Good Grief Fruited Strong Ale

Great things can happen when great minds come together.  At least that's the case with Good Grief, a fruited strong ale made in collaboration with 5 different Texas breweries to benefit first responders.  Coming to us from the good folks at Roughhouse Brewing (San Marcos), Jester King (Austin), Lazarus (Austin), Oddwood Ales (Austin), and True Anomaly Brewing (Houston), the 11% ABV brew pours a dark burgundy brown and smells of molasses, dark fruit, and a hint of oak.  The flavor is a complex mix of dark and stone fruits, tart black currants, oak and booze, and some nice hints of chocolate that starts sweet and finishes dry.  Delicious, and a damn good collaboration i must say.

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Jester King Detritivore

For the Thanksgiving break, i amassed a small collection of beers to imbibe whilst cooking turkey and snacking on meats and cheeses.  One of those beers was the fantastic Detritivore, a 5.5% wild ale brewed with cherries, from the good folks at Jester King.  The beer pours a cloudy pink with a white head and smells of tart cherries and a little bit of funk.  The flavor is a kind of subtle mix of those same tart cherries and wild yeast funk, never overwhelming and with a refreshing finish, a great day drinker to pair with cooking in the kitchen.

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Hopsquad Matador Watermelon Mint Summer Ale

Things are beginning to look dire for the craft beer industry in Texas thanks to COVID-19 and a completely bungled response by our state government.  It's projected that 2 out of 3 won't make it to the end of the year.  And there's only so much that the beer-heads like me can do.  I make the rounds on a weekly basis, getting as much beer to go in and around the city as possible.  And i know there are a lot of others doing the same.  Lately, i've been hitting some of the newer breweries, those that had not had a chance to really establish themselves before all of this shit started.  And one of my most recent visits was to Hopsquad Brewing.  Things got a little weird.  I brought home their Matador Watermelon Mint Summer Ale to confuse my taste buds.  The 6.6% beer pours gold with a quickly dissipating head and smells of watermelon, mint, and spice.  The flavor is a mix of watermelon, cucumber, mild spice, and mint in a light bodied brew.  In a lot of ways, it almost felt and tasted like a fresca or something.  It's not going to be for everyone, but if you're game to give it a try, it's different and pretty refreshing on a hot summer day.

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Blue Owl Dapper Devil

Some weekends, a sour beer is just the right way to go.  And so we have the Dapper Devil from Blue Owl Brewing, a sour raspberry Belgian Strong Ale that certainly does not disappoint.  Pouring a nice ruby red with a light pink head, the beer smells of raspberries (naturally) with some some hints of the Belgian yeast.  The flavor is heavy on the raspberries, with a nice and dry tartness that really masks the brew's 9% ABV.  Watch out, because it will sneak up on you.  All in all, a great Sunday beer.

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Violet! You're Turning Violet! Blueberry Sour IPA

The folks over at Martin House just keeping it up with the hits lately.  Every concoction that they put their minds to ends up pleasantly surprising my palette.  And the Violet! You're Turning Violet! Blueberry Sour IPA does not disappoint.  Pouring a purplish (violet) hue with a bubbly white head, the 6.3% ABV smells of tart blueberries with hints of citrus and hops.  The flavor is a lot of blueberry and a lot of sour, but with some stabs of bitterness to counterbalance the whole thing.  Hoping this is the first of a whole series of chocolate factory demise-themed beers.

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Jester King Moderne Dansk

Over halfway through January, and i'm finally getting around to writing about my Christmas beers.  All year long, i pick up bottles to store and save and age for use over my holiday, and here i am.  Moderne Dansk from Jester King is a 7.1% ABV wild ale aged in aged in Danish cherry wine barrels and refermented with Danish Stvensbaer cherry juice.  I picked one of these up over Father's Day weekend and had been waiting anxiously for it ever since.  Pouring a deep reddish hue with a pink head, the beer smells of cherries (naturally) and some subtle hints of oak.  The flavor is a tart, but not too tart, mix of cherry and oak with a slight hint of alcohol, a wonderful meal accompaniment.

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Martin House Plum Pudding

Lately, i have been a total sucker for dessert beers.  I just can't help myself.  And so we have Plum Pudding, a sour plum ale with lactose and fig from the always interesting Martin House Brewing.  The 5.3% ABV beer pours a murky brown with an off white head and smells of plum and fig and sugar.  The flavor is a tart, but not overly tart, mix of fruit and malts with some subtle vanilla notes and a tangy finish.  It's a total holiday brew, and i am here for it.

