Pale Ale Head-to-Head: Full Sail Pale vs Moylans’ Tipperary Pale

Today is the last day of May (that rhymes), and it’s also our last Pale Ale Head-to-Head, but before we get into that I want to let everyone know what to expect from Beer Fusion in June. First off, I want to say that I can be a little over ambitious, and that ambitiousness has led to some sporadic posting on this site. Unfortunately, there are only so many hours in the day, and, at this current point in time, trying to do more than one beer review in a week has been difficult. Beginning in June we’ll be returning back to a consistent beer review a week, and I might throw in a post here and there as well. Who knows, maybe one week we’ll do a head-to-head as that week’s review. Either way, I want to bring some consistency back to Beer Fusion, and have my good time with the craft beer world shine through. Now, let us dive into our last Pale Ale Head-to-Head...

This week we’ve got Full Sail Brewery’s Pale Ale versus Moylans’ Tipperary Pale Ale. There was a lot of smack talking before the head-to-head, and it was a tough fight. Let’s take a look.

Full Sail’s Pale Ale boasts an ABV of 5.4%, and pours a nice creamy white head. There is noticeable carbonation coming up from the bottom, and with its clear clarity and golden copper color that carbonation was very visible. The smell is light overall with a noticeable pale malt presence and subtle citrus notes from the hops. There’s nothing that stands out with the smell, but it’s a solid pale ale smell. With the smell as light as it is, I’m expecting a crisp clean taste.  Look - 22, Smell - 22.

The flavor hits upfront rather light, but the initial flavors are the malt, but in the middle and end of the taste the floral citrusness of the hops comes through. Nothing about this beer is overpowering, and sure enough it has a crisp/clean profile. The bitterness in the aftertaste isn’t dry, but has a moist citrus fruit feel. This is the definition of an easy hot day drinking beer. Flavor - 42.5.

Rating: 86.5/100

The Moylans’ Tipperary Pale Ale has an ABV of 5%, and pours a small creamy white head. This is a “lively” beer, i.e it’s very cloudy. The color is a golden amber, and the carbonation is there. The smell of this beer is strong, much more so than the Full Sail. The citrus notes of the hops burst forth, the floral characteristics are unreal. Behind all of that is a caramel presence, a noticeable sugar aroma. By the smell alone, I was about to declare Moylans the winner, but I’m glad I didn’t. Look - 23, Smell - 24.

Upfront, the carbonation hits very strong, and the initial taste is a crisp/clean light flavor, which really took me off-guard based on the strength of the smell. The hop presence was more piny than citrus fruit, and there was a noticeable amount of butterscotch flavor mixed with yeasty bread notes. Very much not what I expect from a pale ale. I would have liked the flavor profile to match closer up with the aroma. This is still a good beer, but it seems like it doesn’t quite know what it wants to be. I probably won’t drink this again, but it by far wasn’t a bad beer. Flavor - 35.

Rating: 82/100

Moylans came out swinging with a better look and smell, but Full Sail hung in there, and took the jabs just waiting for a chance to strike. The flavor defined the overall Head-to-Head (as it should). Both these beers are worth trying. Moylans comes in a bomber, where as Full Sail comes in a six-pack (bombers maybe available just not here). I’d say try the bomber of Moylans, but the six pack of Full Sail is a safe bet for a nice relaxing afternoon beer, or something to bring to a bbq. As always, I’m interested in your beer head-to-heads as well as any suggestions for upcoming beer reviews - email me at beerfusion@gmail.com with your suggestions or head-to-head recaps. With that said, Full Sail Brewing’s Pale Ale wins our final Pale Ale Head-to-Head.

