That's What I'm Talkin' 'Bout Organic Rolled Out Stout

That's What I'm Talkin' 'Bout Organic Rolled Out Stout, Pearl Street Brewery, La Crosse, WI 

Pitch black pour. Coffee aroma with roasted malts. Taste is sweet coffee with dark roasted malts and a light bitterness. Little bit of smokiness. Easy drinker.

D.T.B. 'Downtown' Brown Ale

D.T.B. Brown Ale, Pearl Street Brewery, La Crosse, WI
(Brown Ale)

Brownish-burgundy pour. Aroma has a little toasted caramel and nut. Flavor is nutty with a light toasted malt character. Thin mouthfeel. Overall just an average brown ale.

Dankenstein IIPA

Dankenstein IIPA, Pearl Street Brewery, La Crosse, WI
(Imperial/Double IPA)

Clear, copper colored pour. Caramel malt aroma with fruity hops. Almost has a barley wine taste to it. Lacks the flavor punch of other imperial IPAs. I've had better.

Alchemy Hour Double IPA

Alchemy Hour Double IPA, Great Lakes Brewing Company, Cleveland, OH
(Imperial/Double IPA, Rated 99)

Keeping with the strong imperial IPA theme, this offering from Great Lakes is fantastic. Nice copper, orange pour. Strong citrus, grapefruit aroma with hints of tropical fruits and honey. Taste is all hops with tangy, bitter fruits, resin, sweet caramel malts, and honey. Medium bodied and not overpowering. Well balanced. Not as high of an alcohol content as some imperials but the 9.4% warms the throat. Great Lakes makes some really great beer and this is one of them!

Double Crooked Tree IPA

Double Crooked Tree IPA, Dark Horse Brewing Company, Marshall, MI
(Imperial/Double IPA, Rated 99)

Here's another killer imperial IPA for you. Pours a hazy, copper. Nice aroma of citrus, orange peel, and caramel. Taste is a great balance of big hop bitterness and malty sweetness. Touch of caramel. The 13.6% abv warms the throat well. Big bodied and very delicious!

Beers of Sixpoint

Sixpoint has only been in Wisconsin for one year, having been first distributed in March 2012. They have quickly become one of my favorite breweries. Their motto is "Beer is Culture." While many craft breweries make up their own rules when it comes to developing their portfolio, Sixpoint seems to smash rules altogether. Sixpoint's beer recipes are distinct and unique. I also love the characteristic can labels. Let me introduce you to some of the Beers of Sixpoint...



Resin

Resin, Sixpoint Brewery, Brooklyn, NY
(Imperial/Double IPA, Rated 97)

This is the beer that started it all for me with Sixpoint. As one who thoroughly enjoys IPAs, especially the imperial variety, this is one fine example. Nice, slightly hazy copper-colored pour. Aroma is of big hops, piney, with a citrus tone. Hop flavor explodes in your mouth. Nice piney, citrus bitterness and a sticky resin feel. Bitterness lingers on your tongue.

This being my first Sixpoint, let me share with you the picture of my #FIRSTSIXPOINT that I submitted to Sixpoint's website...

"Sixpoint's Resin Gives You Wings!" at the Calatrava - Milwaukee Art Museum 

Sweet Action

Sweet Action, Sixpoint Brewery, Brooklyn, NY
(Cream Ale)

Hazy, gold pout with a nice, white frothy head. Aroma has herbs, hops, and a faint sweetness. Taste is a blend of mild hops and malts giving it an earthy quality. Has a very slight carbonation that tingles and then smooths out to a creamy finish.

3 Beans

3Beans, Sixpoint Brewery, Brooklyn, NY
(Imperial/Strong Porter, Rated 97)

Dark brown pour. Strong roasted coffee aroma with chocolate notes and malts. Flavor is rich with coffee and chocolate. Malty with a sweetness. Taste that lingers. Amazing beer!

Bengali Tiger

Bengali Tiger, Sixpoint Brewery, Brooklyn, NY
(IPA, Rated 94)

This IPA pours a hazy, golden, orange. Great aroma of citrus fruits and sweet pine. Taste is a complex mix of citrus hop bitterness, malty caramel sweetness, and floral notes. Flavors explode in your mouth going from bitter to sweet to bitter with a clean finish. Excellent IPA!

