Abu Nawas drops this week: Moolight Meadery + Clown Shoes

June 7, 2019June 7, 2019Leave a comment

clown shoes

More tasty treats getting dropped in Iowa this coming week courtesy of Abu Nawas. A nice mix of beer and some meads from Moonlight Meadery highlight this week! Here we go!

Moonlight Meadery Cans and Bottles:

Razz What She Said 12oz CAN – Delicious Session mead made with raspberries. Deep Rich raspberry notes play off a smooth honey base, creating a luscious semi sweet mead with bright carbonation and off-pink head. Perfect for the summer. 6.5% ABV.

Thirteen 12oz CAN – New England Style Honey Apple Wine. A pre-prohibition style of cider fermented with additional sugar to create 13.5% ABV

Little Apples 12oz CAN – New England Style Semi-dry and sparkling Hard Cider fermented in newly emptied rye whiskey barrels for a minimum of 3 months. 6.5% ABV.

How Do You Like Them Apples 12oz CAN – Semi-dry Sparkling Hard CIder Aged for six months in rye whiskey barrels. 13.5% ABV.

Kurts Apple Pie 375ml Bottle – Made with local apple cider with Madagascar vanilla and Vietnamese cinnamon. 14% ABV. Two-time medal winner at the Mazer Cup International

Monkey Business 375ml bottle – Limited Release Banana Chocolate Orange Vanilla Mead, 14% ABV Sweet. We poured this at Hunahpu’s Day 2019 and the crowd went absolutely bananas for this mead…

Clown Shoes

Pineapple Space Cake 16oz CAN – Pineapple Double IPA. Matching the fruit flavor are juicy citrus hop notes from additions of Mosaic and Azacca hops. 7.77% ABV.

Coconut Sombrero 16oz CAN – Summer seasonal Mexican chocolate stout infused with tropical coconut flavors. 7% ABV.

Lil Crispy 16oz CAN – Beautiful Sessionable Pale Ale. 4.8% ABV.

Itaska Loonidragon 22oz Bottle – Bourbon Barrel aged Russian Imperial Stout brewed with Coconut. ABV: 11%

Bubble Farm 12oz 6Pack and 12Pack CAN – Easy Drinking IPA Brewed with Columbus hops and dry-hopped with Simcoe, Azacca, and Idaho 7, this easy-drinker will quickly float to the top of your everyday favorites list. 6.5%

Clementine 12oz 6Pack and 12Pack CAN – Delicious Clementine witbier. 6.0%

Mango Kolsch 12oz 6Pack CAN – Kolsch, dry-hopped with Huell Melon hops and all-natural mango flavor. 5.5% ABV.

Abu Nawas Drops this week: Fat Orange Cat, Stillwater, Abomination

May 31, 2019May 31, 2019Leave a comment

A bunch of new brews from 3 great breweries will be hitting the shelves next week from Abu Nawas. Let’s get to it!

FAT ORANGE CAT

Fat Orange Cat Blood Orange Billy 16oz CAN – Blood Orange NE-IPA. 6.66% ABV

Fat Orange Cat Lorenzo Blue 16oz CAN – New England DIPA LOADED with Galaxy and Citra. 8% ABV.

Fat Orange Cat Sweet Jane Pineapple 16oz CAN – Milkshake IPA brewed with Vanilla, Lactose, Coconut, & Pineapple. 7.9% ABV.

Fat Orange Cat FOC All Cats Are Grey in the Dark 16oz CAN – White Stout – A light colored stout with a hint of coffee and strong notes of both chocolate and vanilla. 7.2% ABV.

STILLWATER

Stillwater ASMR Frisson 001 16oz CAN – Sour ale brewed with wild blueberry, rolled oats & milk sugar. 6% ABV.

Stillwater Log Out 16oz CAN – Double India pale ale quadruple dry-hopped with Mosaic, Galaxy, Citra, and Nelson Sauvin. 9% ABV.

Stillwater This is only a Test Stout 005 CAN – Imperial Stout brewed with Ginger, Chili peppers and Sichuan Peppercorn 11% ABV

Stillwater Extra Dry 16oz CAN – A Saison brewed with sake rice and dry hopped with Citra, Hallertau Blanc, and Sterling. 4.2% ABV.

Stillwater Artisanal Ales Extra Extra 16oz CAN -Double Brut IPA. 8% ABV

Stillwater Rhinestones & Sequins 16oz CAN – Sour Brut Double IPA brewed with Sauvignon Blanc Grapes. 8% ABV.

