Pepe's Beer Blog

Not a big update for the past few days, but I didn't want to go too far and forget the two I did have while watching Kentucky come from 18 down to defeat the Florida Gators in Gainesville in the final SEC game for both before the conference tournament. 108.  Two Hearted Ale (American IPA) - Bell's Brewing - Kalamazoo, MI - 7.0% ABV I love everything Bell's, and I ordinarily love this one, but for some reason I wasn't feeling it.  That is going to affect the rankings, as this is the first time I have had this beer this year. 109.  Great White - Lost Coast Brewing - Eureka, CA - 4.8% ABV Deliciously refreshing, and I stuck with it even as the Gators took a big lead on the Wildcats, and since the Cats came back, the last one tasted even sweeter. Ales 1.  B4 Blonde - West Palm Brewery 2.  Day Blazer Easygoing Ale - New Belgium 3.  La Rubia - Wynwood Brewing Pale Ales 1.  Guayabera - Cigar City 2.  420 - Sweetwater 3....

An interesting mix for this grouping, as the PGA's Honda Classic was in town, and like any big event, your choices are limited by sponsors/distributors.  That does expand my beers, however, so it isn't all bad. 89.  90 Minute IPA - Dogfish Head Brewing - Milton, DE - 9.0% This is almost unfair for the rankings because I know going in that this is one of my two favorite beers, period.  So, I know that it is going to the top of the list.  Just full-bodied, loaded with flavor, enough hoppiness to add some bitterness to the flavor.  Yummy. 90.  Fat Tire Belgian White - New Belgium Brewing - Ft. Collins, CO - 5.2% This Belgian White has a ton of flavor, and is an interesting version of the usual Fat Tire Amber.  Light enough to drink several, but not so light as to be watered-down.  You definitely know you are having a beer.  This would be very enjoyable at a picnic or at the beach. 91.  Fear.Movie.Lions (FML) Double IPA - Ston...

The third brewery that I visited this year is: STEAMHORSE BREWING 1500 Elizabeth Avenue West Palm Beach, FL 33401 561/623-0091 https://www.steamhorsebrewing.com/ February 6, 2020 For my review, and for rankings, the scale is:  (1) beer quality (taste) (1-20); (2) beer quantity (number available) (1-10); (3) beer varietals (differing types) (1-10); (4) atmosphere (look, feel and vibe) (1-20); (5) service (self-explanatory - hopefully) (1-20); and  (6) miscellaneous (personal preference) (1-20).  This will give me a 100 point scale to reference, and I will keep a running ranking of each of the breweries throughout the year. Once again, to be fair, this is probably the closest to what I will call a home brewery besides Twisted Trunk and there are a lot of similarities between the two, starting with the owners/brewers.  And, since they share taps with each other (and their third sister brewery - Tequesta Brewing Company), a lot of this analysis is going t...

Time for another update.  Not a big one, just don't want to fall behind and then this thing would become a monster. 83.  Meltdown Imperial IPA - Sixpoint Brewing - Brooklyn, NY - 8% ABV A hazy IPA in which the citrusy just bubbles to the top of the taste (if that can even make sense).  It comes in a can although I had this on tap.  Jumps right to the top of the hazy category for me. This was tough, because I did not know whether to categorize this as a double/triple IPA - which it is - or just a hazy, which it also is.  Could go in either direction, and the fact that it is a double imperial probably is why I liked it so much for a hazy. 84.  Hopslam Ale (Double IPA)   - Bell's Brewing - Kalamazoo, MI - 10% ABV I feel that Bell's is easily my absolutely favorite brewery that I have yet to visit, and this Hopslam does not disappoint.  A good, bold, flavor, with some dry-hoppiness that isn't too bitter.  Moves to the top of its category....

Had a few beers unique to 2020 this President's Day weekend, so wanted to post before things got to out of control.  Part of the variety is due to a place in Delray Beach, Florida called Beer Trade Co., in which the refrigerated coolers - think convenience store - are loaded with various crafts beer and take up the entire back wall of the place.  You take what you want back to your table, consumer, and repeat, and then you bring the cans/bottles to the cash register when you tab out and they ad the beer to your food tab.  Easy way to try new and/or unusual beers. 72.  Lagunitas IPA - Lagunitas Brewing - Petaluma, CA - 6.2% ABV I have not had a Lagunitas IPA in some time, and honestly, I remember it tasting better.  It was rather plain, with not much flavor.  I think a lot of this probably has to do with the number of high-quality IPAs I have had in the past few years, but also for this ranking since January 1. 73. Sierra Nevada Pale Ale - Sierra N...

For those regular readers of this blog, you know that on February 8, I attended the 5th anniversary party of Twisted Trunk, one of my regular breweries.  You can find that review  here.  But, what that means for this column is a review of the unique beers (at least for 2020) that I had while at that party.  Let's get started, shall we? 63.  Key Lime Chancellor Kolsch - Tequesta Brewing/Twisted Trunk - Tequesta, FL/Palm Beach Gardens, FL - 5.3% ABV This is a specialty take on Tequesta Brewing's Der Chancellor Kolsch.  This was not the first one I had at the anniversary luau, but it was the first unique beer I ordered, which was because a few others with me had tried it.  Let's just say that I think it is very hard to do a good job with key lime and beer, as the 3 or 4 that I have had in my life both missed their mark. I didn't hate it, in fact I am glad I had it.  But, I will not have another. 64.  Hi-5 IPA - Twisted Trunk Brewing - Pa...

The second brewery that I visited this year is: TWISTED TRUNK BREWERY 2000 PGA Boulevard, #5506 Palm Beach Gardens, FL 33408 561/671-2337 twistedtrunkbrewing.com January 31, 2020 For my review, and for rankings, the scale is:  (1) beer quality (taste) (1-20); (2) beer quantity (number available) (1-10); (3) beer varietals (differing types) (1-10); (4) atmosphere (look, feel and vibe) (1-20); (5) service (self-explanatory - hopefully) (1-20); and  (6) miscellaneous (personal preference) (1-20).  This will give me a 100 point scale to reference, and I will keep a running ranking of each of the breweries throughout the year. To be fair, this is probably the closest to what I will call a home brewery. It is one of 3 or 4 of the closest, but probably the one I frequent the best - partly because I like it; partly because it is close to a lot of beer drinkers I know, and partly because I know a lot of people that go to this brewery.  In addition to frequenting t...