Tag: Revolution Brewing

Draught Diversions: Beer Advocate’s Extreme Beer Box: Big Stouts

Draught Diversion, Style in Focus

I guess I couldn’t keep the taps closed for too long, although this is by no means a return to regular posting. Let’s just say that I felt compelled to share my thoughts on this excellent group of beers my wife gifted me for this past Christmas (2022).

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I think this is the third “beer box” Beer Advocate has curated, following an IPA box and a Lager Box. When my wife saw this on my Facebook feed, she knew she wanted to get it for me since she knows how much I love stouts. I didn’t know what to expect from the beers, although because I’d seen some of the social media posts before Christmas, I knew that at least Oskar Blues’s Barrel-Aged Ten Fidy would be in the box.

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Once I received the Punchboard on Christmas morning, I tried to avoid the social media posts from Beer Advocate. My wife played a little game with the beers where I’d select a beer by punching the cup and giving my wife the index card without looking at it. She’d tell me the brewery, but I would have to guess what the flavor/adjuncts and what set the beer apart…if the beer was a Milk Stout or Russian Imperial Stout, if the beer had peanut butter, coffee, or something else; or if it was a barrel-aged stout.

The box arrived mid-January and I finished off the last beer a couple of weeks ago. There was a great mix of high ABV stouts, ranging from 7.2% all the way up to 15%. Quite a few were aged in barrels, quite a few had a peanut butter element, while coffee was another common theme throughout the beers. All were very good, but for the standouts were Revolution’s Dark Mode Barrel Aged milk Stout; maybe the best Milk Stout I’ve ever had; Firestone Walker’s Paraboloid no surprise from these guys Great Notion’s Peanut Brother, maybe the best PB beer I’ve ever had, and perhaps the best “#shelfie” BBA stout, Barrel-Aged Ten Fidy from Oskar Blues. I appreciated that 10 of these beers I’d probably not have access to other than this beer box.

Without further ado, I’ll give some thoughts on each beer, listed alphabetically.

Eat the Rich (Ghost 1228) | Adroit Theory | Stout – Russian Imperial | 12% | 4 bottle caps
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What makes it extreme: Very High ABV.

I found this one to be very bitter up front, hints of dark roasted coffee and bittersweet chocolate with a slightly sweet finish. This needs to warm to room temperature.

Flux | Barclay Brewing Co. | Stout – Russian Imperial | 13.8% | 4 bottle caps

Barclays_Flux

What makes it extreme: A blend of two big stouts, Barrel-Aging [Buffalo Trace], Tahitian Vanilla Beans; Very High ABV.

I found this beer to be extremely sweet with a copious of vanilla. At 13.8%, I’m kind of glad this one was only in a 12oz can because of how sweet it was, but for a dessert beer for sipping while watching a movie at night, it hit the spot.

Wakeup World Wide Stout | Dogfish Head Craft Brewery I Stout – Imperial / Double Coffee | 15.3% | 4.50 Bottle Caps

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What makes it extreme: Barrel-Aging, Maple Syrup, Cinnamon, Coffee; Extremely High ABV.

I’ve had a few versions of Dogfish’s big Worldwide Stout: Oak-Aged Vanilla World Wide Stout, Utopias Barrel-Aged World Wide Stout, and the original World Wide Stout , so I was happy to see this in the box. The coffee & cinnamon were the most prominent flavor components and they played together quite nicely. When I drank coffee, I often mixed cinnamon into it, so this hit the right flavor buttons for me and did NOT feel like 15.3%.

Gravastar Stout | Ecliptic Brewing | 7.2% | Stout – Imperial / Double | 3.75 bottle caps
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What makes it extreme: Peanut Butter and Chocolate.

The oatmeal gives this beer a comfortable smoothness. There’s also and prominent roast element in the beer, but very little peanut butter and chocolate.

