Deschutes Hop In The Dark Cascadian Dark Ale

Deschutes Brewery
Bend, OR

APPEARANCE: 2.75/3
Black opaque, like black coffee. Perfect head: rocky, fine bubbles, espresso-colored. Beautiful lacing.

AROMA: 3.25/4
Green-grassy with a hint of roast—like an espresso. Meadowy, with a hint of chocolate.

TASTE: 7.25/10
Hop/Malt Balance: 3/4: Sweet, grassy and biscuit, with a touch of coffee. Sweet cream up-front, fades to hop bitter. Nicely balanced.
Aftertaste: 2.25/3: Roast coffee aftertaste, some coffee. Subtle hop bitterness.
Mouth-Feel: 2/3: Light-bodied, smooth.

OVERALL: 2.25/3: It's good, a good example of the style. Would have liked to seen it a bit bigger. But good.

TOTAL: 15.5/20–Pour Me Another

NOTES:
Matt: Nicely done, and I'm a sucker for Cascade hops. I was expecting a bigger beer–in a 4-pack, I might have accepted it better. A sweet take on the style, and tasty.
Ben: Lighter-bodied than I expected. Roasty and hoppy, a good example of a black IPA. Tasty, lip-smacking, I'd buy it again.

Deschutes Hop Henge Experimental IPA

Deschutes Brewery
Bend, OR

APPEARANCE: 2.25/3
Cloudy orange-brown. Foamy, rocky head that lasts, laces nicely.

AROMA: 3/4
Sweet, malty but not a ton of hop nose. Bready, some pineapple. Touch of citrus, woody aroma.

TASTE: 8/10
Hop/Malt Balance: 3.5/4: Very nicely balanced. Sweet up front–bready, orange peel, brown sugar. Piney hop.
Aftertaste: 2.25/3: Nice hop bitterness at finish, subtle sour that lingers.
Mouth-Feel: 2.25/3: Bouncy, full but not cloying. Nicely carbonated. Maybe a bit chewy.

OVERALL: 2.5/3: A big beer, but not boozy. At 9% ABV, it's dangerously drinkable. More like a really good Imperial Pale Ale than an IPA.

TOTAL: 15.75/20–Pour Me Another

NOTES:
Matt: I'm a hophead, and this doesn't beat you over the head with hops—but I'm not complaining one bit. A big, smooth, tasty beer, well worth a try.
Ben: I would have liked more hop aroma; that said, I'd buy it again in a heartbeat.

Green Flash West Coast IPA

Green Flash Brewing Company
San Diego, CA

APPEARANCE: 2.25/3
Thick, rocky head with big bubbles. Gummy, floculent yeast (though Matt may have done a bad job pouring it). Orange-brown color. Not super-pretty, but head-lacing is very nice.

AROMA: 3.75/4
Hop! Piney-woody-meadowy, all at once. Heaven.

TASTE: 9.25/10
Hop/Malt Balance: 3.75/4: Mouthful o' hop. Lots of hop flavors. Nicely balanced. Woody, biscuit taste. Slight brown sugar.
Aftertaste: 2.75/3: Hop bitterness! Sits on back of tongue and lingers (for a while).
Mouth-Feel: 2.75/3: Very full. Smooth—easy drinking. A bit boozy for the ABV, but good.

OVERALL: 3/3: This is the perfect American IPA—phenomenal, the gold standard for the style. Great on tap, or in a bottle, or in a puddle on the floor which you would then shamelessly lick up—it's that good.

TOTAL: 18.25/20–Keep 'Em Comin'

NOTES:
Matt: The day Green Flash came to Kansas City, I was born again. A fantastic IPA, as good as it gets. You deserve an IPA this good.
Ben: This and Pliny are the top 2 IPAs in the known universe. If you see it on tap, don't dare pass it up!

Horizon Red Ale

Summit Brewing Company
St. Paul, MN

APPEARANCE: 2/3
Red-brown color. Foamy, creamy head. Steady stream of bubbles. Clean and clear.

AROMA: 2.75/4
Clean. Malty-sweet. Candy sugar, a touch of citrus and pineapple.

TASTE: 5.75/10
Hop/Malt Balance: 2.5/4: Woody. Nicely bittered, very malty up-front. Sweet malt that fades to bitter. No real hop flavor.
Aftertaste: 1.75/3: Bitterness up-front and at the end, and it lasts. Very bitter for the style.
Mouth-Feel: 1.5/3: A bit thin; chemical aftertaste.

