Beer reviews and blog posts by Noel
Noel collects large quantities of his favorite things, from music to shoes to worn out thrift store t-shirts. Recently, he has become somewhat of a beer-tasting kleptomaniac. Favorites include New Glarus Spotted Cow, Rogue Dead Guy and Chipotle Ales, Goose Island 312, Abita Turbodog, and Moylan’s Dragoons Dry Irish Stout. Someday Noel hopes to return to Ireland with his now less-ignorant palate and knock back a Guinness with some real Dubliners. Until then, he is content to flood the interwebs with tales of his brew sampling. Noel is a sucker for Brown Ales and Stouts.
O’so Lupulin Maximus IPA
Imperial beers are as much about creativity as they are extremity. So maybe I shouldn’t have been quite as surprised as I was to spy O’so’s Lupulin Maximus on a shelf in a Milwaukee liquor store and think, “Does that label really say what I think it says?” Upon closer...
St. Peter’s Grapefruit Beer
If you’re any sort of hophead, you know that grapefruit flavors abound in beers these days, especially among the American Pale/IPA family. But these flavors all come from hop cones…which are hardly similar at all to real grapefruit. So what happens when a famous...
Three Floyds Rabbid Rabbit Saison
Maybe it’s just me, but I would never have figured Three Floyds to pin one of their twelve seasonal hats on a Saison. It’s not a very prominent (or popular) style here in the states…and it just doesn’t scream “strange“ or “extreme“. But hey; maybe it’s for that very...
Three Floyds Behemoth Barleywine
My twelve month saga begins. Ok…so it might end up being more like ten months, but who’s really counting? The goal: sample all twelve of Three Floyds’ seasonal (monthly) offerings…in the year they were brewed. The purpose: get familiar with one of the highest rated...
Three Floyds Blackheart English-Style IPA
The more you drink craft beer, the more you realize that certain breweries do certain things really well: their “core competencies” (for all you business types out there). Maybe it’s beer styles of a specific country (Goose Island); maybe it’s crafting traditional...
Fort Collins Rocky Mountain IPA
I don’t usually go for IPAs during the coldest months of the year…but I just couldn’t resist the elephant. I really have no idea what the story is behind the label on the bottle. It keeps reminding me of Hannibal crossing the Alps with elephants, and I’m not sure what...
Half Acre Gossamer Golden Ale
As the weather undeniably fades to Fall here in Chicago, and beer interests begin to turn to Oktoberfests and Pumpkin Ales…there comes a brew to salvage the waning memory of the hot, humid, and hoppy Summer that was. To be fair, Half Acre’s Gossamer Golden Ale is...
Rogue Chocolate Stout
So…beer is pretty good stuff. You probably wouldn’t be reading this if you didn’t think so yourself. And if you’re like most people, you probably like chocolate, too. Just throwin’ that out there. I apologize if you’re not one of those people; maybe you’re allergic...
Flying Dog Snake Dog IPA
Flying Dog has always been one of the only breweries whose marketing scheme and bottle designs actually make me averse to trying their beers. There’s just some weird things going on there; it all kind of reminds me of twisted, Salad Fingers-type stuff and in general...
Bell’s Amber Ale
At first, I didn’t think much of this beer. Simple bottle design notwithstanding, it just didn’t blow me away when I popped the cap and poured it out. A nice amber color (go figure) and decent head. Hints of bread and caramel wafting in your nose…almost akin to a...
Half Acre Daisy Cutter Pale Ale
If you’re a gardener…stop rejoicing. This beer has nothing to do with daisies. Not that I didn’t wonder about the name myself when I first picked up a bottle; I thought maybe it had something to do with gardening, or perhaps even brewing the beer with flowers. But...
Two Brothers The Bitter End Pale Ale
As I quickly perused the interwebs for a few of the vital statistics on this beer (a normal practice for me), I was again struck by the travesty that is Two Brothers Brewing Company’s website. Honestly, for a brewery of their caliber…it makes me grimace. The “default”...
Weihenstephaner Hefe Weissbier
In keeping with Tom’s review on Saison Dupont, I also recently partook in a famous, celebrated beer that has been on my “to try” list for months: Weihenstephaner Hefe Weissbier. The Weihenstephan Brewery in Germany can trace its roots all the way back to the year 768,...
Southern Tier IPA
I’ve been on a pale ale kick of late; it’s a seasonal thing, mostly. But I’m digging the hop more and more these days, so I’m sure that factors in as well. And the 90+ degree weather so far this week has me salivating for cold, fresh, bitter beer. Today I went back to...
Rogue Chipotle Ale
As I peered into the refrigerator today, hoping something would grab my eye (and stomach) for lunch, I noticed my bottle of Rogue Chipotle Ale behind a tub of Papa Charlie’s Italian beef. It was practically screaming “Drink me!”, and I’m really not one to refuse a...
Goose Island Honker’s Ale
If any beer has to be dubbed Goose Island’s “flagship” brew, Honker’s Ale takes the cake in my opinion. Perhaps it’s not quite as widely respected as their India Pale Ale…but then again, just about every American craft brewery makes an IPA of some sort; not many are...Gluten Free Beer Challenge
Not too long ago, maybe 7 or 8 months to be exact, a strange and unwelcome shift occurred in my life. Foods that I had enjoyed since childhood with no ill effects began to reign down destruction inside my stomach, like an unstoppable rebel force. Perhaps I’m being a...
Southern Tier Hop Sun
There are few beers that go down easier than an American Wheat Ale on a hot summer day. It’s unfortunate that yesterday wasn’t the latter, but Southern Tier’s Hop Sun filled in admirably as the former. I’m liking this New York brewery more and more; they have yet to...
Summit German-Style Kölsch
Yet another strange tale from the annals of German beer. This Kölsch isn’t really a Kölsch. Neither is any Kölsch you’ve ever had…unless it was brewed in Colgne (Köln), Germany (following certain brewing instructions, of course). Yet clearly, German regulations about...
Paulaner Salvator Dobbelbock
Sometimes, one of a beer’s most distinctive characteristics is its history. Case in point: Paulaner’s doppelbock, Salvator. Back in ye old seventeenth century, when German friars from the mendicant order of Francis of Paola were doing all the brewing, they apparently...
Green Flash West Coast IPA
I wasn’t especially amped up to try this beer; it became apparent to me after the bottle sat in my fridge for about a month. Probably bad form when it comes to an IPA…or just in general. But oh well. For some reason, after I bought it, the thought of drinking it...
Southern Tier Iniquity Imperial Black Ale
So after my Bashah experience a short while ago, I’d say me and Imperial dark ales got off on the wrong foot. One of the most difficult things about reviewing beer is not having any preconceived notions about a new brew, regardless of style or brewery. But can I...
Brewdog Bashah
Every now and then, you run across a beer that you purchase purely out of curiosity (and perhaps a slight sense of wonderment). To be fair, those of us who call greater Chicagoland our home would probably jump at the chance to get our hands on anything involving Stone...