Coconut Drip | Finback Brewery | Stout – Imperial / Double Pastry | 11% | 4 bottle caps

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What makes it extreme: Coconut, Peanut Butter, Vanilla Bean and Coffee; High ABV.

This happened to be the first beer I had from the box and it was a good start and foundation for what to expect. Quite a few adjucnts in this beer, but they work well together. There’s slightly more peanut than coconut, otherwise good balance w/dry finish.

Paraboloid (2022) | Firestone Walker Brewing Company | Stout – Russian Imperial | 15% | 4.25 Bottle Caps

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What makes it extreme: Double Barrel-Aging: 14 year Old Fitzgerald bourbon barrels and 18 year Sazerac rye whiskey barrels, Extremely High ABV.

I was thrilled when I pulled a Firestone Walker card from the punchboard, I love their barrel-aged beers and this one does not disappoint. The bourbon is prominent, but not overpowering given high the ABV. Overall the beer has elements of oak, vanilla, bourbon, hints of chocolate. Even with the barrel-aging, the beer retains the hallmark RIS elements.

Peanut Brother | Great Notion Brewing | Stout – Imperial / Double Milk | 9.5% | 4.5 Bottle Caps

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What makes it extreme: Peanut Butter, Lactose, Moderately High ABV.

Some peanut butter beers don’t use real peanut butter, or at least they taste like the peanut butter does in a stale Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup. Just the opposite with this beer, the peanut butter is *perfect* and is complemented quite nicely by the lactose. This was probably the best peanut butter beer I’ve ever had the pleasure of drinking.

Black Daruma | Japas Cervejaria | Stout – Russian Imperial | 11% | 4 bottle caps

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What makes it extreme: Persimmons, High ABV.

I can’t say that I’ve ever had persimmon, let alone would even think to make a beer with the fruit. But here we are and this was maybe the most interesting beer of the 12 in the box. The persimmon balances out the aggressive and expected hops of the style without hiding it. Interesting and tasty.

Barreled Treasure – Spirit Hound | Odell Brewing Co. | Stout – Imperial / Double | 12% | 3.75 bottle caps

Odell_BT

What makes it extreme: Barrel-Aging, High ABV.

Prominent barrel character and roasted malt characterize this beer. It was fine for what it was.

Barrel-Aged Ten FIDY | Oskar Blues Brewery | Stout – Imperial / Double | 12.5% | 4.5 bottle caps

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What makes it extreme: Barrel-Aging, High ABV.

I’d had the regular TEN FIDY in the past and I thought it was fine, if a little more bitter than I expected. This beer…damn was on another playing field. There were hints of coffee, vanilla, and oak that I enjoyed quite a bit. What surprises me is that this is a beer I’ve been seeing on shelves for years and overlooked it, shame on me because this is one of the better nationally available barrel-aged stouts regularly available.

Dark Mode | Revolution Brewing Company | Stout – Imperial / Double Milk | 13.8% | 4.75 bottle caps

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What makes it extreme: Barrel-Aging, Lactose, High ABV.

Revolution is nationally recognized for their barrel-aged program, their beers sell out quickly on Tavour so I was hoping one of their beers would be in this box. The beer name is spot on because Dark Mode is one of the darkest beers I’ve ever had. The bourbon-barrel aging and lactose are perfect together, this is hands down the best Milk Stout I’ve ever had. I only wish more of Revolution’s barrel-aged beers were available in New Jersey.

PB Fusion Technique | Weathered Souls Brewing Co. | Stout – Imperial / Double | 3.5 bottle caps

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What makes it extreme: Coconut, Brownie Fudge, and Peanut Butter.

This beer had the thickest (Thicc as the kids say) of any beer in the box, but goddamn was it sweet. Considering the beer has coconut, brownie fudge, and peanut butter that wasn’t surprising. For me, it was just a little too sweet and maybe too much going on in the beer, but I did wind up enjoying it.