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Goses Are Red

I'm always game for trying different styles of beer.  Honestly it's half the reason i do this little blog.  Anyway, i recently tried Goses Are Red, a sour, fruited gose style beer from The Bruery that's basically the beer version of a rosé.  The 5.6% ABV brew pours a clear amber with shades of pink and quickly dissipating, very carbonated head.  Aromas of fruit, spice, coriander, and a mild funk pair well with those same flavors of fruit and spice, along with some grape notes and an all around tartness that's clean and crisp from start to finish.  Drink this one with dinner.

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4th Tap Brut of All Evil

Since we seem to be in the throes of an endless summer around these parts, i erred on the lighter, fruitier side of the beer spectrum over the weekend with the positively delightful Brut of All Evil from Austin's 4th Tap Brewing.  A 6.5% ABV Brut IPA with strawberry and watermelon, the beer pours a crisp, clear gold with a slight amber tint and a white head.  Aromas of strawberry and watermelon hit the nose with a slight flourish of hops, and the flavor is refreshing blend of the said strawberry and watermelon that finishes slightly bitter with a dry mouth feel, a wonderful Sunday beer.

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Black Star Co-op Wish You Were Queer

Laying off the Spokane brews for now, as i could probably wind down the year writing about another one every week, and circling back to Austin.  Wish You Were Queer is a sour fruited ale from Black Star Co-op, a 6.5% ABV brew that pours a thick, hazy gold with a white head.  Aromas of fruit and tartness abound while notes of peach and passion fruit round out the flavor in a concoction that never gets too sour.  And sales of the beer benefit Out Youth, so goodness all around.

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Oddwood Ales Vermillionaire

Seriously, i am all about the pink beers this summer.  I can't control it.  I can't help myself.  Anyway, in my ongoing quest to visit 40-50 breweries this summer, i managed to get my wife and kids to join me at Oddwood Ales in Austin for some beer, some pizza, and some free video games.  The kids particularly enjoyed the video games.  I enjoyed the beer.  And my favorite was the Vermillionaire, a 6.6% ABV sour brew barrel fermented with raspberries.  Pouring a solid pink with an off white, pinkish, and quickly dissipating head, the beer smells of raspberries, cherries, and a slight tart funk.  The flavor is a crisp and sour mix of said raspberries and cherries that never goes overboard in any particular direction, making it a perfect after-dinner drink.  I even brought a bottle home.

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Humperdinks Raspberry Blonde

Over the weekend i met up with my family in the Dallas/Fort Worth area to watch my niece play some softball and spend some time with everyone.  While there, i made it over to Humperdinks Brewpub, a place with a little bit of nostalgia for me as it was a joint my dad used to frequent years ago.  To be honest, i think he just enjoyed that they have a beer called Buttface Ale.  My sons enjoyed that too.  And so, after a Buttface Ale for my dad, i had their Raspberry Blonde.  Pouring pink with a light pink and bubbly head, the 4.7% ABV brew smelled of...you guessed it...raspberries, along with some citrus and spice notes.  The flavor was a crisp and refreshing mix of...you guessed it again...raspberries, along with those same citrus and spice notes.  A very pleasant summer beer that may be too sweet for some, but complimented my dinner of fried food perfectly.

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Real Ale Skullberry Strawberry Milkshake IPA

It was hot as hell here yesterday, a bad omen for the rest of the summer, but at least i had the wonderful and delicious Skullberry, a strawberry milkshake IPA from Real Ale, to cool things off.  The 6.2% ABV brew pours a hazy, unfiltered gold with a solid white head and smells of berries, fruit, mildly dank hops, and maybe just a hint of cream.  The flavor is a sweet mix of berries and hops with a touch of lactose to soften the mouthfeel and a hint of vanilla.  What a fantastic summertime beer.  I imagine i'll be drinking throughout the season.