Abomination Brewing

Abomination Brewing Bedtime Stories 16oz CAN – Imperial Milk Stout with Graham Crackers, Flaked Oats, Vanilla Beans and Marshmallows. 9.3% ABV.

Abomination Brewing Rotting Earth 16oz CAN – Double IPA with a blend of Ariana, Pacific Jade, Eukanot and Denali. 9.3% ABV.

Abomination Brewing Shotgun Sour 16oz CAN – Sour Ale brewed with Black Currant, Apricot, & Peach. 6.1% ABV

Backpocket Anniversary Party set for June 29th!

May 24, 2019May 24, 2019Leave a comment

Backpocket Brewing will be celebrating their 7th Anniversary next month as they host their anniversary party and will be releasing their highly sought after Anniversary Stout! Live music, food, and most importantly delicious beer aplenty. Here are the deets on the party:

On Saturday, June 29th join us for our private Anniversary Party from 9am – 11am. DJ NYJ will be spinnin tracks from 9am – 12pm as we release our 7th Anniversary Russian Imperial Stout. You’ll want to stick around because we will have all you can eat breakfast, timed pins, a surprise brewery only bomber release at 11am, and live music from The Surf Zombies from 4 – 6 pm.
.
Tickets will be on sale for the general public Tuesday, May 28th at 8am.
.
.
General Ticket Holders will receive:
(1) Bottle of 7th Anniversary Stout.
(1) Bottle of our 7th Anniversary Stout Double Barrel (Rum and Bourbon) Variant
(1) 4 oz. Pour of 7th Anniversary (Bourbon ONLY)
(1) Exclusive 7th Anniversary Glass
(1) Ticket for ALL YOU CAN EAT breakfast.
Access to a party exclusive pin variant.
.
.
VIP tickets are $110 and will include..
(1) Bottle of 7th Anniversary Stout.
(1) Bottle of 6th Anniversary Stout
(1) Bottle of our 7th Anniversary Stout Variant Double Barrel (Rum and Bourbon) Variant
(1) 4oz. Pour of 7th Anniversary (Bourbon ONLY)
(1) Exclusive 7th Anniversary Glass
(1) Ticket for ALL YOU CAN EAT breakfast.
Access to a party exclusive pin variant

Gezellig Brewing in Newton opening June 7th!

May 22, 2019May 22, 20193 Comments

Newton, IA will be the home of Iowa’s newest brewery as Gezellig Brewing will be opening their doors on June 7th! Before the doors to the brewery open however, you will be able to try their beer if you’re in the Muscatine or Pella area as Bonnie’s on the Avenue in Muscatine and the Cellar Peanut Pub in Pella will have the following brews on tap from Gezellig: Turn Down for Brown, Newtonian Haze IPA, and Kviek and Subscribe IPA. These beers will be tapped at 1:00 this Friday, May 24th at those two locations.

Here’s more info on a couple beers mentioned above, and stay tuned for more info on the opening of this brewery. If you want some Gezellig beers on your lines, reach out to them via their Facebook page by clicking here.

Onto the brews:

*Newtonian Haze – Newtonian Haze checks all the boxes. Plenty hazy, a huge fruity nose, and it’s quaffable as all get out. Massive pineapple, papaya, and passionfruit leap out and say ‘it’s gonna be one of those nights, Jim’. Super-charged lemon lime pineapple coats your tongue but doesn’t overstay its welcome. If you wanted a milkshake, Dairy Queen is down the street. This right here is a drinking beer.

*Turn Down for Brown -Cool kids beware. Your old man loves this beer and wants to tell THOSE 3 stories all night on repeat. Slight roasty coffee, sweet chocolate, and a hint of vanilla from German Ariana hops are rounded out by a bittering addition of UK Challenger and carefully selected caramel malts. Hunker down in brown town buddy. It’s gonna be a long night.

Abu Nawas drop this week: Decadent, Evil Twin, Free Thought

May 17, 2019May 17, 2019Leave a comment

free thought.jpeg

Another big drop of some tasty brews coming from Abu Nawas in the coming week. Here’s what’s coming down the line:

DECADENT

CANS

Decadent Ales Bacon French Toast 16oz CANS – 8.4% IPA with Maple Syrup, Caramelized Sugar and Loads of Bacon

Decadent Ales Peach Frosted Pastry 16oz CANS –  8.6% DIPA with peaches, cinnamon and allspice added

Decadent Ales S’mores 16oz CANS –  9.1% All Mosaic Double Dry-Hopped DIPA brewed with Graham Crackers & Marshmallows

Decadent Ales Blueberry Frosted Pastry 16oz CANS – Mosaic Dry-Hopped DIPA brewed with Blueberries & Madagascar Vanilla Beans. 8.6% ABV.

