every 6-pack sold go to local foodbanks. At $8.99 for a sixer at the Tribeca Whole Foods, it made the high price somewhat tolerable which was much more than the beer itself. I drank it straight out of the bottle on the train so I don't have much insight on the color, but from reading other reviews I know it pours a reddish brown with a slight head. The smell was very bland - malt, some hops and a slight scent of cranberry that could even be from my imagination. Not much going on. The taste really surprised me, it was very beery and not very cranberry-y. It was actually quite disappointing because of the lack of cranberry flavor and the overpowering metallic taste that it had. I felt like I was drinking a cheap beer out of a can, more than a craft brewed bottle. The aftertaste was slightly better with a tad of hops mixed with some tart from the cranberries. Overall, I was very let down by Harpoon which was shocking because normally they are on top of their game. If not for the strong finish and turkey pictured on the 6-pack box, I'd probably nominate it for worst beer of the year. Outside of the $1 donation to the foodbank per sixer, Grateful Harvest Cranberry Ale is not a beer to be thankful for at all.

Kane Brewing Company Drift Line - Oatmeal Brown Ale

After a two month hiatus from the blog, Kane Brewing Company is back!  Unfortunately I have still not made it to the brewery for one of their Saturday tastings/tours, but it is on my to-do list before 2011 comes to an end.  Stay tuned for a visit to Kane in mid-December if all goes well.  As for their newest beer which I had on tap at Stuff Yer Face in New Brunswick last night, Drift Line Oatmeal Brown Ale is an absolute gem.  While I usually go crazy over IPAs, Double IPAs and anything else that is overly hoppy, in recent weeks I have been moving my focus towards porters, stouts and brown ales and it has been a delightful change.  Kane’s Drift Line pours a very, very dark brown that basically looks black with a thumb-sized cream head on the top.  It has a delicious scent of chocolate and roasted malts that don’t overpower the nose, but give it a solid sweetness.  The taste is dark chocolate mixed with something else that I was having a tough time figuring out, might be hazelnut, but I’m not completely sure – regardless, it was delicious.  It finished with a bit of coffee/oatmeal flavor and some slight hops kicking in late to balance it out perfectly.  It had a medium body that wasn’t too heavy, but carried enough to make it a smooth beer perfect for the colder weather.  Overall, another great beer from Kane Brewery, who continues to impress me with everything they put out.  For anyone looking to try it, it’s on tap all over Shore/Central/North New Jersey and I have linked their website below for more updates.  Cheers!

 

http://www.kanebrewing.com/

 

 

Captain Lawrence Pale Ale

Had this Pleasantville, NY beer on tap at the newly opened Tap House in Tribeca. The Tap House is your typical Tribeca bar trying to push craft beers on a group of yuppies that craves Stella and Blue Moon. It features an awkward set-up inside, but a solid group of beers on tap (for $7 a pint of course).

CL's Pale Ale poured a very dark copper/reddish color with a solid head that remained throughout the majority of the pint and left a lot of lacing. Smell was mostly malty sweetness with a bit of breadiness mixed in and some slight hops. First taste was sweet malt and very bready with a bit of hops kicking in late and giving it a slight floral/citrus after taste. A bit bitter on the finish, but not too much for a pale ale. Usually I am critical of pale ales that lack hops, but because of the great flavor and balance that this one had I can't complain.
It was a very smooth and easy to drink pale ale that was well balanced and didn't pack too many hops to make you think it was a boderline IPA. A solid beer from Captain Lawrence.

Harvest Moon Hodgepodge Black Ale

This one was my favorite of the 3. It looked almost like a stout or porter with a jet black color and nice white head on top. Smell was very sweet - chocolate and maybe brown sugar (?). Taste was as expected, sweet and chocolatey with a slight smokey aftertaste. It actually packed a ton of different flavors, all sweet, before ending with a smooth smokey flavor mixed with a bit of alcohol taste. Definitely a keeper and a great late Fall/Winter beer that I recommend to all. Great job Harvest Moon!

Side note - a shout out to my wife Meredith who deals with me typing on my blackberry for these posts when we are out. Today is 2 yrs since we got engaged and she was nice enough to agree to go to the Rutgers basketball game tonight after a romantic day. I love you Mer!

Harvest Moon Elmes' Mild Manor

The second beer of the night at Harvest Moon is an English style. It poured a dark brown with a slight head. Smell was very bland, with a slight floral aroma. Taste was also a bit bland (keep in mind I had the double IPA before though) with some caramel nodes coming through. It didn't have much hops, but was extremely drinkable and mixed well with the burger I ordered. Probably wouldn't have it again, but not a bad beer to try if you're at Harvest Moon and want something to wash your dinner down with.

Harvest Moon Hop2it Double IPA

Coming to you live from Downtown New Brunswick, just off the campus of Rutgers University its Born 2 Brew at Harvest Moon Brewery. The first beer of the night is a double IPA. Harvest Moon has put out a Double IPA before called Hop Squared, but this one is a bit different. It poured a typical orangey brown with a nice head. Smell is a lot of citrus, grapefruit mostly, with some pine mixed in. Taste was delicious, citrus and malty sweetness at first with some earth nodes and hops kicking in late to create a nice balance. I was slightly disappointed that it didn't have more hops, but it was a very balanced IPA that was pretty drinkable. Definitely preferred that Havest Moon Hop Squared more, but this one is also delightful.

Guinness @ 381 Main in Little Falls

I didn't expect to find a good Guinness at this trendy sports bar in Little Falls, as the best pints are usually poured in old Irish dive bars. However, this pint wasn't so bad. The pour was slightly questionable, as the bartender did a 3 pour technique. She filled the glass up about a third of the way, stopped, then another third, stopped, then topped it off. Never seen this used before and I'm not sure what effect it had on the beer itself, but it did leave a head that was way too big and airy. I think the speed of the beer coming out of the tap also had a part in the airy head. After getting past the head though, the taste was solid. A little too cold for my liking, but not terrible. Overall, a solid pint at a place I never thought I'd get one at. Cheers!

Firestone Walker's Reserve Robust Porter

Now that the colder days of Fall and Winter are approaching (and the pumpkin beer competition has ended), stouts and porters will be taking a more prominent role on the blog. As the loyal B2B readers know, my favorite beer is Firestone Walker Double Jack (a Double IPA), so when I saw Firestone's Robust Porter available I had to give it a try. I ran into this porter on tap at Texas Arizona in Hoboken after a long day in the office. It poured black with some reddish hints and a really nice tan head that diminished a bit over the course of consumption. The aroma was quite delightful - dark chocolate and coffee mostly with some slight smokiness as well. The taste was similar to the aroma with the coffee and roasted malts coming through strongest followed by some lighter nodes of dark chocolate. It didn't over power with sweetness like some porters and had a really smooth finish with no alcoholy taste (its 5.8 abv). It was also creamy and rich in the mouth and had a good balance of carbonation. Overall, a really solid beer that's easy to drink and has some great flavors. If you're looking for a really sweet chocolate stout then this one definitely isn't for you, but if you're sitting inside by the fire on a cold Fall/Winter night and want a porter that you can throw back a few of, this is you're beer. Another great job by Firestone.

2011 Born to Brew Best Pumpkin Beer

http://www.youtube.com/rwatch?v=BCY2u7EZQHE&sns=em

Unfortunately the Pumpkin Beer Awards video is too big to be posted directly on the blog. Please visit the above link to see it.