NYC Tastes

All of this rainy weather has really been getting me down this week.  I need some serious sunshine and if the weather won't cooperate, I'll create my own with today's new brew, Map of the Sun from Rare Barrel out in Berkeley, California.  This beautiful beer is a blend of golden sour ales, aged in oak barrels with the addition of apricots.  It pours a bright, white foamy head that dissipates almost immediately leaving behind almost zero bubbles.   The smell is straight sour apricot with a sharp citrus and funk aroma, while the flavor is a more balanced blend of sour and juicy, almost like biting into a ripe, fleshy apricot with just a hint of vanilla and oak on the finish.  Every time I have this beer I'm blown away; definitely one of my all time favorites.  Cheers to Friday! The Rare Barrel 940 Parker Street Berkeley, CA 94710

Ahhhh Hill Farmstead Brewery...one of my many "happy places" in life.  This brewery makes some of the best beers in the world and our last visit was filled with new bottles to try. Works of Love 2013, a collaboration beer brewed with Sante Adairius.  This was my favorite beer of the day, so crisp and clean with soft notes of white wine and lemon. I don't know what Shaun Hill does to make his saison's so perfect, but he is the saison master. Flora Cherry, another saison, this one aged in wine barrels with fresh, hand picked Montmorency cherries. Genealogy of Morals a thick, delicious bourbon barrel aged stout brewed with Kieni coffee beans roasted by the amazing Coffee Collective in Denmark.  All of these enjoyed with this beautiful view that always takes my breath away.  Hill Farmstead 403 Hill Road Greensboro Bend, VT 05842

It's New Brew Friday and today we're checking out the brand new Fifth Hammer Brewing in Long Island City, Queens.  This enormous spot opened by former Gun Hill and 508 Gastorbrewer Chris Cuzme boasts 15 barrels and a huge tap room filled with picnic tables and Adirondack chairs perfect for lounging on a weekend afternoon. We tried out quite a few of their selections and our two favorites were the bright sour berliner weisse Cherry Giggle Gaggle and the crisp hoppy pale ale Tasty Feelings.  In addition to the awesome glassware all of the tap handles are made from actual hammers which makes for a fun unique atmosphere.  This area of LIC is becoming its own little beer hub with other great spots like LIC Beer Project and Transmitter just blocks away.  Cheers to New Brew Friday! Fifth Hammer Brewing 10-28 46th Avenue Long Island City, NY 11101

It's New Brew Friday and today I'm checking out NYC's newest beer spot Circa Brewing which just opened shop about 5 blocks from my office in Downtown Brooklyn. This massive brewery is located on Lawrence Street, directly across from my weekday dumpling spot Yaso Tangbao .  It has a small outdoor seating area up front... ...and a long wooden bar that snakes around the front room showcasing all of their steel brewing tanks.  Danny Bruckert, former head brewer for Sixpoint Brewing in Red Hook, is in charge of the beer operations and focused on creating easy drinking session beers.   When I stopped in the beer list included three different IPA's, a Pilsner, a Pale Ale and a Nitro Stout. All four I tried out were solid but the Double IPA really stood out for its wonderful tropical flavors and light body that hid the 8% abv.     In addition to house beers Circa has a small list of wines and cocktails and a food menu with various pizzas, veg...

I absolutely love that I can jump on the L train any Sunday afternoon and be at Interboro Ales in under 20 minutes (until 2019 at least).  A spot at the wooden bar, an empanada in hand and a flight of fresh brews later and suddenly ahhhh...the day is totally made. Interboro recently started canning and their lasted batch is AMAZING.  Stay G-O-L-D is an IPA inspired by and brewed for  Run the Jewels  with Citra and Mosaic hops then double dry hopped with Mosaic hop dust.   Mad Fat Fluid is also an IPA but brewed with Mosaic, Centennial and Equinox which is then double dry hopped with Mosaic Lupulin powder. These beers are bright and juicy with tons of citrus, pineapple and melon flavors with a dry but balanced bitter finish.  Both are still available by can today in the tasting room and growlers fills of this and other awesome Interboro beers are always ready for growler fills. Get out there and enjoy some awesome local beers today- Happy N...