Winner: Full Sail Pale Ale

Redhook's Dunkelweizen & a Thought On Beer Reviewing

The last couple of days I’ve been thinking about beer reviewing, more specifically beer reviewers. I’ve been mulling over in my mind about how I hope we don’t escalate to the snobbery of wine “critics”. I understand that serious reviews of craft beer give the industry a greater sense of legitimacy as an artisan beverage, but does it also hurt the culture of the industry, or, you could say, the movement. The issue is a double edged sword, because there’s really no right answer. I do think that overly critical reviews, or degradingly negative ones are purely toxic to the craft beer culture. There’s such a vast variety of beer styles as well as abilities to warp the very idea of style with different ingredients, which is unmatched by/unlike wine, and because of this there’s a greater chance that certain beers will be unappealing or down right gross to some. Now, this doesn’t mean they’re bad beers, but they just don’t fit into one’s flavor palate. I do think we need to provide constructive criticism as well as express our own opinions to our audience, but, by having a voice, I believe we need to keep in mind helping progress the growth of an industry we so obviously hold dear.

So...

With all of that said, let’s review a beer, haha. I haven’t had many Dunkelweizens in my time, so when I saw Redhook’s Blueline Series Dunkelweizen at the store I thought I’d give it a try. Now, I have to admit I was in search of a specific Rogue Chipotle Ale, and those of you who follow me on twitter already know this, but at the end of the night I was rather happy I found this Dunkelweizen. I normally like to post a link to the brewery’s website, but they’re updating so in a week or so google “Redhook” and give them a look.

The Dunkelweizen comes in at 6% ABV, and pours a creamy off-white head with brown hues. The head dissipates very slowly, which I was happy to see. The color is dark brown with a little bit of red coming though in the light. The clarity is very cloudy, which I expect from a weizen bier. Overall, a very nice looking beer. Head - 9, Look - 14. The smell is strong of yeast with cinnamon and cloves providing a strong spice presence. Fruit notes emerge behind the spice, which are most notably banana. There is a light roast quality to the smell, but nothing substantial. The overall smell was a bit lighter than I expected, but it’s dominated by the yeast, spice, and only slightly with the fruit. Smell - 22.

It hits the palate with strong carbonation, and much lighter than expected. I was expecting clove to pop out with the yeast initially, but to my surprise it was the banana that dominated the flavor alongside the yeast. The aftertaste has a very light hop presence, enough to let you know they’re in the beer. It’s a crisp and clean aftertaste with only a subtle amount of floral bitter notes. Palate - 7.5, Aftertaste - 7.5. The overall flavor doesn’t morph a whole lot after continued drinking. The texture isn’t quite full compared to other weizen biers, but it does expand well on the palate. The cinnamon is nonexistent, but the cloves are subtle in their presence. The overall initial flavor is bread followed by banana. I was hoping for a bit more roast characteristics considering the color, but they really weren’t there. After several drinks this beer really started to shine. The mellow qualities and overall balanced nature of this brew really made it a great session beer. This beer has complexity, but it isn’t in your face, and because of that it won me over. Flavor - 25.

Redhook and I seem to get a long very well when it isn’t one of their year-round ales, or staple ales. I like what this brewery does in bombers, which makes me wonder why they aren’t producing the same quality in their six packs. Redhook is a larger brewery, but they are still a craft brewery. Their craft qualities show in their Limited Series, and, now from what I’ve seen, their Blueline. Redhook looks to be doing an overhaul on their image, and I hope they take their creativity that I’ve seen in their series of bombers and allow it to continue to grow and prosper. If you want a tasty Dunkelweizen to sit back and enjoy - pick of this Blueline Series by Redhook. With an Overall Flavor of 39/50 the Beer Fusion gives Redhook’s Blueline Series Dunkelwiezen...

Rating: 85/100

Pale Ale Head-to-Head: Beer Valley's Pigskin vs Snoqualmie Falls' Copperhead

Alright, so, I’m going to try to pack two Pale Ale Head-to-Heads in this week, which means you’ll need to keep your eye out for another Head-to-Head later this week. That of course is if you want to read about some sweet Pale Ale action, and you and me both know that you do. This Head-to-Head pairs Beer Valley’s Pigskin Pale Ale versus Snoqualmie Falls Brewing’s Copperhead American Pale Ale - let the battle begin!

