Hello folks! I hope you all had a great 4th of July. That lovely celebration has caused my reviews to be pushed back a day, but Tyler has given you a tantalizing view of what is to come. I have 3 Great Lakes beers and a Great Lakes/Deschutes Collaboration to review. So, let us move onward.
Great Lakes The Wright Pils
This is definitely one of my favorite Pilsners. The nose starts out with floral hints and lovely aromas of applesauce, corn, and wheat. The end has a hearty aroma of shrimp broth. The taste is lightly bitter up front with a lovely tart flavor of granny smith apples. Ash and mineral notes accompany that flavor. The finish clears the lingering bitterness and brings sweater flavors of honeycomb, orange zest, and banana with soft floral notes. While not a traditional Pilsner without those funky hop notes, I found this one to be far superior to the normal Czech and Germans Pilseners.
Mike and Tyler's Rating - 9.25/10
Great Lakes Silver and Gold India Pale Lager
I am sure a few of you all have taken a glance at the name and said "India Pale...Lager? What?", I said the same thing the first time I sampled one of these elusive brews. However, when done right an IPL can be just as good or greater than your average IPA. The hop flavors aren't held back by the malt flavors as Lager have a lighter malt presence. That is immediately present after taking a whiff of this fantastic brew. Onion, armpit, garlic, and prosciutto assault the nose first with softer aromas of grapefruit, raspberries, and basil picked up after that initial burst. At the first sip, an intense bitterness erupts. Yet that quickly dissipates and you get flavors of green onion, pine, grapefruit, and lemon. The finish is quite hearty with thick flavors of garlic, roast beef, and mushrooms with earthy notes spread throughout.
Mike and Tyler's Rating - 9.5/10
Great Lakes/Deschutes Class of '88 Imperial Smoked Porter
This collaboration between two fine breweries has made a nice addition to our tap wall. Especially as the Stouts and Porters tend to dwindle down during those sweltering Summer days. The nose is quite complex with sweet aromas of espresso, milk chocolate, and bacon mixing with more bitter aromas of smoke, cracked pepper, sharp cheddar, and garlic. This complexity transfers over to the flavor. The front of this brew exhibited flavors of smoke, charred wood, and grapefruit. The finish is bitter with the smoke remaining. Additional flavors of bacon, dark chocolate, and cream rounded out this fantastic porter. Perfect for cooking and drinking, this Imperial Porter is sure to delight dark beer lovers.
Mike and Tyler's Rating - 8.75/10
Great Lakes Lake Erie Monster Imperial IPA
This is a staple on our wall during the Summer, and is certainly the first beer I think about when I think of Great Lakes. The age on this keg had us wary, but it is the best keg of Lake Erie Monster we have had this year. The nose is pungent with aromas of pineapple, mango, cracked pepper, and necco candy with soft floral and onions notes. The flavor is bitter up front with thick, mouth-watering flavors of mango, peaches, pineapple, papaya, and raspberries. The finish is a bit shocking, as the bitterness dissipates immediately and leaves flavors of lemon zest, oranges, and licorice with soft floral hints towards the end. Another stellar brew from Great Lakes.
Mike and Tyler's Rating - 9.5/10
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