Brooklyn Sorachi Ace

7.60% ABV

Ante up PorchDrinker, because today we have the Brooklyn Sorachi Ace on our table and it is…aces. Sorry, I had to. This delightful saison was intended for summers, but after its original warm-weathered debut, Brooklyn Brewery fans liked it so much, it worked its way off the seasonal list and onto the Brewmaster’s Reserve, offered year round. While I can see the summer appeal it is certainly a brew good for any season. However, The thing I like the most about this beer is that it has a little bit of everything, all rolled into one. (Yes, I did just accidentally slip into some Meredith Brooks lyrics there. I cringed for a second, but then I got over it. You will too.) This beer is somehow simultaneously crisp yet comforting, light but big, and strong but subtle. Basically, you’ve hit blackjack my friend. Read More

New Belgium Snapshot Wheat Release Party | Denver, CO

Denverites unite! It’s already been a few months since New Belgium Brewing’s new unfiltered wheat, Snapshot debuted on store shelves, but that doesn’t mean it’s too late to throw down in celebration of it’s official release. PorchDrinking will be on hand at Galvanize, located at 1062 Delaware St., to support our great friends at Artifact Uprising who have partnered with New Belgium Brewing and Imbibe Denver for Saturday night’s release party.

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Bell’s Hopslam: The Greatest Beer You May Not Be Able to Find

Bell’s Hopslam

ABV: 10%

IBU: 90+

Sometimes, the chase is all the fun. Anyone who has watched a sappy rom-com knows how this plays out – the pursuit becomes the fun becomes the commitment, and then the waffling suitor gets cold feet. No sooner than he can regret it, Logan Marshall-Green swoops in and before you know it, Hide & Seek is playing in slow-mo.  But what do you do when the object of your affection is no vexing vixen but a soapy seductress, a hoppy harlot, or a malty matron? We’re not talking about the 4:30 thoughts of a 5 o’clock cold one, this is serious: this is some Captain Ahab shit, and Bell’s Hopslam is my white whale.

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Southern Tier – Compass

ABV: 9%

IBU: Unavailable

2013 is almost over, and the next year is right around the corner. Whether you’re a fan of the holiday or not, New Year’s Eve brings an impetus to celebrate, and every celebration needs the perfect drink. If you want to mix up the cocktail options this December 31st, Southern Tier brings us what I consider to be the new (non-High Life) champagne of beers: Compass. Read More

Caldera Brewing Company – India Pale Ale

ABV: 6.1%

IBU’s: 94

Being the only hophead in the house, I volunteered to act as the guinea pig for Caldera’s India Pale Ale, one of the beers from my dad’s most recent Craft Beer Club shipment. On this gloomy fall day, the bright can in and of itself was just the pick me up I needed, not to mention the beer inside. Read More

Portland Fresh Hop Festival Review

Few things get me more excited than fresh hop season in Oregon.  When I moved to Portland in 2010, I went to many of the medium to large-size summer … Read More

Wet Hop Dream – Fresh Hopped Red IPA

As late August and early September hit, I begin to dream about Wet/Fresh Hop ales. Over 2 years ago I decided that I would take this passion for wet/fresh hop ales into my own hands. I planted my own hops and in turn would brew my own wet/fresh hop ale. The first year the hops grew rapidly and produced a good amount of Chinook, Cascade, and a small amount of Nugget. My girlfriend Lynn and I brewed a fresh hopped pale ale that was a hit at our Halloween party. The second year did not fare so well for our hops as they were attacked by some killer aphids. Our dreams were crushed as we were unable to harvest any hops. Going into 2013 I was very excited once again as the prospect of having fresh hops was on my mind. Read More

Stone Brewing Company – RuinTen IPA

ABV: 10.8%

IBUs: 110

Our awesome founder Tristan Chan came to the great state of Ohio over Labor Day weekend for the Gentlemen of the Road Stopover in Troy, and with him he brought a suitcase full of beer. I mean, would any of us expect anything less? His only requirement was that I write up a review on the bomber (22 fluid ounces) Stone RuinTen IPA, so here I am. Read More

Elysian Brewing Company – Avatar Jasmine IPA

ABV: 6.3% IBU: 45 What a shocker: Erin is reviewing another IPA! Dear PorchDrinkers, I promise this one is different. Though I am a lover of the hoppiest of beers, … Read More

Epic Brewing – Escape to Colorado IPA

Epic Brewing – Escape to Colorado IPA

ABV: 6.2%
IBU: 55

Epic Brewing out of Salt Lake City, UT will open it’s second location in Denver in a little over a month.  We’ll have more on that soon, but in honor of their arrival to the Mile High City, they released four Colorado inspired brews last month.