The Pigskin Pale Ale pours a strong creamy white head that lingers for a bit. The color is light and golden with a nice cloudy clarity. The majority of the time I prefer not to be able to see through my beer, and there are only a few exceptions. Luckily, there isn’t a problem here. The Pigskin also has some nice noticeable carbonation, mmmm bubbles. The overall smell was rather light, but had noticeable butterscotch/caramel notes with a subtle citrusness coming in behind everything. The malt really makes itself present in the aroma, which was kind of a turn off even though it was a rather pleasant smell. But, that’s my hop bias. Look - 23, Smell - 20.

Initially, the flavor was strongly oily/nutty with a good presence of caramel, but after a few drinks it gets earthier with a stronger hop presence. The aftertaste is dry and bitter, but at the same time the overall drink of this beer is rather clean and crisp. So, the dry bitter aftertaste isn’t very strong, but it’s there. The overall balance of this Pale Ale is toward the hoppy side, but mostly due to the aftertaste. The taste upfront that really made an impact initially was the somewhat dominating malt flavors, but they really mellowed out with continued drinking. This Pale was a pleasant surprise and a great full flavor beer. Flavor - 46.

Rating: 89/100

First off, I want to say that it wasn’t until the full pour of this beer with the sediment and all entering into my glass that I really started loving this beer (the picture is before the sediment louche). The Copperhead pours a nice moderate white head that’s creamy and lingers for a good while. The color isn’t quite copper, but more of a yellowish orange color that has a very cloudy clarity. The carbonation that’s visible looks noticeable, about as much as the Pigskin. The smell hit strong at first, but then mellowed out. The aroma comes off rather skunky with some grain coming in from behind, but mostly a very earthy floral citrus hop smell. It reminded me of a lighter smelling Saison Dupont.  Look - 23, Smell -20.

The taste was nothing like I expected based on the smell, which I think is a good thing. The malt and yeast create a nice full texture upfront that expands nicely in the mouth. Malt is the primary flavor at first, but the floral citrus flavors of the hops begin to make their presence known quickly. I tasted a good amount of grapefruit, slightly sour, which I found very pleasant with a light dry bitterness at the finish. The floral citrus taste of the hops make their way into the flavor more so then the bitterness, because, overall, this isn’t a very bitter ale at all, in fact the Pigskin had more of a bitter hop bite. Copperhead is rather balanced with a slight lean to the hop side in flavor not in bitterness, which I really enjoyed. Flavor - 47.

Rating: 90/100

I did this Head-to-Head a bit differently. Normally, myself and another person (G, Will, other) sit down with two bottles and we review the Head-to-Head, but this time I reviewed each beer on a separate day. I honestly didn’t know that the scores were that similar until I looked to see who had won. So, to my surprise we had a winner by one point. Either way, both these beers are great! I highly recommend them both if you are looking for a solid Pale Ale… After the sky had parted revealing golden tablets with the winners name that only I could read with a sacred talisman, the Beer Fusion declares Snoqualmie Falls Brewing’s Copperhead American Pale Ale the winner of the Pale Ale Head-to-Head with a Rating of 90/100!

The Bruery's Trade Winds Tripel & ACBW Thoughts

It’s American Craft Beer Week, and I’ve been excited all week. I pretty much get excited about anything and everything surrounding craft beer, what can I say - I like the stuff. I hope everyone in the US is out supporting their local breweries, and for those outside of the US - I hope you are doing the same. This is a week of celebrating the craft, the artisanship, the deliciousness of craft beer; I mean “craft” is in the name people. So, it’s safe to say that I’ve been drinking a good amount of beer this week, and it’s all been satisfying, delicious, refreshing, mind blowing, and most importantly beer. Beer has a capacity that wine doesn’t, because the primary ingredients provide a greater ability to create more complex, robust, and unique flavors. And, all of this is before getting into secondary flavors/ingredients. This is a fantastic week to drink, support, but most of all advocate for craft beer and help it continue to grow and gain the same respect as a beverage that artisan wine already gets. Alright, enough of this pontificating, let’s get into a beer review. This week’s beer is from a brewery that I’ve never had a beer from, which made it exciting - The Bruery. And, no, I didn’t spell brewery wrong - that’s the name, The Bruery. We’ll be taking a look at their Trade Winds Tripel, which is brewed with Basmati Rice and fresh Thai Basil.

