State: Rhode Island
Admitted to Union: May 29, 1790
Brewery: Newport Storm/Coastal Extreme
Beer: Marzen Lager Oktoberfest
Type: Marzen
Chosen Because: Molly was able to snag a bottle from one of her coworkers.
Look: Orangey gold
Smell: lemony, but not in a hefe kind of way
Taste: mild citrus, yeast
ABV: 5.6%
IBU: 14
Serving: straight out of the bottle
Notes: Let me just say that I’m glad this beer tastes pretty good because I’ve waited about ten months for it.
THIS PROJECT IS STILL HAPPENING. I know it’s been six months since the last update, buuuutttttttttt…..I couldn’t find a Rhode Island beer UNTIL LAST WEEK when my friend Molly got an RI coworker to bring something back for me. So next time I see Molly, there will be a triumphant update. I will wear a party hat. “But Vicky,” you may be thinking to yourself if you’re intimately familiar with the order that states were admitted to the union, “what about North Carolina?” Well. I had this beer about half an hour after New York and I didn’t want to crowd the updates. I KNOW, I’M GIVING MYSELF THAT LOOK TOO. Anyway:
State: North Carolina
Admitted to Union: November 21, 1789
Brewery: The Duck-Rabbit Craft Brewery
Beer: Wee Heavy Scotch Style Ale
Type: Wee Heavy Scotch Style
Chosen Because: Christmas-y label (I drank it in December!)
Look: Dark and smooth
Smell: bready, but in a marmite kind of way
Taste: Bitter and oily. Did not like.
ABV: 8.0%
IBU: unknown
Serving: straight out of the bottle
Notes: Did not even finish this beer, but kept the damn bottle on the back of the sink for six months, a constant remind of my continual failure to move on to the next state. Sorry, North Carolina! I’ve liked your other beers, I just chose the wrong one for this project.
State: New York
Admitted to Union: July 26, 1788
Brewery: Southern Tier Brewing
Beer: Krampus
Type: American Double / Imperial Pilsener
Chosen Because: A perfectly-timed gift from my sister
Look: Copper-orange, lots of head (not shown, that’s my second glass) but I did a lousy job pouring it, so. Also, that’s the tasting glass from yesterday.
Smell: spicy, earthy, yeasty
Taste: Fruity and bitter, very IPA-ish.
ABV: 9.0%
IBU: unknown
Serving: lil’ glass
Notes: The label is really good on this one. I wish it were colder outside…it’s a very guzzle-able beer, but the high abv makes it an excellent winter beer as it’s extremely warming. You know it hasn’t snowed in Buffalo yet? The Southern Tier (which is maybe an hour or two south of the city?) hasn’t seen anything! Also ha ha my dumb face snuck in the corner there. And Val’s bottle of Tidings! Haaaa.
3State: Virginia
Admitted to Union: June 25, 1788
Brewery: Port City Brewing
Beer: Tidings
Type: Belgian Strong Pale Ale
Chosen Because: Visited the brewery on Christmas Eve!
Look: Pale gold, tiniest of heads. Pleasingly hazy.
Smell: Honey , ginger, coriander
Taste: Delicious! At the tasting I totally bypassed the porter & IPA and had two extra glasses of Tidings.
ABV: 7.8%
IBU: 25
Serving: tasting glass at the brewery
Notes: Taylor & I took a brewery tour on Christmas Eve and spent a fair amount of time in the tasting room, getting a little loopy and mostly talking about how much we were enjoying Tidings. It’s a really nice little tour, though! The founder of the company took us around, and he wasn’t at all a beer snob, he was just a good guy that wants everyone to drink well-made beer. I was already a pretty big fan of Port City’s Optimal Wit, so getting to try it straight from the giant vat was a nice little treat. Also, TIDINGS IS DELICIOUS. If you read the brewer’s blog linked above, the guy was aiming for a beer reminiscent of gulab jamun. INDIAN DONUTS. I’m crazy about this beer.
Edit: oh, note about this? Not as good in bottles as on tap. But we have a lot of it now, so.
2
State: New Hampshire
Admitted to Union: June 21, 1788
Brewery: Smuttynose Brewing Co
Beer: Shoals Pale Ale
Type: American Pale Ale
Chosen Because: I love APAs. Any *PAs, really.
Look: foggy and butterscotch-colored
Smell: yeast and a touch of citrus
Taste: Tangy! Not too hoppy, smooth and sweet (but not, like, weissbier sweet)
ABV: 5.4%
IBU: 30
Serving: tasting glass (a National Bohemian glass, if you can believe that)
Notes: This is also from Market to Market. Smuttynose beer labels are so plain, I love it. No pretense, just consistently good beer. They have a solid pumpkin beer too. Not a ton to say about this one, really, it’s just a model APA. Cascade hops are have only been around since the 70s, they were developed in a USDA lab at University of Oregon as a cross between Fuggles (English) and Serebrianker (Russian) hop cultivars. Think about that the next time you have a citrusy, hoppy American craft ale. You are probably drinking a mutant!!! Next up is Virginia, we’re going to try something different with that one. Might be a week or two, though (because you guys aren’t accustomed to waiting, right?).
