Flying Dog Kerberos Tripel

ABV: 8.5%

Color: Golden Amber

The nose on this is very fruity with a sweet maltiness.  Much like the nose this starts off with a smooth malt and fruit notes with a light alcohol that hits in the middle, but not warming, then finishes with a hint of bitterness.  This is a good tripel that is a good drink now and could be something special with some aging.

Recommendation: Seek it out and set a few back.

Rating: 9/10

Lakefront Brewery 20th Anniversary Ale

ABV: 9%

Color: Dark amber

A great sweet caramel nose with a hint of hops in the background.  A slight sweetness that breaks into a malty grainy flavor that leaves a slight bitterness and yeasty aftertaste.  A nice higher alcohol beer that does not have any alcohol warmness.

Recommendation: Get it while you can.

Rating: 9/10

Southern Tier Imperial Gemini

ABV: 10.5%

Color:  A nice cloudy dark golden.

A rich hoppy nose with notes of malt on the nose.  A sweet malt, a nice smooth bitterness and a warm alcohol.  This is a good sipping beer something that I would not recommend for the summer.

Recommendation: If you find it give it a try.

Rating: 7/10

Anchor Porter

ABV: 5.6%

Color: Black with a nice caramel head.

A rich roasted coffee and chocolate nose.  A smooth roasted malt with notes of dark chocolate and coffee coat the tongue and leave you with a nice coffee aftertaste.

Recommendation: Seek this one out.

Rating: 8.5/10

Lagunita’s The Hairy Eyeball Ale

ABV: 8.8%

Color: Brown

An interesting nose with raisin, olive and citrus hops.  A heavy front of alcohol with a chocolate middle with the alcohol just comes back.  Overall a nice sipping beer that has it’s place.

Recommendation: Worth a try.

Rating: 7.5/10

Sprecher Bourbon Barrel Dopple Bock

ABV: 9%

Color: Brown/Dark Amber

A rich nose of roasted malt.  A smooth drinking beer for 9% with a nice caramel and raisin flavor with a hint of buttery oak and you can tell there is a bourbon flavor but nothing that crushes the taste of the beer.  I would say one of the best balanced Bourbon Barrel beer I have had so far.

Recommendation: If you can get this try it.

Rating: 8.5/10

Orval Trappist Ale

ABV: 6.9%

Color: Golden with a huge white head.

A nice earthy musty nose with hints of hops.  A beautiful light sweetness with earthy cellar like flavors with a nice hop background with no hop bitterness at all.  This is a nice drinking beer that isn’t for everyone but everyone should experience.

Recommendation: Seek it out and get a case.

Rating: 9.5/10

Mamma Mia Pizza Beer (Sprecher)

ABV: N/A

Color: Amber golden

Wow the nose is garlic and basil with hints of malt, horrible smell.  A smooth malty front with a hint of basil and an after taste of garlic that just makes this fall apart.  The garlic gets stronger and stronger after swallowed a complete turn off with everything else.  The smell is so disjointed it makes it taste worse then it really is but even that isn’t much.

Recommendation: Pass it up not worth drinking.

Rating: 0/10

Flying Dog Garde Dog

ABV: 5.8%

Color: Copper

A sweet malt, fruity and hint of caramel on the nose.  A rich grainy and notes of caramel with a hint is alcohol on the sides of the tongue but nothing distracting.  A good overall Biere de Garde that I would like to see how it ages.

Recommendation:  Worth a try.

Rating:  8.5/10

Samuel Adams Irish Red

ABV: 5.5%

Color: Dark red

A nice malt sweetness with a mild roasty background. Starts out with a smooth roast malt and caramel with a hint of bitterness with a nice toasty aftertaste.

Recommendation: Seek it out the season is upon us.

Rating: 8.5/10

Samuel Adams Longshot Grape Pale Ale

ABV: N/A

Color: Copper

A great balance of hops, citrus and sweet malt on the nose.  Starts off with hops and malt with a hint of grape with a mild sweetness on the tongue.  Interesting brew that has an interesting all around flavor.

Recommendation: Get it while you can.

Rating: 8/10

Tommyknocker Butthead Doppelbock

ABV: 8.2%

Color:  Dark red almost brown.

A sweet malty nose with hints of raisin and alcohol but not too strong.  A sweet malt with a hint of alcohol and raisin unlike most doppelbocks the alcohol is not overpowering.

Recommendation:  Worth a try.

Rating: 7/10

Tommyknocker Maple Nut Brown Ale

ABV: N/A

Color: Brown with a nice head.

A nutty maple syrup nose with a mild roasted background. A rich coffee flavor with a slight backnote of maple syrup. With the amount of roast on this beer I would put it more toward a stout but is a great beer.

Recommendation: Worth a drink.

Rating: 7.5/10

Tommyknocker Pick Axe Pale Ale

ABV: N/A

Color: Copper with a thick head.

A citrus hop nose with a slight note of malt.  Slight evergreen hop flavor with a mild bitterness and a slight note of citrus.  Great pale ale that isn’t hop heavy.

