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. 

Virginia Beer Blog Team at Triple Crossing Brewing Grand Opening!

Photo credit: James Bernard

Brewery Spotlight: Lickinghole Creek Craft Brewery and Midnight Brewery!

Sam and I had the pleasure of experiencing the first (of hopefully many to come) annual RVARock$ OnTap! on Mayo Island, in our home town of Richmond. It’s a beautiful thing when one can travel to a single location (in my case, a five minute walk from my home) and experience the brilliant concoctions of brewing masterminds. Every brewery in Central Virginia was present showcasing one to three of their best brews and proving that they are not competitors but brothers and sisters of the Virginia Craft Brew family.

About halfway through our quest to try every brew on the menu, we had the pleasure of talking to Sean and Shawn of Lickinghole Creek and Midnight Breweries, respectively. The two, being the gentleman that they are, were kind enough to tell us about the breweries that they represented, the beer we were sampling, and extend invitations to come visit soon (we will keep you abreast on that adventure as it pans out).

First up to bat was Midnight Brewery. Shawn offered us their Rockville Red, an Irish Red Ale that tastes as beautiful as it looks. The Not My Job, a Southern English Brown Ale, was a delight. I personally can’t wait till we can visit Midnight and sample their full array of offerings.

Subsequently, we stepped next door to Lickinghole Creek Craft Brewery. Here, Sean introduced us to to the bit of heaven that is Magic Beaver Belgian Style Pale Ale. Lickinghole’s second brew was their Three Chopt Triple, which seemed to be one of the hits of the party, as the tap ran dry just before we arrived. We will have to save that one for another day.

I know it was a very busy day for all of the breweries that participated and everyone was a delight to meet, but I want to extend a special thank you to the time both of these gentlemen took with us. Midnight Brewery and Lickinghole Creek Brewery may be relative newcomers to the big stage, but make no mistake, these two are on par with the best RVA has to offer.

Triple Crossing’s First Day of Business

Triple Crossing Brewing was a welcome addition to Richmond’s craft beer scene even before serving the public and Friday's grand opening has proven why it deserves to stay.

Preferences of the four brews offered were unanimous. The Falcon Smash was the clear favorite, even for those who don’t consider themselves ‘hop heads’.  Hopped, dry hopped, then dry hopped again, this IPA uses Falconer’s Flight and is a wonderful celebration of what an IPA should be. Don’t overlook the label and its reference to a certain punch with 8-bit text and shattered logo.

The Element 79 golden ale was a close second and will likely be the biggest crowd pleaser. Don’t overlook the label with the electron shell around the symbol for gold, the periodic table’s 79^th element.

The Rye Pale Ale came in third with the rye enhancing the hop and malt without overpowering it with spice.

At 6.0% ABV, the Single Hop Saison was very drinkable and refreshing in the heat although tasting ranged from too sour to a bit spicy.

The brewery is situated on a side street downtown in a smartly-renovated old brick building that has been home to several local businesses. The interior mirrors the beer with a utilitarian sophistication mixing old basics with new finishes.

Seating is available both inside and outside on the porch, making the brewery a great place to meet a few friends after work or host a larger party for a special occasion. Its proximity to many of Richmond's great restaurants offers plenty of local dining options to enjoy before or after a session.

The event itself had three lines: a short one for purchasing tickets, a longer one used to redeem the tickets for beer, and a fluctuating line to the rest rooms. Although the crowd was large (it was nearly 6:30pm), the space never felt overwhelming and remained organized. The event offered a DJ, corn hole, and one food truck.

Already offering a fifth brew, a sweet stout, and future beers such as their Liberty or Death Porter & Nectar and Knife DIPA, Triple Crossing should and will remain on everyone’s radar.

For more information check out Triple Crossing Brewing's website or Facebook page.

Photo: James enjoying a Saison and an Element 79 at the Grand Opening of Triple Crossing Brewery.

RVA ROCK$ ONTAP RECAP

Clay and I had a great time at the RVA ROCK$ ONTAP craft beer event. We sampled a few beers, took in the sun, jammed to the tunes, and met a few kindred souls. The weather was beautiful, and there was only a faint odor of sewage when the wind blew in a particular direction. Luckily, the wind did not blow in that direction very long. HA!

Yes please!

In all, we sampled 17 of 23 craft brews. We missed some mostly due to supply shortage. We skipped the Legend 20th Anniversary Imperial Brown, because we have a bottle at home. We're going to break that open soon so look for a post on or shortly after Legend's 20th Anniversary celebration on 4/19.

We're going to have a few posts coming up detailing our top 5 beers from ONTAP and a brewery spotlight. Stay tuned for that, and all we have planned for the next few weeks as the craft beer events start to heat up!

Cheers

P.S. If you were there, hit us back in the comments with how many of the beers you got to, and how your time was!