Yesterday Flying Dog announced the release of 4 new low gravity brews including a root beer, ginger ale, birch beer and sparkling barley wine. Leaving it up as if it was normal for quite a few hours the guys over there eventually fessed up and admitted that it was a joke to celebrate April Fools.
View the article here.
Name – Maharaja Imperial India Pale Ale
Country – United States
Type – Double IPA
Appearance – Pours a clear deep amber color with a nice white head that laced the glass well.
Smell – Right upon putting my nose to the glass I was hit with big grapefruit hop scents. It was the most apparent smell of grapefruit I have ever had with an IPA.
Taste – Great hoppy taste that had a big grapefruit presence again. Some other sweet malt flavors in there as well.
While I am a big fan of Avery beers I think the main reason for getting this is because Maharaja was one of my favorite Three Stooges skits of all time. That is what I thought of immediately upon reading the bottle. And the beer is just as great as that skit was. Big bold smells and flavors that don’t go overboard. I highly recommend it. Great double IPA.
Overall Grade – A
Name – Morimoto Soba Ale
Country – United States
Type – Fruit/Vegetable Beer
Appearance – Poured a slightly hazy copper color with a nice sized white head.
Smell – Big smell of something I have never really smelt before. I assume it is the buckwheat as per the description. Some slightly sweet malts could be picked up as well.
Taste – The taste also had something I never tasted before and again I’m going to think it is the buckwheat. It was like a very dry bread. Some mild hops and spices could also be picked up.
Being one not to shy away from different beers I decided to give this one a try from Rogue in their Chef Morimoto series. The smell and taste of the buckwheat was indeed different. I definitely wouldn’t say that this was disappointing like the Chipotle Ale but it was not incredibly pleasing either. I guess different tastes for different faces.
Overall Grade – D+