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The Kill Shot

All told, this was a fantastic group of 12 beers, just about all of which I’d seek out again and some of them happened to be the best of their specific style I’ve ever had.

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Draught Diversions: Favorite Beers of 2022

Draught Diversion, Monthly New Brews

As has been tradition in January here at the Tap Takeover for the previous five years, I present the annual roundup of my favorite new to me beers of the previous calendar year. Why a “12-pack?” Well, everybody does a top 10 list and beer is generally sold in quantities of 6 and 12 packs. This Favorite of the Year 12-pack will feature the highest rated beers I’ve had the previous year. Of the twelve beers, there was only one beer I rated below 4.5 bottle caps on untappd, which is to say that I had some high-quality beers in 2022. This 12-pack is what I deemed  as “Best” beers of the 349 unique beers I checked into untappd in 2022, from 126 different breweries.  I think in previous years, a few beers I rated at 4.25 bottle caps made the list. According to untappd, I tried 105 different styles of beer, but what probably shouldn’t be a surprise at this point is the style I checked in the most: Pilsner – Czech.

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As always, for the purposes of this post New means “New to Me” because a some beers on this list have been around for many, many years, but I had the beer for the first time in 2023.

Before diving into the list, here’s another plug for my old Blog o’ Stuff, which is where I write, rant, and rave about Fantasy, Horror, and Science Fiction books. I brought it back to life this year with a few reviews and a monthly reading wrap up, not too dissimilar to the monthly six packs here at the Triple T.

Back to our regularly scheduled beer programming…

While I had more beers from NJ breweries this year than probably any other year, only 5 of them make the top 12, which still comprises the dominant State. Again, as in past years, the annual 12-pack could have easily been comprised of 3 or 4 breweries, but the one rule I’ll stick to from past years is allowing only one beer per brewery to appear. That rule made it difficult to whittle down some breweries from whom I’ve had upwards of 10 beers in 2022.

If I’ve done a full review of the beer here at The Tap Takeover, the beer name links to that review, otherwise the beer name links to my untappd check-in for the beer. For the beers that I’ve reviewed, I’ve provided a truncated blurb of my beer review.

Here’s the style breakdown for the 12 beers below:

  • 4 Lagers
    • 2 Pilsners
    • 1 Baltic Porter
    • 1 Dark Lager / Schwarzbier
  • 2 Stouts
    • 1 Imperial / Double Oatmeal
    • 1 Imperial / Double
  • 2 Barleywines
  • 1 Old Ale
  • 1 IPA
  • 1 Pumpkin Beer
  • 1 Farmhouse Ale (Grisette)

Without further adieu, here are the 12 best beers I drank in 2022:

12. John | Bradley Brew Project | Pilsner – German | 4.25 bottle caps

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This is the third beer (at the time) I had from Bradley Brew Project and it might be the best one. A clean, crisp, extremely well-crafted interpretation of a German Pilsner. This beer does just about everything correct for the style. There’s a slight lemon/lime presence on the finish, but overall, an excellent beer.

11. Wolfe’s Neck | Maine Beer Company | IPA –American | 4.5 bottle caps

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Maine Beer Company makes outstanding IPAs and Wolfe’s Neck is another delicious example. A fantastic blend of hops with a dialed-in hop flavor, great malt character, and and overall, perfectly balanced and elegant profile. This is one of the cleanest IPAs I’ve ever had. Despite Mosaic being one of the main hops in this beer, I still enjoyed this beer quite a lot. The El Dorado and Sabro hops balance out what is normally an unpleasant aftertaste in beers with Mosaic hops for me.

10. Scythe | The Drowned Lands Brewery I Pumpkin / Yam Beer | 4.50 Bottle Caps

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Pumpkin beers dominate the shelves from August through October/November to a very overwhelming level. This has; unfortunately, set something of a mark against the style… With Scythe, The Drowned Lands may have crafted an ideal Pumpkin Beer. It has near perfect balance of all the elements, lives up to the “pumpkin pie in a glass” moniker, but is still most certainly a beer. If I’m making a Mount Rushmore of Pumpkin Beers, Scythe would very likely find itself on that mount.

