Half Acre GoneAway Review

Name: Half Acre GoneAway
Style: India Pale Ale
ABV: 7%

So now I'm on the last leg of my Chicago beer mail and what a ride it has been so far. My last beers I will be reviewing come from the Half Acre Brewing Company, a brewery which I have some degree of familiarity with but most of the beers I got from them I have never had before.

Starting things off is their GoneAway IPA. This used to go by the name of Senita IPA but it had a name change within the past 2 years. Even when it was called Senita, I never actually had it in that form either. It's former description as Senita calls it a "western charged firecracker", which leads me to believe that this is a West Coast IPA

Appearence - Fairly hazy bright yellow with a moderate amount of visible carbonation. Not really much in terms of a head save for a thin white film but the lacing is pretty good.

Aroma - Pungent citrus hop sweetness accent with some floral hoppiness. I'm also picking up on some light lavender notes with some grapefruit rinds and a solid pale malt backbone. I'm really enjoying the smell of this!

Taste - Rich citrus & floral hops with some lavender notes. Back end of the palate has some more citrus hop sweetness and a big pale malt backbone and some grapefruit rinds. Aftertaste is fairly sweet with some citrus hoppiness and a slight hint of hop bitterness.

If you like your IPAs sweet and fruity, this is the beer for you. I'll admit that I expected a lot more bitterness in the flavor but the lack thereof isn't necessarily a bad thing. In fact, why does it need to be bitter in the first place? Frankly, I like this beer just the way it is and that's the important thing. If you have access to this beer, I would highly recommend seeking this out.

Half Acre GoneAway - 9/10

Pipeworks War Bird Review

Name: Pipeworks War Bird
Style: Belgian Pale Ale
ABV: 4.5%

Confession Time: Last Friday when I got home from a long day of work and dealing with other things, I decided to rent Mad Max: Fury Road for my viewing pleasure. During the course of the film, I mistakenly opened my bottle of Pipeworks' Scarlett Betta and drank it without taking any notes or even a photo. Upon making this realization, I kicked myself for this mistake and vowed to pay more attention (and just stick with Summit EPA during movie time.)

So because of this, we're on to the last Pipeworks beer in the Chicago beer mail; Hang in there as I have a few more to review. This is War Bird, Pipeworks' Session Pale Ale, with some awesome artwork to back it up. Not really much else to say about this, aside from let's see how this is.

Appearance - Extremely hazy yellow color with a very foamy white head that has some excellent retention. The lacing, however, is spotty at best.

Aroma - Sweet citrus hops with a light hint of bitterness. I'm also picking up of some light pale maltiness & cloves with a hint of yeast.

Taste - Moderate citrus and bitter hops upfront with some light pale maltiness and some yeasts that come off as cracker-like. The finish, of course, is fairly dry save for a bittersweet citrus hoppiness. The cloves, interestingly enough, are nowhere to be found here.

Session ales are not usually at the top of my list as far as go to styles save for when I'm out and about. With that said this one is pretty good, but it's definitely not the best session ale I've ever had. However if you need something to sip on while you're out with friends and will be driving home by yourself, this will do just nicely.

Pipeworks War Bird - 8/10

Pipeworks Blood of the Unicorn Review

Name: Pipeworks Blood of the Unicorn
Style: Amber/Red Ale
ABV: 6.5%
IBUs: N/A

I apologize for the lack of posts these past few days since I have been busy with work, grad school and other family matter but I'm back and ready to continue looking at all of these Chicago beers. The next one I will be looking at is another beer from Pipeworks Brewing called Blood of the Unicorn, which is described by the brewery as a Hoppy Red Ale.

Appearance - Dark & mildly hazy amber red color with a mild amount of visible carbonation. The head is fairly foamy and the lacing is quite abundant with some good retention.

Aroma - Very toffee & caramel malt forward followed by a some strong piney & citrus hoppiness. I've had many beers in my time, but the smell is almost identical to that of Surly Furious. I wish I were making this up but that is literally the first thing i think of in this case.

Taste - Toffee & caramel malts paired with a robust piney and citrus hop profile make up the bulk of the palate for the most part with some grapefruit sweetness peeking it's head through in the back half. The aftertaste is basically more caramel maltiness with some mild grapefruit & bitter hop notes.

