Minnesota Beer Lovers Rejoice! Surly Bill Passed!

To everyone else in the country this may not be a big deal, but to Minnesota breweries and beer lovers, this is like having prohibition lifted and God deciding to let it rain beer from the skies. The "Surly Bill" has been passed by the Minnesota House and State legislatures to allow breweries to sell pints of their own beer on location (something which was not legal before).

Now all that needs to happen is to have Minnesota Governor Mark Dayton to pass the bill. C'Mon Marky-D, do us all proud!




For more information check out the Star Tribune article here:

http://www.startribune.com/politics/blogs/121785214.html

Feel free to comment on what this bill may mean to other states breweries or the beer industry itself.

Happy National Homebrew Day

To all you homebrewers out there, happy National Homebrew Day. Check out more ways to celebrate this joyous occasion day at:

http://www.homebrewersassociation.org/pages/events/national-homebrew-day

Get in the spirit, have a homebrew today.

Avery Maharaja Imperial India Pale Ale Review

All you IPA fans out there, this ones for you. I usually place all the beer details at the end of the review, but today I'll make an exception. All you need to know about this beer can be found on the label. How it's going to taste, how it's going to smell and how amazingly awesome this IPA is going to be.


Beer Details:

ABV: 10.54%
IBUs: 102
Brewer: Avery Brewing
Style: Imperial India Pale Ale
Price: $8.99/24 oz bottle

Right off the bat you notice the 10.5% alcohol content, so you know it's going to be strong. Then you realize the 102 IBU rating, which suggests that this beer is going to have a bite to it, and have a whole ton of hops in it.



After knowing what I'm getting myself into, the actual drinking experience did not disappoint.

This beer puts off a very strong hoppy aroma. In fact I think I had some hop flakes fly up into my nostrils while I inhaled (yeah, it's that hoppy). As I took a small sample sip, the beer sparkled on my tongue and while I tried to focus my taste buds to find the subtle flavors that make each beer unique, all I found was a strong blast of hops. While this is not a bad thing since most IPA lovers love IPAs because of their strong hop taste, this will not be the beer of choice for everyone.

The best part of this beer bar far however, is the swallow. While you may think that a 10.5% beer would be a hard swallow, it is not. Instead, as I drank the beer my salivary glands in the back of my mouth began to tingle and I was hooked. The beer's bitterness partnered with the kick from the alcohol content, gave this beer a nice one-two punch.

While this was not a "refreshing" beer, IPA lovers or lovers of hops will enjoy it. Its nice bitter taste, sweet aroma and finish that makes your mouth water is just what fans of these beers love. This is a definite "must try" for anyone who enjoys a good ol' IPA.

Overall Avery Maharaja Imperial India Pale Ale Review: B+/A- (89.5/100)

And just because the stats of this beer makes my mouth water, here they are again.

Beer Details:

ABV: 10.54%
IBUs: 102
Brewer: Avery Brewing Co.
Style: Imperial India Pale Ale
Price: $8.99/24 oz bottle

Boulevard Harvest Dance Wheat Wine Review

Boulevard Harvest Dance Wheat Wine is one of the most complex and satisfying beers I've had in a while. For those of you who don't know, Wheat Wine style beers contain a large portion of wheat malt, which will give the beer soft mouthfeel. Balanced that with a generous portion of hops provides this beer a very complex sensation for the drinker.

Harvest Dance pours a beautiful deep amber that gleams in the light and provides a head that looks like it could hold up a bottle cap. Once the head is there however, it isn't going away anytime soon so if you don't want to drink though two inches of foam before you get to your beer, pour slowly.

Taste and aroma wise there is a lot going on. The hops in the beer gives a nice tingly sensation in the mouth that isn't overpowering because of the malt. The beer has strong citrus and fruity flavors, which is well needed to balance the high percentage of alcohol in the beer. At 9.1% ABV, it may not be the beer for everyone. But where others taste a beer so potent it stands the hair on the back of their neck, I taste a beer with such complex flavors, I get chills thinking about it. In fact, there is so much going on with this beer that I probably won't do it justice in this review. It's just something you have to experience for yourself and while this may not be the beer for everyone, its uniqueness makes it a must for any beer geek out there to try at least once.

Boulevard Brewing Company had become a powerhouse in the Midwest craft beer industry because they flat out know how to brew beer. From the classic Boulevard Wheat to the alcoholic powerhouse known as The Sixth Glass (10.5% ABV), they have been able to make beers that attract all echelons of beer drinkers. From your ordinary Homer Simpsons to the ritzy Monty Burns of the world, all of them can enjoy something Boulevard has to offer.


Overall Boulevard Harvest Dance Wheat Wine Review: A- (91/100)

Beer Details:

ABV: 9.1%
IBUs: 42
Style: Wheat Wine
Price: $11.99/750 ml bottle