Breakfast Stout by Founders Brewing Company

This is a beer that I see in stores all the time. I have always wanted to taste it but never have. I love stouts, so I don't know why I never had this one. I happened to be in one of my favorite places, Craft Beer Cellar in Clayton and they had it on tap. Wifey asked for a sample and she took a sip and handed it over to me. I took a small sip of what was left and thought "Wow, this is pretty good." Wifey ordered a full pour of it and I took a better sip from hers. "Wow, this is really good." (the sip went from pretty good to really good). After talking and drinking some more beer, I had to get up and grab a 4-pack of the shelf because, as I said, this was really good.

So, I was able to enjoy this beer at home. It pours nice and dark with a tan head. The aroma is a nice coffee smell with a bit of roasted malts. Man, this has a real nice aroma. The taste is so nice. You can taste some of the coffee and the chocolate is more pronounced. You get a little bit of the bitterness at the end. It has a little milky texture to it also. The more I drink of it, the more chocolate and coffee taste that lingers. This is really nice.

This is a beer where I would not feel so bad drinking in the morning. Why should mornings be just for Bloody Marys and Mimosas? I think Founders Breakfast Stout should be included in the morning alcoholic beverages. I'm not a coffee drinker so if I had some donuts and a glass of this, I would be very happy.

When I rated this on Untapped, I gave it a 4.0. After thinking about it more, I am going to give this 4.5 hop flowers. I have heard the whispers and rumors of Founders KBS, their Imperial Stout aged in oak bourbon barrels. You better believe I will be hunting this stuff down when it comes out again.

Craft Beer Cellar - Clayton
Founders Brewing Co.

(yes I know, this is the wrong glass)

Count Orlok by Urban Chestnut

This is Urban Chestnut's version of the season's pumpkin beer. It is a black pumpkin wheat ale. The ABV is 5.4%. Last year, they included this in their fall variety pack. So, there were two of these, two each of their regular beers and two Oachkatzlschwoaf, their Oktoberfest/Marzen beer. This year, they released Count Orlok on its own. I recently picked up a 4-pack from Lukas Liquors and threw a couple in the fridge. Wifey and I had a couple last night.

It pours a deep brown with a tan head. Because of the color, it could pass for a porter. The aroma is clove and maybe some nutmeg. You could tell it is a pumpkin beer because of the pumpkin pie spices in the smell. The taste is a bit different for a pumpkin beer. Most pumpkin beers are all pumpkin pie spice. This one has some of that pumpkin pie spice but you get a bit of roastiness (is that a real word? It is now) from the malt. You also get that clove taste.

Wifey told me that pumpkin really does not have much taste. It is the spices that give pumpkin flavored foods the "pumpkin" taste. She is a smart woman so I believe her. Count Orlok does not have that pumpkin pie taste or even an effort to try for it, which is a good thing. This is a bit of a different take on the pumpkin beer. As usual, Urban Chestnut gets it right.

In a previous post, I mentioned that there are only two beers I have given a 5. Well, this is one of them. This is my favorite pumpkin beer and one of my favorite beers, period. So of course, I give this 5 hop flowers!!! Thank you Florian and Urban Chestnut for making such a great beer.

Lukas Liquors
Urban Chestnut

Dragonfly IPA from Upland Brewing Company

A few posts back, I mentioned that Wifey and I drove out to Evansville, Indiana to pick up some beer that we can not get in St. Louis. We have quite a few to choose from now! One of the beers that we picked up was Dragonfly IPA from Upland Brewing Company. Wifey likes dragonflies so she picked up a six pack. I was informed that I should check out Upland Brewing Company beer since they are in Indiana. I found Dragonfly IPA and picked up a six pack. Neither one of us knew that the other one grabbed this beer. We walked out with a 12 pack. Oh well.

This beer pours a nice orange color. I would say that the aroma is pretty balanced between the malt and the hops. It was not overpowering at all. The taste was kind of similar. There was a balance between the malt and the hops. There is a slight citrus taste and a bit of pine also. There is not a lot of bitterness to this beer. The malt is slightly sweet to add to the flavor of the hops.

I would say that if you are not in to IPAs or you think that IPAs are too bitter, then this is one you should check out. I would call this a gateway IPA.

I am a bit of a hop head so I will give this beer 3 hop flowers.

Upland Brewing Company

Tasmanian IPA from Schlafly

Schlafly has been brewing a Hop Trial series. A few months ago, they used Australian hops called Ella. Hop Trial: Ella was an amazing beer. Wifey and I loved it so much that I would keep an empty Schlafly growler in my car in case we stopped by there for a beer and a bite to eat (really good food at the Bottleworks) so we could get a refill. I even went so far as to ask James Ottolini, Schlafly's Head of Brewery Innovation and Technology for the recipe. He was kind enough to give me enough info where I can brew some for myself. I have not brewed it yet but it will be brewed very soon.