The Bruery has this to say about their Trade Winds Belgian-style Golden Ale:

Our Summer seasonal, Trade Winds Tripel is a Belgian-style Golden Ale with a Southeast Asian twist. Instead of using candi sugar (typical for such a beer), we use rice in the mash to lighten the body and increase the gravity, and spice with Thai Basil. The result is an aromatic, digestible and complex beer made for a lazy summer evening.

Trade Winds poured a strong creamy white head that was heavily carbonated, but was beautiful looking. It was a light golden color that was rather hazy in clarity, G described it as a light looking IPA. Head - 10, Look - 14. This is one of the most aromatic beers I’ve ever smelled! There was a strong fruity presence from the Belgian yeast, which gave off a rich red apple smell. The Thai basil came through behind the overall yeast and fruity aromas, but I was surprised how well the rice made its way through the other aromas. Basmati has a very specific smell, and the light subtle airiness of the rice hit the back of the aroma well. G wasn’t particularly into the smell, and said he wouldn’t have drank it based on the smell alone. I, on the other hand, really enjoyed the floral fruity complexity of this Tripel. Smell - 22.5.

This beer hits the palate with super heavy carbonation, and expands with the bubbles throughout the mouth. The most intense flavors upfront are the fruitiness from the yeast paired with floral citrus notes. The aftertaste is a dry hoppy finish with a nice little alcohol burn at the end, which surprised me based on the moderate ABV of 8%. Palate - 7.5, Aftertaste - 8. The overall flavor hits strong with carbonation, and after several drinks there’s a dry white wine like qualities that make their way through. There is also an airiness, much like the smell that hits behind the overarching flavors, which I’m assuming is from the rice. My biggest complaint is that the carbonation is a bit to heavy, and the fruity sourness that builds up after a few drinks could be balanced a bit better with some hop bitterness. All in all though this beer is fantastic, as well as crisp and clean. A wonderful beer for a hot summer day. Flavor - 27.

The Bruery made a very interesting unique beer. This year the Bruery is celebrating their 3 year anniversary, and I love that for only being around for 3 years they’re not afraid to take chances, e.g. basmati rice and fresh thai basil. I strongly recommend trying this beer, and make sure you do so outside with a friend or friends on a warm/hot day. With an Overall Flavor of 42.5/50 the Beer Fusion gives The Bruery’s Trade Winds Tripel...

Rating: 89/100

Pale Ale Head-to-Head Old Schoolhouse vs Deschutes Brewery

Pale Ale Head-to-Head... what more is there to say, besides we’ve got two beers battling it out for pale ale supremacy. This week we’ve got Old Schoolhouse Brewery versus Deschutes Brewery. Once again we’ve got David versus Goliath, who will win?

 

Old Schoolhouse Brewery’s Epiphany Ale poured a nice golden copper color with good carbonation. The head was white, creamy, and not very overwhelming - with a clear clarity. The smell hits first with hops, but the caramel presence of the malt quickly overtook the citrus floral notes of the hops. The hops did provide an orange citrus presence with some earthiness. The caramel malt also had a buttery/nuttiness to it. Overall, the aroma was strong and made itself present. Look - 20, Smell - 22.

The caramel hit upfront with the malt and is then followed by the yeast, which expands well in the mouth and has a breadiness to it. The hops provide a nice citrus bitterness, which then translates to a dry bitter finish. I found this beer to be surprisingly balanced, but others might find it a bit hoppy. Overall, there is a nice blend of flavors that combined for a well balanced, floral, yet malty, pale ale. Flavor - 45/50

Rating: 87/100

Deschutes Red Chair poured a dark amber color that had a creamy white head with copper hues. The clarity was just as clear as the Old Schoolhouse. The smell was very aromatic with heavy sweet malt that had a fruitiness followed by citrus notes from the hops. I smelled a good amount of banana and strawberry, which I found kind of different for a pale ale. Look - 20, Smell - 22.