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Vista Seeking Sakura

I had a pretty excellent weekend the last couple of days full of records, breweries, bad movies, crawfish, and more.  And, after our last few attempts were struck down by rain or cold, the wife and kids and i finally made it out to Vista Brewing to sample their wares, eat some food, and enjoy the beautiful scenery in the hill country.  I tried several beers, but top marks have to go the Seeking Sakura, a wine barrel aged brett ale with cherries.  The 6.3% ABV beer pours a pink amber with a white and bubbly head and smells of cherries and tart fruit.  The flavor is tart, but not too sour, with a kind of lacy mouthfeel, lots of cherries, and slight funk.  It was a lovely brew for a sunny Saturday afternoon, and i made sure to bring a bottle home.

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Brieux Carré Phuk Boi

Another beer from my New Orleans trip last weekend, the naughtily named Phuk Boi from Brieux Carré Brewing Co. was the perfect kind of decadent yet easy drinking libation a crawl through the Crescent City calls for.  The brewery was also only 4 blocks or so from the house we were staying in.  A 6.1% ABV sour raspberry milkshake IPA, the beer pours a hazy gold with just the slightest of pink tints and smells of raspberries, citrus, and a hint of dankness.  The flavor is sweet and tart with the raspberries hitting on the front end, culminating in a lightly bitter, yet still tart, full-bodied milkshake feel on the back.  Tasty and easy to drink, seek out a Phuk Boi next time you're bumming around or near the French Quarter.

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Parleaux Beer Lab Berry Curie

I just got back from a lovely weekend in New Orleans, and as i was only there about 48 hours, just barely skimmed the surface of the city's craft beer scene.  I did make it to a couple of places though, and one of those was the Parleaux Beer Lab in the Bywater neighborhood.  A wonderful selection of beers to choose from, i started with the Berry Curie, a boysenberry/blueberry sour gose.  The brew pours a reddish pink with a light white head and smells of fruit, citrus, flowers, and sugar.  The beer is sweet from the added berries with a pleasant all around tartness with maybe just a hint of salt.  And at 3.8% ABV, this is one of those springtime day drinkers that goes great with backyards and sunshine.  I will have to get back there someday.

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Hole Lang Syne

Here we are, a week into the new year, and while i didn't really do much on New Year's Eve (stayed in with my wife and kids, a fire, some football, and some kind of serial killer hunting game after the kids went to bed), i did have a fantastic beverage in hand as the proverbial ball dropped.  Hole Lang Syne, a Belgian strong ale brewed with raspberries and blackberries from the good folks at Rabbit Hole Brewing near Fort Worth, was the perfect libation to ring in the new year.  The 10% ABV brew poured a lovely amber with a white and quickly dissipating head.  Aromas of fruit (raspberry and blackberry of course), sugar, and some mild spices were prevalent, while the flavor was sweet, but not too sweet, fruity, but not too fruity, and with just the right amount of subtle tart and alcohol notes.  May our 2019 be as great as this beer was.

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NXNW Bohemian Raspberry

I know we're heading into Fall, but the weather in Central Texas really does not care, as we're still pushing 100 degrees and beyond almost everyday.  And so, on these hot afternoons, a fruity concoction of hops and malts will certainly hit the spot.  Yesterday, NXNW Restaurant and Brewery in Austin hosted its 19th Anniversary Party, an event marking it as the city's oldest brewpub.  It was a family friendly affair, so where else was an avid beer drinker with two kids going to be?  Anyway, i was able to try a few different beers while there, and all were excellent (meaning i'll probably write about one next week too), but their limited Bohemian Raspberry, a fruit beer brewed with...you guessed it...raspberries really helped beat the heat.  Pouring a pinkish hue, the 6% ABV brew smelled of raspberries, citrus, hops, and spice.  Notes of raspberry were dominant, but meshed well with the spices and some subtle hints of yeast and bread.  The brew finished dry, tart, and crisp, an excellent choice to wind down these hot summer days.

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Celis Raspberry

I've been pretty stoked since Celis Brewery came back from the dead to start making delicious Belgian-inspired brews again here in Austin, and their latest is a fruity take on a classic.  The Celis Raspberry combines the brewery's original Celis White with a whole lot of raspberries.  Pouring a pinkish/reddish hue with light pink head, the beer smells of...you guessed it...raspberries, along with some floral notes, spices, and a wheat-y breadiness.  The flavor is tart, a mix of sweet fruit and spice with dry and crisp finish.  This beer is certainly not for everyone, but if you're looking for something a little different, this 5% ABV concoction is a great summertime brew.

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