9. Cigar City’s Marshal Zhukov’s Double Envelopment | Cigar City Brewing | Stout – Imperial / Double | 4.5 bottle caps

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Marshal Zhukov’s is Cigar City’s flagship Stout …and blend two versions, the rum barrel-aged and sherry barrel-aged to create something unique… Since this is an 11.8% stout, I take my time with the beer. Being in a cool bar with a good friend and good food on the way, I was real happy to just relax and enjoy this complex beer…The barrel elements blend into one, dynamic flavor adjunct that is extremely pleasing, the sweetness from the rum barrel is complemented by some of the dried fruit elements in the sherry character. This beer is one of the more unique barrel-aged stouts I’ve ever had…well-worth seeking out.

8. Dew Drop | Oakflower Brewing Company | Farmhouse Ale – Grisette | 4.50 bottle caps

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Not many breweries are making Grisettes, let alone making it as one of their first beers available to the public…For a beer to have so much flavor at such a low ABV is very impressive. Even more impressive is that Oakflower was open for just a week when I visited and this beer was on draught. Head brewer/owner Colin McDonough was brewing in small batches for a few years under the Lamington River Brewing banner so he’s got some experience. That said, it often can take time for a brewer to adjust to newer, larger scale equipment and the learning curve here seems non-existent. Dew Drop is the kind of beer I’d expect from a brewery that’s been open a few years, not a couple of weeks.

7. Scotch Double Barrel-Aged Picture in Reverse | Kane Brewing Company | Old Ale | 4.5 Bottle Caps

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Old Ales aren’t the most common style   of beers, they sit somewhere between Barleywine and an aged Imperial Stout. Beers in this style typically undergo an aging process, sometimes for years, lending a very rich character similar to wine. This particular version from Kane is a blend of Barleywines aged in Willett Bourbon barrels then aged again in Scotch barrels. This is the second release of “Picture in Reverse” I’ve had and it was stunning. There’s a sweetness and boozy element with some heat in the back with the scotch presence pleasantly noticeable on the finish. A complex and delicious ale, one of many beers that proves to me nobody does barrel aging better than Kane.

6. Life Unravaled | Icarus Brewing Company | Barleywine – American | 4.5 Bottle Caps

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One of the kinds of beer Icarus is best known for are dark beers/stouts, particularly their barrel-aged beers. This is their first bottled Barleywine and it was fantastic. Aged in bourbon barrels, the sweetness from the barrel plays wonderfully with the Maris Otter Barley and balances out the hops very nicely. I would love to see more Barleywines from Icarus in the future if this is any indication of what they can do with the style.

5. Schwarzbier Black Lager | Chilton Mill Brewing Company | Lager – Dark / Schwarzbier | 4.5 bottle caps

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I am very pleased with my first taste of this beer. There’s a very nice roast character, which is a hallmark of the style. It isn’t overpowering to the point that it is a smoked beer, but just enough to make that element of flavor’s presence known. On my second quaff of the beer, I get something unexpected, yet pleasant – some kind of sweet fruit element. Not sure what specifically, but that element likely comes from the Noble hops. But that sweetness is a great level of complexity in this beer… What I like about the beer is how elegant, well-crafted, and balanced the beer is. I have a very strong appreciation for the level of complexity especially considering the beer is only 5.6% ABV.

4. Lagerness Monster | Jack’s Abby Craft Lagers | Porter – Imperial Double Baltic | 4.75 bottle caps

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A sleeping Dusty makes a cameo in the background

I like the beer quite a bit from that first taste and I have a feeling I’m going to enjoy this 500ml bottle over the next hour or so. Moments later, I have a second sip and it is stellar. I start to get a pleasant tingly feeling in my belly when the beer hits, a familiar feeling I associate with good beer… What impresses me the most is the balance in this beer… the more I thought about it, the more I realized the beer had almost no flaws.