The taste was very bready upfront, and was then followed by those strong fruity notes that were a part of the smell. After those strong initial flavors subsided it was the hops that came in behind with their citrus flavor and bitterness. This pale ale was mostly malty, which provided a substantial amount of sweetness. The carbonation was good, and the aftertaste had a good hop showing, but it wasn’t as crisp and balanced as the Old Schoolhouse. The uniqueness of this pale ale drew me in, but it didn’t do enough to beat out the Old Schoolhouse. Flavor - 40.

Rating: 82/100

Both of these ales are simple. Now, this isn’t a critic, but rather an observation. The simplicity of both these beers made me like them more, and the scores may not stand out as exceptional, but for your basic pale ale I think these are solid scores. The fruitiness of the Deschutes was kind of an initial turn off for me, but the bitterness balanced it out with continued drinking. The Old Schoolhouse was just a solid pale ale that was nicely balanced and was very refreshing to drink. All in all these beers are both worth trying. As always, there has to be a winner, and that winner is Old Schoolhouse Brewery’s Epiphany Ale! 

 

Also, the last few days I’ve been reviewing some beers, so there should be an influx of reviews this week. So, keep an eye out for The Bruery’s Trade Wind Tripel review and another Pale Ale Head-to-Head. If you haven’t already follow me on twitter @beerfusion and join me on mustlovebeer.com. Keep drinking guys, and happy American Craft Beer Week!

Iron Horse Brewery Trip Part Deux

I next had the 509 Style, which was crisp, clean, and refreshingly balanced - a great session beer.  I don’t exactly remember what question led to this answer, and Greg you said I could let this out. Greg let me know one of his favorite cheap beers or guilty pleasures is Coors Banquet, which led all of us to confess our own guilty pleasures (if you want to know G’s or mine feel free to ask).

After hearing about the Coors Banquet, I was really curious about Greg’s thoughts on what makes a good beer. Greg told us that he thinks bold flavor and an interesting interpretation are very important. Iron Horse strives to create quality flavors that are balanced, yet complex like a 10%+ ABV beer, but are a low enough ABV to almost be session beers. We joked that Iron Horse is doing a service, because they provide complex flavor beers that allow someone to still drive home (drinking and driving is bad though people).  Quality of beer inevitably led to a conversation about lost product, and Greg stated that the quality control at Iron Horse has been great. They haven’t had a large batch loss, or if a batch does go wrong they’ve gotten creative, e.g. Mocha Death. I hope I can retell this story correctly,

A batch of Irish Death didn’t turn out right, I can’t completely recall whether it was the yeast or something else, but Irish Death wasn’t tasting like Irish Death. So, instead of dumping this large patch of near Irish Death, but not quite, but still close enough, they decided to throw coffee and cocoa at it. The end result is the delicious Mocha Death.

I moved on to their Iron Horse IPA, which was surprisingly balanced for a west coast made IPA, smooth and tasty. The hops didn’t attack me (which I like normally, but here it was just right), and because of that I was able to enjoy the subtle flavors. I’ve noticed that balance is something consistent throughout Iron Horse beer, and Greg informed me of his thoughts on the importance of balance - it’s important. But, he mentioned that bold flavor should be over balance, but a marriage of the two is great.

I’m always interested hearing about the struggles of owning a brewery/pub, and Greg surprised me with his answer. He told me that his biggest struggle is the balance between retail and distributors, and that he finds it’s too easy to neglect the retailers, which he doesn’t like doing. Distributors tend to be more vocal upfront, and demand attention, but retailers aren’t pushy/vocal. Greg did make sure to mention that it’s important to him that quality product makes it to everyone, but besides the quality - if it isn’t liked - it isn’t about them. I like this attitude. If the popularity is the sole goal - big beer is what you get.

