New Glarus Scream IIPA Review

Name: New Glarus Scream IIPA
Style: Imperial IPA
ABV: N/A

Since starting this blog, I reviewed a wide range of beers from New Glarus Brewing (23 including this one and not counting the other ones I've had before I started writing) but not once have I had a traditional IPA from New Glarus and IPAs aren't typically what they are known for. Today that is all going to change because I have their Scream IIPA which was recently released as part of their Thumbprint Series.

The first thing you'll notice right away about the label is that the State of Wisconsin that usually acts as a centerpiece on most Thumbprint beers is replaced by an eagle who has the look of wanting to peck your eyes out while clutching some hops in it's talons. According to the New Glarus website, the name derives from the eagle which circles the brewery on a regular basis. You do have to give credit to New Glarus for switching it up for a change though.

Scream pours a pretty orange color with just a tinge of darkness. It looks fairly clear in appearance with only some minor haze and only a couple bubbles of carbonation rising up from the bottom of the glass.

The aroma is very grapefruit forward with some citrus hop notes and a bit of caramel maltiness in there as well. There is also a bit of fruitness in here too, consisting mainly of mangoes and apricots.

Much like the nose, the flavor is very grapefruit heavy followed up by some tropical/citrus hops with some noticeable hop bitterness at the very end. The caramel malt base is substantial but not as much as the apricot/mango fruitness.

The palate is moderately weighted and there is a bit of thickness. The carbonation is fairly low and it actually has a very creamy texture. For an Imperial IPA, this is very easy to drink!

Scream is another solid offering from New Glarus. It doesn't do anything that I haven't already seen in an Imperial IPA before but it packs a robust taste and I got this at a very reasonable price. Any hop head looking for a fix will definitely not be disappointed by this beer!

New Glarus Scream IIPA - 9/10

New Glarus Dubbel Review

Name: New Glarus Dubbel
Style: Dubbel
ABV: 7.6%

New Glarus Brewing has released yet another beer in their Thumbprint Series: a Dubbel Ale, complete with a brand spanking new label redesign. It's a style which we have never seen before in their Thumbprint Series lineup, however they DID release a Belgian Strong Ale last year to celebrate their 20th year in business. In my review of that beer, I mentioned that it tasted alot like a Dubbel even though it was classified by the brewer as a Strong Ale.

New Glarus Dubbel pours a hazy crimson red color with a thin khaki-colored head. The carbonation is moderate in appearance and there is no lacing left behind, giving it a clean finish.

The aroma of has some notes of brown sugar, dark fruit, caramel malts and belgian yeast. The Belgian yeast does give it a light clove scent and the overall aroma does have some of the influences found in the 20th Anniversary Ale.

Flavor-wise, it's quite Belgian yeast and caramel malt forward, providing some flavors of cloves, spices, brown sugar and licorice. The dark fruitiness is very mild here, primarily in the aftertaste which also contains some caramel malt notes. The palate is quite light and moderately carbonated which allows for some of the flavors to shine a bit more.

There is definitely some influences from the brewery's 20th Anniversary Ale here, but they're different enough to be distinguished from one another. With that said, this is an excellent addition to the Thumbprint Series. Also for a Dubbel style ale, this is very reasonably priced so pick this up if you get the chance!

New Glarus Dubbel - 9/10

New Glarus Spiced Ale Review

Name: New Glarus Spiced Ale
Style: Herb/Spiced Beer
ABV: N/A

My regular readers know that I am a pretty big fan of New Glarus Brewing and also know of my desire to see them expand their operations to other states. For the time being, I'll just have to settle for driving over the bridge to Superior to acquire their offerings.

Today I have a new addition to their Thumbprint Series and it's a style which I have never seen before from New Glarus and that is their Spiced Ale. A style which I could readily use thanks to Duluth having the second coldest winter on record since they began recording temperatures. On that note, Canada can stop taking dumps of cold air on us anytime now.

New Glarus Spiced Ale pours a mildly hazy orange color with moderate visible carbonation. The head is rather soapy and the lacing is fairly abundant.

Contrary to what I was expecting, the nose has some nice notes of cinnamon, pumpkin pie, ginger, cloves, toffee malts and yeasts. It almost smells like my favorite fall seasonal beer: Tyranena's Painted Ladies Pumpkin Spice Ale. If I didn't know better, I would say that this screams "Fall Seasonal!"

The flavor pretty similar to the aroma but with less of a focus on the malts & yeasts and a greater emphasis on the cinnamon, ginger and cloves. I will say this, it does warm you up fairly quickly, almost like a shot of whiskey while ice fishing on the lake.

The palate is quite heavy in terms of weight and it has some moderate carbonation. With that said, the overall spiciness combined with the carbonation does give the overall mouthfeel a strong stingy quality and makes it harder to savor and enjoy the flavors. I think this is a beer that is meant to be enjoyed in sips.

Not everyone is going to go crazy over this simply because spiced ales are somewhat of a niche beer. With that said, I found this to be quite enjoyable and despite some issues with the palate, I would say that this is worth checking out if you're in the mood for something a little different.

