#294: Founders Brewing Co. » Big Lushious (Imperial Stout)

Founders Brewing Co. » Big Lushious (Imperial Stout) | ABV: 7.8%
Founders brings us Big Lushious for the winter edition of their Backstage Series - a stout brewed with chocolate & raspberries. On the eve of my almost-three-week break from my day job, I was anticipating the freedom of the following afternoon. Big Lushious seemed like a great beer to indulge with, while still retaining coherence in the morning.

This rich brew starts off with a decadent nose of succulent, chocolate covered raspberries and a hint of spice exuding from the dark, bubbly brown body and deep tan head.

Onto the palate, Big Lushious is silky and quite sweet. Big tart raspberry flavors rush through with a hint of cola, concluding with a wet finish. Further through, this beer becomes a sumptuous blend of port and raspberry truffles with subtle threads of cherry cola, red velvet cake, and chocolate syrup.

Big Lushious is a desert beer through and through and a lovely edition to sociable, warming ports & ice wines.

#293: Bell's Brewing » Venus: The Bringer of Peace (Blonde Ale)

Bell's Brewing » Venus (Blonde Ale w/ Honey, Apricot, Cardamom, & Vanilla) | ABV: 7.5%
Bell's second offering in their Planetary Series, Venus has been garnering some polarizing reviews. Somewhere in there there's a joke about what what humanity through the planet was like until we actually landed there, but it's a bit too early for that.

Curiously brewed with apricot, honey, over 60 lbs of hand cut vanilla beans and cardamom, it's a complex, adventurous, and atypical brew. At it's core, Peace Bringer is a Blonde Ale, but that's about as far as the thread of that style goes.

Unabashedly aromatic, Venus emits a big, sweet, nectar and juicy nose. Notes of elderberry, vanilla, stone fruit, and oranges swirl through the olfactory system.

Onto the palate, it's dry and puckering and far beyond just a beer at this point. Venus is dense and mildly astringent - tart, but not sour. Wielding a myriad of fruit (apricot nectar, blood orange, tangerine), herbal and spice flavors (the cardamom and vanilla gracefully dancing), this is a mouthful of a beer with a stacking mouthcoat.

Straight up, this is a fruit beer. A big bold fruit beer, akin to a younger sibling of Founders' Rübæus and Mango Magnifico. Not quite as refined as those brews, but highly enjoyable nonetheless.

A goddamn great beer aimed for those with a curious and adventurous palate. If you're looking for a strong ale or dimmur blonde, better look elsewhere, but for those looking to sip the fringe of craft brewing, grab this while you can.

#121: Stone Brewing » R&R Coconut IPA

From the minds of homebrewers Robert Masterson and Ryan Reschan...

The Brewery: Stone Brewing Co. (Escondido, CA)
The Brew:  R&R Coconut IPA
Availability:  Draft, 22 oz bottles (limited, brewed once)
ABV: 7.7%
Rating: 9/10
Location: Home
Found: Fingerlakes Beverage Center

The Story? R&R Coconut IPA the result of a winning recipe at Stone’s AHA-sanctioned Spring 2013 Homebrew Competition. The innovative beer is brewed with 280 pounds of coconut and an unusual blend of hop varieties and is "guaranteed to taste like no IPA that's gone before".  Let's find out!

The Beer? R&R pours out as bubbly, translucent butterscotch with almost no head, even with a firm pour. The nose is sweet and dank with hops, like the coconut has taken the hop wallop and smoothed it over. Notes of magno and citrus are there as well.

The tasted is dense with bitter hops, but there's a crispness in the finish akin to coconut water along with a slight nuttiness and something else... a hint of tea, perhaps, amongst the resin. Additionally, R&R is far more well-carbonated than most Imperial IPAs, which further aids the crispness.

Some posts have lambasted this brew for not having enough coconut flavor. While it's true, you wont think someone accidentally dumped a piña colada in your beer, it doesn't necessarily mean the coconut wasn't effective. When I order good curry, I'm not thinking - "I love ordering curry because I'm in love with coconut milk". No I ordered it because I love curry. I also love IPAs.

The coconut has provided a richness and crispness and seems to bring out some nut, tea, and fruit notes that would otherwise be buried. I couldn't help but continually turn to my glass, stating  "This is really good." The coconut debate will rage on and we may never know exactly what Robert and Ryan were aiming for but, as far as the question - "Is it a good beer and worth it?" - absolutely.