Recommendation: Seek it out.

Rating: 8.5/10

Tommyknocker Ornery Amber Lager

ABV: N/A

Color: Amber with a nice head.

A hint of caramel on the nose and not much else.   A hint of roasty malt at first then alcohol takes over hints of raisin and caramel in the background.   Alcohol is too forward in this to be great.

Recommendation: Worth a try.

Rating:  5/10

Tommyknocker Jack Whacker Wheat Ale

ABV: 5.4%

Color: Cloudy golden with a thick head that goes away quick.

Mild malt sweetness with a little bit of butter on the nose. A sweetness starts this off with a hint of clove the flavor fades quickly off the tongue in the background a very slight citrus flavor.

Recommendation: Worth a drink of two.

Rating: 7.5/10

Tommyknocker Alpine Glacier Lager

ABV: N/A

Color: Golden with a thick head that just stays.

A nice crisp malt with a touch of hops on the nose. A malt beginning with the hops in the background but not overpowering then back to a crisp malt. Great clean tasting beer with no flavors or smells dominating.

Recommendation: Seek this out and convert your macro-brew friends.

Rating: 9/10

Pierre Celis Signature Selection Grotten Brown

ABV: 6.7%

Color: Brown with a nice thick head.

A nutty alcohol malty nose.  This has a nice roasted malt with a little bitterness in the background.

Recommendation: Seek it out.

Rating:  8/10

Lindemans Pomme Lambic

ABV: 4%

Color: Cloudy golden orange

A beautiful earthy dusty cellar with a green apple background on the nose.  A nice sweet apple beginning with a musty earthy background and then finished with an artificial sweetener flavor left on the tongue. This would be better without the artificial sweetener flavor.

Recommendation: Worth a try but not something to seek out.

Rating:  6/10

New Glarus Snowshoe

ABV: 5.35%

Color: Brownish red

A full nose of malt with a hint of hops.  A bitter start that breaks into a rich maltiness then ends with a bitter smooth hop finish.

Recommendation:  Seek this out.

Rating: 8/10

Rochefort 10

ABV: 11.3%

Color: Dark brown with a thick head.

A fruity fig smell with a hint of sweetness.  A mild bitterness with a warming alcohol and this reminds me of a nice rum.  This is a sipping beer that is great.

Recommendation: Seek it out and sip it up.

Rating: 9/10

Bear Republic Red Rocket Ale

ABV: 6.8%

Color: Dark burgandy with a nice light caramel head.

A nice fruity and hoppiness on the nose.  A nice rich hop bitterness at the start the breaks into a roasted maltiness with hints of a peppery flavor then leaves you with a toasted malt and mild bitter aftertaste.

Recommendation: Seek it out.

Rating: 9/10

Melborn Bros. Strawberry

ABV: 3.4%

Color:  Golden pink

A sweet earthy strawberry nose.  A tart strawberry on the beginning giving way to sweet strawberry finish.  A good beer that does not taste like beer.

Recommendation: Good for something different or for someone that does not like beer.

Rating: 8/10

Rochefort 8

ABV: 9.2%

Color: Brown with a thick head.

Sweet malt, prunes, yeasty, nutty, and caramel on this nose. A nice caramel, toffee, alcohol, raisin, and a hint of roasted malt. A very rich complex beer that is great.

Recommendation: Seek it out.

Rating: 10/10

Hoegaarden

ABV: 4.9%

Color: Cloudy light golden

A little skunky at the beginning then gives way to a sweet malt, grapefruit and coriander.   The flavor of this has no skunk but does have a sweet malt and wheat with a hint of coriander.

Recommendation:  Great beer worth a drink.

Rating:  7/10

Miller High Life

ABV:  5%

Color:  Golden

A nose of sweet malt and corn.  The flavor is the same as the nose malt and corn.  A nice smooth beer with a light flavor.

Recommendation:  A session beer if nothing else is available.

Rating: 6/10

Berghoff Solstice Wit

ABV: 5%

Color:  Golden

A sweet malt with notes of orange on the nose.   A sweet malt, a little wheat and notes of a sour bitterness.  The sour is somewhat of an off flavor.

Recommendation: If you want something different worth a try.

Rating: 5/10

Samuel Adams Double Bock

ABV: 8.8%

Color: Brown

A sweet malt, raisin, with a hint of alcohol on the nose. The flavor matches the nose exactly with a nice warming alcohol.  There are alcohol notes but not as strong as most double bocks.

Recommendation: Seek this out.

Rating: 8/10

Rock Bottom Racoon Red (Milwaukee)

ABV: N/A

Color: Red

A nose full of malt. A rich malt/grainy flavor with a hint of bitterness.

Recommendation: Seek it out.

Rating: 8/10

Rock Bottom Honey Creek Pale Ale (Milwaukee)

ABV: N/A

Color: Amber

A great nose full of hops and a slight malt that pokes through at the end. A mouth full of evergreen hops with a mild bitterness with a malt background.

Recommendation: Seek it out.

Rating: 8/10