After hearing about the struggles, I got to hear the best part, which I have to admit would be mine as well - free beer. Not only free beer, but free beer and a place to drink.

Lastly, I asked about anything special or new coming out soon, and it looks like the Loco Imperial Red will be coming out. If you see it with the name Red IPA that’s my doing.

I get excited about trips, which normally leaves me disappointed, and I really felt that I got a bit too excited for this one. I’m happy to say that everything surrounding the experience at Iron Horse lived up to the hype I created, and I feel as if I could have had a similar experience without Greg. I say that, because the warmness and friendless of the taproom really made G and me feel as if we weren’t outsiders, which a lot small close knit establishments make you feel. I have nothing but nice things to say about this brewery and its employees. If you have a chance to visit Iron Horse Brewery do it - plain and simple. If you see their beers give them a try, and once you’ve had enough of the Irish Death try some of their other offerings. I would like to thank Iron Horse, Greg, and Natalia for the hospitality and the fun time. Keep making great beer with a great attitude!

Iron Horse Brewery Trip Part 1

This past Saturday the Beer Fusion team, which was made up of G and myself, ventured to Iron Horse Brewery in Ellensburg, WA. Now, many of you have probably seen reviews of Iron Horse Beer on this website, and I believe they are the only brewery to have two beers reviewed for the beer of the week (don’t quote me). So, Iron Horse shouldn’t be a brewery that is a mystery to most of you, but regardless of G’s and my opinion on Iron Horse (we really like their beer) we wanted to go in with an unbiased, professional mentality. Now, in order for to have that mentality we felt it necessary to make a detour and stop for a beer at Yakima Brewing Co. It was at Yakima that I decided to write some questions down so I could do a proper professional job with this interview. I hope as you are reading this you are starting to sense some sarcasm, and to be honest I was going to be professional as possible, but I got this feeling it wasn’t going to be one of those interviews even before we met Greg.

Initially, G and I were suppose to meet Natalia Parker, but due to some child care issues we met with her husband Greg. G and I showed up a little bit early to Iron Horse’s taproom, which is a bit off the beaten path in an industrial business park. The taproom had some personality as you can see in the photo, which I really liked. It had a real relaxing fun feel that made me want to drink some beer and “shoot the shit” as you could say. G and I had no idea what Greg looked like, so we sat hoping that we look just enough out of place that he would know who we are. Well, my hope came true, because Greg seemed to know exactly who we are. After we all introduced ourselves, Greg asked us my favorite question, “you guys want some beer right?”. I had a chance to try a couple of the brews from Iron Horse that I’ve yet to taste, which are 509, High Five Hefe, and their IPA. All were up to par, and I’ll mention a bit more throughout the post.

Once we got our beer, we started to chat with Greg, and I tried to stay to my questions and make our conversation structured, but that lasted about 5-10min. The conversation quickly became relaxed. All the seriousness went out the door, and it quickly became about the love of beer. This is what I hoped this trip would be, and this is what I want to share with all of you, because I feel that our chat strongly represents the identity of Iron Horse Brewery.

Iron Horse was founded by Jim Quilter (which Quilter’s Irish Death is named after) in December of 2004. Greg and Natalia (I’m assuming they were married at the time) bought Iron Horse in July 2007. I asked Greg what got him into brewing, and he told me, “fun”, he started brewing in Montana with a coworker. The Iron Horse mentality is rather personal, they make beer for themselves, and it just so happens to be craft beer that a large amount of others like. It’s that kind of philosophy that I’ve noticed is consistent with quality craft breweries. As he tells me this, the ginger and honey of the High Five Hefe was really standing out to me, and was the most unique hefeweizen flavors I’ve ever had - it was o’so satisfying

I mention to Greg about how surprised I am about the strength of the ginger, which steered the conversation into people like G and I - beer reviewers. He told us that, “there are beers I love and beers I like”, and for those of us that “rip” certain beers apart there sometimes seems to be a maliciousness to it. Greg expanded by saying that unless there is something wrong with the actual quality (skunky, flat, etc) the beer might not be bad, just not for you. I agree with him to an extend, and for me to hear an owner of a brewer say that it makes me very happy, because he’s willing to make beers that are uncompromising. That is what’s important for craft beer. He finished up his opinion on beer reviewing by mentioning how the palate and nostrils change throughout the day and day to day. Greg told us some days he has some of his beer and thinks there is something seriously wrong, and others it’s like the nectar of the gods.

