Tag: iowa beer

Decadent Ale drop from Abu Nawas

Leave a comment

decadent

Abu Nawas will be dropping a whole bunch of Decadent Ales to us this coming week. Some new ones and some we’ve had before and once again, Decadent makes some unique and delicious brews! Here’s the drop:

  • Decadent Ales Coconut Citrus Citra 6/4/16oz CAN – Double IPA Triple Dry-Hopped with All Citra. Brewed with Orange Zest Coconut. 8.6% ABV.
  • Decadent Ales Coco Ecto 6/4/16oz CAN – Double Dry Hopped IPA with Coconut, Tangerine, and Orange Zest. 7.5% ABV.
  • Decadent Ales Elderflower Mochi 6/4/16oz CAN – Milkshake Double India Pale Ale brewed with Elderflower and Vanilla. 8.7% ABV.
  • Decadent Ales Coconut Almond Macaroon24/16oz CAN – Double Dry-Hopped All-Mosaic IPA brewed with Coconut & Almond, and a variety of sugars to create a biscuit character. 8.2% ABV.
  • Decadent Ales Lime Citrus Citra 6/4/16oz CAN – Double India Pale Ale with Lime and Orange Zest. 8.6% ABV.
  • Decadent Ales Mocha Latte 6/4/16oz CAN – American IPA brewed with Coffee and Chocolate. 8% ABV.
  • Decadent Ales Orange Cream Pop 6/4/16oz CAN – All Citra dry-hopped IPA with a proprietary blend of sugars, Madagascar Vanilla Bean, and a touch of Orange Zest. 6% ABV.
  • Decadent Ales Pacific Punch 6/4/16oz CAN – Double IPA brewed with Peach, Strawberry, Mango, Pineapple. 9% ABV.
  • Decadent Ales Peach Frosted Pastry 6/4/16oz CAN – Double India Pale Ale with peaches, cinnamon. 8.6% ABV.
  • Decadent Ales Pecan Pie 6/4/16oz CAN – Double India Pale Ale with Pecans and Maple Syrup. 8.6% ABV.
  • Decadent Ales Raspberry French Toast 6/4/16oz CAN – Double India Pale with Raspberry, Maple Syrup, and Cinnamon added. 8.6% ABV.
  • Decadent Ales Strawberry Sour Sorbet 6/4/16oz CAN – Gose-Style Ale loaded with Strawberries. 5.8% ABV.
  • Decadent Ales Smores 6/4/16oz CAN – All Mosaic Double Dry-Hopped DIPA brewed with Marshmallows, Graham Crackers, Madagascar Vanilla Beans, Cinnamon and a touch of Chocolate. 8.6% ABV.
  • Decadent Ales Vermont Maple IPA 6/4/16oz CAN – Crisp Double India Pale Ale with Vermont Maple. 9.1% ABV.

Big Grove “Drive Thru Burgers” now Big Grove “Drive Thru Burritos”! + 3 more beer releases this weekend!

Leave a comment

bg

With Big Grove opening back up both their Solon and Iowa City locations for social distancing dine-in option, the popular Big Grove drive thru on Saturdays is getting a little change up to make room for folks wanting to come to the restaurant! Instead of drive thru burgers, fries and beers from 11-2 it will now be drive thru breakfast burritos and beers from 9-11 a.m.! Preorder your burritos and beer by clicking here!

And just a quick thank you note to the staff at both Big Grove locations for the adaptability and also their generosity in still getting us beer and terrific food the last few months. Class act group of people! Onto the releases:

* Into the Woods kettle sour was originally brewed as part of a collab with our pals from Copper Kettle Brewing in Denver, CO. Lactose, blackberries, and raspberries give this Berliner Weisse a tart and fruity zing! If you haven’t tried it, it’s something special.
*A Better Tomorrow hazy double IPA returns after its debut during Hazepocalypse 2019. Many said it was the best of the six in that Hazy Series #jussayin 🤷‍♂️ Brewed with South African hops, this exceptionally fruity beer has notes of orange and sweet peach and a very smooth and creamy mouthfeel.
*Strawberry Lemon Splash Gusher tastes like… who knows?! These Gushers have been crazy—and crazy delicious. They’re made in a tiny fermentor on Fridays with more fruit than should legally be allowed in beer. Strawberries and lemons work together, right?