New Glarus Spiced Ale - 8/10

New Glarus Wisconsin Belgian Red Review

Name: New Glarus Wisconsin Belgian Red
Style: Fruit Beer
ABV: 4%

Earlier this year when this blog was in it's infancy, I reviewed a bottle of New Glarus Serendipity and found it to be absolutely fantastic. It's now 8 months later and New Glarus has brought back the beer that was originally in Serendipity's place, Wisconsin Belgian Red.

While Serendipity is/was brewed with cherries, apples, and cranberries; Wisconsin Belgian Red is brewed with just cherries. You see last year (2012), the cherry harvst in Wisconsin was severely affected by one of the worst droughts the Midwest had experienced since the 1930's. This drought caused New Glarus to use apples and cranberries in the recipe, in addition to whatever cherries from Door County they could get. The end result was an award winning fruit beer that became highly sought after across the country, and all of it happened pretty much by accident.

Now after being in cryogenic suspension for over a year, Wisconsin Belgian Red has made its triumphant return, hopefully to co-exist with Serendipity side-by-side. It calls itself the marriage between wine and beer, and uses a pound of Door County cherries used per bottle. Let's see if any of that holds up.

Belgian Red pours a clear ruby red with a red fizzy head and no lacing left behind. The carbonation appears quite high at first before going to a more subdued level. It looks like someone poured a bottle of Big Red soda into my glass.

The aroma gives off a sweet fruity cherry notes with an almost Pink Moscato-like scent and some light malts. That's all I'm getting because the cherries and moscato are quite strong.

Just like the nose, the flavor consists mainly of sweet cherries, light moscato grape along with some mild malt, oak and barley notes. Here is where you can tell that this is still very much a beer. With that said, it's still sweet tasting thanks to the cherries.

The body is pretty lightweight with a bit of a syrupy texture to it but it doesn’t hurt the quality. As for the carbonation, it's fairly tame so it doesn't get in the way of enjoying the flavor.

I'll get this out of the way now, this is an excellent fruit beer that is definitely worth your time, money and attention. With that said, I still think that Serendipity is a superior fruit beer because of it's more balanced and possesses a more complex flavor. Belgian Red didn't ”Wow” me as much as Serendipity did, but it still makes for a very robust & delicious fruit beer!

New Glarus Wisconsin Belgian Red - 9/10

New Glarus Apple Ale Review

Name: New Glarus Apple Ale
Style: Fruit Beer
ABV: 3.8%

You may have noticed that I am posting an astonishly high number of reviews today, but that's because I had to call in sick today on account of a cold. Since I can't have beer due to my lack of smell and have a few reviews in the pipeline, I figured I would divvy up my time between playing Diablo 3 and finishing those said reviews.

Earlier this year in May & June, New Glarus Brewing released their Apple Ale as part of their Thumbprint Series. Sadly, while I was over in Wisconsin earlier this year procuring some Three Floyds, Apple Ale was nowhere to be seen and I had to settle for another bomber of Dreadnaught (Talk about first world problems, am I right?)

Then a couple of weeks ago, New Glarus announced via Facebook that it was bringing back Apple Ale. My excitement grew even more when the owner of Keyport Liquors over in Superior, WI was on the radio talking about Apple Ale and how they had just gotten it in. Needless to say, I knew where I need to go to get my own!

Apple Ale pours a clear dark golden color with a rather filmy head, high carbonation and no lacing along the sides.

The nose has a sweet aroma of apples, cider, spices and some pale malts. It's almost like someone poured a bottle of Angry Orchard into my glass.

The flavor is pretty similar to the aroma with sweet apple tartness, cinnamon, barley and pale malts. It's much more obvious that this is a beer than an actual cider due to the barley and pale malt presence. The body is pretty light and the carbonation is quite mild as well. It's a pretty easy to drink beer overall.

All and all, it's a great yet mellow tasting fruit beer and I feel that even those who aren't generally fans of craft beer will find something to like in this. It isn't quite as complex or robust as New Glarus' other fruit beers but this is still very easy to recommend.

New Glarus Apple Ale - 8.5/10

New Glarus Uff-Da Review

Name: New Glarus Uff-Da
Style: Bock
ABV: 7.3%

New Glarus Brewing recently brought Uff-Da & Fat Squirrel out of cryogenic suspension much to the delight of New Glarus fans everywhere. As you can probably already guess, we're taking a look at Uff-Da!

Every once in a while, I'll see a beer label and think to myself "Why on Earth would they call it that?" and this is no exception to that rule. Uff-Da is a term used by some residents of the upper Midwest and primarily those of Scandinavian/Norwegian descent. It's a slang term used when you hear something that's rather unpleasant or discomforting. To better illustrate my point, I've created this dialogue for your reading pleasure:

Sven: Hey did you hear about what happened to Ollie down at his farm?
Olaf: No, what happened?
Sven: He was tending to his cows when one of the horses got startled and kicked him right in the...well, you know....
Olaf: Uff-Da, that must've hurt!

Well, hopefully this beer won't put me in the Emergency Room, so let's take a look!

Uff-Da pours a clear crimson red color with a filmy-looking head with some decent lacing and some mild visible carbonation.