For those of you who are familiar with Surly Furious, this tastes pretty much identical to that with the only difference being that there's a slight hint of grapefruit. However, I don't necessarily believe that this is a bad thing. People who have this may be quick to call this an IPA but either way you look at it, what you have here is a solid beer that is worthy of your attention.

Pipeworks Blood of the Unicorn - 8.5/10

Pipeworks Lizard King Review

Name: Pipeworks Lizard King
Style: American Pale Ale
ABV: 6%
IBUs: N/A

The next Pipeworks Brewing beer I have is yet another Mosaic Hop-based beer called Lizard King, which is an American Pale Ale. Like Ninja vs. Unicorn before it, this too also possesses some epic label artwork whose awesomeness cannot be done justice in this photo alone. In addition to that, the commercial description of this beer on Beer Advocate is also pretty awesome as well:

On the epic battlefield, where The Unicorns and The Ninjas fight it out, there is a newcomer. Legend has told of of The Lizard King's arrival since the first "Hiiiiiya" hit the first Uni-horn, and now, he is finally here. Does this Mosaic hopped pale ale have the power to settle the strife? Only time will tell...

Not to sound presumptuous or anything, but this beer better be pretty awesome if you're going to hype me up with the description and artwork.

Appearance - Moderately hazy wet yellow straw color with a mild amount of carbonation. The head is surprisingly fizzy save for a thin white film and there's not much in terms of lacing either.

Aroma - Grapefruit & citrus sweetness with a slight hint of bitter hops. There's also some light yeastiness in here along with some pale maltiness that lingers in the back.

Taste - Pretty similar to the nose. You've got the citrus and grapefruitiness upfront along with some bitter hops; In that order. Backing all this up is some yeasts and pale malt backbone, which linger throughout the back end of the palate. The aftertaste is made up of some more pale maltiness and that grapefruit bittersweetness.

While this didn't quite blow me away as much as I expected, this beer is still no slouch in terms of quality. It's got a nice hop profile while managing to stay out of IPA territory at the same time.\, thanks in part to the yeast & malty aspects of the flavor. If you enjoy pale ales, you'll enjoy this. If you enjoy Mosaic Hops, like me, you're obviously going to enjoy this too.

Pipeworks Lizard King - 8.5/10

Pipeworks Ninja vs. Unicorn Review

Name: Pipeworks Ninja vs. Unicorn
Style: Imperial IPA
ABV: 8%
IBUs: N/A

Moving on to the next set of beers in the Chicago beer package (I received quite a few beers in it mind you), The next few beers will be offerings from Pipeworks Brewing, who I think would be a running contender for the best beer label artwork on the marketplace at the time of writing this. Since the photos I take simply do not do the artwork justice, I will be posting the artwork at the end of each review.

First up is the aptly named Ninja vs. Unicorn, which is an Imperial IPA. I did some research and found out the the Unicorn has done battle with both the Grim Reaper, Uncle Sam, Santa Claus & the Easter Bunny; I couldn't make this up even if I tried. Anyways, there isn't really much else to say aside from the label artwork, which I think is kickass.

Appearance - Mildly hazy yellow color with a mild amount of visible carbonation. The head is nice & foamy and there is some pretty good lacing to be had here.

Aroma - Pungent Grapefruit & Piney hops with just a hint of orange peel. I'm also picking up on some toffee sweetness and pale maltiness along with some moderate bready-biscuit yeastiness.

Taste - Fairly strong bitter & piney hops upfront but then towards the back it starts to turn sweet. It's there you start picking up on sweet grapefruit & orange notes that almost come off as Froot Loop-like. I'm getting some more of that toffee maltiness along with that bready-biscuit yeastiness in the back as well. The best way to describe the flavor is that it starts out very bitter but ends sweet.

Overall it's a very good Imperial IPA and for one being only 8% ABV, there is alot going on here in the flavor. Not only is the name & artwork awesome, but there is also an excellent beer lurking behind it. Chicago, you are very lucky to have a beer like this!