Abu Nawas drops this week: To Øl, Stillwater, Omnipollo, Evil Twin

Leave a comment

to øl1

A plethora of beers coming to our shelves this week thanks to Abu Nawas! Here’s this weeks drop:

To Øl

  • To Øl Tool Babushka 12/375 ml. Barley Wine aged in Port Barrels with Prunes and Dates. 13.5% ABV.
  • To Øl Tool Black Baal 12/375ml. Black Triple IPA brewed with coffee. Weighing in at a mighty 14% ABV.
  • To Øl tool Black Ball Imperial Porter 24/330ml bottles. Delicious potent Porter with a well-balanced mouthfeel and a healthy dose of Simcoe, Centennial, and Cascade Hops. 8% ABV.
  • To Øl tool Black Bauble 24/330 ml. Delicious Black Ales with Cardamom and Orange Peel. 8% ABV.
  • To Øl Brettxit IPA 24/330 ml. Brett IPA with Galaxy and Nelson Sauvin fermented with both British Ale yeast and Brettanomyces. 3.6% ABV
  • To Øl By Udder Means (Milk Stout) 24/330ml bottles. The wonderful Milk Stout from our Danish friends makes a return. 7% ABV.
  • To Øl D’s Nuts 12/375 ml. Rich Oatmeal Stout with Hazelnuts. 12% ABV.
  • To Øl Mine Is Bigger Than Yours 12/375ml. Bigger than your Barley Wine. 12.5% ABV.
  • To Øl Pineapple Express 12/375ml. Stout brewed with Pineapples & Coffee. 10% ABV.
  • To Øl You Shall Nut Pass 24/330 ml. Stout brewed with hazelnuts. Deep complexity and nuttiness from hazelnuts and dark malts. Gandalf Anyone? 7.2% ABV.

 

STILLWATER

  • Stillwater Whipped Nitro Mango IPA 6/4/16oz CAN – Stillwater Artisanal 8.5% ABV.
  • Stillwater Gin Fizz 6/4/16oz CAN – Cocktail Series: A nitro sour ale inspired by Gin Fizz, brewed with orange blossom, juniper berries, lemon, lime, and lactose. 5.5%
  • Stillwater MICRO 6/4/16oz CANS – Citra-focused Pale Ale. 4.5% ABV.
  • Stillwater World Famous Pilsner 6/4/16oz CAN – This one speaks to our Hearts. German-style Pilsner. German malt & hops. The most popular style on earth. 5% ABV.
  • Stillwater / AZ Wilderness Big Bunny is Everything6/4/12oz CAN – Strong Milk Stout collaboration with AZ Wilderness. Big Bunny IS everything. 8.0% ABV.
  • Stillwater On Fleek 6/4/12oz CAN – A 13 percent ABV imperial stout brewed with dark sugars and molasses. 13.0% ABV.
  • Stillwater Double Nothing6/4/16oz CANS – Nitro Doppelbock Style Lager. 8% ABV.
  • Stillwater Double Mocha Affogato Nitro Stout 6/4/16oz CAN – Double mocha affogato stout with cocoa nibs, cocoa powder, coffee & lactose on NITRO! 6.5% ABV.
  • Stillwater Critical Thinking 6/4/16oz CANS – Imperial Stout with tastes of roasted malt, dark chocolate, a hint of vanilla, molasses, a little bit of marshmallow 11% ABV.

