Beer Review: Flat Earth Belgian Pale Ale

Belgian Pale Ale
Flat Earth Brewing Co.

Thanks to Ben for sharing this with me. It was in a lineup of great beers and not only stood out, but would have been the highlight of the night if a certain friend hadn't decided he suddenly needed his right leg shaved in the middle of a party. I'll see if I can post a picture of that.

overall: 3.95
appearance: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | mouthfeel: 4 | drinkability: 4.5

A tasty Minnesotan-made Belgian pale ale here that could just as easily have come from Belgian. The flavor is clean with a medium body thats quite toasty (the malt) with a touch of caramel. The yeast kicks in a woodsy funk and the hops round this beer out with a slight balancing bitterness. This might be heresy, but this beer reminds me of Westvleteren Blonde.

Beer Review: Hoptical Illusion

Hoptical Illusion
American IPA
Blue Point Brewing Co.

overall: 3.75
appearance: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | mouthfeel: 4 | drinkability: 4.5

Ah, this is a drinking IPA. Reminds me of a milder Masala Mama (of Town Hall Brewery in Minneapolis) and of Harpoon IPA out of Boston. There's a nice, light lacing all the way down my pint glass and a ring of foam around the top of the beer. The aroma is of grapefruit peel and seed and the flavor expands with a deeper bite into the fruit that is matched by a pleasant and crisp bitterness.

There are bigger and burlier IPA's out there, but this one is doing just fine for me right now. Worth a try if you see it priced decently. I've until recently avoided it due to a steep ($10/sixer) price tag.

Beer Review: Ithaca Double IPA

Double IPA
Ithaca Beer Company

appearance: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | mouthfeel: 3.5 | drinkability: 4.5

Mmmmm, hoppy. Yeah, there are bigger double IPA's out there, but this one manages big alcohol (10%) with drinkability. There is a slight, dry vodka feel to the beer's finish, but it's otherwise smooth sailing as far as DIPA's go.

A big whiff smells like oily pine needles needs and grapefruit. The flavor starts with a tropical fruit juice taste and leaves with a white grape, clove, and orange peel taste. Sound a little odd? Well it tastes good anyways. Overall it's not a top-tier IPA, like Stone Ruination, but it's still plenty tasty and worth a try. [4/5]

Beer Review: Red Tail Lager

Red Tail Lager
American Amber/Red Lager
Mendocino Brewing Co.

I picked up single bottle from Finger Lakes Beverage Center.

I'd call this a standard American lager, and I mean that in the good way. This is a great, clean, wash down hot dogs beer. It has it's own merits and I certainly enjoy it by itself, I'm just saying...

Anyways, I didn't get much head at all (the carbonation is a little low) and there's a bit of a haze. The aroma is of mellow biscuit and caramel malt which the flavor expands on with a touch of grassy hops at the end. All in all, a tasty beer you can serve to anyone. [3.25/5]