It's New Brew Friday!  And I'm shooting back two weeks to Vermont where I spent Friday afternoon getting to know the lovely Arthur Puncheon. Puncheon is Hill Farmstead's regular saison Arthur, a funky, grassy beer with big notes of tart lemon and hay, that's been aged for a few months in their barrels (puncheons). The result is a bright, golden beer with lots of wine barrel funk on the nose but with softer, more delicate lemon and oak flavors than Arthur with a creamy, bubbly structure and a crisp, dry finish.   This was an absolutely delightful beer.  Full Vermont food recap next week but for now- cheers to the weekend! Hill Farmstead 403 Hill Road Greensboro Bend, VT  05842

For today's New Brew Friday we're checking out Three's Day of the Dead- an American IPA brewed as their first can release. Day of the Dead pours a muddy orange color with almost no head and an interesting nose of pine, tropical fruits and a touch of mint.  Mango, biscuit and pine flavors balance each other nicely making this just a really enjoyable beer and at only 6.9%.  What a welcome change from all of the big IPA's and DIPA's on the market right now.  This completely hits the mark. Cheers to the weekend! Threes Brewing 333 Douglass Street at 4th Avenue New York, NY 11217

It's New Brew Friday and the kickoff of Memorial Day weekend!  I have big plans for BBQing, seeing lots of friends and of course enjoying a few delicious beverages along the way from these local breweries. Both Grimm and Threes Brewing are based out of Brooklyn. While Grimm doesn't have a brick and mortar spot as of yet they have been absolutely killing the beer scene with their bottle and cans releases all year; the most recent of which includes Dreamweapon an IPA brewed with El Dorado and Columbus hops and Future Perfect a Blueberry/Blackberry Berliner Weisse that sounds perfect for crushing in the hot sun tomorrow. Threes on the other hand has been running an enormous brewpub with food, beer garden and a full bar for over a year now.   However last weekend was their first ever bottle release.  Eternal Return is a Brett beer aged in oak barrels; the 500ml with raspberries and the 750ml with Chardonnay grape must. We tried out the raspberry last weekend a...

We're coming back onto the local beer scene this weekend with Other Half's newest can release created with the incredible people over at Arizona Wilderness. City Slickers is an American IPA brewed with Arizona prickly pear, lemon zest, Citra, Galaxy and Equinox hops. This beer pours a phenomenal ruby red color that looks just like the sunset bottom on the label.  Aromas of lemon zest, grapefruit and prickly pear jump out of the glass; it's so fruity I almost wish I could bite into it.  The flavor is more subdued lots of soft lemon, grapefruit and pine with a smooth finish.  I was expecting a bit more prickly pear flavor since the aroma is so strong but overall this beer is fantastic. It's the perfect easy drinking brew for Spring.  Cheers to the weekend! Other Half 195 Centre Street Brooklyn, NY 11231

We took the train to Northport last week for an amazing visit with friends that included lunch at Maroni's (pictures to come next week) and drinks at brand new Sand City Brewery.  This cozy little spot hidden right off the Main Street is churning out some excellent beers. We tried just about everything on the list that day including the Close Talker IPA, South Down Breakfast Stout, Red Sound Amber and the Sonder Pale Ale. The South Down tasted incredibly similar to a Founders Breakfast Stout with an amazing coffee nose and deep silky body with lots of coffee and chocolate.  The Sonder was a solid juicy pale ale and the Close Talker was so fresh and citrusy we grabbed a growler for the train ride home.  Even the tasting flight vessel was well done with deep wooden holes for keeping the beer from spilling and small goblets for catching the best aroma from each brew.  The tasting room room was jam packed when we visited with a nice mix of family and friends creati...

