Drews Brews Reviews

New England Brewing – Gandhi-Bot Review

Posted on December 4, 2014March 1, 2015 by Drews Brews Reviews

All You Need to Know

Brewery: New England Brewing
Style: DIPA
ABV: 8.8%
Cost: ???? (12oz)
Glassware: Pint, Tulip, Teku
Temp: 50°F
Availability: Varies through Year
Purchased@: Beer Trade

Quick Take: If you like a lite tropical fruit front and a basic malt body that keeps the fruit from hitting too hard, Gandhi-Bot might be the DIPA for you. It’s one I could see getting a case of for summer drinking and appreciating what it has to offer. It’s almost a session DIPA that has a spectacular aroma, but lacks the follow-through, resulting in a simply good, not great, beer.

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Last Week in Untappd – 11/24 – 11/30 – (The Untappening)

Posted on December 2, 2014March 1, 2015 by Drews Brews Reviews

Well, it finally happened.The day I anticipate in a continual 364 day loop, that most wonderful of beer days, Black Friday, has come and gone and I think we took full advantage of its bounty. In the past, this meant waking up at the crack of 9 and sheepishly making our way to Capone’s in Norristown for a solid 6 hours of drinking in an atmosphere that can best be described as a bar from a bowling alley crashed into a 70’s diner and someone hung up Vaseline smeared TVs from the 80’s. I wouldn’t want it any other way. Not that I see much else beyond the beer list, looking to see what’s kicked and trying to anticipate what’ll kick next as I order 4 or 5 beers at a time. Yes, Black Friday is Capone’s day for me. Except for this year…

A detour to find the highly-coveted Bourbon county Vanilla Rye (we failed) eventually took us to Teresa’s Next Door Black Friday Sour Event and to indulge that artisanal siren call that is Tired Hands before ultimately arriving at the threshold to Capone’s. We were successful in getting a 4pk of BCBS, a bottle of Avery’s Tweak, and 2 bottles of Abyss. Not too shabby. Here are the best of the best from a full day of rare beer drinking and Untappening (20+). The Tired Hands beers will be coming in a separate piece as a follow up to my original brewery visit.

Cantillon – Fou’ Foune
Location: Teresa’s Next Door
Style: Lambic
Score: 4/5
Original Comment: Metallic, tropical, lemon/ orange acidic, slight dank yeast aroma, Salty/sour sting front, tongue raking mineral, dry, biscuity fin. Good

Additional Comment: The final part of my original comment that I didn’t have room for is “…but not great.” I don’t always understand the hype behind many of Cantillon’s offerings. They are typically good but no better than any other expertly crafted sour I’ve had. This is the first where I feel like I had a fleeting glimpse of something special even if the overall experience didn’t wow me. I will admit that knowing Fou’ Foune is the highest rated sour on Beer Advocate (#14 as of this publishing) brought some expectations with it. I think a blind taste test could yield interesting results, but I don’t have the bank account nor the resource to make that happen. Glad I had it and definitely a tasty sour, but in the future I’ll probably pass over it for something new.

Continue reading “Last Week in Untappd – 11/24 – 11/30 – (The Untappening)” →

Last Week in Untappd – 11/17 – 11/23

Posted on November 26, 2014March 1, 2015 by Drews Brews Reviews

This was actually a busy beer weekend for me, but I stockpiled written beer reviews that will release over the next few weeks rather than check them in with a few brief comments. So, Untappd (drewsbrewsreviews) is a little light on check-ins. That will change with the impending Black Friday event at Capone’s unleashing the flood of fantastic beers that will surely culminate in the Untappening. I look forward to highlighting the best of my favorite yearly event, so that’ll be ready next week. In the meantime, here’s what I checked in the week past.

Sierra Nevada– Narwhal (Bourbon Aged)
Location: Bulls Head Pub
Style: Imperial Stout (Bourbon Aged)
Score: 3.5/5
Original Comment: Buttery bourbon, vanillian, roast aroma, med mf, dark malt, chocolate/vanilla, raisin/plum finish, lingering heat. Decent, but too expensive.

Additional Comment: My “too expensive “comment is slightly disingenuous as I didn’t actually pay for it. A friend of mine did and was kind enough to share some with me. Plus, this was also purchased at a bar, which comes with a markup. That said, there are very few beers I will pay $30 for, and this is no where near one of them. A price around $12 – $15 seems about right based on what I had. Narwhal is on the lower end of imperial stouts I enjoy, I like mine on the heavier, near Russian Imperial levels, and Sierra Nevada’s imp stout is too thin and dark fruit heavy for my tastes. Obviously, if Narwhal is your jam, I can’t see you disliking a bourbon barreling of it. The difficulty in landing a bottle, at least around the Lancaster PA region, makes this a buy it when you see it beer. Mostly likely you aren’t going to see it again anytime soon.

Continue reading “Last Week in Untappd – 11/17 – 11/23” →

Southern Tier – Pumking (Rum Barrel Aged) Review

Posted on November 25, 2014March 1, 2015 by Drews Brews Reviews

All You Need to Know

Brewery: Southern Tier
Style: Pumpkin Ale (Rum Barrel)
ABV: 10.7%
Cost: $18 (24oz)
Glassware: Snifter, Goblet
Temp: 45°F
Availability: Limited
Purchased@: The Fridge

Quick Take: Southern Tier took a very popular and minorly flawed pumpkin beer, one that I’m quite fond of I might add, and made it better. The use of rum is an intelligent and well-considered addition that doesn’t really turn the beer into something entirely new, but enhances the flavors that are already present. For fans of Pumking, it’s a no brainer and worth trying, even at $18 a bottle. If you never understood the hype or prefer a meatier pumpkin beer experience, this might not change your mind. My personal opinion is that the rum is so well-integrated, it seems like it was always there and exactly what Pumking should be. I don’t know if I’ll be able to go back to standard Pumking after trying this, but given how difficult it is to find, I might not have a choice.

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Capone’s Black Friday Beer List

Posted on November 24, 2014March 1, 2015 by Drews Brews Reviews

Those that know Capone’s, an unassuming diner on the outskirts of Norristown, know that it is a haven for beer nerds from all over PA. They do big beer events and do them right. Well, the rightest event of the year is upon us and Capone’s has posted the coveted Black Friday list. I highlighted the gems to help you formulate a plan of attack. Going with a group of people and efficiency is the key to getting through a tap list this long. Event starts at 7am and rolls through the day with the second wave of beers in the afternoon at 4:30pm. Check it out and spread the word!