Lots of catching up to do....

This is going to be a mega post with several days worth. In related news, I found a new beer store in Indy last night (The Hop Shop) which had a pretty amazing selection. I arrived after closing time but they let me in anyway. So, I rushed and didn't get as much as I might have, but there are some cool review coming this week, including this one from tonight (I'll make my way back in time and reconstruct my week of beer)

Boulder Beer Obovoid an oak-aged imperial oatmeal stout or "empirical stout" as stated on the label. This was a good one...it has the mellow vanilla oak flavor and smooth oatmeal flavor but still has a little raspy bite. Not in my top 5 stouts, but well above average. It's an A grade beer, just not quite up to the level of competition of some of the other ones we've had this year.

Also tonight: Barley Island Beastie Barrel Stout. Another local Indiana beer (Indianapolis) that totally misses the mark on oak aged stouts. Almost every good one I've had (the Boulder and the Yeti jump to mind) the oak makes the flavor smoother and sweeter with vanilla-ish bourbon-y goodness. This version is sharper and more acidic. It reminds me of the acid-y, smokey taste in my lungs from a fireplace fire with the crappy (possibly treated) wood from the gas station or grocery store. A major letdown. C

Last night: Had a few Two Hearted's (Always a winner in my book A) and the new Bud American Ale. The Bud was horrible. I'm glad I satisfied my curiosity, but it was not good at all. D+

Thursday: Another Allagash, this time the Grand Cru. I expected to like this more than the Dubbel but actually liked it less. Kind of unpleasant. Not my favorite Allagash at all. C

Tuesday: Went out to celebrate passing the proposal. Had Founder's Breakfast on tap (even better from the keg than the bottle...I think it might have been on a nitro tap-It seemed VERY creamy...grade: A) and Hell Hath no Fury on tap (about the same as the bottle... I've been liking it less and less the more I've had Grade: B )

Monday: Three Floyd's Munsterfest. A funky "floydified" octoberfest. I'm not a huge octoberfest fan to begin with, and this version didn't really do a whole lot for me. Typical floyd's beer verdict for me: glad I tried it, won't have it again. C-

Sometime over the weekend: Browning's She Devil Imperial IPA. Another sub-par showing from Brownings. They're officially off my list now. This was ok, but nothing special. For beer in general it was maybe a B+ but in the IIPA category it was more like a C+.