Beer Review: Ballast Point Coconut Victory At Sea

While I have never been a huge coconut fan, I must admit that it has begun to grow on me through my findings of it being used in the beer world. And my beerventure with the 10% ABV and 60 IBU Coconut Victory At Sea from Ballast Point Brewing has added more to my liking of it. This Imperial Brown Porter does not hold back and provides all that one could pretty much expect. I won’t give too much away from my YouTube video review which you can see here, but just know for me that it is well deserving of the 4.75 out 5 which I rated it. Anyone that loves coconut, I think will dig this smooth and flavorful beer.

Brewery Links:

Ballast Point: https://www.ballastpoint.com/

Coconut Victory At Sea: https://www.ballastpoint.com/beer/victory-at-sea-with-toasted-coconut/

Beer Review: Avery Ale To The Chief | Special Four Year DIPA

Every four years, Avery Brewing releases one of their special ales called Ale to the Chief. This ale was created and dedicated to celebrate Inauguration Day and was originally brewed for January, 20 2009. I happened to stumble across this beer at one of my local beer stores and decided to this 8.1% ABV double IPA a go. The video highlights my look at this beer as well as my thoughts, which led me to provide a rating of 4.5 out of 5 for this tasty gem.

Brewery Links:

Avery Brewing: https://www.averybrewing.com/

Ale to the Chief: https://www.averybrewing.com/beers/ale-to-the-chief

Beer Review: Wooden Cask Reformation | Local Cincy Beer

Going local with this one as I was able to catch up with Randy Schlitz from Wooden Cask Brewing here in Newport Kentucky, and take a look at their Reformation Scottish Stout. This beer comes in with an ABV of 7% and 29 IBU, and is one that I have had in the past but had not been able to review. So it was nice that they went to bottling their beers in the last few months, which allowed me to bring one home for this look.

My review of the beer can be seen here on the YouTube video but in touching on a few of the highlights: the beer itself does provide a nice representation of the style. The color was where it needed to be although the head wasn’t as strong as it probably could have been. The body played nice and wasn’t really too thin and the flavor was solid overall. Carbonation wasn’t an issue as the beer did go down smoothly. Catch my video here to see more of my thoughts and as for my rating I rated this beer 3.25 out of 5 placing it just past my good level of 3. It didn’t knock me back, but I did enjoy it.

Brewery Links:

Wooden Cask Brewing Company: http://woodencask.com/

Wooden Cask Reformation (Located on Beers Page): http://woodencask.com/beers/

Homebrewing Tools From The Internet - Websites That I Like

I just thought that I would take a second to introduce some of the home brewing tools that are available online, which may help in the assistance of those in need when it comes to the making of beer. These are ones that I use when I want to check for what may be needed for the beers that I brew.

Sites Discussed:

Brewtoad: https://www.brewtoad.com/

Brewer's Friend: https://www.brewersfriend.com/

Brew Your Own: https://byo.com/

Just Beer: https://justbeerapp.com/

What's Next? How About A Return To A Little Homebrewing

So it's been a while and I decided to get back into making a little beer. A little while, like almost two years I think, lol, but anyway I decided to pickup some supplies that you can see here and look at making a batch in a return to my home brewing side. It should be interesting and fun.

Beer Review: Elysian Split Shot

The Split Shot from Elysian Brewing comes in as a nice representation of a sweet milk stout and proved to be a nice pick for my latest review. The ABV on this one was 5.6% which is decent enough and was coupled with a 28 IBU. Dark in color with good aromas coming off the ale made this one a delight for both. The taste was where it needed to be, but for me the big knock would be that it does have some thinness in its texture. Is that overall bad, not really but I like for my stouts to have a little more sturdiness. The thinness here played more like that of a porter for me but that being said, stouts really are just bigger porters so can’t fault them too much. This one just played like a middle brother rather than the big one. All in all, a pretty decent beer as for me I rated it 3.75 out of of 5 and would definitely drink it again.

Brewery Links:

Elysian Brewing Company: http://www.elysianbrewing.com/

Split Shot: http://www.elysianbrewing.com/elysian-beers/splitshot/

Tagged By Holly's Happy Hour - YouTube Subscriber Challenge

So, Holly of Holly's Happy Hour tagged me in this challenge that seems to be going around, and here is my response to the challenge which includes the following:

1. Name 3 YouTubers that have inspired you
2. Name 3 things you're good at
3. Name 3 things you're excited about
4. Tag 3 subscribers!

What did I say? Who did I tag? What the hell am I talking about? You will have to watch to see and find out...