3.Straight Jacket | Revolution Brewing Company | Barleywine – English | 4.75 bottle caps

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The first word that comes to mind for this beer is smooth…everything about it is delightfully, sinfully, sumptuous, and smooth… The bourbon elements could easily overpower the entire beer and drown out the malt and hops, but here in Straight Jacket the name of the game is accentuation. Each flavor element (hops, malt, barrel) enhances the other elements to a wonderful and delightful degree. I only wish that Revolution distributed this beer (and their other barrel-aged beers) into New Jersey.

2. 6th Anniversary Imperial Stout | Czig Meister | Stout – Imperial / Double Oatmeal | 4.75 bottle caps

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As I take further sips, that silky smooth character envelopes my palate like a luxurious blanket. The barrel character emerges more prominently, but *perfectly* accentuates the roasted malts of the beer rather than overpowers the flavor profile. Those elements by themselves would make this a world-class Imperial Stout, but then the Vanuatu Vanilla emerges…. I was totally blown away by this beer.

1. Tenner | Notch Brewing Company | Pilsner – Czech | 5 bottle caps

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The pour….is perfection in a mug. Look at that picture above, just a beautiful beer with a thick head atop a bright yellow-gold beer. Tenner was poured just as you’d expect in Plzeň (Pilsen to us Americans) in the Czech Republic… First sip is pure heaven. I get a little bit of foam in that first sip, but the beer itself is everything I could hope to have in a Pilsner beer… without hesitation, I can say this is the best Pilsner (or Pale Lager as our friends in the Czech Republic and Notch might say), I’ve ever had the pleasure of drinking.

Some other notes:

While I visited several breweries in 2022, the list of new-to-me breweries I visited wasn’t quite as lengthy as past years. While many new breweries opened in NJ in 2022, some aren’t exactly close. Additionally, for example, I visited the localest brewery a half dozen times (Readington Brewery), I made 5 trips to Icarus Brewing, I visited the seven breweries on the Hunterdon County Beer Trail and the six breweries on the Skylands Ale Trail. For both of those Beer Trails, I’d visited most of the breweries for the first time in years past and multiple times at that. My favorite brewery that I visited for the first time in 2022 was Notch Brewing’s Brighton, MA taproom. A complete focus on German and Czech Lagers and Ales…right up my alley. That said, here are the breweries I visited for the first time in 2022:

Breweries whose beer I checked in/enjoyed the most according to untappd, which should be a shock to nobody reading this blog. This is not new beers exclusively, but overall:

  • Icarus Brewing: 34 different
  • Kane Brewing Company: 14 different beers
  • Jersey Cyclone Brewing Company: 13 different beers
  • Readington Brewery & Hop Farm: 12 different beers
  • Czig Meister: 12 different beers

So there it is, the 12 “New to Me” beers I enjoyed the most in 2022.

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Beer Review: Revolution Brewing’s Straight Jacket Barleywine

Beer Review

Name: Straight Jacket
Brewing Company: Revolution Brewing Company
Location: Chicago, IL
Style: Barleywine – English
ABV: 15% (2021 canning date)

A world class Barleywine, comfortably on the  proverbial Barleywine “Mount Rushmore.”

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From Revolution Brewing’s landing page for the beer:

Our Barleywine Ale features American and Belgian malts which provide the base of this extraordinary ale. After 12 months in bourbon barrels the award-winning Straight Jacket® emerges with notes of stone fruit, toasted coconut, molasses, and vanilla coming in waves as you swirl the glass. Enjoy now or store cold.

Barleywines have become one of my favorite styles over the past couple of year. #BarleywineIsLife or #BiL after all. Unfortunately there aren’t that many being brewed, packaged, and made available in my market. Occasionally, some of the local breweries will brew a barleywine in small a batch, but I don’t think I need to get beyond one hand in counting how many breweries in NJ brew barleywines in batches intended for distribution or beyond small batches.

