Sorry for the delay folks. These reviews were supposed to go up over the weekend, but Derby can be quite the beast. So, better late than never right? Here goes:
Schlafly Summer Lager
Spring decided to skip visiting Louisville this year, and so these Summer beers are being welcomed earlier than expected. The first is a Lager from Schlafly that is sure to refresh. The nose is light and floral with hints of sweet corn, lavender, and minerals. Cornflakes assault your tastebuds from the beginning, with bubbly flavors of grapefruit zest following. The finish is light with hints of that lavender, wheat, and ½ & ½. This isn't going to wow you, but it will refresh you after a long day of yard work or just regular ol' everyday work.
Mike and Tyler's Rating - 7/10
Schlafly Yakima Wheat Ale
While this is classified as an American Pale Wheat Ale, it has more in common with an IPA. Thus, fans of Gumballhead should give this one a try. The nose is pleasant with strong aromas of tea followed by hints of pine and pineapple. The taste is bitter up from, though that quickly dies away in favor of tea and orange zest flavors. The finish continues that tea with more malt flavors like corn pops and cracked wheat. A crispness rounds out this extremely well done brew. This is yet another perfect offering for Summer, as it has tons of flavor but is equally refreshing.
Mike and Tyler's Rating - 9/10
Schlafly Session IPA
You all probably notice a theme with our Schlafly beers...They are all sessionable beers for Summer. This one is no different. The nose is potent with hints of onions, gym socks, tea, eel sauce, and herbal aromas. The taste is equally as diverse with flavors of lemon juice, pears and tea. Lighter flavors of peach syrup, green onions, and orange zest pop in and out of the front. The finish displays another strong malt build with flavors of toasted crackers, corn flakes, pineapple, cracked pepper, parsley, and oregano. This beer is definitely worth a shot the next time you pop through.
Mike and Tyler's Rating - 9.25/10
Schlafly Bourbon Barrel Ale
Schlafly's Bourbon Barrel Ale is usually my favorite of the non-stout variety of Bourbon Barrels. However, this keg was a little off from the start. The nose is nothing like it is supposed to be. Sour granny smith apples, watermelon jolly ranchers, and floral hints caused Tyler and I to crinkle our faces in confusion. The nose is usually full of caramel, toffee, vanilla, oak, and bourbon. This was much different. The taste starts out with sour grapes and sour cherries, which once again elicited confusion from us. However, flavors of vanilla, charred oak, and cream fought off those weird flavors. The finish was what you would expect with flavors of ash, creamed corn, buttered cream, and bourbon. Still, it was a little to late to save the experience in our eyes.
Mike and Tyler's Rating - 6/10
Great Lakes Rye of the Tiger IPA
Now we are onto the much bigger and bolder hops of our two Great Lakes offerings. We start with the newly arrived Rye of the Tiger IPA. Last years first edition was fantastic, so we had high expectations. It partially delivers. It has a pretty nice bouquet that starts with aromas of lemon zest, pine, cherries, and grass. The taste starts out with flavors of dirt and rye and finishes with falvors of arm pit and lemon zest. The finish is quite bitter and has lots flavors like lemon pith, lemon zest, pine nettles, grass, and earth notes.
Mike and Tyler's Rating - 8.5/10
Great Lakes Chillwave DIPA
We welcome the Chillwave which, against all reason, has gotten
better with age. The nose bursts with aromas of mango, peach, pine, citrus, and bubble gum. The taste is sweet up front with flavors of pine, mango, peach, lemon, fruit medley, and floral notes. The finish brings about enough bitterness to please and has flavors of pine, mango, lemon zest, and pineapple. This beer has only gotten better since it has been on tap as well, and thus we decided to raise the score a half point. This is just another awesomely hoppy beer for the wall.
Mike and Tyler's Rating - 9/10