Pipeworks Ninja vs. Unicorn - 9.5/10

Revolution 1Z Enuff Review

Name: Revolution 1Z Enuff
Style: Imperial IPA
ABV: 11%
IBUs: 100

So here I am with the final Revolution Brewing beer in my beer mail package and it's one that I've been saving for last. It's an Imperial IPA by the name of 1Z Enuff (One's Enough). Why such a name? Well if you look at the stats of this beer, it not only comes in at a whooping 11% ABV but it also has an IBU rating of 100.

Appearance - Very hazy dark amber color with a mild amount of visible carbonation. The head is nice foamy with a slightly off-white color to it and the lacing is pretty good as well.

Aroma - Very dank piney hops with a little bit of citrus. I'm also getting a pretty strong caramel malt backbone but it's mostly dank hops for the most part.

Taste - Very strong dank piney hops hit you right away with an equally strong caramel maltiness. Interestingly enough, I'm getting some rum raisin notes in here as well and a slight hint of citrus. Aftertaste is surprisingly sweet with some caramel sweetness and more rum raisins. As for the booziness, it's here and it's noticeable.

Well I can certainly agree with the fact that one's enough for a couple different reasons. The first being it's 11% ABV but more importantly, the flavor is something that I just can't quite seem to dig. To be honest the raisin, boozy & dank mix of flavors is kind of off putting to me and just tastes weird.

I've mentioned a couple times before that the quality of Imperial IPAs start to go all over once the 10% threshold is crossed, at least in my experience. As bizarre as this may sound, had this been taken down a couple percentage points, this would've been awesome. As it stands right now, the overall flavor just isn't cutting it for me.

Revolution 1Z Enuff - 6/10

Revolution Coup D'etat Review

Name: Revolution Coup D'etat
Style: Saison
ABV: 7.6%
IBUs: 50

I've got a couple more beers from Revolution Brewing in my Chicago beer mail and the next one I'll be looking at is their Coup D'etat, which is their Saison. A name which makes sense when you consider that the name of the beer is a French term and that a Saison is traditionally a French style.

Appearance - Very hazy golden color but it has a very high amount of visible carbonation. The head is fairly foamy and about one finger in terms of width with an equally fair amount of lacing along the sides of the glass.

Aroma - Strong Belgian yeasts and cloves notes. I'm picking up on some grassiness in here as well along with some citrus & floral hops with some light toffee maltiness. It's almost like I cracked open a bottle of Saison Dupont and took a whiff of it.

Taste - Very similar to the nose. Belgian yeasts and spiciness up front, followed by some citrus and floral hoppiness though that grassiness that I saw in the nose is nowhere to be seen here. On the back end of the palate is where I'm starting to pick up on that toffee malt backbone. The aftertaste is mostly Belgian yeasts with a light touch of bitter hoppiness. There is a slight boozy taste in here but nothing that I would consider to be too big of a hinderance.

To this beer's credit, it does try to create more of a Euro-style Saison but it comes off as more Americanized.....and that's just fine with me. It's a good drinkable Saison though there is nothing I would consider to be ground breaking about it. If you live in Chicago and want a good Saison, this is it right here.

Revolution Coup D'etat - 8.5/10

Revolution Mosaic Hero Review

Name: Revolution Mosaic Hero
Style: India Pale Ale
ABV: 7.5%
IBUs: 75

It's no secret that I enjoy Mosaic Hops and I consider it to be one of my favorite styles of hops. While I was putting together this beer trade, we were going over a list of what each of us would like. Now during that time I never mentioned once that I like Mosaic Hops, so imagine my surprise when a few of the beer I got in this trade were brewed with Mosaic Hops.

Which brings us to the next beer in my Chicago beer trade: Mosaic Hero from Revolution Brewing. Part of their Hero Series, which focuses on brewing beers with exclusive hop types. As you may have already guessed, this is a beer made with Mosaic Hops in addition to Warrior & Zythos. In all honesty, I was going to hold off on having this beer until later but temptation got the beer of me.

Appearance - Mildly hazy golden color with some light visible carbonation. There really isn't much in terms of a head save for a thin white film and there is no lacing along the sides of the glass.

Aroma - Pungent citrus, mango and apricot notes with a slight hint of peach. I'm also getting some caramel & toffee maltiness which is backed up by some mild piney bitterness.

Taste - Apricot, Mango and Piney hop bitterness on the front of the palate. The bitterness in particular lingers throughout the taste with some toffee maltiness showing up on the back end of the palate along with the reappearance of some citrus notes paired with that piney bitterness.