Caramel Malts are the first thing noticeable in the aroma along with yeasts, some floral hop notes and some roasted barley. Pretty basic smelling, even for a bock beer.

Likewise, the flavor isn't too different. You have caramel & pale malts, yeasts, floral hops and roasted barley. The roasted aspect is a alot stronger here along with some mild pale malts and hoppiness in the aftertaste.

It's pretty heavy in terms of weight on the palate and the carbonation is fairly moderate and not too overwhelming. It's enough to help one enjoy what this beer has to offer.

As much as I like New Glarus, I wasn't too impressed with this. Keep in mind that while it's certainly not a bad beer, it's a bit too roasty and not malty enough to even things out. I say if you're gonna buy this, buy it as part of a mix-a-six and decide for yourself


New Glarus Uff-Da - 7/10

New Glarus Stone Soup Review

Name: New Glarus Stone Soup
Style: Belgian Pale Ale
ABV: 5.3%

With the expansion of New Glarus Brewing currently underway, I've been seeing more and more seasonal beers become "rotating beers", case in point with Stone Soup, which is usually released in the Spring but it was released just last month in September so maybe we'll see more old favorites returning (hint hint!)

Stone Soup is a Belgian Pale Ale which is named after the children's story called......Stone Soup. For those of you who don't feel like googling it, Stone Soup is about some hungry travellers who have no food except for a kettle pot. They fill the pot with water, toss a stone in there, and tell those who ask that they're making an awesome soup but they need a few more ingredients. At the end of the story, they get tons of people to add ingredients to their pot and the result is an awesome soup enjoyed by all.

Is this beer as awesome as the soup it's based on? Well let's find out!

Stone Soup pours a very hazy orange color with a fizzy head that retains it's filmy appearance. There isn't any lacing left behind so it finishes clean.

The aroma starts things off with a clove and bubblegum scent with some spices, pale malts, barley and some mild grassiness. There's also a mild floral hoppiness sitting in the back.

The flavor reveals a more pronounced banana flavor along with some bubblegum, cloves, spicy notes, pale malts and barley. The grassiness which was present in the nose is nowhere to be seen here.

The body is rather light in weight but the carbonation is fairly strong for what it is. All things considered, it does bring about a rather crisp feel.

Stone Soup is a fairly well rounded beer. It's got a good amount of flavor, some pretty easy drinkability and it's just a good beer. It doesn't do anything spectacular but it's an approachable Belgian Ale that's well priced and therefore easy to recommend.

New Glarus Stone Soup - 8.25/10

New Glarus Spotted Cow Review

This past weekend, I was in Duluth visiting my dad for the weekend. For those of you who aren't familiar with the craft beer scene in Minnesota, Duluth has been exploding with business when it comes to breweries and craft beer. I even managed to pick up a growler this weekend from a local brewery which I will be reviewing later this week.

Duluth also happens to be right across the bridge from Superior, Wisconsin. I mentioned in a previous review that I love New Glarus Brewing, so this past weekend my dad saved me the hassle of going over to Superior and picked up some New Glarus Spotted Cow for me. When it comes to Wisconsin Craft Beer, this is probably the first thing that pops into the head of many beer lovers. You can pretty much find it in every nook-and-cranny in the State of Wisconsin. This shouldn't come as a surprise seeing as how it was ranked the 17th Largest Craft Brewery in America but they only distribute in Wisconsin which is even reflected in the company's motto: "Drink Indigenous."

Where to begin? Well for starters, It's more popular on-tap in Wisconsin than Miller Lite is. On the label is an image of a cow doing a bunny hop over the state of Wisconsin with a giant star marking the location of New Glarus. If Wisconsin were a country, it would have two national animals: The Badger and The Cow.

Spotted Cow is the beer that proudy screams "Wisconsin, Hell Yeah!" It's a Cream Ale with a 4.8% ABV; Though I've also seen it at 5.1% ABV. For this review I also poured into my Tyranena Brewing glass, another awesome Wisconsin brewing company.

It pours a mildly hazy moderately bright yellow color. The head starts out fluffy but becomes fizzy about a couple minutes after the pour and the carbonation activity is fairly mild.

The nose has some yeast and sweet malt notes. There's also a hint of corn in here, but unlike adjunct lagers which use it in place of other ingredients, this one is added in to the existing brew. The result is a pleasantly sweetened ale with a nice natural scent.

The flavor isn't too much different from the smell. It's got the yeasts, barley, malts, and corn present in the nose. Again the corn fits very well into the overall flavor, giving it a good sweet flavor because, again, it's added in to the flavor and not switched out.

It goes without saying that this is a pretty easy drinker. The body and carbonation are very light and it goes down very smooth. It's classified as a cream ale and it's very easy to see why.

In terms of Cream Ales, this one takes the cake. As a beer itself, the flavor isn't revolutionary by any means, but you really cannot go wrong with Spotted Cow at all; In fact the only expectations you should have before drinking this beer is that you'll enjoy it. It's a great way to get your friends into craft beer and it's a beer perfect for any occasion. Now if only they'd distribute to Minnesota.....

New Glarus Spotted Cow - 8/10