18. Faultline Brewing Co. – Best Bitter Draft
As I mentioned in my last review, it was a long, long day, so I ordered the next beer in anticipation of enjoying it with my meal. I ordered Faultline Brewing Company’s Best Bitter, which the menu says, is “an English style amber ale with sweet caramel malt flavors that yield to bitter hop flavors from a good dose of English hops. The Nitrogen/Carbon Dioxide blend gives this beer a creamy head and smooth...
17. Faultline Brewing Co. – Cask Conditioned IPA Draft
We’ve had a long, long day. We left Chicago at 7 a.m. this morning and have been working all day. We finally arrived at Faultline Brewing Company around 8 p.m. (Pacific Time, so that’s 10 p.m. Chicago time). It looked like a good place to eat, and it was a brewery, so I figured I couldn’t go wrong. Whenever I go to a brewpub, I always try to have what’s in the cask, so I ordered the cask conditioned IPA. ...
16. Michelob – Hop Hound Amber Wheat Ale
I’m getting ready to head out on the road again, and kept an eye on the kids while my wife ran to the grocery store. She returned with a 6-pack of Michelob’s Hop Hound Amber Wheat Ale. She’s a big fan of wheat beers, and I like amber ales, so she thought this might be one we’d both like. It was something we could share before I headed out, and I really appreciated the thought. First, the name is tremendously...
15. Mendocino Brewing – White Hawk Select IPA
It was good to be home for the weekend. The weather was fairly nice, partly cloudy and a bit cool. It was an afternoon that was calling for a nice IPA. As you can probably tell, I’ve got a sampler pack of Mendocino brews, so I decided to try their White Hawk Select IPA. According to their website, “White Hawk Original IPA has a rich distinctive hop character and bold malt flavor. This Select IPA has a unique aroma, a...
14. Molson Coors – Molson Canadian Lager
We stopped at the Fox Sports Sky Box in Chicago’s O’hare Airport for lunch. The selection of beers was pretty typical, but I tried to find one that might not be an obviously easy one to pick up along the way, so I ordered a Molson Canadian Lager. It wasn’t served with a glass, so I can’t comment exactly on the color or head, but, again, having had this before, I know it’s a pale yellow with a decent head....
13. Grupo Modelo – Negra Modelo Dark Ale
We finished up in McAllen, TX and decided to go out for a good Texas meal before leaving the state. We found a place down the street from our hotel called Republic of the Rio Grande. Even better, we found a nice spot on their patio, right next to the fountain. The beer list was mostly domestic drafts and some Mexican import bottles, so I ordered a Negra Modelo. The first tip that this may not be the best restaurant was when they...
12. BJ’s Brewhouse McAllen, TX – Jeremiah Red Irish Strong Ale Draft
After enjoying the Pale Ale, I thought I’d try another beer down the list, so I went with the Jeremiah Red Irish Strong Ale. The menu says it’s “A silver medal winner in strong ales at the 1996 Great American Beer Festival. This Irish-style strong ale is brewed with a secret blend of five imported specialty malts. Not too hoppy in order to emphasize the complex malt flavor and fruity aroma.” Location: On tap...
11. BJ’s Brewhouse McAllen, TX – Piranha Pale Ale Draft
Today we’re in La Joya and McAllen, TX and on our way back from our video shoot, we were ready to relax, have some lunch and a beer. On our way back to the hotel we passed BJ’s Brewhouse in McAllen. We circled around and headed there. When I go to a new brewpub, normally I like to try something unique. However, like most chain brewpubs, the beer menu was pretty safe… so in that case, I usually try the Pale Ale,...
10. AB-InBev – Ziegen Bock Draft
After having the Shiner Bock at lunch in the Houston Hobby Airport, we still had plenty of time to kill. The server mentioned the beers on draft, and the only one I didn’t recognize was Ziegen Bock. In all honesty, I had never even heard of it before, so I thought I’d give it a try. Only after I ordered it, was I able to check my iPhone to discover I had ordered an AB-InBev beer… but I guess it had to happen...
9. Spoetzl – Shiner Bock
You’ve heard the phrase, “When it Rome…” Well, this week I’m in Texas, and it seems that the beer of choice here is Shiner Bock, brewed by the Spoetzl Brewery in Shiner, Texas. They’ve been brewing this beer since 1913, almost as long as they’ve been in business. I wasn’t even until a few decades ago that Shiner began producing Bock year-round. Today 80% of the beer the Spoetzl...
8. Diageo – Smithwick’s Irish Ale Draft
I’m traveling for work right now, so this is the first draft beer I’ve reviewed. An Irish pub in the airport is pretty much a no brainer to pick up a beer when traveling. We hit the Tigin Irish Pub in the Dallas Fort Worth Airport, and along with my Smithwick’s, I had a pretty good steak sandwich. As you can tell, the Smithwick’s I had was brown in color – even though it said it was a red ale –...
7. Ballast Point – Calico Amber Ale
San Diego’s Ballast Point Brewing Company Calico Amber Ale carries a Great American Beer Festival Gold Medal logo from 2001. It says “it is brewed in the American Amber style. Full bodied and aromatic, it is brewed with six malts for a deep red color and full flavor.”. It also indicates it was a Gold Medal Winner at the World Beer Cup in 2002. As you can tell by the photo, it was over-carbonated, but on the bright...