I may be a little biased here but I love this beer, and the addition of Warrior & Zythos hops actually give this beer a lot more character than if it were just brewed with just Mosaic. If you're a fan of Mosaic Hops, you're obviously going to love this. If you're a fan of IPAs in general....I still you'll love this. Either way, it is most certainly worthy of your attention.

Revolution Mosaic Hero - 9.25/10

Revolution Anti-Hero IPA Review

Name: Revolution Anti-Hero IPA
Style: India Pale Ale
ABV: 6.5%
IBUs: 70

Moving on to my next beer in my Chicago beer mail, here's a beer that I actually remember having during my time in the Windy City. This is Revolution Brewing's Anti-Hero IPA and I sort of declare this to be my de facto IPA of Chicago. In the 3 years since I've had this beer, the label artwork is still the same with Hoptimum's eye-patched brother leading his paratroop hop brethren on the offensive.

As for the taste of the beer itself, my mind is a bit fuzzy in that regard aside from myself remembering that I liked it at the time of consumption. Thankfully there were 2 cans sent to me in this beer mail so it'll help jog my memory a bit.

Fun Fact: The stars on the hat and parachutes comes from the stars on Chicago's city flag.

Appearance - Fairly hazy bright orange color with a mild amount of visible carbonation. The head is quite foamy and there is a ton of lacing retention going on here.

Aroma - Strong mango & citrus notes upfront paired with some mild piney hoppiness. I'm also picking up on some solid caramelized maltiness, bitter hops and some mild yeastiness.

Taste - Right away, I'm getting a mix of strong citrus & floral hop notes, the former of which takes on a mango/apricot quality to it, with a slight hint of piney hop bitterness on the back end of the palate. The caramel malt backbone is reasonably strong here and some moderate bready-biscuit notes in here too. Aftertaste consists mostly of caramel malts with a hint of hop bitterness.

Anti-Hero manages to hit all the right notes in terms of what a traditional IPA should be and manages to find a great balance in the process. In short, this is what all IPAs should aspire to be. No it's not for beginners but not every beer needs to be, where's the fun in that? In short, this is a great IPA and any fan of the style owes it to themselves to try this out.

Revolution Anti-Hero IPA - 9.5/10

Revolution Oktoberfest Revolution Review

Name: Revolution Oktoberfest Revolution
Style: Oktoberfest/Märzen
ABV: 5.7%
IBUs: 25

After overdosing on Oktoberfest beers a couple years back, I deliberately avoided reviewing any Oktoberfest-style beers. I also did this because while I know Oktoberfest beers are insanely popular, to me it's one of the most boring styles of beer out there. To me, there just aren't many that seem to stand out amongst one another aside from a quality point of view. Now this year I have tried out a couple Oktoberfests that were surprisingly good to the point that I would go out of my way to try it again. Sadly one of these beers (Bauhaus Schwandtoberfest) is out of stock for the rest of the year.

Fear not, one of these other beers is the next beer in my Chicago craft beer care package. I give to you Revolution Brewing's Oktoberfest Revolution. Also I couldn't locate my beer mug for this review so this'll have to do for right now

Appearance - Fairly clear bright amber color with a moderate amount of visible carbonation. The head is nice & foamy and I am getting some spotty lacing along the sides of the glass.

Aroma - Toffee & Munich malts upfront along with some light chocolate notes. I'm also picking up on some light floral hop notes and some mild caramel sweetness.

Taste - Fairly reflective of those nose. Toffee & Munich malts upfront followed by some more chocolate notes. There's those light floral hops in here along with some light caramel sweetness and a hint of graininess.

As I said earlier, I'm not huge into Oktoberfest beers by any means but I found this to be quite good...and tasty for that matter. If every Oktoberfest beer out there had as much effort put into it as Oktoberfest Revolution, I would have a much different opinion on the style. To those who have immediate access to Revolution's beer, you owe it to yourself to try this out.

Revolution Oktoberfest Revolution - 8.5/10

Surly Wet (2015) Review

Name: Surly Wet (2015)
Style: India Pale Ale
ABV: 7.5%
IBUs: 90

It's been two years since we saw the last release of Surly Wet, Surly's annual Wet Hop IPA release. We missed out last year because of the expansion that Surly was undergoing with the construction of their now-open destination brewery. So this year it's back and this time around it's brewed with all Simcoe wet hops.

