The label reads “We here at Jolly Pumpkin created this special blend of our Bam and Lambicus for our friends at Winking Lizard’s in celebration of their special anniversary” and features Bam, the Jolly Pumpkin mascot dog, a black cat and a lizard playing cards. I’ve been waiting for this since I heard of the release in late November when the ‘Beermeister’ of the Winking Lizard told me about this special project. Was the wait worth it? Is it a bet worth taking? Read on…
Fat Heads Head Hunter IPA is good. How good? Well, since it was first brewed in 2008, the beer has been called one of Draft Magazine’s top 25 beers in the world, racked up prestigious awards (including a silver medal at the Great American Beer Festival, first place in the National IPA championship and the gold at the West Coast IPA championship) and even earned a mention in a Sports Illustrated story. That’s the stuff of champions right there!
2010 was a great year for craft beer. It was also the year I launched this blog. As the year comes to a close, I want to look back at the 650 or so beers I tried and start an annual tradition by assembling a list for the best of the best. Whatever their differences, on thing is clear – all of these beers are amazing. Here’s my picks for the best new beers of 2010.
Since the announcement a few weeks ago that the long delayed Cleveland Beer Week mixed 12 pack would hit stores between Thanksgiving and Christmas, the Ohio Craft Brewers Association has done dark. Not an announcement, update, or even a peep. Since Christmas is tomorrow and this hasn’t made it to stores yet, I wanted to give the OCBA a gift, so I took a shot to help market the 12 pack for whatever season it does materialize in. NOTE – this is in good fun, please keep that in mind!
Here’s a run-down of what you can expect in the 12 pack that was supposed to be released for Cleveland Beer Week back in October. I got to preview all the beers on tap, so I give some background, raise some concerns about freshness, review the beers, and give a final recommendation. Please read this before you buy your 12 pack!
Part of the reason I love Blackout Stout so much is that each year a batch of this luxurious liquid makes its way into bourbon barrels, where it resets for months and soaks in fantastic wood, bourbon and vanilla flavors. The result is an amazing beer that’s released once a year with a celebratory party followed by a “public on-sale” at the Great Lakes Gift shop.
Normally things don’t work out well when a monster invades a city. But on Saturday October 23rd, Brewzilla attacked the beer lovers of Cleveland with a wonderful event that featured over 80 breweries and hundreds of kinds of beer. No, he didn’t come out of Lake Erie. Instead, Brewzilla assaulted us in the form of an overabundance of ale and lager.
Fifteen, count them, fifteen beers paired with Beer Engine Chef Greg Tushar’s innovative, beer-friendly dishes. The food and beer would be served in five flights, each with a theme and each with a story courtesy of Adam Avery himself. The sold-out crowd of explorers gathered and made our way to the Engine Room to begin what was sure to be an epic night of great beer, great stories and wonderful food!