Swag Brewery Vanilla Porter Candle Review

A couple months ago, I was contacted by Max from Swag Brewery to help promote the Kickstarter he was doing to get his brand new beer candle product off the ground, to which I gladly helped. Since the Kickstarter was a rousing success, I have been given some beer candles courtesy of Swag Brewery to try out for myself.

I was sent the Vanilla Porter candle but it also comes in Apricot Wheat and Hoppy IPA scents as well. With that said, I want to throw this out there: Much like the beer soap which I got last year, this does NOT smell like beer but uses the aromatics used in the said beer. So I'm going to take a look at this candle.

Packaging

Wow, I really like how this looks. From the front as you can see here it looks very professional and has a bit of that old-timey, wild west poster look to it. I don't know what I find so attractive but I just really like the packaging. Plus it's proudly made in the US of A!!

The Candle

Aside from the label being from Swag, the candle itself reminds me of something I would get from Yankee Candle....except not like this.

So you're probably wondering to yourself "Well....how does it smell?" Well I want to point out again does NOT smell like beer, but instead you're treated to a wonderful aroma of vanilla, chocolate and a hint of underlying caramel sweetness. It is quite unlike any other candle we've had in our apartment, to say the least.

As for the longevity of the candle, going by the two I've used so far, it clocks in at around 50 hours, so it's got a good amount of life behind.

Much like the beer soap I've had before, this is a wonderful gift for that special craft beer lover in your heart. At the same time, it's also a gift I would feel comfortable giving to anyone who isn't necessarily a beer geek because it's a wonderful smelling candle. With all that said, I would highly recommend checking this out!

Bauhaus Brew Labs Jingle Fever Review

Name: Bauhaus Brew Labs Jingle Fever
Style: Baltic Porter
ABV: 8%

It's always exciting to review a new beer, but it's even more exciting if that said beer is from a brand new brewery. Which is why I'm excited to review Jingle Fever from Bauhaus Brew Labs. Most winter seasonals are usually Winter Warmers or Stouts, but Bauhaus is changing that up by giving beer drinkers a Baltic Porter. This is also the first beer I've had from Bauhaus that's in a bottle as opposed to a can.

Jingle Fever pours a pitch black color and I'm not picking up on any carbonation. The head is quite thin and takes on a khaki-colored appearance and the lacing is good.

The nose starts out with a nice roasted barley and robust chocolate maltiness. I'm also getting some sweet-smoky malts paired with some bitter hoppiness. Smells like a beer I'd drink during the winter.

Flavor-wise, the chocolate/smoked malts and roasted barley make up the first half of the flavor. The second half of the flavor is has some dark fruitiness paired with some black licorice. The aftertaste is mainly bitter hoppiness, light smokiness, and roasted barley.

Jingle Fever is an excellent and robust tasting beer and a great showcase of the Baltic Porter style. Since it's only available during the winter season, be sure to grab this while you still can. Also if you so happen to be a fan of Baltic Porters, this will definitely be up your alley.

Bauhaus Brew Labs Jingle Fever - 9.5/10

Fulton The Ringer Review

Name: Fulton The Ringer
Style: American Pale Ale
ABV: 5%

Even though winter has finally started digging its claws into our region (after a 50 degree day no less,) I'm still digging some of the lighter styles for the time being; Though one's definition of "light" may be subject to interpretation. Which is why I'm taking a look at The Ringer, an American Pale Ale from Fulton Brewing.

From what I've gathered, this started out as a draft only beer a couple years back and it wasn't until recently that this became a bottled beer. After all, Lonely Blonde was available in bottles way before I ever recalled seeing this on store shelves. As for the name, I haven't a clue why it is called The Ringer or how it relates to APAs.

The Ringer pours a dark hazy orange color with a bit of mild carbonation. Head is nice and foamy and the lacing is quite abundant.

The nose is very floral hop forward with some prominent yeastiness. I'm getting some moderate resin hop bitterness and some mild toffee malts.

Thr flavor is fairly floral hop forward with a light citrus kick behind it. I'm also getting some yeastiness, in turn which is followed by some bitter hoppiness and mild maltiness. The aftertaste takes on a mild citrus hop bitterness and light toffee maltiness.

The Ringer doesn't do anything revolutionary for the style. What does do is provide a nice & flavorful APA for beer drinkers to enjoy and it does so quite well.

Fulton The Ringer - 8.5/10

Victory Prima Pils Review

Name: Victory Prima Pils
Style: Pilsner
ABV: 5.3%

Today I'm going to be reviewing an old favorite of mine from when I first started drinking craft beer: Victory Brewing's Prima Pils. Why is it called Prima, you ask? According to the beer description, Prima is a German exclamation of joy. From what the ever-reliable internet tells me, the English equivalent of Prima is "great."

Prima Pils pours a clear yellow with a moderate amount of visible carbonation. The head takes on a foamy white appearance but the lacing is very sparse.

The nose starts out with a strong aroma of lemon zest & pilsner malts followed up by some maltiness and some light citra and floral hoppiness.

The taste is lemon zest, pilsner & pale malts, citrus & bitter hops. The aftertaste is strong with some bitter hoppiness. Very robust and complex flavor for a Pilsner. It does have a very crisp body though.

Even though this is one of the first Pilsners that I've ever had way back when I first got into craft beer, this still ranks up there as one of the best that I've ever had. In fact, I would consider Prima Pils to be a textbook example as how to do a Pilsner right. The name may seem a bit presumptuous, but this is indeed a Prima Pils!

Victory Prima Pils - 9.25/10

Angry Inch Brewing Company - An Introspective

It's hard to believe all that has happened to me since starting this blog early last year. All the people I've met, the places I've gone, the events I have attended and so forth; But what I'm about to tell you is something so unexpected (in a good way) that even I am still trying to comprehend that it's even happening.