OMNIPOLLO

  • Omnipollo Oaxaca 6/4/16oz CANS – Mango Margarita Slush IPA brewed with lactose, mango, lime, grapefruit & vanilla. 6.5% ABV.
  • Omnipollo Bianca Blueberry Maple Pancake Lassi Gose 6/4/16oz CANS – Blueberry maple pancake Lassi Gose ale brewed with blueberries, lactose sugar & maple syrup. 6% ABV.
  • Omnipollo Bianca Lemon Coconut Tart Lassi Gose 6/4/16oz CAN – Lemon Coconut Tart Lassi Gose ale brewed with lemon, coconut & lactose sugar. 6% ABV.
  • Omnipollo Double Raspberry Bianca 6/4/16oz CAN – Double Raspberry Lassi Gose Ale Brewed with 2x Raspberries & Lactose Sugar. 6% ABV.
  • Omnipollo Henosis 6/4/16oz CAN – IPA brewed with Nelson, Sauvin, Citra, Mosaic & Galaxy hops. 7.2% ABV.
  • Omnipollo Zodiak Multiverse 6/4/16oz CANS – Hazy Citra Double IPA. 8% ABV.
  • Omnipollo Hypnopompa 6/4/16oz CAN – Imperial Stout brewed with Marshmallow and Madagascan Vanilla Beans. 11% ABV.

EVIL TWIN

  • Evil Twin Kiwi Coconut Fizz 6/4/16oz CAN – Berliner Style Weisse Ale with Kiwi and Coconut. 5% ABV.
  • Evil Twin Brewing H is for Hops 6/4/16oz CANS – Dry-hopped Gose-style ale brewed with Salt. 4.5% ABV.
  • Evil Twin I Don’t Know How to Put This but This IPA Is Kind of a Big Deal6/4/16oz CANS – Double Dry-Hopped DIPA brewed with Raw Wildflower Honey. 10% ABV.
  • Evil Twin Learn What Is to Be Taken Seriously and Laugh at the Rest 6/4/16oz CANS – Hazy NE-IPA. 7% ABV.
  • Evil Twin Citra Sunshine 6/4/16oz CANS – Citra packed IPA. 4.5% ABV.
  • Evil Twin Evil Twin Imperial Simcoe Slacker 6/4/16oz CANS – Simcoe packed IPA. 7.5% ABV.
  • Evil Twin Hot Toddy-ish 6/4/16oz CANS – Blonde barley wine-style ale 10% ABV.
  • Evil Twin Irish-ish Coffee Stout 6/4/16oz CANS – Imperial Stout brewed with Lactose, Demerara Sugar, Nutmeg, Vanilla, Medium Toast Oak Spirals and – of course – a ton of Coffee. 10.3 % ABV.

Abu Nawas drop this week: Brasserie Dieu Du Ciel, Evil Twin, Omnipollo, Blank Brewing, and Pohjala

Leave a comment

Big drop from Abu Nawas this week and a lot of tasty brews, here we go!

Brasserie Dieu Du Ciel

  • Dieu du Ciel! Aphrodite 24/341ml Bottle – Stout with cocoa and vanilla beans. Its flavor profile offers dark chocolate, bourbon, and roasted malt tones. Gentle sweetness from the vanilla harmonizes alongside the bitterness of cocoa, presenting a subtle and surprisingly balanced finish. 6.5% ABV.
  • Dieu du Ciel Derniere Volonte Brett 24/341ml bottles – Belgian Style Funky IPA. Bottle re-fermented with Brettanomyces, the characteristic aromas of these wild yeast intermingle with the floral bouquet of the beer. Its warm leathery flavors envelop the equilibrium achieved between the malt and the notes of hops. Imperceptibly bitter, the hoppy finish is counterbalanced by the Belgian yeast esters, revealing a hint of spicy overtones. 7% ABV.  Translation: The Last Wishes!
  • Dieu du Ciel! Equinoxe du Printemps 24/341ml bottles – To celebrate the arrival of spring in Quebec this Scotch Ale is brewed with maple syrup, proposing oak and malt flavors with a hint of caramelized fruit. The warmth of alcohol envelops the mouth and enhances the maple flavor for a sweet yet balanced finish. 9.1% ABV.
  • Dieu du Ciel! Grande Noirceur24/341 ml Bottle – Canadian Imperial Stout. 9.0% ABV. Translation: The Great Darkness.
  • Dieu du Ciel! Peche Mortel24/341ml bottles – Outstanding Coffee Imperial Stout. A Deadly Sin indeed. 9.5% ABV.
  • Dieu du Ciel Solstice d’Ete (Raspberry) 24/341 ml Bottles – Beautiful Berliner Weisse with Raspberries. 5.9% ABV.
  • Dieu du Ciel! Disco Soleil 24/341 Bottles – Kumquat IPA. A touch of acidity from the kumquat zest finishes things off with a smile and wink. 6.5% ABV.