Decadent Ales Coconut Almond Macaroon 16oz CANS – Double Dry-Hopped All-Mosaic IPA brewed with Coconut & Almond. 8.2% ABV.

Decadent Ales Double Toasted Marshmallow 16oz CANS – Dry hopped with a variety of hops featuring mosaic, Madagascar vanilla bean, marshmallows and a variety of candied, turbinado, coconut and other sugars create the mellow sweetness of campfire toasted marshmallow. 9.1% ABV.

Decadent Ales Ecto Cream Pop 16oz CANS – Vanilla makes this “ecto” brew unique from its companions. Or does the Ecto make it unique from its fellow Cream Pops? Double Dry-Hopped IPA with Madagascar vanilla bean, tangerine and orange zest added. 8.7% ABV.

Decadent Ales Ectoplasmic Orange 16oz CANS – All Citra double dry hopped IPA, with tangerine and orange zests added.

Decadent Ales Multiflora 16oz CANS – All Mosaic Double Dry-Hopped DIPA 9.7% ABV.

Decadent Ales Pecan Pie IPA 16oz CANS – Double India Pale Ale with Pecans and Maple Syrup. 5.2% ABV.

Decadent Ales Strawberry French Toast 16oz CANS – DIPA with Vermont Maple Syrup, sugar burned and caramelized stove top, juicy strawberries, and a touch of cinnamon. Notes of dough and pancake batter round out the finish. Good for breakfast. Great for dessert. 8.6%

Decadent Ales Strawberry Frosted Pastry 16oz CANS – Mosaic Dry-Hopped DIPA brewed with Strawberries & Madagascar Vanilla Beans. 8.6% ABV.

Decadent Ales Vermont Maple IPA 16oz CANS – Crisp base beer with a bitter touch that cuts the sweetness of Vermont maple syrup providing a pleasurable aroma on the tongue but still leaving you believing this is an IPA. 4.75% ABV.

Decadent Ales Winter Spice French Toast 16oz CANS –  Exactly like it sounds! Spiced Double India Pale Ale with Maple Syrup, Allspice, and Madagascar Vanilla Bean. 8.6% ABV

EVIL TWIN

Evil Twin / Decadent Delight #1 16oz CANS – The first collaboration with Evil Twin brewing. This imperial stout was brewed with pistachio. Coconut and cinnamon tie the nutty aroma with the roast and chocolate of the base. 11.7% ABV

Evil Twin 60 Day Dry Aged Stout 16 oz CANS – 6% Oatmeal Stout; a bit more easy going than the 90

Evil Twin 90 Day Dry Aged Stout 16 oz CANS –  milk stout brewed with dry-aged malt. 9% ABV.

Evil Twin Imperial Wedding Cake Break 16oz CANS –  yes, this is a beer brewed with an actual wedding cake. What started as a gift to a friend on his big day quickly made it online with crazy ratings and thus, the latest (one-time) iteration of Imperial Biscotti was born

Evil Twin Brewing Sour Sun Saft 16oz CANS – 8% Mosaic DIPA brewed with Black Currant & Mint

Free Thought

Free Thought Madcap 16oz CANS –  6% Sour Ale with Lapsang Souchong (a smoked tea), cocoa and Tamarind

Free Thought Superposition 16oz CANS – 8% Idaho 7 DIPA

Free Thought Principia 16oz CANS – Sour Ale brewed with Fennel Pollen, Meyer Lemon, Honey, & Milk Sugar. 6% ABV. ****VERY LIMITED**** FreeThought

Free Thought Sapere Aude 16oz CANS – “Dare to think for yourself!” Double IPA hopped with Citra, Whole Cone Citra, & Citra Lulupin Powder. 8.5% ABV.

Shakespeare’s Celebrating 20 years on June 8th w/ Richard Macaroon, Carpe Diem, GAZPROM!, and more being tapped!

May 15, 2019

Make your calendar for June 8th folks! Shakespeare’s in Iowa City will be celebrating 20 years with a plethora of wondrous beers being tapped! Check it out!

