 At this point I believe I’ve had the three most decadent of the Decadent Ales offerings I can get my hands on. Those being the French Toast, the Double Toasted Marshmallow and the Creamsicle. I can firmly say without hyperbole, Decadent absolutely lives up to their namesake. A lot of breweries have nonsense, in-jokes or just named for local attractions as names. Decadent isn't just a name, it's truth in advertising and perhaps a warning to some. Check out podcast Episode 54 and Episode 67 for reviews on the Marshmallow and Creamsicle, respectively.
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by Hop Nation USA's Adam  Lavery Brewing of Erie, Pennsylvania has created a beer that truly has me confused. Lavery’s Imperial French-Style Ale is a conundrum of a beer. The first thing that struck me was the nose of the beer versus the actual taste. To be honest, I have no idea what a French-Style ale is. Quite frankly, after drinking this beer, I still don’t know.
Hop Nation USA's Steve  Big fuckin’ surprise. Southern Tier once again perfectly replicates the flavor of a cookie and makes an impossibly drinkable 10% dessert. Whoop dee doo. Why don’t they try challenging themselves and make a Roquefort blue cheese IPA or a gose using the dishwater from a Denny’s? Obviously, this whole beer making thing is too easy for them. The Samoa This captures coconut, caramel, and chocolate flavors while never being too sweet or too boozy. It’s almost like they brewed this simply because there were some people who didn’t like mint. But this beer is clearly just another in a long list of fat kid wish fulfillments. Stop throwing darts at your daughter’s Girl Scouts order form, Southern Tier. Make the unfiltered, driveway gravel yeast sediment, kale saisons we deserve. Rating:  by Hop Nation USA's Steve  On Episode 51(listen here), we reviewed spruce beers from Alaskan, Yards and Dogfish Head. The latter two were good beers, although the spruce flavor was arguably muted by caramel and malty notes. However, the Alaskan Winter Ale was notably unpleasant to drink. There was little to no spruce flavor. Instead, it was full of coppery and metallic notes which overpowered any other flavors present. It was with trepidation and hope I approached the Alaskan Spruce IPA. Trepidation, because I had just been burned by the Winter Ale, but hope because I’ve found the majority of offerings from Alaskan to be rather good.
2/21/2018 0 Comments Tastebuds ~ THAI KICK!by Hop Nation USA's Steve  I fell in love with Thai food back in 2008 while working on an independant film. We were filming in a semi-trendy, soon to gentrify neighborhood. The crew members who were more familiar with the area introduced us lowly PAs to the Thai restaurant in the neighborhood, leading to many lunches and after shoot dinners. Panang and Kiew Wan have since become some of my favorite dishes. If you’re a craft beer enthusiast and have a favorite meal, then more than likely you have a favorite beer to pair it with. Heartbreakingly, I’ve been lacking a beer to pair with my Thai dishes. Until now.
2/16/2018 0 Comments Do Gentlemen Truly Prefer Blondes?by Hop Nation USA's Adam  3 Daughters Brewing is out to prove the headline’s adage with the A-Wake Coffee Blonde Ale. The St. Petersburg, Florida brewery has decided to take the ‘fun in the sun’ route in their entry into the coffee beer arena. Unlike most beers with a coffee flavor, the A-Wake is light and well suited for a full day on the fishing boat. Being from Florida, and a blonde ale, this makes total sense.
Hop Nation USA's Adam  It’s 10 degrees outside right now, the plans I had for my day off have gone up in smoke, and the best thing I can find on TV is the Who Cares Bowl, Presented by Callahan Auto Parts. It’s time for a beer. A quick perusal of the beer fridge brings me to an offering from Ipswich Brewing that I’ve been meaning to try for some time.
by Hop Nation USA's Adam  There. It’s done. The G'n'R reference is already taken care of in the title. Now we can get to the actual review of Evil Twin’s You’re In the Jungle Baby! The latest offering from Evil Twin is a big imperial stout that does everything in its power to sock you in the mouth. Before the top is even popped on the futuristic leopard printed can, a quick scan shows that this beer means business. A listed ABV of 12% lets the drinker in on what may come. The big booze on this beer is not the headline though. Nor is the nose, which honestly, at best only gives up the inclusion of cocoa nibs in the recipe. The look of the beer doesn’t give you any help either, as the darkness of this beer still won’t give you any hints of the real danger within, let alone let light through. Admittedly, it does look nice with its big tan head sitting on top of it after a transfer out of the 12 oz. can and into your favorite glass.
by Hop Nation USA's Adam  As a functioning adult, it’s difficult to convince myself that making waffles at 8:15 at night is a good idea. The mess, the knowledge that I don’t have at least one needed ingredient on hand, and the fact that late night indigestion is slowly becoming a reality all are colliding to convince me that this is all really a bad idea. Not only that, I’m already in my PJs, so going and getting breakfast at the diner down the road just isn’t happening. Fortunately, the good people of Rusty Rail have solved that problem with their new Waffle Sauce Maple Pecan Imperial Brown Ale, a hefty beer that was created to take on the uptick in using maple in beers in the last few years.
11/8/2017 0 Comments If You Like Only Bourbon, Don’t Drink This Beer. If you LOVE Bourbon, DRINK this beer. Review: Southern Tier Monstrosusby Hop Nation USA's Sam  Wait a second, do you really mean if I only like Bourbon, then I shouldn’t drink this beer? Well no, you are welcome to try anything that your little heart desires, I’m just prepping you for the review that you are about to read. How about we compromise? You read the review first and then determine if you want to try the beer. Sound good? Ok, let’s get started.
I had the pleasure of joining a group of old co-workers this past Friday night for some conversation and a few beers. Needless to say, since we all tend to enjoy a tasty brew more often than not, we opted for the Southern Tier brewpub on the north shore of Pittsburgh. Southern Tier is always a great location as their brewpub comes equipped with about 20 different ST beers on tap at any given time. |