Bell's Two Hearted Ale

-On the Label-
"An Indian Pale Ale style well suited for adventurous trips to the Upper Peninsula. American malts and enormous hop additions give this beer a crisp finish and an incredibly floral hop aroma."

-From the Brewer-
"Bell's Two Hearted Ale is defined by its intense hop aroma and malt balance. Hopped exclusively with the Centennial hop varietal from the Pacific Northwest, massive additions in the kettle and again in the fermenter lend their characteristic grapefruit and pine resin aromas. A significant malt body balances this hop presence; together with the signature fruity aromas of Bell's house yeast, this leads to a remarkably drinkable American-style India Pale Ale."

-Tasting Notes-
The Two Hearted Ale opens with a orange-gold color with yellow highlights. There's a hazy depth to the coloring that helps in making a well-rounded presentation of high and low lights. The depth and the haze gives the impression of a tornado-like presence in the center of the glass. The hue is rather characteristic of an IPA. The head starts as a foamy, fluffy cream-beige, but withers to a veil that leaves a dense foam residue on the glass.

The aroma is pleasant and floral with a surprising malted sweetness. The nose is lacking the oft-aggressive characteristic hop nose that most IPA's begin with. Instead the nose is dense with smooth, almost soft, grapefruit and pine tones, but the malt does wonders to quell and dampen the potential hop-harshness. The gentle aroma has a light nose-feel, but is airy and can be picked up from a distance.

The flavoring of the Bell's Two Hearted Ale starts soft and almost feels small and reserved, another uncharacteristic note. The hop-usage presents itself through a rather sweet pine with earthy notes that lack any bitterness at all. The malt helps to cover and transition the hops. This keeps the hop flavor short and allows the finish to have more of an outright crispness.

The medium-bodied flavor is smooth, but after a while a bitterness does arrive. Although it's difficult to complain about it as it lasts only a second or two. There is a period of time, when the bitterness peeks through, that the hop and malt flavors tend to wash away and become slightly watery. However, as the Two Hearted Ale warms, the flavor changes, it becomes more floral with citrus tones and finishes with a stronger, smoother malting with sweet caramel hints.

The beer is drinkable and enjoyable, sure, but there is nothing overly memorable about it. It's not forgettable, but the Two Hearted Ale tends to play it safe. It's non-aggressive and sweet, almost residing in a comfort zone. But whether or not it really needs to push the boundaries to make it an outstanding craft brew or make a memorable impression is more subjective and less make-or-break.

This beer is interesting and a bit off-axis in terms of what one would expect from an IPA. The coloring is characteristic, but the aroma and the flavoring are softer, sweeter and gentler than most. There are beers that are good all the way through, uninterrupted. There are transitions that the Bell's Two Hearted Ale goes through that are uncharacteristic but enjoyable. Still, pairing it with some strong, bold-flavored foods is, perhaps, the best way to re-experience the start of the beer over and over again. That said, the Two Hearted Ale is almost like a childhood choose-your-own-adventure type experience, as interacting with it in different ways sculpts the outcome.

-Stats-
Style: American India Pale Ale (IPA)
ABV: 7.0%
Gravity: 1.064° Plato

-Hops-
Centennial Hops

-Consumption-
Pour into a Nonic (pictured), Tulip or Pint Glass, but it's great just out of the bottle as well.

-Pairing-
The fantastic drinkability of the Bell's Two Hearted Ale means you can drink in it almost any situation, with any kind of food. IPA's are best with spicy or bold flavored foods, but typically go best with Thai, Indian or Korean dishes.

Founders All Day IPA

-Brewer's Words-
"The beer you've been waiting for. Keeps your taste satisfied while keeping your senses sharp. An all-day IPA naturally brewed with a complex array of malts, grains and hops. Balanced for optimal aromatics and a clean finish. The perfect reward for an honest day's work and the ultimate companion to celebrate life's simple pleasures."

-Terminology-
The term "Session Ale" follows from a British drinking paradigm, effectively being able to drink a particular beer all day, or during a session, without becoming intoxicated. Typical session beers have an ABV between 4.0% and 5.0%.

-Tasting Notes-
The All Day IPA presents a soft golden honey color that is accented by pale hints of oranges and yellows. The consistency is slightly hazy and, if held in the right light, some subtle traces of sediment can be glimpsed near the top of the beer, often suspended in their own barely perceptible Milky Way. The head is a near-white film that leaves no webbing during consumption, it effectively leaves a quasi-clean glass behind.

The aroma is pleasant with floral and citrus hops. The nose has a fairly noticeable grapefruit body with hints of lemon. But a closer or deeper examination reveals some malty undertones. The scent is light and airy, thin even. The aroma is short-lived but is incredibly welcoming.

The first taste starts with a pronounced and rather unexpected crispness of hops. The flavoring is, perhaps uncharacteristically, less hops and more smoothness. The hops notes are less floral at the start, and more of an earthy, thick pine. Interestingly, there isn't much in terms of bitterness, instead it's refreshing. In fact, the only reason one may become aware of the bitterness is by taking note of the lack of bitterness.

The All Day IPA has a light-bodied mouthfeel that is almost, for lack of a better term, watery. That doesn't mean this beer is watered-down, it's just missing the bitterness that one often equates with a nicely hopped IPA. After a while, the hop-flavoring turns away from pine and starts to align with the floral and citrus nose. In essence, it becomes more colorful. If there was any discernible bitterness before, it practically disappears. The tongue starts to pick up a tartness that continues to linger for a while, but it's quite non-intrusive.

