Flying Dog Classic Pale Ale

The first thing that caught my eye about this beer was the label and the artistic talents of Ralph Steadman who also illustrated covers for many novels. I know I'm a sucker for thoughtful labels so I had to see what this beer tasted like. I pretty much took a gamble and bought the sixer hoping it would be average at least. This beer is pretty good, deep in color, a good weight that doesn't taste watered down. It's a good tasting ale without being too heavy on the alcohol and easy to drink more than one in a single sitting.

Budweiser American Ale

It took me a while to track one of these down, a single one that I could purchase without buying six at once. I did not have high hopes for this beer so I tried it with an open mind. I can't say it's an awful beer, because there are plenty of other ales that just don't quite do it, this is one of them. This Bud's attempt at ale crafting fell short because it lacked flavor, and the beer itself was thin and watered down. I gather this is one of those beers with a brand people trust to get into darker beers and perhaps seek out other ales after this. Bud regular and Bud Light are not awful for domestics and price, but this ale would need to be priced the same to reach people.

Coney Island Lager

Having been to Coney Island only a handful of times in my life, despite being a native New Yorker, I can say that place hasn't changed much. The beach is still dirty, the rides and the food booths aren't very savory, in either order you experience them. Nonetheless, I have fond memories of the place, being five years old with a plastic pail and child-sized shovel, I was scooping sand in those family photos. The first sip of this beer, I tasted a bit of sweetness, almost like apple cider, but that quickly went away on the second sip, it became a full flavored beer. This one is very easy to drink and the artwork on the label is pretty bad ass.

Southern Tier Tripel Belgian Style Ale

This Belgian Style Ale came as part of the Sampler Pack, I can't say much about it, it didn't taste too hoppy nor tart. To be honest, where this beer stands is between just all right to almost good. Don't let the label fool you, it's not the usual Belgian style with lots of carbonation, this one is easy on the foam.