blank1

Blank Brewing

Blank Brewing The One That Just Kicked 6/4/16oz CAN – Imperial NE-IPA. shall be kept anonymous for the duration of its existence. 8% ABV.

Evil Twin Brewing

  • Evil Twin The Check Please 6/4/12oz CAN – Collab with Blank Brewing; Double Dry-Hopped Black IPA. 7% ABV.
  • Evil Twin Evil Twin Flava Influencer6/4/16oz CANS – Oat & Lactose IPA brewed with Vanilla, Pineapple, & Gooseberries. 7.8% ABV.
  • Evil Twin Pineapple Flava Influencer 6/4/16oz CANS – Pineapple Milkshake IPA. 8% ABV.
  • Evil Twin Everyday, Once A Day IPA 6/4/16oz CAN – Double dry-hopped Imperial IPA brewed with lactose and vanilla beans. 9% ABV. 💗💗💗
  • Evil Twin / Westbrook OFYMD 24/16oz CAN. Pina Colada Imperial Stout Brewed with Lactose, Mauritian Muscovado Sugar, Pineapple and Toasted Coconut. 12.8% ABV.

Omnipollo

  • Evil Twin / Omnipollo Coffenade IPA 6/4/12oz CANS – Coffee IPA brewed with Lemon. Think of a Modern Ice Tea. 7% ABV. (Search these under EVIL TWIN)
  • Evil Twin / Omnipollo Rainbownade IPA6/4/12oz CANS – IPA brewed with grapefruit passion fruit, mango, raspberry, and blueberry. 7% ABV.  (Search these under EVIL TWIN)
  • Omnipollo Pleroma 6/4/12oz CANS – Raspberry Crème Brulee Sour Ale. Needless to say more. 6% ABV. 💗💗💗
  • Omnipollo Tetragrammaton 24/16oz 4-Pack CANS – Wonderful Galaxy, Citra, & Mosaic Hopped IPA. 7.3% ABV.
  • Omnipollo Devin the Dude 6/4/12oz CAN – Beautifully made German-style pilsner. 5.2% ABV.
  • Omnipollo Agamemnon 6/4/16oz CAN – OmniPollo’s beloved, original Maple Syrup Imperial Stout is back and better than ever in 16oz cans. 12.5% ABV.