My first stop in Boston Friday morning was a treacherous 20 minute walk from our hotel to Trillium Brewery. Huge flakes of thick heavy snow were falling at an alarming rate. By the time I crossed the Fort Point Channel my face was streaming with tears from the wind and I was covered in fresh white powder.  I looked like a walking snowman.  All this to pick up 12 bottles of Trillium's flagship beer Congress Street.  This American IPA pours a hazy orange with a thick frothy white head that clings to the glass creating a beautiful lacing.  Big tropical fruits dominate the aroma; orange, pineapple, peach and mango with an incredible balance of fruit and pine flavors.  Super juicy up front with a clean bitter finish and a crazy bubbly yet creamy mouthfeel.  I'm a huge  fan of Galaxy hops and this beer is pretty close to perfection.  I would gladly walk through another blizzard to have these bottles in my fridge.  Cheers!  Trillium Bre...

Buffalo continues to explode onto the craft brewing scene with places like Resurgence  and  Big Ditch  dotting the downtown area. Now the Southtowns have started to become their own little beer mecca specifically in East Aurora with arguably the best bottle shop/beer store in WNY Aurora Brew Works and now the brand new brewery 42 North.  This sprawling space features a huge outdoor patio in the back with a roaring fire pit, a game room with shuffleboard and life sized Jenga for both kids and adults plus a gorgeous bar made from reclaimed wood in the main area with tables overlooking the brewing tanks below.   42 North has a nice mix of both house brews and guest taps on the menu at all times along with cider, wine and soda for just about any palate to be happy.  We enjoyed the Borderland IPA when we visited and their collaboration with Elm Street Bakery down the block the Elm Street Coffee Porter. For now they just offer a limited food menu.  The...

I'm closing out the Buffalo recap with Big Ditch; a fantastic new brewery and restaurant that just opened downtown.  These guys aren't exactly new  to the brewery scene. I tried a bunch of their brews at a Gene McCarthy's beer dinner years ago. I wasn't blown away by anything then but obviously they've done some serious tinkering because the overall quality and flavor of their beers have improved tremendously. Their flagship brew was the Hayburner, so named for the work horses used to construct the nearby Erie Canal.  It's a crisp, refreshing IPA with soft, citrus notes perfect for just about any occasion. For a bolder brew the Hayburner with Citra was an excellent choice with big juicy flavors of mandarin orange and melon with just a slightly bitter finish.  The food menu at Big Ditch incorporates all the Buffalo staples like crisp chicken wings dressed with spicy Hayburner IPA s...

There's nothing better in life then sipping a delicious beer in the sun on a gorgeous summer day and on my recent trip to Western New York I got to spend the entire afternoon doing just that at Southern Tier Brewery. Located in the town of Lakewood, Southern Tier is probably best known for it's seasonal beer Pumking, a strong pumpkin ale that seriously tastes like a slice of fresh baked pumpkin pie with cloves and vanilla.  This is thanks to the huge amount of real pumpkin puree they put into each batch.   But don't just stop at the Pumking, this brewery has so much more.  Take for example the Hop Sun, a pale wheat ale with such a crisp lemon flavor and dry mouthfeel I would swear it was an IPA.  Or the deliciously dark Mokah; a rich imperial stout brewed with chocolate and roasted coffee. Obviously these guys brew A LOT.  Just take a look at those amazing tanks.  Southern Tier produces over 100,000 barrels of beer a year and distribute their brew...

Buffalo has jumped into the beer boom as other cities have; where once there was only Flying Bison and Pearl Street, two new breweries have emerged that are just awesome.  First it was Community Brew Works, NY's first Nanobrewery and now just across the street sits Resurgence, a sprawling brewery located inside an old warehouse with large brewing tanks on one side and a beer garden on the other.  The space features an indoor bar complete with picnic tables, TV's and giant sized Jenga... ...and a beautiful outdoor garden for sipping beers in the sun or playing Bocce.  They have nine rotating beers on tap and a tasty Sangria for non beer drinkers.  I loved checking out some of the Buffalo themed brews like Sponge Candy Stout and Loganberry Wit although the crisp, piney IPA was the favorite. Resurgence offers a handful of food options including charcuterie from Martin Cooks and Gramma Moras burritos.  These guys are keeping it local and it seems lik...