#263: Sierra Nevada Beer Camp » Chico King (3 Floyds Collaboration)

Sierra Nevada Beer Camp » Chico King (3 Floyds Collaboration)
ABV: 6.5% | IBUs: 45 | Rating 9.2 (Draft @ Ithaca Ale House)

Another birthday Beer Camp brew, down at Ale House, this time in collaboration with the lauded 3 Floyds. My only 3F experience so far has been a De Struise collaboration down in Philly. It was fantastic, but I'm still highly jealous of my mid-west pals with ample experience.

A hazy exterior and fluffy heads reels me in. This unreal pale is incredibly smooth, packing hoppy, cool, and spicy flavors. Backed by high carbonation and a big malt backbone, this King is rustic and dry. Lots of dry resin notes in fact, augmented by serious rind notes and amped up herbal and pine.

A solid hop heads dream...

In the bottle... the story is a bit different, as with the Yonder Bock. Still comes off a hazy amber (with a bit more bubble) and thick white head, but not nearly as complex and boisterous as it's draft counterpart. The big malt and huge hop notes are rolled way back and a bit lack luster.

Not sure if my palate wasn't into it this time around, but the story brewing here seems to be check these Beer Campers out on draft & bottle/can for the full experience.

#262: Sierra Nevada Beer Camp » Yonder Bock (Cigar City Collaboration)

Sierra Nevada / Cigar City » Yonder Bock (Tropical Maibock)
ABV: 7.7% | IBUs: 45 | Rating: 9.2

Continuing down the Beer Camp rabid hole, I took my birthday day-off lunch down at Ithaca Ale House, which to my pleasant surprise had both Yonder Bock and Chico King (coming soon...) on draft. This Maibock takes a tropical nod with the use of aromatic and highly sought after, Equinox aka 366 hops.

Served up in a 10 oz., Yonder Bock hits the stage with a huge malt nose of sweet ripe red apple, pineapple and other tropical fruit notes.

This one is on, so incredibly tasty with a big,wet malt start, drying finish and flip of spice in the tail. A wonderfully balanced brew yielding a dry mouthcoat of pleasant spice and silky mouthfeel.

Flavor notes of guava, passion fruit, and ripe apple are countered by that touch of hop bitterness & spice that Cigar City does so well.

The can spells a bit different story. Yonder Bock pours out a deep, bubbly amber with a fluffy, lacy off-white head. Bright tropical aromas are immediately apparent followed by flavors of smooth, bitter hops and slight booze notes in the finish. Silky, but dry once again in the mouth, but the flavor is a bit tipped on the minneral / hop-forward realm comparied to draft.

Overall, on draft is far preferred, bringing out much more malt beauty, but a solid collaboration regardless.

#258: Sierra Nevada Beer Camp » Yvan The Great (Russian River Collaboration)

Sierra Nevada / Russian River » Yvan The Great (Belgian-style Blonde)
ABV: 6.3% | IBUs: 50 | Rating: 8.8

This one one of the top 3 beers in the Beer Camp box I was pumped for. Our here on the East Coast and especially Upstate NY, bottles of Russian River are hard to come by, outside of Sierra Nevada's other collab, Brux.

A hybrid brew featuring Belgian yeast and plethora of hops, this pale Blonde has a clear, golden-straw body topped with fizzy, lacy head.

Belgian spice and yeast flavors swirl with notes of peach skin and lemongrass, all wrapped in quick, prickly carbonation ending in a semi-dry mouthcoat and finish.

Crisp citrus hops follow with distinct orange notes and slight tropical flavors. Yvan The Great (reference to Yvan De Baets, of Brasserie De la Senne) is beamingly bright and grows a bit grassy.

I was lucky enough to have this on draft and bottle and the experience was for all intents and purpose identical. While I was hoping for something a bit more groundbreaking and adventuresome from Russian River, this is still one of the standouts of the box so far. Nothing that I'll plead to go year-round, but worth checking out on several occasions.

#257: Sierra Nevada Beer Camp » Electric Ray (Ballast Point Collaboration)

Sierra Nevada / Ballast Point » Electric Ray (Imperial Pale Lager)
ABV: 8.5% | IBUs: 70 | Rating: 8.9

I have to admit that I am enjoying this Lagers rebirth - from the staggering number of brews Jack's Abby is slinging, on to Founder's latest Backstage Series release (coming soon...). When I heard that two hop-forward Western U.S. breweries were collaborating on an IPL jacked with Cascade, Zues, Nugget, and Northern Brewer hops, it peaked interest for sure.

