267. MacTarnahan’s – Summer Grifter India Pale Ale IPA
Jan23

267. MacTarnahan’s – Summer Grifter India Pale Ale IPA

When I went to Oregon for my Brewmaster Cuisinternship this summer, I asked my friend Betty to send back several bottles I got while at Full Sail.  When shipping the bottles back for me, she slipped this one in along with them.  I think she’s a fan of MacTarnahan’s since she brought out their Amber Ale when we went to lunch in Portland, and she sent me a bottle of their Winter Hum Bug’r Porter as a pay off on a bet. ...

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263. Stone – Stone IPA India Pale Ale
Jan13

263. Stone – Stone IPA India Pale Ale

As I mentioned a few months ago, a friend from San Diego mailed me three Stone beers for my challenge (Thanks again David!).  This one was hiding in the back of the beer fridge, because I was really looking forward to it.  I wanted to make sure it would be enjoyed at a time when I could really savor it.  Especially after having the Ruination, I was excited to get a chance to try this one. Numbers: 6.9% ABV, 70 IBUs Appearance &...

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260. Avery – duganA IPA Draft
Jan10

260. Avery – duganA IPA Draft

I’m at Fat Jack’s tonight for our monthly ABNormal Homebrewers meeting.  While we’re discussing English Pale Ales at the meeting tonight, I thought I’d kick it off with something fairly flavorful and big.  I’ve liked almost everything I’ve had from Avery so I took a low risk and went for this one. Numbers: 8.5% ABV, 93 IBUs, 1.076 O.G., Hops – Chinook, Centennial and Columbus, Malts –...

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254. Potosi Brewing – Potosi Snake Hollow India Pale Ale IPA
Jan04

254. Potosi Brewing – Potosi Snake Hollow India Pale Ale IPA

I’ve mentioned in a couple previous reviews that my friend Jim took a trip to Wisconsin and brought several beers back for me to try.  This was one of a few he brought me from Potosi brewing, in Potosi, WI. Numbers: 7% ABV, 70 IBUs Appearance & Aroma: This was golden yellow and extremely clear with a decent sized, bright white, foamy head, which left some nice lacing on the glass.  There appeared to be plenty of carbonation...

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249. Rogue Ales – Yellow Snow IPA Draft
Dec29

249. Rogue Ales – Yellow Snow IPA Draft

I’m at our ABNormal Brewers steering meeting again tonight, and that’s another chance to try a new brew here at Fat Jack’s in downtown Bloomington.  There are a few beers on tap that I haven’t had yet, so I thought I’d go for this one first… mainly because I kind of liked the name of it. As you would expect, it was golden yellow in color and was clear.  There was a soapy-looking foam head, and there...

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248. Stone – Ruination IPA India Pale Ale
Dec28

248. Stone – Ruination IPA India Pale Ale

As I mentioned a few months back, a friend of mine sent me several Stone beers from San Diego.  I’ve really been looking forward to these, but unfortunately, they got caught in the back of the beer fridge, so I thought it was time to break them out.  I won’t list what the entire back of the bottle says (I posted it in the photo below), but here’s a little piece, “Stone Ruination IPA. So called because of the...

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237. Uncle Buck’s Brewery & Steakhouse – Captain’s Choice IPA Draft
Dec16

237. Uncle Buck’s Brewery & Steakhouse – Captain’s Choice IPA Draft

I’m traveling for work today, and will be right around the Dallas Fort Worth Airport (DFW) the entire 21 hours we’ll be in Texas.  We arrived around 5:30 pm, and as Steve, my co-worker, and I have traveled together quite a bit, the first thing he did was search for the nearest brewpub to our location.  He found Uncle Buck’s Brewery & Steakhouse just north of the airport in Grapevine, TX.  It’s in a huge...

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231. Boulevard Brewing – Single-Wide IPA India Pale Ale
Dec06

231. Boulevard Brewing – Single-Wide IPA India Pale Ale

When I got back to the hotel, I thought I’d hop on the computer and get some work done, and what’s better than a good beer while working.  Right across the street from the hotel was a gas station, and found at least this one beer that I could add to my list.  The bottle says, “Bottle conditioned: In time honored brewing tradition we’ve added a small amount of yeast to this bottle just before packaging to...

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226. Flying Dog – Snake Dog IPA India Pale Ale Draft
Dec01

226. Flying Dog – Snake Dog IPA India Pale Ale Draft

I stopped at Medici in Normal to grab a beer and get my final punch on my Wednesday Warriors card.  On Wednesday, they have $3 pints, and after 10 Wednesday visits you become a warrior.  That means you get a t-shirt – although I didn’t get one because they had run out of XLs – your beer is served in a mug, and you get invited to their end of the year party.  Besides getting the final punch on my ticket, it’s...

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225. Mikkeller – Centennial Single Hop IPA Draft
Dec01

225. Mikkeller – Centennial Single Hop IPA Draft

As I mentioned in my last post, I’m at Fat Jack’s in downtown Bloomington for our ABNormal homebrew club steering meeting.  It’s the first meeting of our new board, and I’m still VP.  The nice thing about meeting at Fat Jack’s is the opportunity to try a few new beers.  They usually have a decent selection, even if it is getting tougher to find beers I haven’t tried yet.  The nice thing about the...

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223. Sierra Nevada – Torpedo Extra IPA
Nov30

223. Sierra Nevada – Torpedo Extra IPA

Things have been tremendously crazy lately.  As I mentioned in my review of Schlafly Winter ESB, my mom had emergency heart surgery and has been in the hospital.  Due to some blood clots, she went back in.  Upon being released, my grandmother stopped by to visit her and was killed in a car accident while leaving my parents house.  It’s been a difficult time, so tonight, I wanted to just sit back, relax a bit in front of the...

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172. Odell Brewing – IPA Draft
Sep16

172. Odell Brewing – IPA Draft

We had a very long day today in Colorado – going from Denver, up to Boulder and the 4 Mile Canyon wildfire, then up to Greely, over to Loveland, and then near the Denver airport for the evening.  After a day like that, I was ready to have a big bison burger at Ted’s Montana Grill and put down some good beers.  Since I had a chance to try Odell’s St. Lupulin Extra Pale Ale, which was very nice, I thought I’d...

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