It all started back in January of this year when I connected with Angry Inch Brewing, based out of Rosemount, MN. We started to hit it off right away when I was asking about the name and the close proximity of the brewery to where I used to live. It was mainly batting around ideas of where their future brewery would be located and during that time, we rattled off about half of the streets in the South Metro area.

A few months later during Minnesota Craft Beer Week, I stopped in for a private tasting with Jon & Josh from Angry Inch to see what they were planning on offering, which included their Beer Dabbler Award winning Saison & Dubbel. What was supposed to be an hour long tasting event turned into 3 hour discussion about our experiences in the craft beer industry, hearing the story behind each of the beers they had on tap as well as their plans to one day open a brewery.

As I drove back to Duluth that afternoon, I remember thinking to myself how excellent the beer was and how much love and care they put into each batch which they brew. I also thought to myself that once their brewery opens up, which I thought at the time would be in a few years, that it would be a welcome addition to the South Metro, which lacks the number of breweries as say.....Minneapolis.

During Labor Day Weekend, I was given some samples to review in depth and I enjoyed each and every one given to me. There were some minor changes to a couple of the beers I had tried before but for the better. Again I was still holding onto the belief that a production brewery for Angry Inch was still a few years out.

Now imagine my surprise when, a few weeks back, this exchange happened....

Upon finishing my double-take, my first reaction was that it was an auto-correct typo, as you can see from our conversation above. Of course, I was informed almost immediately that it was, in fact, NOT a typo. It was at this time I had a startling realization:

I was witnessing the birth of a new commercial brewery in Minnesota and I had a front row seat to all the action.

Last week I published my Angry Inch Opening Press Release on Northland Beer, the other website I write for (which you should totally check out.) For those who don't feel like doing more reading, I'll give you the Sparknotes of the Press Release:

• Angry Inch is planning on opening their brewery sometime in Spring/Summer 2015
• They will be located at 20730 Holyoak Ave, Suite 160, Lakeville, MN.
• They plan on having nine draft lines in their taproom. They will consist of six year round offerings, one 6 month rotating seasonal, one 2 month rotating seasonal, and one tapline for an experimental brew.

It has been such a privilege to see how much Angry Inch Brewing has grown this past year and I cannot wait to see how much they will grow in the upcoming year. I also wanted to extend my sincerest thanks to Jon from Angry Inch for giving me the honor of writing & publishing the press release for their grand opening; It is something I am truly grateful for. 

While you wait to try out some of their fantastic beers, for the time being you can do your part by following Angry Inch on social media. You can find them at:

Twitter - https://twitter.com/AngryInchBrew

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/pages/Angry-Inch-Brewing/632502360094820

 

I am truly looking forward to writing more about Angry Inch Brewing in the near future, and I cannot wait for the day when beer drinkers everywhere will be able to try out some of their fantastic beers.

Cheers!

- Nick

Lagunitas Little Sumpin' Wild Review

Name: Lagunitas Little Sumpin' Wild
Style: Belgian IPA
ABV: 8.9%

Today I'm going to be reviewing something from Lagunitas Brewing Company. I've been craving a good Belgian IPA as of late (amongst the others that I've looked at recently), which is why I have a Little Sumpin' Wild. I was originally going to look at the original Little Sumpin' Sumpin', but I didn't get my hands on that until after I had already had this.

Little Sumpin' Wild pours a fairly clear light orange color with some mild visible carbonation. The head starts out pretty foamy before tapering to a more foamy appearance and the lacing is quite good.

In the aroma, I'm picking up on a strong citra hops, passion-fruit and mango up front, while Belgian yeasts, a bit of piney hoppiness, some pale and toffee malts make up the second half of the nose.

The flavor is a bit different. On the front of the palate, I'm getting some cloves/spices, Belgian yeasts and citrus hops upfront. Meanwhile grapefruits, toffee malts and citra-bitter hoppiness make up the flavors in the second part of the flavor. As for the aftertaste, it's mainly a citrus & bitter hoppiness with a light touch of toffee malts.

Even though Lagunitas has grown a lot these past few years, it's still nice to see that the overall quality of their beers hasn't been affected. With its complex and robust flavor, you'll no doubt find something to enjoy about this beer!

Lagunitas Little Sumpin' Wild - 9.25/10

Goose Island Bourbon County Barleywine Review

Name: Goose Island Bourbon County Barleywine
Style: Barleywine
ABV: 12.3%

Every year at the beginning of December, Goose Island Brewing releases their Bourbon County series in limited quantities. Last year I reviewed their Bourbon County Stout and found it to be quite good.

Now originally I was going to review their Barleywine but I mistakenly gave it to a friend of mine and was unable to give it a proper review. To make matters worse, the poor guy wasn't used to the barleywine style, let alone a beer that is high in alcohol content. Well now the time has come where I can give this a proper review.

Pours a black color with some mild visible carbonation. The head pours a creamy khaki-colored head and the lacing is very sparse.

In the aroma, I'm picking up on some strong vanilla bourbon notes with some strong oakiness. There is some strong caramel maltiness along with some prominent bitter hoppiness.

In the front, the vanilla bourbon and caramel maltiness are very prominent. The bitter hoppiness and oakiness show themselves in the second half of the taste. The aftertaste is primarily oak and caramel malts.

This is no doubt an extremely good bourbon barrel aged barleywine but it isn't quite my favorite bourbon barrel aged barleywine, which so happens to be from Central Waters The asking price is also a bit steep but if you can afford it, then you are in good company.

Goose Island Bourbon County Barleywine - 9/10