Sierra Nevada Beer Camp 2014 Review - Part 3

Well, it's finally time to end the Sierra Nevada Beer Camp Series for 2014. I have to say this was a very fun 12 pack filled with different types of beers from all across the country. However like they always say: all good things must come to an end.

Yvan The Great Belgian-Style Blonde (6.3% ABV) - Brewed in collaboration with Russian River Brewing Company. The flavor starts out with a solid Belgian yeast flavor before ending with a pale malt sweetness and some floral hoppiness. I've had some Belgian-style blonde ales before and this is one of the better ones I've had.

Verdict 8.5/10

Double Latte Coffee Milk Stout (7.6% ABV) - Brewed in collaboration with Ninkasi Brewing Company. This beer has a very strong coffee and milk chocolate start with a solid roasted barley profile and a strong lactose and bitter hop finish. Coffee beers have always been a hit-or-miss for me but I found this one to be pretty good and lactose finish really helps smooth things out.

Verdict - 8/10

*Sorry no picture here!*

Myron's Walk Belgian Style Pale Ale (5.3% ABV) - Brewed in collaboration with Allagash Brewing Company. The flavor has a very sweet citrus and floral hop start with some coriander notes that come from the coriander used in the brewing process. The finish is more Belgian yeast forward than anything else but is accented with a very nice floral hoppiness thrown in for good measure. It's a solid Belgian Pale Ale and the coriander used here really livens things up.

Verdict - 8.5/10

CANFusion Rye Bock (7.2% ABV) - Brewed in collaboration with Oskar Blues Brewery. A bock beer brewed with rye; I'll admit I was a bit skeptical but I found out it works very well! It starts out very malty with some caramel malt sweetness but then you're treated to a very robust citrus hop and rye spiciness. The best part is that the rye profile isn't too overwhelming and is balanced out quite nicely. If Oskar Blues or Sierra Nevada were to make this on a regular basis, I would definitely make this a regular purchase.

Verdict - 9.25/10

I hope you enjoyed reading my thoughts about these beers as I have enjoyed drinking. I'm hoping Sierra Nevada does something like this next year because some of these were definitely interesting collaborations. 

Thank you all for reading, I will be posting again here hopefully by next week sometime, if not, the following week. Now I'm off to get married!

Cheers!

- Nick

Sierra Nevada Beer Camp 2014 Review - Part 2

Tonight, I'm continuing my journey through Sierra Nevada's Beer Camp for 2014. So far I'm fairly intrigued with some of the entries I've seen this far and it'll be interesting to see where we go from here.

Torpedo Pilsner Hoppy Pilsner (5.2% ABV) - Brewed in collaboration with Firestone Walker Brewing. The flavor is very bitter hop forward with some lemon zest, pilsner-pale & biscuit malts, and some yeastiness. The bitter resin hop taste lingers on the back of the palate. Pretty light bodied and easy to drink. Pilsners have never been known to me as being of the hoppy variety but this one works quite well and it's rather flavorful. I would definitely have this again if given the chance!

Verdict - 8.5/10

Yonder Bock Tropical Maibock (7.7% ABV) - Brewed in collaboration with Cigar City Brewing. The flavor has the typical caramel maltiness and honey sweetness that I'm used to. However what sets this apart is the strong tropical mango and agave fruitness at the front of the palate as well as some floral hoppiness. This is unlike any other Maibock I've had before and I love just how robust and vibrant the flavor is. It's too bad that this is a one time beer because I would definitely be keeping this in my fridge on a regular basis.

Verdict - 9.25/10

Chico King Pale Ale (6.5% ABV) - Brewed in collaboration with 3 Floyds Brewing. Pours a surpringly dark orange color. The flavor opens up with some caramel malt sweetness followed by some floral hops, mild grapefruits and resin hop bitterness. The aftertaste is pretty dry as well but it's very easy to drink. It's a slightly different take on Sierra Nevada's original American Pale Ale and it works out quite well. In fact, I'd even go as far as to say I prefer this over Sierra Nevada's normal Pale Ale.

Verdict - 8.5/10

Maillard's Odyssey Imperial Dark Ale (8.5% ABV) - Brewed in collaboration with Bell's Brewery. A pitch black colored beer with a very foamy khaki colored head. Very roasty flavor with roasted barley at the front of the palate with some chocolate malts, bitter hops and a roasty dark chocolate and slightly earthy aftertaste. Nothing too spectacular, it's just a good tasting Black Ale that anyone whom enjoys the style will certainly find something to like about this.

Verdict 8.25/10

I like the variety that I'm getting from this, more so than when I first started looking at this 12 pack. I still have 4 more beers left to go before concluding this series. If my schedule permits I should have the rest of the series done by Sunday. I hope you are enjoying reading my thoughts and comments on these beers. 

Cheers

- Nick

Sierra Nevada Beer Camp 2014 Reviews - Part 1

Last week, I came into possession of the Sierra Nevada Beer Camp 12-pack, with each beer being a collaboration from different breweries all over the country. This 3-part series will cover each beer included in the said 12-pack with my score underneath each beer.

Now the reason why I'm not giving each beer it's own separate review is because each beer is a one-off collaboration, meaning that it won't be brewed again; With the exception of Hoptimum which was originally a "Beer Camp" beer. Since these are twelve beers that will never be brewed again, I figured it would be more efficient this way.

Electric Ray India Pale Lager (8.5 % ABV) - Brewed in collaboration with Ballast Point Brewing. The flavor is very citrus hop forward but with a solid pale malt sweetness as opposed to a caramel/toffee maltiness. The aftertaste is quite bitter with some grapefruit and citrus hop notes. IPLs tend to be around the 5-6% ABV range so this is definitely strong for it's category. However the alcohol content is masked quite well and the flavor, while not complex, is quite robust and tasty. I could see this being a regular visitor in my fridge if it weren't a one-time only offering.

Verdict - 8.5/10

Alt Route Altbier (6.6% ABV) - Brewed in Collaboration with Victory Brewing Company. Pours a solid ruby red color. This is a very malt forward beer in terms of flavor with caramel malts, roasted barley, a bit of dark fruitiness and a surprisingly bitter hoppy finish. Nothing terribly special in terms of flavor when it comes to the style, but it's quite good nonetheless.

Verdict - 8/10

Tater Ridge Scottish Ale (7.0% ABV) - Brewed in collaboration with the Asheville Brewers Alliance. This ruby red colored beer has a distinct bitter hoppiness on the front of the palate with a roasted barley & chocolate taste. There is also some light grassiness and another type of bitterness that isn't of the hoppy variety which I'm assuming is the potatoes used in the brewing process. My only exposure to potato based beers is from Indeed Brewing with their Sweet Mama Jamma, which I found to be very good. As for this beer, it's balanced in terms of flavor but I'm not really a fan of it at the same time. I'd rather just have a regular Scottish Ale instead.

Verdict - 6/10

There and Back English Style Bitter (5.6 % ABV) - Brewed in collaboration with New Glarus Brewing. Pouring a hazy orange color. The front of the taste has a maramalade-like sweetness to it, some pale malts and a bitter finish. Like the Altbier, it's a pretty standard English Bitter that tastes good and is drinkable. The only thing that makes this beer stand out is the higher-than-normal ABV level (most English Bitters fall into the <5% range.)

Verdict - 8/10


I hope you all enjoyed the first part of this series. Stay tuned for the next part which'll be posted tomorrow night. If you are still able to get "Beer Camp" in your area, I would highly recommend checking this out!

Cheers!

- Nick