Mike Loves Beer

Name – Bison Organic Chocolate Stout
Country – United States
Type – American Stout

Appearance – Pours pretty much black but some light gets through around the edges.  Tan head disappears pretty quickly.

Smell – Slightly roasted along with hints of cocoa.

Taste – You get the roasted malts first followed by a very subtle coffee taste that ends with a nice cocoa flavor.

I’ve wanted to try this for awhile but most stores I get my beer at don’t have it.  Whole Foods seems to be the only place around that carries it and their isn’t one that conveniently located by me.  I was however out west in Royal Palm Beach yesterday and knew there was one out in Wellington so I stopped there on my way home and picked up a sixer of this.  I really enjoyed it.  It is by far no Southern Tier Choklat, I can’t see anyone getting that chocolaty, but it is very enjoyable.  If you can get it I recommend it.

Overall Grade – A-

Name – Bison Organic Gingerbread Ale
Country – United States
Type – Spiced Beer

Appearance – Pours a very dark and opaque brown with some lighter shades of brown around the edges of the glass.  There was really no head at all on either bottle I poured.

Smell – Cinnamon, nutmeg, some cloves and a faint ginger smell.

Taste – Sweet caramel with cinnamon and nutmeg.  Just a tad bit of gingerbread taste at the end.

I love gingerbread so this was a no brainer for me to pick up.  And while I enjoyed the beer as a whole I was disappointed by how faint the gingerbread smells and tastes were in it.  As I tend to do when grading beers that say they have rye in them I guess I expect the taste of those to punch me in the face.  I also found it very odd that Shipyard’s Pumpkinhead had a more defined gingerbread taste to it and they are suppose to be a pumpkin beer.  As a beer itself I really enjoyed it but as a person expecting lots of gingerbread goodness I was a bit let down.

Overall Grade – C

Name – Bison Organic IPA
Country – United States
Type – American IPA

Appearance – Poured a clear copper color with a small white head that disappeared quickly but did leave some lacing.

Smell – Floral hops with some citrus hints to it.

Taste – A nice mix of floral and citrus hops up front followed by a caramel like malty taste in the back.

I’ve been told by many to give Bison Chocolate Stout a try but can not find it here.  This one is pretty easy to get your hands on so I gave it a whirl.  It wasn’t bad.  It’s actually a pretty straight forward IPA with good hop and malt balance in it.

Overall Grade – B-