Butternuts Farmhouse Ale Snapperhead IPA

I forgot how crusty the placemats were when I took this picture and they're pretty grimey. I really liked the Butternuts IPA because it didn't have the "snapper" bite to it. I'm probably admitting to some sort of weakness but I dislike beers where the tart, zest, bitterness is so powerful at once, it has this battery acid aftertaste common in a lot of IPA's. This one is a mild sipper and actually tastes refreshing. I'm also liking the can design where the fish is jamming out to what looks like a cassette player. If I could find these cans outside of having to buy the Butternuts variety pack, I'd be overjoyed.

Brooklyn Black Chocolate Stout

Before the Winter is done for, I'd have to put this up and write a bit about it. I'm a big fan of Brooklyn brews not only because they're local, but they're different in taste than a lot of other beers I've come across. The Black Chocolate Stout pours out dark like ink, like a hefty stout, and I could smell the burnt and roasted chocolate grits just by hovering over the glass. Unfortunately, that burnt smell is what it tastes like: bitter with obvious hints of burnt bits. I really wanted to like this, but it just wasn't very good to drink more than a few sips of. As for acquiring that taste for it, I just couldn't, half a glass later, it was still not palatable. Unless someone likes espresso flavored beer, this isn't something I'd recommend trying.

Smuttynose Old Brown Dog Ale

The dog's name on the label is Olive, but he's a brown dog. Anyway, this is a dark ale with more alcohol in it than a typical beer. It's thicker and heavier than most ales, as well. Although there aren't hints of sour or overbearing bitterness, this is not a light beer in texture or flavor. I found it hard to drink more than one in a sitting because of the alcohol content and the taste of it did not match well with the foods I was eating. I would probably only drink this after dinner since the alcohol and flavor was overbearing towards food. Unfortunately, I couldn't buy a single to try and ended up with six. There's still one floating in the fridge and because of the higher alcohol content and the awkward pairing with foods I like, I'm not inspired to drink them.

St. Peter's India Pale Ale

Whenever I see these, I have to get at least one since they're not very common. St. Peter's IPA is a good one to try, it's very crisp, super easy to drink since it's not bitter or tart. My feelings on most IPA's is they usually taste good, but it's hard for me to drink the whole thing or drink more than one of them in one sitting because of the gritty aftertaste and the cotton mouth feeling. I would not hesitate to buy a case of these if it were available since they're so easy to drink.

I'd have to categorize this as a really good mild summer beer since there is some sweetness to it. Between this and the English Ale, and even the bad experience with the Cream Stout, I'm pretty set to buy anything St. Peter's to try at least once.

Butternuts Farmhouse Ale Porkslap Pale Ale

Wow, I can't believe it is March already. Where has all the time gone? I hope I'm making some good progress with everything I'm trying to get completed. As I'm going along with the entries, I'm trying to be as open as possible about trying the styles of beers that don't appeal to me as much. After all, I can't confirm I don't like it unless I try them.

The Butternuts pale ale is pretty good, it's not too thin compared to their stout and definitely isn't overcarbonated. This is an easy sipper, I would say it is relatively light, easy on the bitterness, and goes pretty good with just about any type of food. Now, the can design is a hit or a miss for people I gather. I'm not sure how many people would want to try a can of Porkslap Pale Ale but it's worth trying for folks who enjoy ales that aren't hop-bombs.