When I last had this in 2013, I was somewhat disappointed by what I got because it felt very underwhelming for a wet hop IPA. At the time, I defended Surly on the account that there was some hop supply issues that year but still gave it a less-than-desireable score. Based on what I've heard this year, the reaction has been mixed to say the very least. I will be the one (well not really) to make that call.

Appearance - A clear golden color with a fairly high amount of visible carbonation. The head is nice and foamy and there's some pretty decent lacing along the sides of the glass.

Aroma - Fairly pungent citrus aroma with some light herbal notes. I'm getting a fairly solid caramel malt backbone, some light yeastiness and maybe just a hint of piney dankness.

Taste - Citrus and bitter notes upfront followed by some more herbal notes and light dankness, all of which is backed up by a caramel malt backbone, which is more prevalent here than in the nose. Still, it doesn't quite have that totally fresh hop feel to it and I can't help but feel there's a light chalky quality to the overall flavor.

Surly Wet is one of those beers that could really use a hug right about now. I mean, what happened? Back in 2011 & 2012 (which was also brewed with all-Simcoe hops), this beer was awesome and it tasted 100% fresh. Looking back, this year's release has some of the same problems I saw in 2013. The flavor isn't as vibrant as it once was and it doesn't have that totally fresh feel to it; Bear in mind there is some freshness in here but it's severely underwhelming.

I mentioned earlier I defended Surly over the previous Wet offering due to supply issues but I feel this time around there was little heart in making this beer and it somehow manages to come off as even more disappointing than 2013's release. My advice would be to hold off on buying this and just wait for Abrasive to roll out.

Surly Wet (2015) - 7/10

Revolution Fist City Review

Name: Revolution Fist City
Style: American Pale Ale
ABV: 5.5
IBUs: 40

Next beer in my Chicago beer mail comes from Revolution Brewing, a brewery which I have heard of before and recall having one of their beers at Cheesie's a couple years back. As to which beer it was, I do not know since I had not yet discovered the awesomeness that is Untappd.

For this review, I've got their weirdly named Fist City, which is an American Pale Ale. I'm guessing the name is to keep in line with their anarchy image and since a fist is used in a lot of their beer can artwork, I guess it makes sense. Or they could be fans of Loretta Lynn, who happens to have a chart topping song called Fist City (Yes that's true, Google it if you don't believe me.) Still though, I'm not sure if that would've been my first choice of a name but who am I to judge?

Appearance - Fairly hazy dark yellow color with a moderate amount of visible carbonation. The head is pretty foamy and has some decent retention for the most part and the lacing is pretty good as well with a medium amount left behind.

Aroma - Citrus & grapefruit notes with a slight hint of pineiness mixed in with a light toffee malt scent. For an APA, it smells surprisingly sweet.

Taste - Citrus hops with some light floral hoppiness that are almost herb-like in quality. I am getting a slight resin kick on the front of the tongue too. The latter half of the flavor is where I am starting to pick up on some yeastiness & that somewhat heavy toffee malt backbone; Although I am getting some stronger bitter hoppiness in the back as well.

I'm having a hard time deciding if I want to call this an IPA or an APA. On one hand, it doesn't quite have that hop-omph that IPAs possess but at the same time, it doesn't quite have that strong yeasty/malty flavor element to make it an APA. Either way you look at it, you're getting a great beer and one that's worth check out.

Revolution Fist City - 8.5/10

Slapshot Mosaic Madness Review

Name: Slapshot Mosaic Madness
Style: India Pale Ale
ABV: 5.5%
IBUs: 48

I recently recieved a beer mail that contains mostly Chicago beers, which is where I used to live about 3 years ago. While I was there, I never really got to quite appreciate all the wonderful beer that was offered there so I'm making up for that in the form of this package, which I got courtesy of Stefan from Chicago; You rock, Stefan! With that said, I'll be busy with this for a while.

The first beer I will be looking at comes from Slapshot Brewing Company, a brewery which I never knew about until....well opening this package. I give to you Mosaic Madness, a session IPA brewed with Mosaic hops. Though I do find the term "session" a bit too underwhelming when you consider that the beer is 5.5% ABV.