Pale Ale Head-to-Head Sierra Nevada vs Two Beers' Persnickety

This week’s Pale Ale Head-to-Head is between a titan and a lesser known brewery. I’m talking about Sierra Nevada’s Pale Ale versus Two Beers' Persnickety Pale Ale. Before we get into it, I want to say that this was the closest Head-to-Head we’ve done, and both these beers are superb. I also want to give you a little heads up about what’s to come this week. Yesterday, G and I spent a good amount of time in Ellensburg, WA at Iron Horse Brewery with Greg Parker one of the owners. I’ll be posting about our fun time and talk with Greg early this week, and of course a couple photos. With that said let’s review the hell out of some pale ales!

Sierra Nevada’s Pale Ale pours a thick white creamy head that sticks around. The color is a golden honey color that looks “clean and crisp” as G would say, and has good carbonation as well as fairly clear clarity. G found the smell to be very pilsner esc, and the overall smell came across very light for me. It has a sweet maltiness with subtle floral/citrus hop notes. Look - 22, Smell - 19.

The flavor had a nice hop presence, but was very light and crisp. We both described it as a great summer ale, e.g. great for a hot day. The aftertaste had somewhat of a hop dry bitterness, but overall it was a very clean crisp beer with subtle flavors that provided a refreshing drink.There is nothing wrong with this beer, and there is nothing that stands out. Both G and I like beers to hit our palate and nostrils with some character, and we don’t really get that with this ale. It’s a great session beer, and great for a hot day, but nothing that makes us love it - we’ll stay liking it.  Flavor - 42.5.

Rating: 83.5/100

Now, Sierra Nevada is one of my favorite breweries, and much like putting a beer against Dogfish Head, I initially thought this to be unfair, but, as usual, the minute I think/say something like that I get to quickly put my foot in my mouth. Two Beers' Persnickety Pale Ale pours an off-white head that is creamy, thick, and sticks around a bit longer. The color is a darker amber with a lot of unfiltered residuals - very cloudy. The smell has a strong hop presence (both G and I smelled simcoe hops) with a sweet malt characteristic. The overall smell was sweet and floral, much stronger than Sierra Nevada’s Pale Ale. Look - 21, Smell - 21.

This ale is malty, but the hops come in behind and bitter nicely as well as provide earthy floral notes. It hits that tongue and makes you think. This beer is interesting. The malt has a somewhat buttery caramel presence that is then followed by an earthy hop bitterness in the aftertaste. There is also a creaminess to this beer, which was a bit of a surprise after drinking the crisp Sierra Nevada. This beer is persnickety, we didn’t quite know what to make of it, but our taste buds did, and they liked what they got. Flavor - 43.

Rating: 85/100

I first would like to point out that this is the first Head-to-Head that was won by the second reviewed beer. This is also the first time that G and I had such different score differentials, but finished with the same result. We both felt that these are two beers we’ll definitely pick up again, and recommend to everyone to buy. Hands down. But, it was the fullness and uniqueness of the Persnickety flavor that inevitably won it for Two Beers. There was a total of 1.5 points difference, and before G and I averaged our scores there was 1 point separating the winner. With that said, please continue to support, advocate, and drink craft beer. With an unanimous decision that went the distance the judges of Beer Fusion declare Two Beers' Persnickety Pale Ale the winner of the first Pale Ale Head-to-Head. 

