Greetings folks! We have a truly special week for you that includes 4 Ommegang beers that have never graced our walls and an Imperial IPA that was one of my favorites and has been on a 2 1/2 year hiatus. So read on and come out and enjoy a few pints to celebrate 2 years of basketball dominance in the State of Kentucky.
Ommegang Iron Throne
We start with the main beer for our Pint Night. Ommegang collaborated with HBO to release a series of beers based off of the hit book and television series A Game of Thrones. This Blonde Ale kicks off that series of beers just as the new season gets under way. The nose is intriguing with aroma's of lemon peel, clove, salt, baked bread, and fermented cherry musk. The taste is tart and floral with soft flavors of lemon and ash. The finish is incredibly smooth and refreshing with more of those lemon notes and flavors of toasted biscuits. The perfect beer for this warm weekend ahead.
Mike and Tyler's Rating - 7.75/10
Ommegang Hennepin
The second in our lineup of Ommegang beers is a Golden Ale. The nose is pungent for a Belgian-style, with lovely aroma's of melon, grapefruit juice, banana's, kiwi, and garlic. It definitely made for a very intriguing nose. The taste is not nearly as exciting as the nose leads you to believe. Clove, clove, clove, and more clove assault your tastebuds right from the first sip. It overpowers most other flavors, leaving just a hint of mint on the front. The finish tones down on the clove, and makes for a delightful exit fro this beer with flavors of bright lemon, minerals, and a slight bitter twang.
Mike and Tyler's Rating - 7/10
Ommegang Gnomegang
I have a fondness for Belgian Strong Pale Ale's, so I was definitely looking forward to this entry. Right off the nose, Tyler and I could both tell that this was a much different version from what we are used to. The nose has hints of honeydew, taco seasoning, gunpowder, and aged red meat. It certainly caught our attention for this beer that we tasted right in the middle. The taste was more of what you would expect with flavors of coriander, steak, salt, and perfume. The finish was quick and to the point with hints of clove and lemon pith. Definitely worth a try if just to smell one of the most intriguing noses to a beer on our wall.
Mike and Tyler's Rating - 8/10
Ommegang Three Philosophers
This Belgian-style Quad has always been spoken highly of and so I looked forward to this one. The nose was powerful with strong hints of ginger and cinnamon and more subtle aromas of candied plums, bananas, honey nut clusters, ash, and petrol. The strong aroma's gave so many different hints and made for a beautiful nose. The taste had a little skunk up front more reminiscent of onions and garlic. That quickly faded and left flavors of raisins, brown sugar, and alcohol. The finish took a 180 degree turn and offered flavors of oregano, sourdough, salt, and wheat. More quaffable than most Quads due to the lack of sweetness, this was certainly an outstanding beer.
Mike and Tyler's Rating - 8.5/10
Avery Maharaja Imperial IPA
Finally we arrive at the Maharaja. Not available at all 2 years ago and only available in bottles last year, it makes its long anticipated return on our wall. So, without further ado, let us move on. The nose is beautiful with strong aroma's of pine, almost like being in a pine forest. That is followed with scents of lemon zest, juniper berries, and grapefruit. The taste is bitter up front with mouthwatering flavors of lemons, black pepper, pine sap, and basil. The finish has more lemons and pine with a dash of nutmeg. The beer is a little boozie, but with 10.4% ABV would you expect anything less?
Mike and Tyler's Rating - 9/10
No comments:
Post a Comment