Most of the beer that I drink nowadays is made in North Carolina; more so, a lot of it is brewed locally. Particularly the hoppy stuff. That's not a slap at other states, it's just the fact that I can get world-class beer right at my doorstep, fresher and faster than if it is transported... Continue Reading →

A slightly viscous pour of this seasonal spiced Milk Stout yields a medium, slightly rocky brown head on an enthusiastically effervescent black body with sullen orange highlights; head retention is brief but lacing is excellent, consisting of thick sheets and bands. The nose is medium in intensity, leading with bitter coffee notes backed by a nicely complex blend of rich cocoa and more subtle molasses, milk chocolate and exotic cinnamon-like spice; modest alcohol overtones top things off.

This session IPA pours to a medium pebbly white head that quickly degrades to a ring atop a clear, slightly sparkling golden beer. On the nose, it is all hops: a nice strong blend of citrus, pine and resin. On the palate, it is also characteristically hop-dominated, with strong pine and lemon flavors up front, joined by a significant hoppy bitterness on the back end, with nice pineapple and floral notes; really no maltiness to speak of. The finish is bitter, middling for the style, with lingering pineapple and florals. The linger on the bitterness is also middling for the style, but the hops flavors stick around longer. The mouthfeel is thinner than expected, and very prickly due to the strong carbonation. This is a refreshing, very drinkable beer.

This Märzen pours to a briefly-lived, slightly pebbly medium off-white head on a singularly dusky medium-amber body, which is clear and slightly sparkling. The nose is expectedly moderate in intensity: bready malt and apples with a slight noble hops spiciness. On the palate, it presents itself as a well-balanced blend of spicy hops and lightly-toasted bready malt, with hints of apples and green grapes. The finish is sweetish bready malt and hints of alcohol, followed by a mild spicy hop bitterness that lingers until the next sip. Mouthfeel is medium, and the texture is smooth and creamy with a moderate pepperiness from the fizzy carbonation.

This low-ABV IPA is a very slightly hazy, slightly sparkling deep gold beer; its brief-lived, giant pebbly ivory-colored head leaves very sparse streaks of lacing. The nose is big: a nice, balanced blend of citrus, pine and florals. On the palate it starts as bitter, sour grapefruit, joined mid-palate by the pine and the florals. There is really no malt presence to speak of, and it is quite dry as far as sweetness goes. The finish is piney florals, followed by the onset of a style-moderate clinging hop bitterness that lingers for a few minutes. The mouthfeel is biggish for the light-medium body- this is one session IPA that is not watery- and the texture is moderately creamy. The carbonation is fairly soft and does not really make itself known. Altogether, this is a very drinkable beer.

This is a straightforward, single-hopped New England-style Imperial IPA from Wilmington Brewing Company that proves that they can play the New England-style game just as well as they can West Coast-style. Turbid as juice and pale gold in color, it wears a large, slightly pebbly white head that leaves fair swoops and bands of lacing. The medium nose is delicious: candied pineapple with sweetish herbal topnotes and hints of tamarind and lemon.

Neon God is one of New Anthem's popular "milkshake IPAs": a hazy New England-style IPA brewed with lactose. It pours to a medium pebbly off-white head on a turbid, golden body; lacing consists of moderate bands, splotches and dots. The aroma is medium in intensity: a tasty blend of pineapple, grapefruit, and candylike notes, backed by hints of tamarind and slight alcohol overtones.