The hops prevail, morph and ride a surreptitious wave of malt undertones. The tartness, perhaps an effect of the surprising crispness, continues throughout, while the bitterness is rolled over and tucked away by the floral and citrus hop notes and the malt body.

This is a simple beer that is surprisingly refreshing and relaxing. As a Session Ale it's been designed to be enjoyed, multiple times in a row, all day. It would come as no surprise that one would chose to drink and enjoy the All Day IPA one day, and then the next day, and probably even the day after that. It may be a mild IPA in terms of hop-presentation, but lack of the characteristic hop-aggression makes this IPA easy-going, relaxed and refreshing. A great beer for a hot summer's day, or after a long day of work, or at a day-long tailgate, or day spent on the hot sands of a beach or after a long bike ride. There really isn't a time when one couldn't drink this beer.

-Stats-
Style: American India Pale Ale (IPA)
ABV: 4.7%
IBU: 42

-Consumption-
Pour into a Nonic (pictured), Tulip or Pint Glass... or just leave it in the bottle.

-Pairing-
The abundance of hops in IPA's make them great beers to drink when eating spicy and boldly flavored foods. The hop flavors in IPA's also act as an effective palate cleanser and can give the tastebuds a much welcomed reprieve from the flavors typically found in Indian, Korean and Thai dishes.

Brooklyn Black Chocolate Stout

-On the Label-
"In the last century, British brewers made strong stouts for the Czar's Court. They were called Imperial Stouts. Our Black Chocolate Stout, brewed once yearly for the winter season, achieves a chocolate aroma and flavor through the artful blending of six varieties of black, chocolate and roasted malts."

-Brewer's Words-
"This is the famous Brooklyn Black Chocolate Stout, our award-winning rendition of the Imperial Stout style, once made exclusively for Catherine the Great. We use three mashes to brew each batch of this beer, achieving a luscious deep dark chocolate flavor through a blend of specially roasted malts. We brew it every year for the winter season. It is delicious when newly bottled, but also ages beautifully for years."

-Tasting Notes-
Black is a really great word for this beer. There isn't really any other way of describing it, other than to say that the blackness, the darkness, is so deep it almost seems never-ending. No discernible traces of ambient light can be detected around even the furthest edges of the beer.

A creamy tan colored head, with initial notes of dirty brown, works to ease and soften the potential anxiety that may have been instilled by glimpsing the total darkness of the coloring. The foaming subsides quickly and into a thin, wispy swirl on the top of the beer. Minimal webbing remains as the Black Chocolate Stout is consumed. Webbing isn't the right descriptor for what remains, it's less like traditional webbing and more... amoeboid.

There is a strong aroma from this Imperial, it's even detectable across the table. The first scents to present themselves aren't chocolates at all, but aggressive malts and coffees. Deeper sampling reveals notes of smokey peats and even the slightest note of nuttiness. The nosefeel is a light-medium, not heavy or thick. The feel is likely inconsistent with what one may think is a characteristic nose for an Imperial Stout, which may usually present as heavy, thick and almost humid.

The flavors and presentation are likely to deter the new craft beer drinker. There is a strong, upfront, almost assaulting bitterness at the first taste. One may think that this would be sweet with chocolate and malt, but no chocolate is ultimately noticed at first, mostly strong black coffees and even stronger, robust malts. The mouthfeel of the beer is almost secondary to the strong initial flavor; it's, again, a light-medium feeling that flows across the mouth with ease. The initial taste envisages a feeling of hardness, but after a bit the soft tones of the malt take over. They smother and smooth away the bitterness, the hardness gives way to softness.

Once the mouth has adjusted, the subsequent tastes reveal much more chocolate, and ever less bitterness. Again though, if you're looking for sweetness when you think chocolate, you're in the wrong place. This is a dark chocolate lovers dream, bitter with loads of chocolate, roasted malts and coffees with hints of caramel. At the end, the last sip, the last morsel, the bitterness is gone and, in all it's glory, all that is left is full-bodied flavors that really wrap your tongue in a blanket while notes of chocolate continue to kick it while it's down. That's not to say that the flavors are aggressive, even at the very end of the beer, but to say that as you drink this down, more flavors, different flavors, show themselves.

Calling this a strong stout is certainly accurate. Some may think that the higher alcohol content would make the Black Chocolate Stout rather hard to drink, but the work of the incredible flavors do a great job of confusing and masking the alcohol. One could not be faulted for feeling that the mouth- and nosefeel are more consistent with a Strong Porter and not a heavier, more meaty, Imperial Stout. But, that lighter presentation and interaction make this beer more approachable, more drinkable and easier to be friends with. The Black Chocolate Stout really is the perfect accompaniment for a dessert of equally full-bodied flavors after a heavy holiday meal. It's a good sleep-inducer.

This is an excellent beer, full stop. Some will be turned away by the initial bitterness--which, again, dissipates greatly from start to finish. Those more experienced will know that regardless of the beer, a tempering of the palate is always needed in the beginning. Make sure you enjoy it; sample chocolates, coffees and strong cheeses between tastes. And follow your doctor's orders: drink only one a day.

-Stats-
Style: American Imperial Stout (Double Stout)
ABV: 10.0%
IBU: 51
Gravity: 21.7° Plato

-Malts-
American Two-Row Pale Malt
Caramel Malt
Malted Wheat
Blended American Roasted Malts and Barleys

-Hops-
Willamette Hops
American Fuggle Hops

-Consumption-
Pour into a snifter glass, allow for thicker heads to wither to a semi-thin (<1/8") film.

-Pairing-
"Excellent with any chocolate desserts, cheesecakes, fruit tarts and ice cream. Also a very good accompaniment to strong cheeses."