The Brew Basement

Name: Old Stock Ale
Brewer: North Coast Brewery
Style: Old Ale
Vintage: 2008
Cellared On: March 30th, 2008
Original Tasting: May 2nd, 2008
Much like the 2007 version - okay, more like exactly like the 2007 vintage; North Coast’s Old Stock Ale pours a dark mahogany brown with streaks of red shooting through the beer. It was very cool looking.
Extremely […]

Name: Insanity
Brewer: Weyerbacher
Style: Barleywine
Vintage: 2007
Bottled On: December 8th, 2007 (Date printed on case)
Cellared On: March 21st, 2008
Original Tasting: April 26th, 2008
Every year, Weyerbacher takes a portion of their Blithering Idiot Barleywine and age it oak bourbon barrels before bottling. And since I’ve enjoyed aging Weyerbacher’s Blithering Idiot Barelywine it was only natural that I’d […]

Name: Trippel
Brewer: Green Flash
Style: Tripel
Vintage: 2008
Cellared On: April 9th, 2008
Original Tasting: April 20th, 2008
Brews from Green Flash Brewing in San Diego are a brand new addition to the beer scene here in Upstate NY this spring. The guys over at Oliver’s Beverage tell me they’re all selling like crazy, and I can believe it. […]

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 […]

Name: Rauchbier - Weizen (Wheat)
Brewer: Aecht Schlenkerla
Style: Rauchbier
Vintage: 2007
Cellared On: March 21st, 2008
Original Tasting: April 12th, 2008
My second beer from Aecht Schlenkerla (their Weizen) started off a bit differently then the last. It was apparent that this brew was going to be a heck of a lot mellower then the Aecht Urbock. The flavor of […]

Name: Rauchbier - Urbock
Brewer: Aecht Schlenkerla
Style: Rauchbier
Vintage: 2007
Cellared On: March 21st, 2008
Original Tasting: April 12th, 2008
After popping the cap on this brew, there’s no doubt what you’re dealing with here. Smoke, and a whole hell of a lot of it. Powerfully smoky smells came off of this brew. I was reminded of a roaring campfire […]

Hello everyone! I’m taking a break from my recent writing about smoked beers to bring you the latest results from the cellar. This batch is comprised of mostly six month tastings - except for the Chimay Grande Reserve, which is a 2006 vintage. Enjoy!
Weyerbacher Imperial Pumpkin Ale - The spiciness of this brew is still […]

Name: Smoked Porter
Brewer: Alaskan Brewing
Style: Rauchbier (Smoked Beer)
Vintage: 2007
Cellared On: November 28th, 2007
Original Tasting: March 31st, 2008
Check out that picture - it’s not too bad of an award haul for a single beer, wouldn’t you say? Alaskan Brewing’s Smoked Porter picked up yet another medal at this year’s Great American Beer Festival - a bronze […]