#249: Jack's Abby Brewing » Session Rye IPL

Jack's Abby Brewing » Session Rye IPL | ABV: 3.8% | IBUs: 40 | Rating: 8.6%

My partner and I kicked off last Friday's at-home tasting with this new brew from Jack's Abby. Everything Jack's has been solid or impressive, so I was intrigued at the prospect of a quality, very low ABV beer from these MA lager innovators.

This Session Rye is a hazy, translucent amber with plenty of foamy, fluffy white head. The nose puffs up a soft plume of spicy citrus aromas. From first sip, it's a clean, refreshing, drinkable ride, but with ample character.

Having Centennial, Chinook, Columbus and Crystal hops at the very end of the boil, provides a distinctive, but subtle hop bitterness that never gets too biting. Rye heat and floral notes compliment nicely.

Overall, an excellent alternative to the session-IPA craze with a bit more character and subtle quality than most, though not the most hop-forward, if that's what you're seeking. Great body for such a low ABV. I'd encourage this to find its way to 6-packs.

#172: Lazy Magnolia Brewing Co. » Jefferson Stout (Cream Stout)

Sweet southern session...

The Brewery: Lazy Magnolia Brewing Co. (Kiln, MS)
The Brew: Jefferson Stout (Cream Stout)
Availability: Bottles, Mix 12-Pack, Draft
ABV: 4.65% | IBU: 22
Rating: 8.0
Location: Home
Found: Fingerlakes Beverage Center

The Story? While I was in New Orleans in the fall, Lazy Magnolia Brewing Co. caught my eye with their Southern Pecan Nut Brown and Jefferson Stout, brewed with sweet potatoes and lactose. Unfortunately, I didn't have a chance to give either a taste, but in late December, 12 and 6-packs of Lazy Magnolia began appearing in Ithaca for the first time. We picked up a box and went to town.

The Beer? Jefferson pours out jet black with a slim cap of off-white head. The nose is relatively transparent with some chocolate notes. The taste is unique, smooth, but bitter on the initial sip. A blooming bittersweet earthiness follows with notes of chocolate, coffee, milk, and just a touch of honey. This Sweet Potato Stout is light bodied, easily drinkable, and never gets too sweet. A bit different, but not revolutionary - nor is that what Lazy Magnolia is aiming for with this Southern Stout.

Thumbs up for equal parts creativity and accessibility.

#108: Jack's Abby Brewing » Jabby Brau

More from Jack's Abbey down at The Westy...

The Brewery: Jack's Abby (Farmington, MA)
The Brew: Copper Legend (Oktoberfest)
Availability: Bottles/Draft
ABV: 4.5% | IBUs: 20
Rating: 8.8/10
Location: The Westy

The Story? The Westy put Jack's on my radar earlier this year. Anytime they have a new one on, I try to swing by. Their entire series is lager-based, which is unique in this era of ales. Draft night was in effect and I found myself in the area with an hour to space. Prost!

The Beer? This one kicks off with a touch of hops, but then it's all full malt flavor. I'm really loving the all-lager thing Jacks' has going. They've completely nailed it.

Flavors of caramel, toasted malt, crust, complemented by a pinch of pine from the American hops hanging out in the background of this very drinkable and flavorful lager.

Subtle quality is the name of the game with this one, which can be a refreshing change-up in the wake of the flavor-bomb beer explosion. A clean, session win.

#073: Hill Farmstead » Walden, Life without Principles #3, Susan, Everett

Up and at 'em for some of Vermont's most sought after brews...

The Brewery: Hill Farmstead (Greensboro Bend, VT)

The Story? Hill Farmstead crept up on my radar some time ago, but quickly went into the "yeah, but when I'm I ever going to have access to any" category. It wasn't until I announced my planned tripped to Vermont that I was reminded of their exquisite brews. I checked our very, very loose schedule - nothing planned on Saturday so far... done.

Hill Farmstead offers several series - Ancestral (named in honor of family now past), Philosophical Series (named after favorite Philosophical works), Single Hop, Singular (one-off), Collaborations (Mikkeller, Cigar City, etc), and their Grassroots brand, which recently brewed an Arctic Saison up at Anchorage Brewing.

I wasn't expecting any of Hill Farmstead's more sought after affairs, as the day prior to our trip to VT was their Bottle Release event... the line was down the road by early afternoon and would definitely sell out. Instead, I was looking forward to tastings from their more year-round offerings and snag a bottle of the aforementioned Arctic Saison.

The Beer?

Walden (Hoppy Session Ale) 4% | 9/10
Wonderfully clean, hoppy nose with a clean, tart, hoppy taste to match! Bitingly bitter hop flavor with prominent lemon pith while still being cool, clean, and refreshing. Quite bright, as you might expect. The most impressive note, is how there's no mineral nature to the taste. Clean quality and a great way to start off the day.

