Wednesday, April 30, 2014

My TOP 5 Craft Beers from RVA ROCK$ OnTap!

Here's my TOP 5 list of craft brews from the RVA ROCK$ OnTap! event. This list was diffcult to make because almost all of the beer I tasted at this event was great. Regardless of the difficulty there were 5 craft beers that stood out.

1. Isley Choosy Mother Peanut Butter Porter

This oatmeal porter is one of my favorite beers of all time now. The peanut butter, chocolate, and oats give more than enough reasons for loving this brew. An amazing feature of this beer is its distinctive aroma. When tasting, my nose basked in velvety peanut butter and chocolate. The volume is turned way up on the peanut butter aroma, but when tasting the malty sweetness, peanut butter, and chocolate are deceptively balanced. Having such a distinctive aroma and balanced taste was so fun to experience! I was actually giddy while tasting this brew.

2. Lickinghole Creek Magic Beaver

This delicious Belgian-style Pale Ale is interesting, balanced, and easy to drink. A spicy aroma plays nice along side subtle malts. Definitely a joy to drink such a balanced and well-crafted PA.

3. Hardywood Singel

Do I need to write much about this Abbey-style Blonde bombshell? Almost everyone who tastes this beer enjoys it. A beautiful golden pour topped with cloud-fluffy head distinctively marks this beer's look. The aroma is a balancing act of spiciness and fruitiness. It's a daily drinker that's easy on the palate and the head.

4. Midnight Not My Job Brown Ale

This ale is a dark brown Southern English Brown Ale. This was my first Southern English Brown Ale. I've had English Brown Ale, but according to some smart people, Southern or London English Brown Ale isn't brewed much in the US. After tasting this ale I have to say, it's a crime this style isn't brewed more here. A malty chocolate aroma is met by a deliciously smooth ale with a good story!

5. Center of the Universe Barrel Aged Scotchtown Scotch Ale

COTU really brought it with this barrel aged Scottish Ale. I'm not even going to pretend I understand what's going on in my mouth with this one, but you can believe it's all good. This ale is aged in whiskey barrels and has all of the complexity you can handle. 

1 comment: