Blue Moon Cinnamon Horchata Ale Review

**No Picture, Sorry!!**

Name: Blue Moon Cinnamon Horchata Ale
Style: Spiced Beer
ABV: 5.5%

Next up on my Blue Moon Winter Seasonal Pack is their Cinnamon Horchata. A horchata is a beverage that originates from Mexico and Central America that is made with milk, cinnamon, almonds and occasionally rice.

Now I've had horchata before and it is really tasty and I have to admit I'm a bit excited to actually review a horchata-based beer. However the previous beer I had in the sampler pack was a bit lacking so lets see how this is.

The beer pours a hazy orange color with some mild carbonation. The head takes on a thin white appearance and there's no lacing to speak of.

The nose is a mix of cinnamon, eggnog, some lactose, and a bit of pale maltiness. I'm also getting some light malted barley notes in here as well.

The first half of the flavor reminds me of a cinnamon roll. You've got your cinnamon spiciness, a bit of yeastiness, and some pale malts. The second half of the flavor still has a lingering cinnamon sweetness but it's paired with some malted barley. Other than that, the aftertaste is fairly dry with only a light cinnamon spiciness.

While it didn't quite hit the expectations I had for, it still manages to please and proves that a horchata based beer can work under the right circumstances. Your best bet would be to have a bottle and decide for yourself.

Blue Moon Cinnamon Horchata Ale - 8/10

Blue Moon Gingerbread Spiced Ale Review

Name: Blue Moon Gingerbread Spiced Ale
Style: Spiced Beer
ABV: 5.9%

Another beer from the Blue Moon Winter Sampler Pack, which I got on sale last week. For this review, I have their Gingerbread Spiced Ale which brings back memories of Christmas....except during Christmas, I was drinking Reindeer Games from Clown Shoes; A fantastic beer if you haven't had it yet.

As I recall, the last Gingerbread based beer I had was from Sam Adams and I frankly wasn't too impressed with that beer. So let's see if this beer will change my mind about gingerbread-based beers.

The beer pours a clear dark brown color with some light carbonation. The head itself is quite thin & translucent and the lacing is pretty much non-existent.

So far, it's living up to the name as a gingerbread beer because it hits you right away in the aroma. I'm also getting some mild roastiness & a hint of chocolate malts. There's also some very mild hoppiness but it's covered up by the strong gingerbread scent.

As for the flavor, at the very front of the palate is where the gingerbread is quite strong but it fades away on the backend of the palate; Which consists mostly of roasted barley, some mild chocolate notes and some moderately bitter hoppiness.

Had the gingerbread flavor lingered throughout, I would've enjoyed this more. Perhaps it's better enjoyed sooner than later. However as it is, it's still a decent beer and there's nothing I would really consider terribly wrong with it.

Blue Moon Gingerbread Spiced Ale - 7.5/10

Blue Moon Belgian White Review

Name: Blue Moon Belgian White
Style: Witbier
ABV: 5.4%

It's taken me this long to review Blue Moon Belgian White? Yeah, I still don't quite understand it myself but when I see a Blue Moon Seasonal Sampler on sale, I cannot pass up that offer. This'll be the first beer in my Blue Moon series and I've decided to start off with the original Belgian White.

What can be said about Belgian White? Well next to Coors, Budweiser & Miller, it is one of the most widely recognized beers in America and can be found everywhere in the country. I've also had this beer at Olive Garden a few times because it's usually the only thing I consider to be decent on tap.

Belgian White pours a cloudy yellow color with a foamy white head. The lacing is on the sparse side and I'm not getting any visible carbonation.

In the aroma, I'm getting potent orange peel notes, some malted wheat, a bit of berry sweetness, along with some pale malts to round things off.

Flavor-wise, the orange peel & berry sweetness up front are fairly mild compared to the malted wheat and pale malt in the back, which are also relatively tame. The aftertaste is a light mix of malted wheat and orange peel sweetness.

Even though the flavor leaves something more to be desired, this is not a bad beer. When you take into consideration that this is a Miller-Coors Product, it's actually quite good plus there is none of that grainy adjunct flavor in here either which is a plus in my book. The best way to describe this beer is that it's not perfect, but even a broken clock is wrong twice a day.

Blue Moon Belgian White - 7.75/10

Leinenkugel's Big Butt Doppelbock Review

Name: Leinenkugel's Big Butt Doppelbock
Style: Doppelbock
ABV: 5.8%

So apparently I had no idea Leinenkugel's made a beer with this amusing of a name. I give to you Big Butt Doppelbock, which I'll admit is fun to say. Doppelbocks are usually in the 7-10% range in terms of ABV but this one only clocks in at 5.8% so I'd be more tempted to call this a Bock beer. Also contrary to what some of you may be thinking (you know what I'm talking about....), this beer is reference to the two goats butting heads in the background since Bock is German for goat. Speaking of which....

Before I start this review, I'm going to pose a question to my readers: Why on earth is there NO Sir Mix-a-Lot references in the label description? All it talks about is the five different types of malted barley and it doesn't do so much as make a lyrical reference to Mix-a-Lot's classic. I'm kind of disappointed here.

Big Butt Doppelbock pours a dark but clear brown color with a relatively foamy khaki colored head. Not really getting anything in terms of lacing or carbonation.

The aroma is a mix of strong caramelized malts and roasted barley. I'm picking up on some chocolate notes and some very light adjunct grains.

Flavor-wise it starts out with some roastiness, caramel malts and even a hint of chocolate. This does, however, give way relatively quickly to moderate adjunct grains, some mild lingering hop bitterness and a touch of roastiness on the back end of the palate. The aftertaste is on the drier side with some adjunct grains and light caramel maltiness.