I mention all of this because I love the Australian hops. I did not try Schlafly's Tasmanian IPA last year so when I hear about it being released soon, Wifey and I both got excited. TIPA is brewed using Galaxy hops from Australia. It does not look like they are using the Ella hops in TIPA but Galaxy hops are really citrusy. 

I was able to pick up some TIPA from The Wine and Cheese Place after work. As soon as I got home, I put two in the fridge. I pulled up a chair next to the refrigerator and waited. Ok, I didn't do that but I kept looking at my watch to see how long they have been in there. After enough time passed, I pulled them out and poured them into glasses. The color is a nice golden wheat. The aroma is very nice. You can smell the citrus and peach.When I tasted it, man, it was so good. The pineapple and slight maltiness was great. It's not very bitter, it's really tasty.

I give this 4.0 hop flowers. I think this might become one of my favorite IPAs for a while. I have only had one of these so I may raise this rating after another one. 

I had to add that when I give a beer 3.0 or 3.5 hop flowers, to me, that is a pretty decent beer. A 3.5 I will drink again with no problem. A 4.0 is a great beer and a 4.5 is absolutely amazing. I have only given two beers a 5.0.

Schlafly

The Wine and Cheese Place

Wine and Cheese Place Blog

Hop the Pond from New Belgium

I was recently at a new grocery store near me, Lucky's Market. Wifey told me that they had a pretty nice craft beer section. Of course I had to check it out to see what they had. I picked up a few beers including Hop the Pond from New Belgium Brewing Company. It is a Double IPA. To be honest, I have only tried a couple of their beers, including Fat Tire. I saw this 22 ounce bottle for $2.99 and decided to pick it up.

This beer is made from ingredients around the world. It has hops from Australia, England and the U.S. It uses malt from Chile, Germany, England and Canada. After pouring it in a glass, the aroma was very nice. I could smell the Galaxy and Citra hops. It had that nice citrus and pine smell to it. The taste is not very bitter but just bitter enough that it isn't crazy sweet. The malt is pretty tame but is a bit stronger in the finish. It is a little dry at the finish also.

This is a really nice beer. I can't believe that I am so late to the party with New Belgium. I have had a few more of their beers and really like them. After learning more about the company (it is employee owned), I have become a big fan of theirs and will be drinking more of their beer.

I give this 3.5 hop flowers.

Lucky's Market - Ellisville, MO
New Belgium Brewing

Uncommon Stout by Bent River Brewing

This is a beer I got from a friend of mine who went up to Moline, IL where Bent River Brewing is located. This is called Uncommon Stout. It is pretty highly rated stout. Beer Advocate gives it an 87. On Rate Beer, it received a 96. As far as stouts go, it is supposed to be a pretty good beer so I was looking forward to tasting it.

Having said all of that, I did not like it. When I poured it into a glass and smelled it, I got flashbacks to when I smoked. The beer smelled like a dirty ashtray. Now, I know that it is the roasted malts that I was smelling but that's not what I was getting.

The taste is that same very roasted malt and ashtray. I had a hard time really tasting anything else. I finish my beer no matter how it tastes. I am not wasting beer. As I was finishing my glass, I could taste the coffee pretty heavily. I will say that the last sip was a tad bit better than my last sip.

I am going to give this beer 2 hop flowers because it finished a little bit better. I would like to try a fresher glass and then maybe change my thoughts.

Bent River Brewing Company

Sour DIPA from Six Row Brewing

First, let me start off by writing about Six Row Brewing Co. I feel that this is the most underrated brewery in St. Louis. There are some great craft breweries in St. Louis and you know the bigger ones like Schlafly, Urban Chestnut, 4 Hands, Perennial, etc. I rarely hear people talk about Six Row. Their beers are really good. I can honestly say that I have not had one beer from Six Row that I did not like. They have good food on their menu and the people there are great. When you get a chance, go check them out.

Wifey and I stopped into Six Row and I had their Sour Double IPA. I am a big fan of their DIPA and have started to get into sours. I figured I should try the Sour DIPA. Isaac told me that it was barrel aged in Jack Daniels barrels. The nose of it has a nice sour aroma. I could smell a little of the Jack. With that first sip, you can taste the sour also. Then it hit me a little bit. I could taste a little bitterness from the hops. It has a pretty dry finish. This is a really nice sour.

I tell you, I am starting to like sours more and more. I believe that this was a limited release unfortunately. When they release it again, I will definitely have a glass or three. I really liked it. I will give it 3.5 hop flowers.

Even without the Sour DIPA, you should absolutely check out Six Row Brewing Co. If you haven't had their beers, grab some from your favorite store.

Six Row Brewing Co.