Electric Ray serves up with a fluffy, ivory head crowning a deep amber body with hot fumes of piney, spicy hop aromas. Quickly taking the first sip, this collaboration is damn tasty.

Firm, growing hop presence starts off the ride with a rising heat in the finish. Big, bursting citrus flavors weave with inferred notes of chili spice, all supported by a healthy malt backbone. Strong grapefruit and floral flavors continue throughout, but are never overwhelming.

Hot-hop, med-high booze India-Pale that's well balanced and done right.

#256: Sierra Nevada Beer Camp » Torpedo Pils (Firestone Walker Collaboration)

Sierra Nevada / Firestone Walker » Torpedo Pils (Czech Pilsener)
ABV: 5.2% | IBUs: 45 | Rating: 8.5

Next up, Sierra Nevada fills their Hop Torpedo with New Zealand hops for a hop-forward take on the Pilsner style.

Torpedo Pils kicks off with a bright, Euro-hop nose. It sparkling aromas of kumquat and a soft, grassy or herbal note that I can't quite put my finger on. Alluring none the less. All these fuming up from a translucent straw body topped with a fading, fuzzy white head.

Onto the palate, it's a swirl of soft flavors and mildly lively carbonation. Tender balance of tropical New Zealand hop notes with a wonderful ride of light malt sweetness in a flip on the finish. There's dry, zesty lemon notes up front, with a mild, soothing finish.

Overall, a solid, understated brew.

#254: Sierra Nevada Beer Camp » Myron's Walk (Allagash collaboration)

Sierra Nevada / Allagash Brewing » Myron's Walk (Belgian-Style Pale Ale)
ABV: 5.3% | IBU: 38 | Rating: 7.9/10

On to box break bottle #2, we make our way north with Allagash - of which we'd just enjoyed their White the night before during our bottle share (pics soon), thanks to friends who'd just returned from New England.

This particular collaboration is a low IBU Belgian-Style pale brewed with coriander. Out to the glass, it's a hazy straw body topped with a finger of fluffy white head. The nose is quite soft, with a hint of citrus, yeast, and grape skin. It's aromatically mild for any Belgian-style, especially anything marked Sierra Nevada.

The taste at first was a bit polarizing and it wasn't entirely clear the direction they were aiming for with this collaboration. The hop bitterness clashed just slightly with the coriander, diminished further by a slight copper taste. The finish, dry and mildly piney, but still retaining some metallic notes.

Myron's Walk improved further through the bottle/glass with soft citrus esters rising in tandem with pleasant Belgian yeast notes, subtle lemon pith and a touch of grass.

Overall, an OK beer that is just a little too much Sierra Nevada and not enough Allagash. I had high hopes for this one that fell short. If this one shows up on draft, I'll give it another try for sure and report back.

#253: Sierra Nevada Beer Camp » There And Back (New Glarus collaboration)

(Last week yielded some nice scores to say the least including a 2014 box of Beer Camp...)

It's Beer Camp time. 2013 was a little bit of a let down, with only three varieties, all of which were hop-centric. Mind you, they were tasty, but two were the same offering as 2012 - which also had an impressive Pislner and Oatmeal Stout.

On to 2014, we have a true collaboration box of 10 unique bottles and 2 cans that flaunts a who's who of U.S. craft breweries. While 2013 boxes lingered long into the summer & fall, best of luck to everyone seeking a pack and don't sleep on it.

Sierra Nevada / New Glarus Brewing » There And Back (English Bitter)
ABV: 5.6% | IBUs: 40 | Rating: 8.7/10

My partner & I first crossed paths with New Glarus at a bleary eyed dinner, crossing Wisconsin on our way to a wedding in Minnesota. We were both pleasantly surprised by their tasty, English-leaning brew style. While their sours have not graced these lips yet, I'll jump at any chance to taste what they're up to.

There And Back seemed like a solid place to start in such boisterous box. The English Bitter-style brew pours out with a rising, fluffy white head, that boasts plenty of lace, atop an amber body.

Aromatic notes of malts, herbs and fruit kick off a highly fragrant offering. There's a touch of soft peach and other white fruits tucked in there that are just lovely.

Down the hatch, it's a delightfully agreeable beer. Bright and toasted bitterness shines throughout, briskly hopped with alfalfa-like notes.

Wonderfully complex balance and quite drinkable, it's a true collaboration, balancing Sierra Nevada's bitter-enthusiasm and New Glarus' restraint and precision. It likely won't be the stand out beer of the box, but for the style it's notable.