We will be celebrating 20 years with fabulous hard to find beers pouring outside and free food inside!
We will have Big Grove Richard the Whale Macaroon, Madhouse Carpe Diem, Bourbon County Stout 2016, Lion Bridge Gazprom!, Hubbard’s Cave Mocha Pot de Creme, plus more to come so check back!

Exile + Uinta team up for Brut IPA Collab! Backcountry Brut set for June 7th release!

May 15, 2019May 15, 2019Leave a comment

Here is some big news out of Des Moines as Exile and Uinta Brewing have teamed up to brew “Backcountry Brut”, a Brut IPA. Here’s more on this release courtesy of Exile!

Exile Brewing and Uinta Brewing brew collaboration Brut IPA

Exile Brewing (Des Moines, IA) and Uinta Brewing (Salt Lake City, UT) announce Backcountry Brut, a collaboration double brut IPA brewed at Exile for Des Moines Beer Week.

“Collaboration beers represent what we love about craft brewing – community, experimentation, and great beer. We are big fans of Uinta and are excited to have them at our place to brew, share stories, and enjoy a few beers.” Said Joey Hansen, head brewer at Exile. After deliberation, brewers at each respective brewery settled on a double brut IPA. “It would be perfect in a dry, sunny climate like Utah or a humid Iowa summer,” says Hansen.

“We love the spirit of collaboration beers and see it as a way to connect with beer enthusiasts in markets we don’t get a chance to spend much time in” said Jeremy Worrell, Director of Marketing at Uinta Brewing. “Believe it or not, there is an abundance of Iowa natives now living in Utah and we consider this their chance to tip the ‘ol cap to those back home” said Worrell. “The team at Exile have been incredibly welcoming through this whole process and we couldn’t have asked for a better experience.”

Backcountry Brut will be packaged in limited quantities of 6-pack bottles and kegs which will only be available for purchase in Iowa. Release date is set for June 7^th, 2019 and will be available on tap and in bottles during Des Moines Beer Week.

Drink This! Clock House Low Bandito Cherry/Coconut

May 13, 2019May 13, 2019Leave a comment

One of my favorite tap rooms to visit is at Clock House Brewing. Something about that space that just makes me feel comfortable, and the fact that they are turning out some damn tasty brews too. I stopped in on a relatively slow Sunday afternoon and was lucky enough to have a pour of their Low Bandito Cherry/Coconut barrel-aged stout.

Low Bandito is their imperial stout and they’ve made some different variants of that tasty brew. I’ve had the vanilla, chocolate, coconut variant and really enjoyed that but the Cherry Coconut really stood out! Here’s more on this brew:

Driftless Glenn Bourbon Barrel Aged Imperial Stout. Aged on tart cherries and coconut

Wonderful aroma from the barrel that blends really well with the subtle coconut flavor. Cherry wasn’t prevalent right away but after it warmed the cherry really shined through. I ordered a Hazy Clock Tease while I let the Bandito sit for a while just to get more from that tart cherry. This checks in at a 9.6% but it was trying not to order a second draw.

I’m not sure how much of this brew Todd and Clock House have left so you might want to make the trek to downtown CR to get yourself a taste of this delicious brew. It is CR Craft beer so that can be your reason to get out and Drink This!

HUGE Crooked Stave drop coming from Abu Nawas!

May 10, 2019Leave a comment

crooked stave.jpg

Tons of great Crooked Stave beers will be making their way to our shelves here in Iowa in the next week! Huge list so make sure to read through carefully!

CANS

Von Pilsner 12oz CAN – Unfiltered Keller Pilsner

CO WildSage 12oz CAN – Brett saison brewed with lemongrass and sage

St. Bretta 12oz CAN – Brettanomyces citrus saison

Coffee Baltic Porter 12oz CAN – Baltic porter featuring rotating coffee roasters

Crooked Stave IPA 12oz CAN – American style IPA

Do You Even Zest?! DIPA 12oz CAN – Citrus Double IPA ***NEW CAN*** Elevated from our experimental hazy IPA series, Do You Even Zest?! is a limited release loaded with an immense amount of hops and freshly zested citrus. This Citrus Double IPA was born out of our playful nature as brewers looking to challenge the status quo. Our team meticulously zests fresh citrus for each and every batch, which begs the question, do you even zest?