Winner: Two Beers' Persnickety Pale Ale

The Wolf Pack Has Spoken...Alameda's Yellow Wolf

It’s time for a beer review, and I know, I know, it’s not Sunday, and hell it’s not even Monday, but here we are. This week we’re tasting Alameda’s Yellow Wolf Imperial IPA, and I was very excited about this brew. I’ve been spending much of the week working and drinking a wide variety of craft beer, but this one has stayed with me. Before we get into it though, I want to let everyone know that Beer Fusion will be in Ellensburg, WA this Saturday at Iron Horse Brewery. Iron Horse is one of our favorite breweries, and we felt it was time to go pay a visit. If we don’t see you there, there will be a recap of the shenanigans experienced via a write-up. Also, we’ll be having a beer with Natalia the owner, so there’ll be a recap of that conversation as well. I’d being lying if I said I wasn’t excited, but that’s in a couple days we’ve got Yellow Wolf to review! Now, between G and I, Yellow Wolf has two great things going for it - Columbus hops (my favorite) and Amarillo hops (G’s favorite and I really like them too). Also, as you can see in the picture we had G’s little L give us his opinion, and he was a Yellow Wolf fan.

Yellow Wolf comes in at an ABV of 8.2% and 103 IBUs. The interesting thing about this beer is that there is no profile of this beer on Alameda’s website. The head of this beer is a strong thick and white that sticks around for a good while. Full head for sure. The look of this beer is a deep golden color that has a great cloudy clarity, and it grips the glass well. This is how an IPA should look. Head - 10, Look - 15. G found the smell to be Amarillo and lemon, and I’d agree that the Amarillo does come through the aroma very strongly, but so do the other hops. This beer has a hop-centric aroma, but what I found interesting was how much of the smell had lemon/lime sour notes. The smell was a little off from what I’d expect this beer to be, but my preconceived notions aside, this beer smells tasty. Smell - 23.

As I sit and read G’s notes on this beer I can’t help but laugh, and this is why - G wrote in the “Palate” category a very simple explanation of how this brew hit his palate, “yum!”. And, I agree this is a “yum” beer. The initial flavor is smooth and full with a surprisingly mellow hoppiness, but strong citrus presence. The aftertaste isn’t very bitter. The aftertaste hits crisp and gradually bitters and dries. For a beer that is 103 IBUs, I’m surprised at the drinkability and crispness. Palate - 9, Aftertaste - 9. The overall flavor is surprisingly full of lemon/lime. The bitterness isn’t intense, but it’s there and aids the overall flavor. I’m very surprised how well the sweet and sourness of the lemon/lime mix works perfectly with this beer. The flavor is simple, yet precise, and unique for a PNW style Imperial IPA. It’s safe to say I was surprised. Flavor - 28.

If you’re a regular reader of this blog you’ll know how much I like uniqueness. I like beers to challenge my expectation of a style or beer itself. I’m not one to disregard an ale, because it’s different, but I will if it doesn’t taste great. This is a beer that made me step outside of what I expect a moderate ABV and high IBU IPA to taste like. I didn’t get the fuzzy tongue, and I didn’t get the high ABV bite, but what I got was a beer that was able to give me complex flavor and that made me question my own expectations of the NW Imperial IPA style. This is my first beer by Alameda, and they hit a home run. There’s very few Imperial IPAs that I feel I’d like to drink all day, and the same applies to G, and this beer is one of those rare beers. Normally, I recommend you to pick the beer up, but I’m going to say - please pick this beer up if you like IPAs, and if you don’t like it I’d be shocked to hear about it. In fact, I want to know if you don’t like this beer, because I’d be fascinated to know why. With all of that said, with an Overall Flavor of 46/50 the Beer Fusion gives Alameda’s Yellow Wolf...

Rating: 94/100

On a final and closing note, you’ve probably noticed that IPAs have dominated the reviews lately, and I think it’s time for a change. Next week’s beer review will most likely be associated with the Iron Horse trip, but I think it’s time to put IPAs in the back seat and have a look at some other great craft beer styles. So, if you are getting tired of all the IPAs, no worries, they’ll be taken a hiatus for a bit. Cheers!