After a make believe ohmage to a few beers for April Fools, we’re back with four beers that are brewed in much smaller stainless steel vats and place an emphasis on taste and story. This week, we have a DDH Double IPA, a DDH Triple IPA, an all time great West Coast Double IPA, a deep dive on what happens when you let that big ole’ barrel age coffee stout mellow some, and pizza. Always pizza.
More Brewing- Secret Cosmos (7% ABV Hazy New England IPA)
This beer, like the pizza, is absolutely phenomenal. Pouring with a soft yellow glow that melds unfiltered with unadulterated haze, the beer blasts danky peach into the nares. The palate is full bodied and juicy and quickly develops grassy, rindy tropical notes that is all the best parts of galaxy and Vic.
The pizza is from Little Italian west. ½ cheese, ½ pepperoni and pineapple. If you haven’t had pineapple on a pizza, don’t knock it until you try it.
Mikerphone Brewing- Mikerphone Feedback (10% ABV Triple New England IPA)
A few weeks back, one of our favorite local breweries turned 7. The banner of the celebration was the 7 barrel aged beers they released. While I did saddle up to the bar and try all 7, the sleeper was the 10% Triple IPA released alongside them. It seems like the new thing to do is an anniversary TIPA solo hopped with Citra. Feedback is amongst the best. All the orange. Pours like a thicc (2 c’s) glass of OJ with a huge juicy orange nose. The palate brings in fluffy vanilla, like an Orange creamsicle and the finish is rindy dank citrus. They took all the best parts of Mikerphone Check 1,2 and turned up the volume in this beer.
Russian River Brewing Company- Pliny the Elder (8% ABV West Coast IPA)
About a week ago, I was out in Las Vegas for my annual bowling trip with the fellas. 20 guys who’ve known each other forever. One of the guys had driven in from Phoenix and made a pit stop in Anaheim along the way and picked up a bottle of an all time great, Pliny the Elder. We enjoyed it poolside in a red solo cup because that’s we had. Few beers can top the freshness and quality packed into each and every single bottle of Pliny. That’s where our tasting notes end. For this beer, it was all about staying present and enjoying good times with the friends.
Revolution Brewing- Supermassive Café Deth (14.3% Barrel Aged Imperial Coffee Stout)
Revolution’s small package format strikes again on a Wednesday night. It always kills me that so many great, big beers are packaged in 750mL bottles. This makes them occasion beers, not weeknight sippers. Fortunately, Revolution has hung in with the 12 oz. can, which makes it all the more difficult to hold off on opening up. With Supermassive, we were able to hold off about 9 months from package date and our patience was rewarded.
While still full of green and chocolaty coffee beans, the bitterness has fallen off considerably since I first had it, highlighting the sweet oatmeal stout base beer. The barrel really pops on the finish with nice notes of sweet leather and spirit. An immaculately crafted beer.
And just like that, another week in the books. Here’s to a weekend full of baseball, pizza, great beer, and hopefully Tiger playing the weekend at Augusta. What could be better? We hope you enjoy your weekend as much as wel’ll enjoy ours.
