Lakefire Rye Pale Ale

Today was gorgeous.  The sun was out and shining.  Not a cloud in the sky.  A brisk and breezy 75 degrees.  I could have stayed outside all day drinking Lakefire Rye Pale Ales from Grapevine Craft Brewery had parental responsibilities not demanded otherwise.  The Lakefire is a perfect beer for the upcoming summer, a nice amber with rye and fruit notes on the aroma and taste, and ridiculously easy to drink.  Take some on the river or to the lake or the beach.  You'll be sipping them all day long.

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Millstream Back Road Stout

I'm tired.  It's been a long week.  Some dental work done on Monday...and even more to follow next week.  I can only chew on one side of my mouth.  My shoulder aches.  My (almost) 11 month old son never lets us sleep in.  I need a beer.  Something nice and smooth and thick and tasty.  Something dark and foamy that smells like malt and coffee and tastes the same with some hints of oatmeal can cocoa.  Millstream Brewing out of Iowa has just the thing for me.  The Back Road Stout is a great, post-dinner, late night libation...and i'm afraid i only have one left.  And that's a shame.

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Gaspar's Porter

I'm not usually one to recommend anything from Florida.  It's an American wasteland.  That being said, i really enjoyed the Gaspar's Porter from Florida Beer Company.  The brew is dark with a very light head, aromas of coffee, chocolate, and cherry evident at first pour.  The taste is heavy on roasted malt, with hints of the aforementioned coffee and chocolate.  There are also some nice dark fruit notes that make the beer a little sweeter than most porters, but tasty nonetheless.  Well done Florida.

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BLAKKR Black IPA

When breweries come together to create beer, it's just a beautiful and wonderful thing, like making art with a friend.  The fine, fine folks over at Real Ale, Surly, and Three Floyds have teamed up to craft one real hell of a black IPA called BLAKKR.  The beer is dark with a good foamy head and smells sweet and spicy and hoppy all at once.  It's kind of different, like a mix of grapes and hops.  The taste is malty and sweet at first, a nice combination of dark fruit, citrus, and hints of coffee, but those soon give way to the spicy hops and some well balanced bitterness.  There is also a pine note to the aroma and flavor.  All in all, this is one of the best black IPA's i've ever had...so you should drink it.  And at 9% ABV, it packs a nice, solid punch.

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Guadalupe Scotch Ale

A good scotch ale will sometimes pull me back to the old days when i was ore of a whiskey and bourbon drinker, and not so much a craft beer enthusiast.  But that's what it's supposed to do.  Guadalupe Brewing's Scotch Ale is no different.  This excellent offering pours a nice mahogany color with a good and creamy head.  The immediate aromas of toffee, caramel, and some hints of vanilla (maybe?) light the nostrils with some light herbal touches on the back end.  The taste is smoother than anticipated, a good blend of toffee, alcohol, and some light spice.  The grain for this brew comes from the UK, but it's aged in American oak barrels.  As a fan of scotch ales, i must recommend.  Delicious.

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