Captain Lawrence Brewery is a local to me brewery. Sort of. It's right across the Connecticut border in New York.
They're so close and yet I'd never had a Captain Lawrence beer before.
I received Liquid Gold as a gift and I don't know why I waited so long to drink it!
Liquid Gold (6% ABV) pours like, well, liquid gold with little to no head with a gentle pour. It is crystal clear and forms a much deep color in the glass. Lovely.
The aroma has a pleasant wheat aroma, some spice and a whiff of banana.
The flavor is very heffeweizen-ish, though on the light side. The initial flavor is of wheat and that dominates throughout. Banana, clove and other fruits come through. The brew is somewhat sweet but not cloying. There is no bitterness to speak of. The finish is completely clean and begs for another sip.
The mouthfeel is light and nicely carbonated. Liquid gold is exceptional drinkable. I could drink way too many of them. Exercise some caution due to the ABV.
This is a perfect beer to refresh a dry body on a hot day. I love it!
Overall: very good.
Bitch Please is a collaboration brew between 3 Floyds and Brew Dog.
3 Floyds is a midwest craft brewery whose beer is known for being both bold and unconventional. They're beers are also notoriously unobtainable due to insanely high demand.
Brew Dog, whose mottos is "beer with bite", is a small batch brewer in Scotland. They started brewing craft beer to inject excitement into the bland, boring UK beer market.
Together these two breweries, each known for their inventive and unique styles, created Bitch Please. I can say unequivocally that I have never tasted anything like this beer before.
Bitch Please (11.5% ABV) is considered either an English or American Barleywine depending on the source. The bottle says it is an ale aged in whiskey casks. This is difficult brew to put into any one category - it's that different.
It pours a deep amber with a thin, bubbly off-white head. The complexion in the glass is a dense, murky brown.
The aroma is mostly smokey but there is an underlying complex of malt, tartness, spice and sweetness.
The initial taste is a distinct smoky flavor. The smoke flavor is interesting because I tasted one thing and my husband tasted something else. I thought it tasted like a fragrant cigar smoke, he thought it tasted like a barbecue smoke. And, while there's loads of malt, the smoke is clearly the heart of this beer. Any whiskey taste is muted. Sweet caramely malt teases but isn't fully defined. This is balanced but a resinous hoppiness that adds a nice touch of bitter. The alcohol creates a cognac-like quality but it's not nearly as "big" as some other barrel aged beers I've had.
The mouth is full and big bodied. It's a sipper, and a mighty good one at that.
There's a whole lot going on in that bottle. There's a labyrinth of flavors to maneuver through and enjoy. Enjoy with a fine cigar or a slab of meat or both!
Overall: excellent.
I bought this beer in a manic frenzy to acquire mouthwatering bitter beer. You may not be able to buy happiness but you sure as sh!t can buy HOPpiness!
When I saw Rock Art Extreme IPA (II) I knew it was just what I was looking for. The label says "This ain't for no Mama's Boy or Daddy's Girl. Yep, that's definitely for me.
So, I bought it.
IPA (II) (8% ABV) is a year round offering by Rock Art Brewery. It pours a deep honey red with lots of bubbly foam to start. It diminishes to a lasting frothy layer but leaves behind little to no lacing. It looks very bright and cheerful in the glass.
The aroma is very grapefruity, malty and spice. There's an underlying earthiness that adds depth and complexity. Interesting.
The flavor is like candied grapefruit. And hoppy! Big time hoppy! The toasted malts are very pronounced along with caramel and spice balance out the bitterness. The flavor well rounded and bold. The finish is bitter and dry.
The mouthfeel is medium with nice carbonation. The alcohol is well concealed.
This is a good example of the style. Quite refreshing and delicious.
Overall: very good.
Beer is definitely proof that God wants us to be happy. But beer and bacon are proof that there's a heaven - right here on earth!
Beer Candied Bacon Wrapped Chicken is a tasty combination of flavors - sweet, salty, smoky. The chicken is pretty much a carrier for the awesomeness of the sweet drunken bacon.
I used a winter beer for the syrup because of the combination of sweetness and spices. Use what you like for a completely different taste experience. But use something with enough flavor for it to stand up against the bacon.
Beer-Candied Bacon Wrapped Chicken
1 Lb Thick-Cut Bacon, Smoked Bacon
1/2 Cup Brown Sugar
1/4 Cup Beer
2 Large Chicken Breasts
In a small bowl, mix the beer and the brown sugar together until the sugar is dissolved. Set aside.
Cook bacon on a griddle or in a pan until just starting to crisp. Place in a bowl and pour the beer syrup over them. Toss to coat.
Continue to cook the coated the bacon on the griddle or in a pan. Turn and baste with syrup as the bacon cooks. Cook until the crispy and browned.
While the bacon is cooking. Cut each chicken breast length-wise into four pieces. And cook on the griddle until done.
Wrap two slices of bacon around each piece of chicken.
Any left over back - yeah right! - can be wrapped into coils and left to dry on a rack for about an hour. It'll get nice and crunchy!
I snatched up a four-pack of the highly anticipated release of Narwhal Imperial Stout by Sierra Nevada when it was released last year.
It turns out that there is all kinds of controversy regarding the name "Narwhal".
There is a small craft brewery out of Brooklyn New York that had planned to use "Narwhal" as the name of their brewery. The pair of home brewers have been perfecting their recipes for years and planning their dream. However, when they began the process of starting up their new business six years ago they failed to trademark the name.
However, Sierra Nevada did due diligence and filed for the copyright in June of 2012 and then filed suit against the small start-up. All this, despite conversations with Narwhal Brewing indicating that they would withdraw their application and allow the new brewery to properly register the name.
In the end, Sierra Nevada sued Narwhal Brewery and won. The little craft brewery out of Brooklyn is now known as Finback Brewery and Sierra Nevada owns the name Narwhal.
Admittedly, I don't know all the facts and there are always two sides to every story. But if Sierra Nevada did indeed say they would let them use the name and then turned around on pulled the rug out from under the little guy then shame on them. They started out in as a basement brewer, too, for hops sake!
Narwhal Imperial Stout (10.20% ABV) pours sable brown with deep red highlights. In the glass it's dark and dense with a thick mocha head that thins out to skim of foam.
Coffee dominates the aroma with a hint of cocoa and roasty malts.
The taste is bitter coffee up front followed by chocolate. There is a tinge of sweetness offered up by the malt but bitterness rules out. Think a cup of black coffee. The finish is roastiness and lingering bitterness.
The mouthfeel is medium to full with moderate carbonation.
This is a good beer, but nothing special. A fair representation of the style. It didn't meet my expectations based on all the hype.
Overall: good.
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