Wooden Robot Brewery – Charlotte, NC

I visited Wooden Robot at mid-afternoon on a Saturday. The brickwork exterior and the pseudo-industrial lettering above the entrance are echoed inside, which is brickwork with sparse use of heavy wood. Suspended ventilation ductwork and exposed beams and girders provide the semi-industrial feel often found in craft brewery taprooms; the fact that all of this superstructure is neatly painted black keeps the look tight and clean (which is not always the case). Tables are numerous and match the aesthetics of the rest of the taproom, being thick, glossy wood mounted on minimalist black metal hardware. Barstools and chairs are also a match, being of similar minimalist design and black metal construction. The overall result feels clean, uncluttered and stylish while retaining the semi-industrial ambience. There was plenty of seating inside, and plenty more outside, some accessed through a roll-up door that added to the atmosphere.

April 3, 2018 0

Outer Limits Ghost Pepper and Roasted Garlic Sauce

I don't know if this is a mashed hot sauce (where the chiles are fermented in brine prior to the sauce being made), but that's how it comes across. During the mashing process, as the yeast chew up the fermentables, flavors mellow and merge until you end up with a single monoflavor that is the sum of its parts, somewhat muted, rather than a number of big, distinctive flavors blended together like you will typically get from a fresh sauce (think Texas Pete or Frank's Red Hot, they are both stereotypical mashed Cayenne sauces). That's what I get on the nose here: a delicious monoaroma that speaks of ghost pepper smoke and the savory Malliard flavors of the roasted garlic; that, and a big vinegar tang that is, again, consistent with a mashed sauce. The palate follows the nose.

April 2, 2018 0

DirtWolf – Victory Brewing Co. – Downingtown, PA

This beer looks more like a light lager than a Double IPA: pale gold in color, crystal clear and very effervescent. It pours to a lasting giant pillowy ivory-colored head that would look right at home on a lager as well; lacing consists of very nice rafts and ladders. The nose puts any doubts about what it is to rest: the aroma shows as a fairly intense, smooth, seamless, soapy melange of citrus, pine and florals, joined by pineapple and alcohol overtones. Up front, the palate is bitter resinous pine and citrus, with a nice balancing view of the light bready malt foundation emerging mid-palate, joined on the back end by significant floral and alcohol notes. The finish is a bit astringent, a bit malty and a bit floral/pine, all joined in seconds by a style-moderate clinging hoppy bitterness; the pine/floral notes and the bitterness linger for a few minutes. Mouthfeel is biggish for the light body, and peppery from the very fizzy carbonation. This is a very drinkable, very well-balanced Double IPA that hides its alcohol pretty well.

January 24, 2018 0

Deschutes Brewery Tasting Room – Roanoke, VA

I visited Deschutes' tasting room in downtown Roanoke VA on a Saturday at opening (1 PM). The taproom had a clean, modern design that was nicely counterpointed by the use of old, reclaimed wood to frame out the backbar, and was scrupulously clean. The interior had a cohesive feel due to a lack of distracting wall decor and the use of consistent, unbroken wall color throughout. The color was a fairly cool grey, but the copious sunlight coming in through the full-length windows kept the feel light and airy. The mid-sized bar seated about 30, and there was ample seating inside for plenty more. There was a single table outside; this may have been so limited because it was market day.

January 18, 2018 0

Gate City Growlers – Greensboro, NC

Gate City Growlers is everything that I look for in a bottle shop: a great selection of beer, well-curated by people who are passionate about good beer and are willing to personally travel NC to bring the best of it to their customers, even beer that gets minimal (or no) distribution. With 20 taps, there is plenty of kegged beer to be had; when I visited, the tap selection was diverse and impressive, and featured beer from top-shelf brewers like Prairie Artisan Ales, Mikkeller, Grimm, Burial, and Wooden Robot. And unlike some places, they are happy to fill outside growlers. The packaged beer selection is great as well, with an appropriate focus on NC beer but no skimping on great beer from outside NC (and outside the US). A couple of coolers provide cold beer. Like any proper bottle shop, mix-a-six is the method to the madness.

January 16, 2018 0

Citra Session – Green Flash Brewing Co. – San Diego, CA

This single-hopped IPA is deep gold in color and very sparkling; it sports a moderate chill haze and a short-lived thin pillowy white head. Lacing is fair and manifests as bands and spots. The nose is medium-strong in intensity and very bright: a nice blend of grapefruit and green pine with lesser floral notes and faint alcohol overtones. The palate is also style-appropriate in intensity, lead by bitter grapefruit and pineapple with hints of soapy pine/floral notes and a decent view of the light bready malt foundation. This beer is pretty bitter for a low-ABV IPA; not surprisingly, the finish is hoppy: piney florals, then a flash of malt, then a strongish hoppy bitterness builds in and lingers for a few minutes. Mouthfeel is commensurate with the light body, and the texture is slightly creamy and slightly prickly the carbonation, which is quite restrained given how effervescent the beer is.

January 16, 2018 0

AC/DC – Karlsberg Brauerei – Homburg, Germany

This is a nice-looking lager: a crystal-clear, sparkling pale-gold body and a giant (pour carefully!) creamy white head that doesn't last long enough. Lacing is fair and consists of rafts and blotches. The nose is light in intensity, even for the style, otherwise it is pretty typical of a European pale lager: lagery grains, sweetish light fruit (apple in this case), slight boozy undertones and hints of Noble hop spiciness. The palate is more assertive than the nose: moderately-expressed spicy Noble hops and a style-moderate bitterness that is nicely balanced by a slightly-sweetish light malt presence. There are hints of light fruit, more subdued than on the nose. The finish is a well-balanced blend of spicy hops and sweetish malt, with a nice carbonation bite, followed by a mild hop bitterness that lingers for a few minutes. Mouthfeel is biggish for the light body, and the texture is nicely prickly from the strongly-expressed fizzy carbonation. This lager is quite drinkable, and is a respectable example of the style.

January 16, 2018 0

Top 10 Metal Albums of 2017

2017 was another good year for new metal releases... this is what it looked like from where I sit: 1. Midnight - Sweet Death and Ecstasy. Midnight plays blackened speed metal that's a coked-up cross between Venom and Motörhead, with an extra side of Satan and a manic, gleefully blasphemous feel that's all their own.... Continue Reading →

January 16, 2018 0