Life without Principle #3 (Hibiscus Blonde) 5.4% | 8.5/10
The only Philosophical Series available to taste (one of two on tap), Life w/o Principle, in it's third incarnation, presents itself with plentiful, fluffy head and rich, transparent copper color. First taste, it's dry to the mouth, but with a sweet flavor along with plenty of citrus from the Citra hops and the hibiscus. A very herbal brew with a very slight sweetness to compliment the spice. A pleasant, aromatic brew. Hibiscus + Blonde was a great choice.

Susan (IPA) 6.2%
Lots of fluffy, leggy head on this one atop hazy, gold colored liquid. The taste presents bright citrus and a high IBU with plenty of depth. There's something sweet in the back of this one - clover honey? A dark, sweetness that is fleeting as a dream, but just as satisfying. Fantastic body too.

Various sweet notes rise and slip away throughout this hoppy brew. Hinted whispers of bubblegum peak through along with mild grapefruit notes. A complex and unique offering in a crowded list of American IPAs.

Everett (American Porter) 7.6% | 9.5/10
On first sip, this one already takes the cake. BIG, roasted coffee nose emits from this batch of headless, unfiltered black gold. Sweet to the taste with a fantastic mouthfeel of silky, low, natural carbonation. There's a strong, rooty aspect to this concoction, supporting lovely notes of maple and coffee.

This is dark beer bliss with that strong, long finish we dream of. We brought a batch of this back home to share with our Vermont loving friends at The Enchanted Badger here in town and even four days later it was just as wonderful.



In the end, four of the highest quality brews I tasted on the trip and apart from a mild cash-only scare, we left with smiles on our faces, a big brown jug of Everett, along with bottles of Arctic Saison and Sankt Hans. Look for posts on the two latter to come as well as on their Edward pale ale...

#007: Left Hand Brewing Co. - Good Juju (Ginger Ale)

Left Hand returns to Upstate NY...

The Brewery: Left Hand Brewing Co. (Longmount, CO)
The Brew: Good Juju
Availability: Draft & Bottles (12oz.)
ABV: 4.5%
Rating: 8
Location: Home

The Story? Several years back, my partner's sister brought over a 12-pack from a brewery I hadn't run across yet. The artwork was fantastic and the brews were even better. That beer was from Left Hand - Sawtooth Ale, 400 Pound Monkey IPA, Milk Stout, and Stranger Pale Ale graced my pallet. But then, just like that, they were nowhere to be found in town. I was able to snag one or two on draft while out of state, but otherwise hadn't run into them since and they slipped into the back of my mind.

Fast forward until a week back when I stroll into one of my usual pick-up places (Finger Lakes Beverage) and voilà! - they're back in our area. Into my basket go a sixer of Juju and Nitro Stout. Neither of which I'd tried yet.

Juju's story starts way back (ha) in 1994 as part of Left Hand's first 5 production beers, beginning life as Juju Ginger. 2010 the brew was rebranded as Good Juju with fantastic updated artwork.

The Beer? A full mouth of pleasant ginger satiates me in the first big swig. As well it should - they juice 20kg of ginger for each 60 barrel brewery batch, plus using the rinds in quite an innovative manor.

A smooth, wet, mild pale ale finishes the job. The ginger is ever present, but not in a spicy ginger-beer way... this is a far more subtle nature. A bit sultry, thirst-quenching and satisfying. A great alternative to skunky summer beers and boring, phoned-in fruit wheat beers. I'm peaked to try this with some good Indian or Thai food as well.

This isn't a beard-scratching, philosophizing ale; but that's not what it's aiming. Perfect for those of us looking for a high quality session ale as the temperature rises with quite it's own personality.

#004: Bandwagon Brewery: Tartan 80 (Scottish Ale)

I picked up a half growler of Tartan 80 while stopping down for Bandwagon's Old Stud Leroy.

(Apologies for the lackluster pic. I was too busy enjoying this beer before realizing it was too late!)

The Brewery: Bandwagon Brewery (Ithaca, NY)
The Brew: Tartan 80 (Scottish Ale)
Availability: Draft Only
ABV: 4.5% // IBU: 17
Rating: 7/10
Location: Bandwagon Brewpub, Ithaca, NY

The Story? Taran 80 uses a blend of Aromatic, Honey, and Crystal malts for color and malty favor, but much more of the beer's flavor comes from vigorously boiling the first 20 gallons of wort which they pull from the mash. This caramelizes the sugars in the wort. Kent Golding hops balance out the body.

The Beer? An session Scotch Ale? Off the bat it's a very drinkable, earthy brew with a malty nose and hints of caramel. There's something about the first few sips that reminds me of Yuengling that I can't put my finger on. Just for a moment. Not comparing it at all. Must be one of the malts.

Continuing through the half growler, the beer hits it's stride - lightly roasted and semi-sweet with a great, lingering finish for such a low ABV.  Zero hops on the pallet, but almost a hint of vanilla by the third glass... the end of this really opened up.

All in all, a great brew for malt lovers as the heat starts to hit.

Nickname: "Anytime Scotch Ale"