pohjala1

Pohjala Brewery

  • Pohjala Torm 24/330ml Bottle – Imperial Gose. A strong sour and salty wheat beer brewed with lingonberry, heather tips, and honey. 8% ABV. Translation: Storm.
  • Pohjala Jouluoo 24/330ml Bottle –  A silky smooth chocolate-vanilla oak aged Imperial Porter aged on cacao nibs, fresh vanilla pods, and French oak for a heady chocolate dessert character with a luscious vanilla taste and aroma. 8% ABV.
  • Pohjala Leevike 24/330ml Bottle – A spiced sour ale brewed with fermented cranberries, hibiscus, heather honey, toasted cinnamon and cloves. Translation: The Bullfinch. 6.5% ABV.
  • Pohjala Meri 24/330ml Bottle – A classic Gose, brewed with Himalayan rock salt and coriander seeds. 4.4% ABV.  Translation: The Sea.
  • Pohjala Must Kuld 24/330ml Bottle – A rich porter with smooth notes of milk chocolate. Enjoy on its own, or as a decadent dessert. 7.8% ABV. Translation: Black Gold.
  • Pohjala Ohtu 24/330 ml – An easy-going porter brewed with oats and rye, bursting with vanilla and chocolate flavors. 8% ABV. Translation: Evening.
  • Pohjala Oo 24/330ml Bottle – An Imperial Baltic Porter as dark as the Estonian nights. 10.5% ABV.
  • Pohjala Prenzlauer Berg 24/330ml Bottle – Raspberry Berliner Weisse. A rich and creamy sour wheat beer, brewed with raspberries. 4.5% ABV.

Drink This! Reunion DDH Dr. Dank!

Leave a comment

Another first time to can release (I think anyway) of a wonderful Iowa brewed IPA is double dry hopped Dr. Dank from Reunion brewery in Coralville. Reunion has been very strong in their pale ale/IPA game as their Juice Factory and Tank Puncher grace our shelves and our beer fridges regularly. Yes, it is available in cans right now but….if you go to my favorite place in the area to have a beer, Mr. Jeremy Freerks has a keg he is going to tap at Club 76 in North Libery, so you can fill a growler with this goodness…so stay tuned for that tapping! TBA!

I remember the first time I had Dr. Dank on tap and it was at Need Pizza in downtown CR and thought to myself, if they can this beer up I’d be all over it….well, here we are! Another example of our amazing Iowa breweries continuing to meet the need of the beer drinkers during this pandemic. Let’s get to the details of this beer courtesy of Reunion before we delve too deep:

It’s madness!!! He can’t be serious?!?! Sheer lunacy! He’ll destroy us all!!! Double dry hopped with Columbus, Citra and Mosaic, DDH Dr. Dank reeks of dank resiny goodness and heady, musky, tropical, juicy fruit. Oh, the humanity!!!

POUR
Clean pour, no floaties, dark yellow with some orange hue. Nice thin head and as your pouring you get the waft of the hops. Citrus and resin galore! Just what your looking for in this beer.

IMG_0549

TASTE
With the haze craze upon us, which I do enjoy, I love the bitterness that comes with this beer. Yes, you get the fruit and you get the dank, but the wonderful old school IPA bitterness also shines. The combo is terrific and makes 7.5% ABV beer seem like you need another…and then maybe 1 more…

OVERALL
Reunion had me sold with Tank Puncher and now Dr. Dank has me ready to head back to the store for a few more 4 packs, unless they are already sold out. If you are a hop head and like the dank stickiness that Mosaic and Citra bring and mix that with the resinous from Columbus than you need to Drink This!

4 more Big Grove brews! Preorder starts this Wednesday! (5/6) Survival Kit, Summer Summer Jam Jam, Boston Cream Pie Stout, and Pride of Iowa

Leave a comment

big grove

Four more Big Grove beers will be making their way to our lips this coming weekend and preorder starts this Wednesday morning at 10 a.m. Preorder available here. The 4 beers that they are releasing are:

*Pride of Iowa – pale ale using all Iowa ingredients
*Boston Cream Pie – dessert stout
*Survival Kit Vol. 2. – hazy IPA
* Summer Summer Jam Jam – gusher

Stay tuned for more details on these 4 beers and don’t forget to click the link above to preorder starting on Wednesday! Cheers!

Iowa Beer Sneak Peek! Clock House Low Bandito!

Leave a comment

low bandito

Before I get into the details of this brew from Clock House I just want to share the release info for it which is coming this Wednesday!