Appearance - A hazy yellow color with a mild amount of visible carbonation. The head is nice and foamy though with some great retention with some equally abundant & sticky lacing.

Aroma - Rich citrus and mango fruitiness paired with some toffee maltiness and just a slight hint of bitter notes.

Taste -  Pretty similar to the nose. You got that nice citrus and mango fruitiness upfront with some toffee maltiness with some more citrus sweetness in the middle before ending with a yeasty and bitter finish. The aftertaste consists of light mango and bitter hoppiness.

For a session IPA, there is a ton going on here. It's got a simple yet vibrant flavor profile for a session IPA but it has plenty to offer to seasoned IPA fans at the same time. If you're ever in the Chicago area, this is one that is definitely worth seeking out.

Slapshot Mosaic Madness - 8.5/10

Southern Tier Pumking Review

Name: Southern Tier Pumking
Style: Pumpkin Beer
ABV: 8.6%
IBUs: 25

Ever have one of those times where you could've sworn you did something and convince yourself that actually did it....when in all reality you didn't? Well that's the case with Southern Tier Pumking. You see a couple years back when I was living in Duluth, I reviewed a wide array of beers and in that whirlwind of fermented goodness, some beers fell through the cracks.

During the Fall of 2013, I had Pumking a couple times in the form of a bottle and I recall taking notes on this beer. However for reasons I cannot explain, those notes and the photo I thought I took of this beer vanished completely. Whatever the case, Pumking usually comes out right around the changing of the guard of the summer and fall seasons. It's also an incredibly strong beer, coming in at 8.6% ABV.

Appearance - Fairly clear orange color with a mild amount of visible carbonation. There really isn't too much in terms of a head through after the initial pour, with it briefly taking on a fizzy white appearance and there is no lacing left behind.

Aroma - Pie crusts, pumpkin spice, candy corn with some light floral notes and a hefty amount of toffee maltiness. I guess I've never noticed this before but it reminds me of a homebrew I had a couple years back that was actually made with pumpkin pie.

Taste - Strong pumpkin spice and pie crusts upfront. Getting some more of that candy corn and some cinnamon and nutmeg, which is more in the middle. In the end, it's more cinnamon, potent vanilla, light floral hops and a solid toffee malt backbone.

It may not be the most aesthetically pleasing beer out there but it more than makes up for it in the flavor and aroma. There are many pumpkin beers that come out every year but it's easy to see why this continues to be a crowd favorite amongst beer drinkers out there. Some will be turned off by the sheer sweetness of this beer, but I like this beer and you probably should too.

Southern Tier Pumking - 9/10

Fulton HefeWheaties Review

Name: Fulton HefeWheaties
Style: Hefeweizen
ABV: 4.7%
IBUs: 21

Wheaties. The Breakfast of Champions. It is also one of the most well known cereals in the world, which just so happens to be manufactured by General Mills right here in Minnesota. So I give to you what is perhaps the most Minnesotan beer ever that doesn't use the usual staples of Minnesotan culture (Hotdish, Minnesota Nice, etc.). I give to you HefeWheaties from Fulton Brewing.

Contrary to what the name says, there were no actual Wheaties used in the brewing process but it's called such because one of the owners of Fulton was a former employee of General Mills. I'm going to assume that General Mills was cool enough to let Fulton use the Wheaties name for their beer.

Appearance - Very hazy wet straw color with some very mild visible carbonation. The head is quite foamy with some so-so retention, but the lacing is nice & abundant.

Aroma - Mostly light wheat notes with some pale maltiness. I'm also getting a fair amount of bitter hoppiness in here as well but nothing that I would consider to be overpowering & a good amount of cereal grains.

Taste - I'm getting some nice malted wheat notes upfront along with a slight hint of banana. I am picking up on some bitter hoppiness, especially on the back end of the palate. There's also a decent amount of pale malts in here too. The aftertaste has some bitter hoppiness with some pale malts.

I would honestly classify more as a Pale Wheat Ale more than a Hefeweizen just based on the flavor. However I would have no problem recommending this either way. Some people will be disappointed by the fact that it doesn't taste like Wheaties, to which I say, go eat a box of it if you want to actual thing

Fulton HefeWheaties - 8/10