The Crisp

The Crisp, Sixpoint Brewery, Brooklyn, NY
(Bohemian Pilsener) 

Hazy, orange pour with a small, white head. Aroma is a little grainy, bread, and some spice. Flavor is grainy, sweet bread, with an herbal bitterness. "The Crisp" is a perfect description of this beer. Probably one of my least favorite styles of beer, but if I'm going to reach for a pilsener, I'm reaching for The Crisp.

Righteous Ale

Righteous Ale, Sixpoint Brewery, Brooklyn, NY
(Specialty Grain, Rated 94)

Dark hazy, brown pour with a nice little off-white head. Aroma of malts, caramel, sweet bread. Tasty is malty with rye, and a nice slight hop tingle that lasts but doesn't overpower. The rye is apparent throughout. Just a touch of sweetness at the finish.

Brownstone

Brownstone, Sixpoint Brewery, Brooklyn, NY
(Brown Ale, Rated 90)

Pours brown with a medium head. Pleasant malty aroma with nuts, sweetness of caramel, and an earthy hop character. Taste is malty, nutty, with a bit of a bitterness at the end. Has a nice fizzy, carbonated finish. Nicely balanced brown ale.

Diesel

Diesel, Sixpoint Brewery, Brooklyn, NY
(Stout, Rated 92)

I remember sitting down with the WI Sixpoint rep and some others at Sugar Maple last Fall. I had asked him when Sixpoint was going to come out with a stout. He told me that something was in the works. Low and behold, Sixpoint presents Diesel. Its a dark, nearly pitch black pour with a good off-white head. Good roasted aroma of chocolate and malts with a faint hop presence. Taste is roasted coffee up front with some sweet chocolate and a light hop finish. Very smooth! Very drinkable!

All Day IPA

All Day IPA, Founders Brewing Company, Grand Rapids, MI
(IPA, Rated 96)

Clear, golden pour. Aroma of citrus, grapefruit, and tropical notes. Taste is intense citrus hops, zesty. Tons of flavor. Light body and well balanced. A great session beer at 4.7% abv.

A session beer is defined as a beer with no more than 5 percent abv. There's a great historical definition on Beeradvocate.com. With such great taste at such a low abv, you can definitely drink more than one of these.

Voodoo Doughnut Bacon Maple Ale

Voodoo Doughnut Bacon Maple Ale, Rogue Ales, Newport, OR 

One of the great things about the craft beer industry is the creative naming. Another great thing is the sense of adventure craft breweries have when creating new beer flavors and styles. So when you come across a beer with a name like this one AND it says its brewed with bacon...you HAVE to try it, right? I'm not sure why, but I actually thought this one would pour darker than the clear copper color. On first sniff, I could smell the smoke and the bacon and a little maple. Huge smoked flavor with hints of bacon. There's something missing though.  Where's the doughnut? Bit of a bland finish. Lacks a bite. I put this in a novelty category...beer brewed because they could. Not saying they should. Next!

Dark Seas Russian Imperial Stout

Dark Seas Russian Imperial Stout, Mission Brewery, San Diego, CA
(Imperial Stout, Rated 99)

My first beer from Mission Brewery. Keeping with the string dark beers, this imperial stout pours pitch black with a brown head. Aroma is roasted coffee, malt, chocolate, and a little dark fruit. Pretty subtle. Chocolate and espresso come out in the taste along with a touch of sweetness and finishing with a little malty bitterness. Nice body and smooth for a bigger beer (9.8% abv).

Big John Imperial Stout

Big John Imperial Stout, Goose Island Beer Company, Chicago, IL
(Imperial Stout, Rated 98)

Pitch black pour with a small dark, chocolate head. Strong aromas of coffee, cacao, chocolate, and roasted malts. Full bodied with lots of chocolate flavor, big and malty, with a rich black coffee feel and a mildly boozy, warming finish. This big beer hides the 11.5% abv well. Stouts, especially imperial stouts, are great cold weather drinkers. Cheers!