*For the first time Clock House will be offering their delicious imperial stout in 16 oz cans starting this Wednesday, May 6th starting at 3:00 p.m. Low Bandito is an imperial stout aged with habanero peppers, limes, cacao nibs, vanilla beans and cinnamon. This is what you think a Mexican hot chocolate would taste like. This bad boy checks in at 11% ABV. Pick yours up at Clock House curbside starting this Wednesday!

Alright, there are the deets for the release. Onto the tasty brew itself. Was very grateful to Clock House staff for hooking me up with one first of all, so thank you to them! I’ve been spending a lot of my time driving over and picking up Pineapple Witch Slap on what seems to be a daily basis but this Wednesday I’ll be driving over for Low Bandito.

POUR
Dark viscous pour, aroma of cinnamon and cocoa take center stage with vanilla on the back. Nice looking tan head on this thing this dissipates.

TASTE
Cinnamon, chocolate, and vanilla right away and then a small shot of heat from the habanero, the lime is very subtle, but you can definitely get some faint citrus from it.

OVERALL
I can’t wait to get more of this. A few to sip on when the spring evening gets a tad cool and the sun goes down and maybe a few to store to see what the flavors do. Clock House has been upping their game constantly; IPAs, Sours, stouts, etc…they’ve been pushing it and they’ve been delivering! Get there this Wednesday folks and if you get some I’d love to hear your thoughts! Cheers!

IMG_0538

Backpocket Brewing releasing 3 new beers this month!

Leave a comment

Backpocket Brewing in Coralville is busy brewing and they have 3 news beers that they are rolling out this month to prove it! The rollout starts today and continues with 2 more brews next week. Stay tuned for Rob Exotic coming in May and a double dry hopped version of Raygun with strata and galaxy hops. More on those later! Here we go!

4.17: Pink Denim: Kettle Sour
We have partnered up with the amazing women in the Iowa Pink Boots Society to make a tropical kettle sour! Dry-hopped with the special pink boots hop blend. This sour will be available in 16oz/4pack cans.
— The Pink Boots Society was created to assist, inspire and encourage women beer industry professionals to advance their careers through education.

4.23: Saturday Morning: Smoothie Sour
Remember the good ‘ole days of waking up early on Saturday to laze away the morning watching cartoons? Our Saturday Morning Smoothie Series takes you back to those days of iconic flavors. Our first in line is a Concord grape and Blueberry Sour. This sour has Concord grapes, blueberries, vanilla, lactose and ube for an ultra vibrate purple color! This sour will be available in 16oz/4pack cans in the Coralville Taproom.

4.23: Antidote: BA Blonde Stout
Extraordinary times call for extraordinary measures. Drawing for our love of mixology and well as extreme brewing, we have created our own cocktail inspired barrel-aged blonde stout. Let us tease you with the Antidote! We started with a rich but deceptively light colored blonde stout base, aged in Woodford reserve bourbon whiskey barrels on a bed of Cocoa Nibs, then infused orange peel, cherry puree and spices to complete our cocktail creation. We think you’ll agree, it’s just the thing you need to survive this modern jungle. Available in 16oz/4pack cans.

backpocket4

Clock House bringing “Pineapple Witch Slap” back on 4/15!

Leave a comment

witch slap

One of my favorite beers is coming back! Clock House Brewing will be bringing Pineapple Witch Slap to cans next Wednesday (4/15)! This beer will be available from 3-6 next Wednesday…word of warning..you may want to get there quick, depending on limits, I may gorge myself! Voted by me as one of the “Best Beers in Iowa 2019”, I can’t wait to get another taste. Check out my best of 2019 here, and here’s more on this wonderful brew:

The Witches are at it again and have decided to take our Flag Ship “Witch Slap NEIPA” to warmer places. They’ve added loads of Pineapple during primary and secondary fermentation to create a unique tropical twist. Don’t forget your sunglasses and fly into our taproom to enjoy our Hazy, Murky, Juicy Witch, infused with real pineapple! Get some while it lasts!