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Flying Dog – Single Hop Series: Citra

Flying Dog – Single Hop Series: Citra

ABV: 10%

IBU: 70

One of the best places to enjoy fun new brews in Washington, DC is Pizzeria Paradiso. This week, I … Read More

Homebrewing: Make a Hop Statement

Trying to keep up with the ever-popular double, triple and imperial IPAs is no easy task. It seems like every time you turn around some brewery is adding a new face-melting IPA to their line-up or collecting accolades for an exceptional year-rounder. So how do these breweries impart those incredible hop flavors and aromas in their beer and what can I do to make a better homebrewed IPA? In this weeks’ homebrew column, Homebrewing: Make a Hop Statement I’m going to share some of my favorite hopping techniques and the reasons behind using them.
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Alltech’s Lexington Brewing and Distilling Co. – Kentucky IPA

Alltech’s Lexington Brewing and Distilling Co. – Kentucky IPA

ABV: 6.5%

IBU: 70 (I couldn’t actually find a reliable source for this, so I ball parked.)

Alltech is responsible for quite a bit of growth in Central Kentucky, not to mention the first contributor to the advent of the Lexington, Kentucky craft beer spring. For years, there were very few local craft brews available in Central Kentucky. Alltech seized this opportunity and in 1999 released what is now a staple across the state: Kentucky Ale. Soon the brewery released yet another delicious creation: Kentucky Bourbon Barrel Ale. This beer combined the signature Kentucky Ale with the flavor of Kentucky Bourbon (by aging for 6 weeks in bourbon barrels), yielding a delicious, slightly sweet, and highly potent brew (about 9% abv).

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Homebrew: Growing Your Own Hops

If you’re already brewing your own beer, you’re probably like me. You care about quality products and aren’t afraid to try doing it on your own and dabbling in new things. I love to cook extravagant meals and have dabbled in building furniture (including boss kegerators), growing a vegetable garden and growing my own hops.

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Homebrew: Developing Your Recipe

While following clone recipes and recipes produced by others is a great way to get started and master your specific equipment, developing your own recipes is where the beauty of brewing really begins. The process of creating  a beautiful masterpiece and sharing something that is solely your own with friends and family is incredibly exciting. Other than ‘saving money’ which, lets be honest is not true at all, we want to make something that we’re proud to call our own. That is the joy of homebrewing. This weekend I will be brewing an IPA and want to share my methodology in hopes that it will help in developing your recipe. Read More

Dogfish Head/Sierra Nevada – Rhizing Bines

Dogfish Head/Sierra Nevada Rhizing Bines

ABV: 8%

IBUs: 70

Rhizing Bines is the delightful product of a mind meld between the kings of innovative hopping processes: Delaware’s Dogfish Head and California’s Sierra Nevada. What happens when two craft brew heavyweights from each coast combine their powers for good? Well, pretty fantastic beer, of course. This Imperial IPA is the second installation in these breweries collaborations, the first of which – the dark, maple brewed “Life & Limb” – debuted in 2009. Though I feel that more diehard hops fans will be left wanting for a bigger punch of bitterness, this is a beer that will please even those on the fence about IPAs. Read More

Three Floyds Brewing Co. | Zombie Dust

ABV: 6.4 | IBU: 60

3 Floyds Brewing Co.’s Zombie Dust has become the only beer I MUST track down any time I’m back home in Kentucky, or fortuitously find myself … Read More

12 Beers of Christmas | Day 11: Boulevard Nutcracker

This beer pours a deep, dark brown almost black, Smells of roasted malt, coffee, and light herbaceous hops. The label says it’s a fresh hopped Winter Warmer, but the only … Read More

Hoppy IPA Day

Hoppy International IPA Day!  We, here at PorchDrinking, love us some myrcene & lupulin, so we would like to list some IPAs for … Read More

Hop into Summer with Zommerhop

Zommerhop –  Brouwerij de Molen from the Netherlands

Style: American IPA

ABV:6.2%

IBU:42

Hops: Permiant and Sazz for bittering. Columbus and Cascade for aroma and flavor.

Background: Summer has hit and … Read More