OVERALL: 1.75/3
A mass-produced red, Minnesota's version of Boulevard. Not awful, kind of an interesting style, but not a great beer.

TOTAL: 12.25/20–I'll Try A Pint

NOTES:
Matt: Started okay and became less appealing as I drank it. Just can't get past the astringent chemical taste.
Ben: It's a red, and I'm not a big fan of reds. Definitely bitter, too much so for style. Don't go out of your way to try it.

Dundee Pilsner

Dundee Brewing Company*
Rochester, NY

APPEARANCE: 2/3
Pale straw color. Wispy head, fades fast. Very clear.

AROMA: 2.75/4
Very little aroma, hop or otherwise. Clean, like smelling a glass of water. Very subtle sweet cream.

TASTE: 5.25/10
Hop/Malt Balance: 2/4: No real hop flavor. Corny/grape nut taste.
Aftertaste: 1.75/3: Corny, nice bitter finish. Dry. Aftertaste fades quickly.
Mouth-Feel: 1.5/3: Thin, needs more body to offset bitterness.

OVERALL: 1.5/3
It's a step up from Bud Light. Definitely a pils, fairly true to style. Needs more body–a so-so pils.

TOTAL: 11.5/20–Anything Else On Tap?

NOTES:
Matt: Not awful, could be worth buying, depending on Trader Joe's price point. Not a great pils, though–the bitterness is nice, the body ain't.
Ben: Watery and thin, better than domestics, but if you're looking for a good pils, buy Boulevard.

* This is brewed by Gennessee. Not a great brew, by any means.

Dundee Kölsch-Style Ale

Dundee Brewing Company*
Rochester, NY

APPEARANCE: 2/3
Straw-gold, really clear. Thin, white head that fades (fast).

AROMA: 3/4
Clean. Sweet-cream, lager nose. Candy corn, faint honey notes.

TASTE: 6.75/10
Hop/Malt Balance: 2.75/4: Very malty. Honey notes, no hop flavor to speak of. Sweet cream, slight sour at middle. Corny, otherwise sweet.
Aftertaste: 2/3: Corny aftertast, subtle bitter finish that falls out fast.
Mouth-Feel: 2/3: Nice mouth-feel, not too thin. Lageresque, pils-like, but a bit fizzy.

OVERALL: 2/3
Pleasantly surprised (but our expectations were admittedly low). More pilsner than kölsch, not quite true to style, but adequate and drinkable.

TOTAL: 13.75/20–I'll Try A Pint

NOTES:
Matt: Another Trader Joe contract job, this time brewed by Gennessee (so no wonder it's reminiscent of Gennessee Cream Ale, which we like). Not bad.
Ben: Drinkable, light and clean—a good lawn-mowing beer. Is it a kölsch? I dunno—but I'd drink it again.

* This is brewed by Gennessee; evidently, Trader Joe's contract brews all their stuff. Some of it's lousy; this ain't bad.

Gubna Imperial IPA

Oskar Blues Brewing Company
Longmont, Colorado

APPEARANCE: 2.5/3
Hazy gold-brown, creamy white head that laces nicely..

AROMA: 3.5/4
Hoppy nose, very sweet aroma. Prune, raisin bread. Woody, very floral. Honey notes, lots of pineapple.

TASTE: 8/10
Hop/Malt Balance: 3.25/4: Tons of resinous hop. Sweet and bready, woody and grassy notes. Heavy pineapple, subtle apricot.
Aftertaste: 2.25/3: Alcohol aftertaste, bitterness at the back of the tongue that lasts. Very dry. Slight metallic tang.
Mouth-Feel: 2.5/3: Alcohol warming–tingly. Decently balanced, but mighty big; alcohol could be masked better.

OVERALL: 2.5/3
Definitely an Imperial IPA—lots of hop, appropriate body. Complex flavors, spiciness, alcohol warming. A little big for its britches is all.

TOTAL: 16.5/20–Pour Me Another

NOTES:
Matt: This is good–I think we wanted to like it more than we do (it's just a bit big). Still, hoppy, complex and tasty, so worth a try.
Ben: 10% ABV, in a can, no less! Maybe too big for a 12-oz. can—the presentation may be throwing me. A good imperial, a treat when you're on a rocky mountain high.*

*Yes, we know, this was terrible.