Mike Loves Beer

Name – Frog Hop
Country – United States
Type – American Pale Ale

Gifts are really nice.  They are even nicer when you aren’t expecting them.

A number of months ago, and I mean a number of months, I was contacted by a representative of Great Northern Brewing Company.  They asked if they could send me some samples of beer.  Who am I to turn that generous offer down?  So I gave my address but in the following weeks I saw nothing.  Eventually I just forgot about the communication until last week.

A box arrived and was placed in front of me with a return address saying Great Northern on it.  I opened it to find a bottle of Frog Hop Fresh Hopped Pale Ale and a sticker in it.  Well I guess they didn’t forget about me after all.  So of course I decided to drink it as soon as I could.

The brew arrives in my nonic pint glass a slightly hazy orange color.  A fluffy white head sites on top of the liquid and leaves a small amount of lacing on the glass as it disappears.

The nose has a definite citrus aroma to it, mainly oranges.  Some slight hop scents are rounded out with a biscuit like smell.

The taste again was very citrus in nature with plenty of malts to balance things out.  I must say I’m a bit surprised by how much in the background the hops are.

It’s a really easy drinking beer.  The 5% ABV makes it such.  And I found myself done with the 22 oz bomber quicker than I normally expect.  But I would be a bad writer if I didn’t say I was slightly disappointed.  The hops just were not as present as I typically like in a pale ale.  Maybe I am spoiled with super hoppy pales like Dale’s and Sierra Nevada.

And I definitely don’t want to come off as ungrateful for the nice gift I was presented with.  That is not the case at all.  I actually enjoyed drinking this beer.  Like I said it went down really easy.  I just saw fresh hop on the label and I guess got this notion in my head that I would be smacked int he face with hops.  And you know what maybe it is the hops that they used that just gave off a more subtle and more citrus flavor.  Obviously they are proud of what they make as they should be.

So a big thank you to Great Northern for sending this my way.  And if you find yourself in Montana you should stop in and check them out.

Grade - B-

Name – Hoppy Boy
Country – United States
Type – American IPA

Another weekend in the books and another work week heading at us.  Attended Oktoberfest in Lantana on Sunday.  The event is always a good time and even better when a number of friends can enjoy.  So after a weekend of eating and drinking German I’m coming at you with an American IPA review.  Yeah you didn’t see that coming did you?  Well you probably did reading the name of the review.  But some people I think skip those.  So for those, bazinga!

Twisted Pine Brewing has been down in South Florida for a few months now but this is honestly my first time I’ve grabbed something from them.  Call me late to the party but you always know I’ll show up at the party.

Hoppy Boy is their American IPA that weighs in at 65 IBUs and 6.2% ABV.  I honestly don’t know many people that have tried it so I don’t have a lot to go off of right up front besides that.  I guess I’ll just dive on in.

It pours a hazy amber color into my pint glass.  It has a good sized, foamy white head on the top of the glass and leaves a nice amount of lacing on the glass as it subsides.

The nose is mostly piney hops but there are some hints of citrus in there as well.  Honestly not a whole lot else that I pick up.

The taste continues the pine flavor along with very earthy hops with a biting bitterness.  There is a hint of malt backing to balance things out slightly but the hops do come through much more.  The bitterness returns at the end for an aftertaste that hangs around for a while.

Hoppy Boy is a pretty straight forward IPA with the hops being a little more present than maybe most.  But I must say that didn’t take away anything from the beer.  I actually surprised myself by how quickly my glass was empty on it.

Like many IPAs this would pair really well with the heat of spicy foods.  It would probably also go well with a burger using sharp cheeses like chedder, pepper jack or crumbled blue cheese.

If you want a solid IPA that is sessionable to take you through the night I think Hoppy Boy would be a more than respectable choice.

Grade - B-

Name – Industrial India Pale Ale
Country – United States
Type – American Double IPA

All I’m going to say about sports right now is just this.  At least the Flyers are undefeated.  Now onto beer.

Total Wine has been bringing in a ton of breweries lately for their exclusive brewery directs.  In the past year we’ve seen Flying Fish, Laughing Dog, Clown Shoes and many others hitting the shelves down here.  Well Diamond Knot is another of these and they arrive late last year from Washington state.

When they first arrived my good friend Ed Roberts from Total Wine brought some of their stuff by for a recording of United We Drink (cheap plug).  I remembered liking some of them but haven’t gotten around to giving a proper review for any of them.  Well that all finally changes today as I review their Industrial India Pale Ale.

I popped the cap of the 22 oz bomber and pour it into my nonic pint glass.  It arrives in the glass a clear orange color with an off white head sitting on top.

The nose has something very familiar to it but it takes me a bit to place.  I finally got it, lemongrass.  Yes indeed I get lemongrass in this.  It is backed with some hints of orange and pine as well as a bready malt smell.

The lemongrass is back again in the taste but complimented with a more earthy hop character then what I got in the nose.  The malt back bone has a caramel and bready taste to it that really brings it all together.  And it finishes with a slight bitterness.

I absolutely loved the nose on this one.  Lemongrass is a smell and taste I don’t get much in beers let alone a double IPA.  I’m sort of curious what sort of hops caused this nose and taste.  I don’t think they actually added lemongrass to the beer.  Regardless I enjoyed it.

But overall this is a well balanced double IPA.  It hits you with hops upfront but then settles things back down with it’s malt backing.  I do remember liking this one when Ed brought it by but I absolutely forgot every reason why until having it again.

The lemongrass character in this would make it a great pairing for some spicy Thai food.  That taste will go well along with the hops cutting some of the heat.

Grade - B+