Guadalupe Texas Honey Ale

After reading about the White House's home brewed honey ale, i found myself craving something i had never actually imbibed, and thus was pleasantly surprised while visiting Bangers (a new Austin sausage and beer garden) to discover the Guadalupe Texas Honey Ale from New Braunfels' Guadalupe Brewing.  I was impressed.  The beer is sweet, but not too sweet, combining the usual malt and caramel flavors of a good ale  with a touch of honey.  And i must say it went down smooth.  So honey ale...i am a fan.  Now if someone can get Obama to bottle his stuff and ship me a case.

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Thirsty Planet Buckethead IPA

I keep meaning to branch out into the wonderful world of beers that are not brewed in my city, but damn it, i seem to discover a new one i love every other day.  Thirsty Planet's Buckethead IPA is as perfect an example of that style of brew that i could possibly conceive of.  The aroma of spicy and bitter hops is there, but it's ultimately misleading, as the flavor of said hops is enough to pop you in the mouth.  The Buckethead does not mess around.  That being said, i'd recommend this for fans of the bitter, but for curious adventurists, there is enough added sweetness to round the whole thing out.  Yum.

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Real Ale Hans' Pils

I find myself waffling back and forth on what my favorite summertime brew is.  On the one hand, i love a good IPA, on the other, i dig the straight up pale ales, but i also find myself imbibing any number of rye ales, lagers, and specialty brews.  And yet i keep coming back to the good old pilsner.  Real Ale's latest Hans' Pils is a spicy, hoppy masterpiece just waiting for your consumption.  It's tasty, got a 5.3% ABV, and goes down like the best of backyard beers.  I love it.  And my mouth is starting to water just looking at the picture above.

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How can i get one of these?: White House Honey Ale

Not sure what we need to do in order to get our hands on one of these White House micro-brews, but i'll gladly give the President one of my (currently carbonating) home brewed rye summer ales for what he's got.

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Hops & Grain Pale Dog

It's that time of the summer where it becomes a trial to even walk outside to get to your car.  The time of summer where after 5 minutes, i'm sweating like i've been sitting in a sauna.  What could possibly put out that fire?  Austin's Hops & Grain Brewery and their Pale Dog Pale Ale is just the sort of libation one needs to beat this 100 degree heat.  At first sip, you get a lot of the bitter hops taste that then gradually turns a little bit sweet with some subtle grapefruit flavoring, and maybe even a hint of lemon.  And it goes down smooth.  All in all, the beer is super refreshing, and it comes in cans, so you can pretty much take it with you wherever you want to go (Note: we do not condone drinking and driving).

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Great Divide Rumble Oak Aged IPA

So, apparently yesterday (August 2nd) was IPA Day.  Who knew?  Certainly not me until i went to dinner at a local brew pub and was informed with a flight of 5 different IPA samplings.  And, while they were all great, the one that stuck out the most was the Rumble Oak Aged IPA from Colorado's Great Divide Brewing Co. For an IPA, it was a pretty mellow beer.  The hops were definitely there, but there was also slight vanilla and caramel flavor from aging in the oak barrels.  There was also an undertone of citrus.  All in all, quite a delicious beer, and a perfect pairing for bar food and a hot summer day.

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Visit Black Star Co-op (the aforementioned local brew pub).