- Buzz on Beer -

Drew - Big Sky’s Summer Honey: Big Sky Brewery continues to impress me with their beers. All of them have a distinct and unique taste that separate themselves from typical style. This summer brew grabs you with flavor at first, but finishes like a summer beer should - nice & crisp. —

Happy Memorial Day Weekend! Summer Medley: Anchor Summer, Brooklyn Summer, Harpoon Summer, Sierra Summerfest: There’s something so unbelievably refreshing about summer beers - and I’m sure that’s no accident. Each of these is great, but if I had to rank: Brooklyn, Harpoon, Sierra Nevada, Anchor Steam. Wow, considering how much I love the Sierra Summer, that’s a tough list! Happy summer everyone. — Zach

Drew - Sierra Nevada’s Summerfest: Going to a school BBQ and this is just perfect it. Its so good. Everything they do is good.

Meantime English IPA: Found this in the North End. I don’t usually trust English beers as they sometimes taste watery and lack real potent “flavours” but this beer was not the typical English beer, I guess. Very refreshing and not overbearing. I really enjoyed it. -Emily

John Harvard’s Single Hop Series: Chinook: At John Harvard’s brew house in Harvard Square- and picked another winner. The idea here is that most IPAs use a mix of hops, but this uses only Chinook hops. I like it because you get a distinctive flavour that’s like a lot of beers I’ve had before, but also unlike anything else… Confusing, but great. —Zach

Drew - Flossmoor Station Company’s IPA & Lagunitas Pils (Czech Style Pilsner): The Flossmoor’s is excellent. It reminds me of Racer 5 quite a bit - I’d have to taste them back to back to see which I like better. Haven’t had the Czech Pils yet, but I’m looking forward to it. —

Drew - Better late than never: So I’m late in posting this, but I thought I would anyways. It’s the same beer that Zach posted a couple days ago - the Southern Tier Unearthly Imperial IPA. As my comment stated…I really enjoyed it. And yes, that is a bottle of wine - it’s a beer site, I know, but I wanted to toss this in the picture along with the Skippy peanut butter. The Vouvray region in France (usually Chenin Blanc varietal) has become one of my favorite appellations for white wines. This one was fantastic and the price was right at $12. Vouvray wines aren’t quite as sweet as Reislings or Alsace region wines (Pinot Blancs, Pinot Gris, Gewurtztraminer) but still have some sweetness to them and are quite light - perfect for summer/spring. Definitely pick up this bottle if you stumble upon it. —

Southern Tier - Unearthly Imperial IPA: I’d been debating grabbing a bottle of this for a long time, seeing it on the shelf at Charles St. Liquor on nearly every visit. But the price tag has always deterred me. One bomber for the price of a quality six-pack… it’d better be great. Well, while in VT a few weeks ago I found the ST’s Imperial IPA at a much more reasonable price ($7, I think) and just had to have it (truth be told, it was a gift… which made it even sweeter!). Simply put- this beer is delicious. Really, really smooth and delightfully hoppy. It actually reminded me a lot of Bear Republic’s Racer 5, another all time favorite. It was definitely good to the last drop, but unfortunately it just wasn’t THAT much better than other, more reasonably priced Imperials. I recommend it, but only if you find a good deal.

Great Divide Yeti Imperial Stout: I had this and the Sam Adams Imperial Stout this weekend and this was truly the better beer. It wasn’t overpowering like the Sam Adams and was easier to drink. It still was an intense brew but it’s an imperial so intensity is a given. -Emily

Drew: It’s Derby Day! First Mint Juleps of the day!

Redhook’s Long Hammer IPA and ESB: Somehow I live an hour and a half from this brewery, but am completely unable to purchase these bottles anywhere close to home. Which means that when driving through New Hampshire, a quick stop at any grocery store nets me a few cases at the stunning price of… wait for it… $13 per 12. Unbelievable deal. As stated many times over before, I really love the ESB. The IPA is good, but the ESB is fantastic. So Redhook, as I’ve said here, and in my emails, and while talking to you in person: PLEASE distribute this to Boston! — Zach

Wolaver’s IPA and Oatmeal Stout: Another remnant from my VT trip, a huge piping mug of Wolaver’s IPA and a nice little glass of Oatmeal stout. Both fantastic beers representing the light and dark side of Awesome. Also, you’re likely going to ask if I tried B&Ting them… no, I forgot. I’m sorry. But they’re still so great alone that I’d predict it’d be pretty good. — Zach

Long Trail Brewmaster Series - Double IPA: I picked this one up at the Long Trail Brewery on the beginning of our VT weekend. It’s seriously hopped, no joking around - and I think about 9% alcohol, which was good, but a little overpowering. The Double IPA had an incredible smell to it - rich hops and maybe some pine scent. The taste was good, but like many double IPAs or Imperials, it was just a little too strong to be really drinkable. Great for one, likely too much for more than one. Overall I’m really glad I tried it. — Zach

Otter Creek’s Copper Ale: If you visit Middlebury, VT then Otter Creek’s Copper Ale is an absolute “Must Try” beer, even though you might not like it. It’s a polarizing beer that truly does have a distinct coppery taste to it, as if someone left a penny in the bottom of the glass - so many hate it, but others love it. If you’re able to stop thinking about a dirty penny sitting in your beer, you’ll realize this is actually a really tasty brew that has a lot going for it. I think it’s super drinkable, but it took me a few to warm up to it. — Zach

The Long Trail Brewery: This is one of the greatest breweries I’ve been to- has a full bar and restaurant, and self guided tours through the whole building. Awesome. —Zach