One of my few regrets about living in New York City is the relative scarcity of certain breweries... and New Belgium is prominent on that list. Fat Tire is their best known brew, and 1554 Black Ale is my favorite of their everyday listings. But they've recently launched the "Lips of Faith" series of 22 ounce concoctions that are serious, special beers. And on my maiden voyage to the storied BevMo, I decided to grab two different bottles and then retire to my hotel room for a quiet evening of tasting.
Characteristics: Brown and slightly cloudy with red highlights; light-to-medium body and carbonation; intense sourness from start to finish, in the crab-apple and balsamic vinegar categories, with minimal discernable hops or malt traits.
Minor Gripes: The 22-ounce bottle doesn't always lend itself to a careful pour -- so the yeast that settled in the bottom of the bottle can come rushing out at the end. And there doesn't seem to be any reason for a 6% ABV.
Bottom Line: Sadly, I feel defeated by this beer. I've enjoyed Flanders Sour Ales before, but La Folie seems to ask (and answer) the question of whether it's possible to be too sour. Maybe they could have skipped that last year of fermentation...
Rating: 4.75 / 10
The closest equivalent I know in the US is the classic "what word do you use to describe a carbonated, sugary beverage" map.
After my excitement at the Innis & Gunn oak-aged ale, I decided to take a flyer on this Goose Island special. It's easily among the densest beers I've ever sampled -- a heavy-duty imperial black ale aged in bourbon barrels. Goose Island first cooked up this beer as its 1000th batch at its original brewpub, with the batch I'm tasting being from their 2008 vintage (two bottles sampled over the past month).
Characteristics: Brownish-black, opaque color; almost no head or carbonation; exceptionally thick body; flavors that range from vanilla to the best burnt caramel ever to a more pedestrian creme brulee to slightly-burnt toast to charcoal-filtered alcohol. (Did you get the idea that there's a major charred element to this one?)
Minor Gripes: I was disappointed at the utter lack of carbonation in my two bottle. Some head, some bubbles would have helped lighten up the body and mouth-feel. A champagne-style bottle with a cork would be far more appropriate, especially since Goose Island claims this one can be aged for up to five years. And I'm not sure that this needs to be a 13% ABV.
Bottom Line: The Bourbon County Stout is not for everyone... imagine that a boilermaker were a shot of Beam dumped into a flat, fully-settled Guinness. But if you like rich, complex, hearty beverages, this one is well worth your time (and the cost -- $7-ish for a 12-ounce bottle).
Rating: 6 / 10
Heavy duty brew from the Wolaver's Organic side of Otter Creek Brewing. Coffee beans used in the brewing process are sourced from the Alta Gracia farm community in the Dominican Republic.
Characteristics: Dark blackish-brown color, nearly opaque; low carbonation and minimal head; thick body that's almost syrupy at times; fairly consistent mix of coffee and chocolate malt flavors, with coffee and slight hoppiness coming out in the finish and vanilla emerging as the beer warms up.
Minor Gripes: None. Amazingly, the beer is consistent across all temperatures.
Bottom Line: This beer is awfully close to the platonic ideal of a coffee stout/porter(*). If you like your iced coffee to be black and thick, this could be your next favorite beer.
Rating: 8 / 10
Custom-brewed for Pianos, a small rock club on the Lower East Side (NYC) that once was a piano showroom and repair shop... this is a dense Belgian-style ale with a whole lot going on.
Characteristics: Cloudy copper color, medium carbonation and head, medium-to-heavy body, grapefruit flavors (but not Cascade hops!) dominate over a sweet, slightly malty middle section before transmogrifying into an American Pale Ale (a/k/a hop-infested) finish.
Minor Gripes: For the weight of this beer, grapefruit isn't necessarily the balancing note I would have chosen. Tough to pair with anything but a lighter weight American Pale Ale. Also hints at a high ABV content that couldn't be confirmed or denied from the tap handle.
Bottom Line: Certainly a creative beer, but not always successful. Grapefruit burps and that late hoppy shift are not welcome. Worth sampling, though, especially if you're looking for a heavyweight counterpart to all those brews trying to outperform Sierra Nevada.
Rating: 4.5 / 10 (before any bonus points for creativity and local focus)
