Yards Brewing Company IPA

Grabbed a six pack of this Philadelphia brewed English style IPA at Bottle King. It poured a typical orangey brown color and had a piney aroma with some bready malt scents to it. Taste was piney hops to start with some nodes of caramel and breadiness behind it. It finished with some long lasting bitter hops that left a piney aftertaste, much like the start. I didn't taste any significant citrus flavors in there (maybe some slight orange), which is what I usually like in my IPAs, but being an English IPA this can be expected since they tend to have some more earthy flavors (hence the pine). The pine was definitely the strongest of the tastes and even made the mouthful which was medium bodied and not overbearing, feel a bit prickly almost. Overall, it's a good IPA that would definitely appeal to English IPA lovers, but I probably wouldn't buy it again.

TapHouse Grille - Wayne, NJ

Here's the link to the TapHouse Grille in Wayne, NJ. I'd highly recommend it to anyone who likes craft beers since they have 25 on tap, including the Old Heathen in their cask!!

TapHouse Grille

Weyerbacher Old Heathen Imperial Stout

Sweet nectar of the Gods! I had this imperial stout on cask at the Taphouse in Wayne on Monday, but decided to take a few days to let it sink in because I thought it was that good. Well, a few days later I still think that this is a delicious beer, although I'm not ready to pin it as the Best Beer of 2012 as I was back on Monday. I really enjoy cask conditioned beers which have a much gentler carbonation that doesn't mask their true flavors since they aren't carbonated with nitrogen or carbon dioxide. They tend to be served a bit warmer (as this one was) and are siphoned out of the cask by a hand pump, which is pretty awesome.

The Old Heathen comes in at 8% alcohol and poured a dark black with little to no head or visible carbonation for that matter. It smelled sweet chocolate combined with some espresso/coffee mixed in. Taste also had some chocolate and coffee nodes, but also a slight taste of fruit, possibly raisin or plum. It was sweet, but a very nice sweetness that mixed well with the coffee and had some slight hoppiness behind it. One of my favorite parts of it was that it had a velvet-like feel to it which made it thick in the mouthful, but still very smooth and enjoyable to drink. Truly a great beer that lacks any real flaw. At first, I was skeptical of it's warmer serving temperature, but after I adjusted to it I thought it was perfect and added to the Old Heathen's deliciousness. I'd recommend this one very highly if you can find it on cask. It also is available in bottles and on tap from a keg, but I think that cask is the best way to go. If I can find it in a bottle or on tap from a keg I will definitely try it out and put up another post. Cheers!

Port Brewing Wipeout

Since we have today off for President's Day, my lovely wife suggested taking a trip to the Taphouse Grill in Wayne, NJ. I searched their draft beer list online and was very impressed by their selection. They also offer 11 of their 25 draft beers for $4 during Happy Hour which is always a plus.

To start, I had Goose Island's Honkers Ale which I have previously reviewed and it was absolutely delicious once again. After honking, I went with an IPA from Port Brewing called Wipeout. It poured a lighter golden yellow and had a hoppy aroma with some floral scents. Taste was floral, bready and bitter in that order. Started off with the floral hops, had a bready middle and a hoppy bitter finish that I enjoyed. If your a fan of citrusy IPAs like I am, this one will disappoint a bit because it doesn't have a strong citrusy taste, but it was a well balanced and very solid beer. Not my kind of IPA exactly, but definitely worth trying.

Guinness @ George Street Ale House in New Brunswick

The second beer I picked off George Street Ale House's impressive beer list was Guinness.  The pour by the bartender was pretty good as she took the time necessary to deliver a delicious pint of Irish goodness, although the pause in between the first and second steps could have been longer.  The head was a little too thick for my liking and the taste was a bit more bitter than some of the best pints I've had, but all in all, it was a solid Guinness.  One of the few drawbacks was that they used one of those smaller Guinness glasses, which is a pet peeve of mine.  Anything less than 16oz is unacceptable for a Guinness, and the big 20oz glass is really what I prefer.  GSAH's Guinness ranks close to the Top 10, but nowhere near any of the top contenders.  

Left Hand Brewing Company 400 Pound Monkey

I had this English IPA on tap at George Street Ale House in New Brunswick.  It poured a golden color with a tiny head that quickly vanished, and was much lighter than I expected.  Aroma was pretty light as well with some earthy scents and slight hops, but nothing over the top.  Taste started off hoppy and earthy with some grassy nodes and finished pretty easy and smooth with some slight bitterness from the hops, but overall light for an IPA.  It was a decent IPA that packed some nice hoppiness to it, but didn't leave me with a taste that made me want more.  Definitely not worth the $8.50 per pint either.

Flying Fish Exit 8 Chestnut Brown Ale

First off, a great event at Texas Arizona tonight with many New Jersey breweries showing off their delicious craft beers for $5 a pint. Unfortunately I only had time for two, the first of which was Flying Fish's newest member of the Exit Series, Exit 8. This Chestnut Brown Ale poured a dark, dark brown (almost black) color with a thick beige head on top. It looked more like a stout or porter, but it had a slight nutty and sweet malty scent to it. Taste was sweet and nutty, much like the aroma and finished a bit hoppy and bitter, although nothing over the top. It was a very well balanced and smooth beer, but didn't have an over abundance of flavors to it. Being a bit thicker than expected for a Brown Ale, it is definitely a good winter beer that comes very close to the line between Brown Ale and Stout. Overall, another great Exit Series brew.

Samuel Smith Oatmeal Stout

Happy Super Bowl! There's nothing like drinking a delicious beer out of a Super Bowl mug on Super Bowl Sunday. This British beer comes from the famous Samuel Smith Brewery in Tascaster. It poured black with a creamy top and had a sweet chocolatey smell. Taste was sweet chocolate and slight oatmeal, finishing a bit bitter like a good stout should. There was also a nice coffee taste to to add to the delicious flavors. The mouthful was near perfect, not too heavy but not too light and weak. Although it was bitter, it was still very easy to drink and enjoyable. A very enjoyable stout even though it is from England. Cheers!