Enter Revolution Brewing out of Chicago. Unfortunately, I’ve only really seen their IPAs in stores around me here in Central Jersey. Enter the online beer reseller Tavour. Tavour is where my wife purchased all those awesome out-of-region beers for my 20th Anniversary. Revolution has supplanted Goose Island over the last few years as the local/craft brewery of Chicago and their big booze bombs are highly regarded, including Straight Jacket, a Bourbon Barrel Aged Barleywine which is part of Revolution’s “Deep Woods” series. When I saw this pop up on Tavour, I had to have it.

The beer pours from the 12oz can into the glass smoothly. The color is murky brown, what I’d imagine liquified caramelized sugar or toffee might resemble and as I pass the snifter in front of my nose, the bourbon elements make me smile.

The first sip brings strong burnt sugar to mind, hints of toffee, and aggressive malts. The first word that comes to mind for this beer is smooth…everything about it is delightfully, sinfully, sumptuous, and smooth.

As the beer warms, the sweet elements become more prominent as does the barrel character. The bourbon elements could easily overpower the entire beer and drown out the malt and hops, but here in Straight Jacket the name of the game is accentuation. Each flavor element (hops, malt, barrel) enhances the other elements to a wonderful and delightful degree.

I haven’t had as many Barleywines as I’ve had stouts or lagers. I’m just shy of 40 Barleywines according to untappd. That said, without hesitation I can say that the 2021 canning of Revolution Brewing’s Straight Jacket is one of the best Barleywine Ales I’ve ever had.

Highest recommended possible, link to 4.75 bottle cap untappd rating check in.

Draught Diversions: Oktoberfest 2019 Six Pack

Draught Diversion, Style in Focus

Draught Diversions is the catchall label for mini-rants, think-pieces, and posts that don’t just focus on one beer here at The Tap Takeover. We hope you don’t grow too weary of the alcohol alliterative names we use…

Oktoberfest is sort of like the Easter of beer holidays. It isn’t always on the same exact date, but it is generally the same time of year. Mid-September is when the great German celebration of the marriage of then Prince and soon King Ludwig to Princess Therese begins. In 2019, Oktoberfest spans from September 21 through October 6, but seasonal creep gets these beers on our shelves in August. We* here at the Tap Takeover try to keep things seasonally appropriate, so here about a week or so is my annual Oktoberfest 6 pack of Oktoberfest beers. (*By “we” I mean me) A mix of national and New Jersey breweries, a mix of Oktoberfest beers I’ve had and have yet to try. You know, the typical.

Oktoberfest | Cape May Brewing Co. | Cape May, NJ | 5.8% ABV

Image courtesy of Cape May Brewing’s Facebook

Cape May Brewing is slowly climbing up my list of favorite NJ Breweries. They nail IPAs, debuted a superb Pale Lager earlier this year, and seem to excel at all styles. It is a no-brainer for me to want to try their take on the classic German Lager and with their increased distribution footprint, I was easily able to find six pack. Cape May knocks it out of the park with their take on the classic Märzen. I found it to be a little sweeter than I’ve had, but that is a feature and not a bug for me. This has immediately become an annual must have for me. This beer should be available throughout NJ and some of Southeastern PA.

What Cape May says about the beer:

Rich and complex, this amber-colored lager is smooth and clean due to a cool fifty-degree fermentation, mellowing as it lagers. Well-balanced with a hint of hops presence, Oktoberfest is focused on the grain bill of Vienna, Munich, Caramunich, Pilsen, and Melanoidin malts.

Oktoberfest – Czig Meister Brewing Company | Hackettstown, NJ | 5.3% ABV

Image courtesy of Czig Meister’s Facebook

Czig Meister has been putting this beer in cans for a couple of years, but I haven’t had the opportunity to try it yet. I’ve liked most of the beer I’ve had from them, so I don’t expect that trend to cease once I try their Oktoberfest. This beer should be available throughout NJ and some of NY.