Beer Review: Duvel Moortgat Duvel | Belgian Stong Golden Ale

Here is a look at the Duvel from Duvel Moortgat located in Puurs, Antwerpen Belgium, a brewery and a beer that has been around for a long time. This original namesake beer was created in the 1920’s following the winning of World War I when the original yeast strain was introduced and is still used today. At 8.5% ABV, this Belgian Strong Golden Ale is designed to be enjoyed over time and not to be rushed. See some notes below from my experience and watch my YouTube video to see my thoughts in more detail.

My experience with this one was once again, that of a pleasant one. The beer pours a lovely golden color and capped itself with a nice foamy white head that broke down easily over time. Aroma was not an issue as the notes easily climbed out of the glass and featured all of the characteristics that are usually enjoyed in a Belgian Ale. And as for taste, a nice effervesce was found as well as a nice sweetness from the malts. However, if there was one thing that detracted me on the beer then it would be the carbonation which was very lively to say the least. But that aside, the beer was still somewhat pleasurable for me as it has been in the past and still had a classic quality about it. My rating on this one was 3.5 out of 5 and has fallen some overt the years, as for me it seems time may have caught up to this one versus some of the other offerings now available.

Brewery Links:

Duvel Moortgat Website: http://www.duvel.com/en

Duvel Beer Link: http://www.duvel.com/en/the-beer/duvel

Beer Review: Charles Wells Young's Double Chocolate Stout

The Young’s Double Chocolate Stout from the Charles Wells Brewery located in Bedfordshire, England was the subject of this latest beerventure. Dark and chocolaty, this beer poured out in a nice shade of darkness capped by a nice but less than expected in size head. Aroma was good though, as the chocolate notes easily came out of the glass. The ABV of this stout was lower than what I usually prefer at 5.2% but with a beer like this, it is more often about that decadent dessert feel that you get from a sweet stout.

Speaking of which, the taste of the beer was as solid as I remembered, although there is that thinness of the texture which doesn’t always sit well with me for this style. The stout is essentially the porter’s big brother and should have with it a certain heartiness in my opinion, and although that comes through in the flavor and on the palate; it is the texture that I just find to be a little lacking. This may go to the timeliness of the beer as it hasn’t probably changed in quality, but other brewers with their offerings have just kind of pushed them back a bit in my opinion. With that all being said, it is still a decent beer which is why I rated it 3.5 out of 5. Check out my video here to see more, and to hear more of my in-depth thoughts on this offering.

Brewery Links:

Charles Wells Brewery: http://www.charleswells.co.uk/

Young’s Double Chocolate Stout: No website listing

Beer Review: Atwater Black & Cran | Roll Out The Barrel

A look at the Black & Cran from Atwater Brewery brought forth a Russian Imperial Stout that was fermented with cranberries and aged in Bourbon barrels. Coming in with an ABV of 9% and IBU level of 54, my interest was definitely peaked by this craft beer, so obviously I had to pick it up.

Dark in color with very little head, the beer provided a decent aroma. The taste was a little maltier than I expected especially on the initial, but the hoppiness did show up in the finish and the cranberries as well as the barrel aging were both detected pretty easily. Overall it was a good beer for me, which is why I graded it 3.25 out of 5 but check out my YouTube video below to gather more of the details on what I thought about this stout.

Atwater Brewery: http://www.atwaterbeer.com/

Atwater Black & Cran: No listing on the site at time of this post

Beer Review: Anderson Valley Barkley's Belgian Style Ale

My latest beerventure has provided me with the Barkley’s Belgian Style Ale from the solar powered Anderson Valley Brewing. This Belgian Strong Dark Ale comes in with an ABV of 9% however the IBU was unavailable. Anderson Valley really puts out some good beers so I was definitely looking forward to trying this one out, and I was not disappointed.

The appearance was solid as expected and like many of this style, there was no head to really to make mention of as it was very thin. However, the color carried a great darkish tone. But the aroma jumped off nicely as the dark fruits poured out without issue bringing notes of raisin, plum and licorice. I could have spent a good amount of time just smelling this for a period but the taste right, that is what we are really after.

The taste was smooth for me and I can see where this will be dangerous for some as the booziness is not really picked up in this one. And although it is a full body beer and does have some weight, the flavor just popped and I received a nice mouthfeel as well as mouthcoating from it. This beer is tasty indeed as it was able to get my whole mouth tingling. If you like Belgian style ale and especially the dark ale then this one is worth a try for sure. Check out my video here to get more details on this beer that I enjoyed and see why I rated it 4.5 out of 5 on my personal Untappd score. Cheers!

Anderson Valley Brewing: https://avbc.com/

Barkley’s Belgian Style Ale: No listing on site yet for this version