The Brew Basement

Name: Black
Brewer: Allagash
Style: Belgian Strong Dark Ale
Vintage: 2008
Cellared On: August 31st, 2008
Original Tasting: September 15th, 2008
So many beer styles, so little time. Even so, it’s a bit amazing that I’ve never managed to get around to trying a dark Belgian brew before now. I guess I should be saying Belgian styled brew because Allagash brewery [...]

Name: Creme Brulee Stout
Brewer: Southern Tier Brewing
Style: Imperial Milk Stout
Vintage: 2008

Cellared On: August 1st, 2008
Original Tasting: August 4th, 2008
Upstate New York can be a great place to live in during the summer. The Saratoga Track is in full swing, and the Adirondack mountains are just a hop away. It’s an even greater place to [...]

Name: Russian Imperial Stout
Brewer: Stone Brewing
Style: Russian Imperial Stout
Vintage: 2008
Cellared On: May 9th, 2008
Original Tasting: June 11th, 2008
It took two months, but I finally found it.
I knew this brew was being released Mid-March, so you can imagine my confusion when I had one beverage center telling me this wouldn’t be available until the fall (what?). [...]

Name: Dragonslayer Imperial Stout
Brewer: Middle Ages Brewing
Style: Russian Imperial Stout
Vintage: 2008
Cellared On: April 21st, 2008
Original Tasting: June 30th, 2008
There’s no doubt I’m a beer geek. At least if I wasn’t one before, I definitely am one now. I think anybody who can enjoy a powerful stout on a sticky summer night has managed to cross [...]

Name: The Abyss
Brewer: Deschutes
Style: Russian Imperial Stout
Vintage: 2007
Bottled On: December 2007
Cellared On: January 23rd, 2008
Original Tasting: May 8th, 2008
OK, so I admit that this wasn’t the original tasting for this brew. The first tasting I did was actually back in January when I first received my case. I was so looking forward to trying [...]

Name: Old Guardian
Brewer: Stone
Style: Barleywine
Vintage: 2008
Cellared On: March 7th, 2008
Original Tasting: March 29th, 2008
I wasn’t sure if this brew would make to Upstate NY or not. Not every Stone offering seems to make it this far (no sign of the Russian Imperial Stout yet), so I was pretty happy to see this in my [...]

Name: Baltic Thunder
Brewer: Victory
Style: Baltic Porter
Vintage: 2008
Cellared On: March 3rd, 2008
Original Tasting: April 13th, 2008
This is one brew with a history - that’s not something you can usually say with a new brewing!
In this case, Baltic Thunder is Victory Brewing’s take on a well known brew by the now-closed Heavyweight brewing. The beer was called [...]

Name: Jah Va
Brewer: Southern Tier
Style: Imperial Stout
Vintage: 2007
Cellared On: March 3rd, 2008
Original Tasting: April 4th, 2008
The very first stout I tasted for this website was Dogfish Head’s Chicory Stout. Despite being a very tasty coffee-flavor brew, it just hasn’t been holding up well in the cellar. I have a bit more confidence in Southern [...]

Looks like Stone Brewing is giving us all a St.Patty’s day present this year!
One of America’s favorite stouts, Stone’s Imperial Russian Stout is being released this year on March 17th. This brew is a consistent winner from year to year, and gets great respect from both the BeerAdvocate and Ratebeer review boards.
Since Stone’s RIS is [...]

Name: Imperial Baltic Porter
Brewer: Southampton Publick House
Style: Baltic Porter
Vintage: 2007
Cellared On: February 7th, 2008
Original Tasting: February 29th, 2008
Baltic Porters are strong and dark beers brewed in the style of a porter but fermented with the use of lager instead of ale yeast. This particular porter was brewed by Southampton, and I figured if the other [...]