What Czig Meister says about the beer:

Medium bodied light orange color. Flavors of toasty graham crackers and light honey notes.

OktoberFish | Flying Fish Brewing Company | Somerdale, NJ | 6% ABV

First brewed waaay back in 2002, Flying Fish’s take on the classic German Lager is one of the oldest versions continuously brewed in NJ. Many of the beers from their early years incorporate “Fish” into the beer name, just like this one. For me, this has been something of a staple for nearly twenty years. It has always been a very consistent beer for the season. Over the past couple of years, Flying Fish has gone through a facelift, updating the packaging for many of their beers, including this one which plays with the traditional iconic blue diamond pattern for Oktoberfest. This one should be available throughout the NJ/PA/NY region

What Flying Fish says about the beer:

We present this German style lager in celebration of the season. To be enjoyed with the fest fare and especially when paired with lederhosen.

Copper Legend | Jack’s Abby Craft Lagers | Framingham, MA | ABV 5.7%

Image courtesy of Jack’s Abby’s Facebook

Jack’s Abby has been on the shelves in NJ for only a few months, but as my posts have indicated here at the Tap Takeover, I’m VERY impressed with their beer. With that German Brewing tradition at their heart, an Oktoberfest (in this case the slightly lighter version, Festbier) is to be expected. I’m going to make sure to grab some of this beer before Oktoberfest ends during the first week of October. This beer should be available throughout much of the Northeastern US.

What Jack’s Abby Craft Lagers says this about the beer:

Celebrate Octoberfest with this malty, smooth and exceedingly drinkable lager. Copper Legend is the perfect beer for creating legendary times with legendary people. Raise a can to Honor Today’s Legends. Brewed with noble hops. Prost!

Oktoberfest | Revolution Brewing Company | Chicago, IL | 5.7% ABV

Image courtesy of Revolution Brewing’s Facebook

I’ve seen Revolution’s beer sporadically throughout NJ over the past couple of years. I don’t know that I can think of a more appropriate image to adorn a beer meant to ring in Oktoberfest than a big burly German man wearing lederhosen and an Oktoberfest hat playing a tuba on the label. If I’m able to grab a can or two this season, I’ll certainly be happy to try it.

What Revolution Brewing says about the beer:

Our Oktoberfest Bier is a German-style lager that was brewed in the summer and “cold stored” until late August to celebrate the coming of fall! Traditional German malts such as Pilsner, Vienna, Carared and Munich lend a beautiful burnt orange color and a pleasant toasty malt flavor and aroma to this lager. Initial Magnum hopping along with multiple additions of German Saphir and Select hops throughout the boil provide a crisp balanced bitterness and spicy/earthy aroma to round out this robust beer! For fermentation we use a Bavarian Lager yeast and then lower the temperature to 32 °F and store the beer cold for 4 weeks. This cold maturation time helps provide a smooth round mouthfeel and clean crisp finish.

Oktoberfest | Sly Fox Brewing Company | Pottstown, PA | 6.1% ABV

Image courtesy of Sly Fox Brewing’s Facebook

Sly Fox is one of the many great breweries out of Pennsylvania. I haven’t had too much of their beer in recent years as it seems they’ve scaled back distribution into NJ a bit, or at least in my immediate area. I remember having this one on draught a couple of years ago and being very pleased with the overall taste and profile. If I see a sixer of it in one of the shops in my regular driving radius, I’ll likely grab some. Available in PA, NJ, DE, NY, MD, VA and Washington D.C.

What Sly Fox says about the beer:

Ein Prosit! This seasonal gem is best enjoyed under a humongous tent while you and thousands of your closest friends sing enthusiastically. Or anywhere, really. It’s all about the gemütlichkeit, baby!