Sour Rosé 12oz CAN – Wild ale aged in oak barrels with raspberries and blueberries

750’s LIMITED

Framboise 2018 – Golden sour ale aged in oak barrels with Washington raspberries and vanilla beans.

Origins Vintage

Silly Cybies – Belgian style dark ale aged in oak barrels with Washington raspberries

Mama Bears Sour Cherry Pie 2017 – Burgundy sour ale aged in oak barrels with Colorado Montmorency cherries

L’Brett d’Apricot 2017 – Golden sour ale aged in oak barrels with Colorado apricots

L’Brett d’Or – Surreal golden sour ale aged in oak barrels

Surette Reserva Palisade Peach 2017 – Reserva saison aged in oak barrels with Palisade peaches

Nightmare on Brett Vintage – Dark sour ale aged in Leopold Bros whiskey barrels

Nightmare on Brett Sour Cherry 2017 l – Dark sour ale aged in Leopold Bros whiskey barrels with Colorado Montmorency sour cherries

375s

Sunnyside of Bruxelles – Sunnyside Sour Red/Brown Ale brewed in collaboration with Yvan De Baets from Brasserie de la Senne.

Raspberry Origins

Blueberry Origins

Petite Sour Tart Cherry

Petite Sour Blueberry 2016 Vintage – Mixed fermentation ale aged in oak with Washington blueberries

Petite Sour Raspberry 2016 Vintage – Mixed fermentation ale aged in oak with Washington raspberries

Petite Sour Rosé – 2016 Vintage – Wild ale aged in oak barrels on fruit skins

Petite Sour Peach – Mixed fermentation ale aged in oak with Colorado Palisade peaches

St. Bretta – Brettanomyces citrus saison

Vieille – Artisanal barrel-aged saison lightly dry hopped

CO Wild Sage – Brett saison brewed with lemongrass and sage

L’Brett d’Or Vintage – Surreal Golden Sour Ale Aged in Oak Barrels

L’Brett d’Apricot – Golden sour ale aged in oak barrels with Colorado apricots

Raspberry Bianca WWB – A new school gose brewed with lactose and added raspberries, brewed in collaboration with Omnipollo

Key Lime Tau – Collaboration with Hawkshead Brewery, a mixed culture fermentation brewed with lactose, fresh lime peel and lemongrass

Progenitor – Dry hopped golden sour ale

HopSavant – American Brettanomyces IPA

Vieille – Artisanal barrel-aged saison lightly dry hopped

CO WildSage – Brett saison brewed with lemongrass and sage

Progenitor – Dry hopped golden sour ale

Nightmare on Brett Blueberry 2015 – Dark sour ale aged in Leopold Bros whiskey barrels with Washington blueberries

Nightmare on Brett Raspberry 2015 – Dark sour ale aged in Leopold Bros whiskey barrels with Washington Raspberries

Ampersand Vol. 3 Ch. 1 – Golden Sour Botanical Ale, Aged in Ransom Old Tom Gin Barrels

Ampersand Vol. 3 Ch. 2 – Burgundy Sour Ale, Aged in Ransom Rye Whiskey Barrels

Wild Wild Brett Batch #200 – American Wild Ale Aged With Raspberries and Dry Hopped

Surette Reserva Prunus Persica – Golden sour ale aged in oak barrels with peaches We have hand picked each Surette Reserva from unique batches that develop with indefinable complexity. Through embracing variation within our brewing seasons, each limited release is an expression of the terroir from which our fruit is sourced, the skilled stewardship of the farmers we work with, and the rustic beers we produce.

Two new brews coming from Lagunitas

May 9, 2019May 9, 2019Leave a comment

It looks like Lagunitas will be releasing a couple of new brews and hopefully they will be arriving in time for summer as they both sound very refreshing. According to mybeerbuzz.blogspot.com, one will be a “wet-hopped juicy ale” that will be a part of their “One Hitter Series”, and the other will be an unfiltered version of “A Little Sumpin Ale”. Here’s more courtesy of mybeerbuzz.blogspot.com:

sumpin hazy

This is A Little Sumpin’s Hazy Ale and it looks like a new name for A Little Sumpin’ Unfiltered Ale. This “unfiltered take on sumpin’ classic” will hit 7.5%-AbV and you are looking at the 12oz Limited Release bottle.

phase change.jpg

This is Phase Change and it will be a “seasonally unexpected wet-hopped juicy ale” that hits 7.2%-AbV. This beer will be part of the 2019 OneHitter Series and you’re looking at the 12oz bottle.