2
State: South Carolina
Admitted to Union: May 23, 1788
Brewery: RJ Rockers
Beer: Black Perle Dark IPA
Type: Dark IPA/American Black Ale
Chosen Because: It was either the large format Black Perle or a six-pack of the First Snow Pale Ale. We have a lot of beers hanging out in the fridge already and I was interested in trying, as it is described on the label, a Dark India Pale Ale
Look: Dark and stouty, head super-thick, almost creamy.
Smell: caramel, lightly orange chocolate
Taste: malty and thick, but finishes IPA-ish light
ABV: 9.5%
IBU: unknown
Serving: first out of a tasting glass, then out of the bottle. No class. I did make sure to choose the bottle with the longest wax dripping, though. That has to count for something.
Notes: This is from Market to Market in Del Ray, a relatively new little storefront that sells meat, beer, and olde tyme candy. I can see myself spending a lot of time there. The other two bottles are from the same place, I am soooo looking forward to that gingerbread ale (California, no need to save it). And the Abita SOS looks good, too. The cat agrees (he is trying to bite the bottle? Cat is not that bright).
2
State: Maryland
Admitted to Union: April 28, 1788
Brewery: Stillwater Artisanal Ales
Beer: Stateside Saison
Type: Saison/Farmhouse Ale
Chosen Because: On recommendation from the bartender
Look: Foamy and gold.
Smell: Chardonnay (it’s aged in chardonnay barrels) and vanilla.
Taste: crisp and buttery and a little sour, maybe, at the end? REALLY GOOD.
ABV: 7.2%
IBU: unknown
Serving: snifter? Is that a snifter? I don’t know my glasses.
Notes: Holy shit, this one was great? I left the notes blank on this for whatever reason and now that I am posting it months later I only remember that it was so, so good. I don’t intend to rank these at the end - that’s not the point of the project - but I can say with confidence that it’s the best one so far. Highly recommended.
2
State: Massachusetts
Admitted to Union: February 6, 1788
Brewery: Cisco Brewers
Beer: Whale’s Tale Pale Ale
Type: English Pale Ale
Chosen Because: On recommendation from the bartender
Look: Golden, hazy
Smell: Malty, lightly earthy and fruity
Taste: world’s cleanest hops, plus apricots
ABV: 5.6%
IBU: 35
Serving: pint glass
Notes: Short description, but really I liked this one so much I was halfway through the glass before I remembered to take a picture of it.
1
State: Connecticut
Admitted to Union: January 9, 1788
Brewery: Thomas Hooker
Beer: Irish Red Ale
Type: Irish Red
Chosen Because: I FINALLY FOUND A BEER FROM CONNECTICUT. See notes.
Look: Dark red caramel
Smell: Rich and brown sugar-y
Taste: This is a benchmark red ale. Textbook. If I was organizing a tasting of beer types, I would absolutely use this one as an exemplary red ale. Not adventurous, but not everything has to be!
ABV: 4.9%
IBU: 21
Serving: pint glass
Notes: This is how Saturday went: wake up in Philly, bus to NY, breakfast at 5 Leaves for a meeting. I have been kind of vague about this meeting, mostly because I wasn’t totally sure what it was about or what they wanted from me. But! I am going to be doing some more, and very much likely better, writing about my field, supported by a team of amazing, brilliant folks. Okay, I’ve only met Samantha, but she is KILLER ENTHUSIASTIC and if she’s any indicator, I’ve signed on to something incredible. At the end of our meeting, I mentioned this beer project in passing, and she directed me to Breukelen Bier Merchants, where I spent the next four or five hours. I had locationless plans with friends from wherever so hey, why don’t they all just come here? And they did! I have no idea if it was a good spot or not, the L was biffed and while I know the subway lines quite well I don’t know what’s in between them. But in the meantime I was the only person at the bar (half beer store, half bar), chatting with two bartenders who really wanted to help out with this here quest. We started with Connecticut, which they happily had a variety from which to choose. I went with the Irish Red on their recommendation.
3
State: Georgia
Admitted to Union: January 2, 1788
Brewery: Terrapin Beer Co.
Beer: Hopsecutioner IPA
Type: IPA
Chosen Because: Kia chose it for the name.
Look: orange and gold, almost no head whatsoever
Smell: barely any scent at all, but what there is is hoppy
Taste: not as hoppy as I expected - turns out the name comes from the variety of hops (six of them!) rather than the amount. Pleasingly bitter but not overwhelming. Easy and interesting without unnecessary complexity. Just a good, satisfying beer. I could drink a lot of this!
ABV: 7.3%
IBU: 78
Serving: directly from the bottle, except for the bit I poured into a glass for viewing purposes. With a slice of leftover peach pie - appropriate (if accidental).
Notes: Kia found this for me at Total Wine after a long, lengthy search. The label has a little executioner turtle with a bunch of hops in a guillotine. There is a marker on the side, ‘Best if enjoyed by:’ and a chart that narrows it down to the week. I LOVE THAT. Accuracy in everything.
8