I should clarify one point: Just because a beer uses adjuncts in the brewing process does not mean I am ready to write it off and that is the case with this beer. In fact, I'd say my biggest gripe with this beer is that they're calling it a Doppelbock whereas I'd classify this more as a Bock based on the overall flavor. All and all, Big Butt Doppelbock is by no means the best (Doppel)Bock beer out there but I would gladly accept this again should someone offer this to me.

Leinenkugel's Big Butt Doppelbock - 7.5/10

Milwaukee Brewing Booyah Review

Name: Milwaukee Brewing Booyah
Style: Saison
ABV: 6.5%

So a funny thing happened to me last night: I unknowingly started a reviewing a beer that I already reviewed, which was Milwaukee Brewing's Hop Happy. I had the article entire proofread and everything before I looked at the bottle and realized the name looked awfully familiar. It was then I looked back at my history and realized that I had this back in May. For the first time, ever I had to scrap a review.

Well it's time to move on and I'm doing so with Milwaukee Brewing's Booyah Saison Style Ale. Why such the in-your-face name? Rather than try to explain the story behind the name, I'm just going to cut and paste from the brewery's website:

We love Wisconsin. Our history and culture give us inspiration for brewing and naming beers.
Since this is a Belgian-style beer, the Flemish-Belgian history of the Green Bay area flows with stories like a keg with a bung blowout.

A very social cultural staple is the Booyah, which is a 55 gallon drum-over-fire stew that is cooked using an “everything but the kitchen sink” mentality, and tended by cooks over a few brews.

.....makes sense to me! Let's find out how this is!

Booyah pours a very cloudy dark orange color with no visible carbonation. The head takes on a very thin, almost-translucent appearance.

The nose has some spices, pilsner malts and usually strong lemon zest. I'm also getting some pale malts and some funkiness that resides in the back. It smells like a saison with just a touch of Brett.

The flavor starts out with some mild Belgian Yeasts with some strong lemon zest. I'm also getting some moderate Brett funkiness, a bit of malted wheat, tart white grapes, and pilsner-pale malts. As for the aftertaste, it's surprisingly dry with just a hint of tartness and light yeastiness. The description says there is rye used in this beer but I'm not really picking up on any of it with the exception of the nose. The best way to describe the taste is that it's like a Saison and a Berliner Weiss.

As you have have guessed, the taste is a lot more complex than the nose leads you to believe. It may seem a bit too sour for those looking for a traditional saison but I think this works quite well for what it is. Your best bet is to have a glass and decide for yourself.

Milwaukee Brewing Booyah - 8/10

Sam Adams Rebel IPA Review

Name: Sam Adams Rebel IPA
Style: India Pale Ale
ABV: 6.5%

A couple weeks back, I wrote an article about Sam Adams and the struggle to remain relevant in a market in which they helped create. In that article, I wrote about Sam Adams' Rebel IPA and how Sam Adams help can position itself in the craft beer market place with the help of Rebel. They also have a TV Spot for Rebel, now with more Dropkick Murphys!

Well I have their Rebel IPA for review today and it's also a beer I've had before on one of my many visits to Buffalo Wild Wings as it's often the best IPA that they have on tap there. Like many beers before it, I've never sat down to do a proper review so it will be my first time taking a closer look at this beer.

Rebel IPA pours a fairly clear orange color with moderate carbonation. The head takes on a thin foamy appearance and the lacing is pretty good.

The aroma has some strong piney hops and grape-fruitiness, followed by some mild citrus hops and a substantial caramel malt back bone. The piney hops in particular have this almost sticky quality to them, if that makes any sense.

The flavor starts out with some strong grapefruit & citrus hoppiness The second half of the flavor is where the piney hops make themselves known along with some noticeable caramel malts, before ending with a bitter hop aftertaste. On a side note, that citrus hoppiness in the front of the flavor lingers on throughout the whole drinking experience.

I have to hand it to Sam Adams, they really have made a good IPA that reminds one of a West-Coast style. Sure it's not the best of the best in terms of IPAs I've had but it's good enough to where I would have this over and over again.

Sam Adams Rebel IPA - 8.5/10

Toppling Goliath Golden Nugget IPA Review

Name: Toppling Goliath Golden Nugget IPA
Style: India Pale Ale
ABV: 6%

I've got a beer from a brewery that I have always wanted to try out since I've gotten into craft beer. Recently a brewery by the name of Toppling Goliath became available in my area and so far, there are two beers to choose from. The first being Light Speed Pale Ale, which was out when I checked the store. The other being their Golden Nugget IPA, which is the beer I will be reviewing.

More of their well known beers, like PseudoSue & Assassin Imperial Stout, are not yet available but I have a feeling that will change in the very near future. For the time being, I'll stick with what I have.

Golden Nugget pours a mildly hazy light orange color with some very light carbonation. The head takes on a fairly thin foamy white appearance with some good, sticky lacing.

In the aroma, I'm picking up on some rich mango & tangerine sweetness backed up by some mild grapefruitiness. I'm also getting some mild toffee maltiness and just a hint of yeast.

Flavor-wise, I'm getting some strong grapefruit and bitter hop notes up front. In the middle is where the citrus hops and toffee malts shine through. As for the aftertaste, the toffee maltiness does linger on but the bitter hops make a reappearance along with some surprisingly strong piney hops.

The flavor is a lot more complex than what the nose leads you to believe. It's a nicely layered and flavorful IPA that is sure to please. On top of that, it is very reasonably priced beer for what I paid for it. I'll for sure will be checking more offerings from Toppling Goliath in the near future!

Toppling Goliath Golden Nugget IPA - 9/10