Black as midnight in the Irish countryside on a moonless, cloudy night while you’re wearing sunglasses, stouts are to beer what a fine French roast coffee is to tea. Dark, powerful and pungent, the aroma and appearance of stouts often belie a smooth drinkability that typically puts at least one stout near the top of any beer connoisseur’s favorite brews list. Continue reading
India Pale Ales, or IPAs, are like your your quick-witted buddy from school who always has a sarcastic zinger AND your back in any battle – they keep you on your toes, and keep you coming back for more. Always hoppy, often bitter, usually sharp-tasting, and occasionally tongue-punching, IPAs are the current kings of American craft brewing. There are three basic types of IPAs: English IPAs, American IPAs, and Imperial IPAs (in order from mild to powerful). Continue reading
There are way too many leftovers from last column’s Thanksgiving beer feast, so I’d like to share more brews that would look great on your dining room table this coming holiday. Hopefully you’ll find these beers worthy of thanks as much as I do. Continue reading
It’s late-August and the fall beers have arrived in force. Until recently, autumn offerings focused almost exclusively on rich, amber, malty brews based on the traditional German Oktoberfest style. Nowadays, fall beers feature enough pumpkin ales that attempting to try all of them might actually lead to seeing Schroder’s Great Pumpkin. Continue reading