Review #14 Green Flash Brewing Co.: Barleywine

Barleywine.  Whenever I drink one it transports me to one of two places.  The first is being 18 years old (hey kids, don't drink until you are 21) and drinking my first '96 Samuel Adam's Triple Bock.  The second and most prominent is the same stool I have occupied right beside Katie at the Toronado's Barleywine Fest during SF Beer Week for the past four years.  Great memories, great beers.  If I see a Barleywine when I am out, I will almost always order it first thing, usually to the astonishment of the waiter, bartender, and patrons.  "Starting with the hard stuff, eh?"  Yes, but I am starting with great memories, and a beer that takes a great deal to make well.  

This lovely bottle was everything I wanted it to be.  The pour was reddish copper, with a creamy head that explodes with aromas of toffee, herbs, hops, pine, mango and pineapple, malt, and a slight hint of vanilla.  The mouth feel is syrupy, and lightly carbonated.  It drinks very balanced between the hop resins, intensely sweetened malts, caramel, and the slight alcohol burn. 

Yo son, is this the bombdiggity?:   At $6.99 in NYC, this is absolutely, 100%, beyond a doubt, star-studded, sloth eating a tasty leaf (?) joy!  Short on money, but want something complex that will get your buzz on?  Train soda or economic pre-game beer?  Blah, blah, blah.  It is not the best barleywine out there, but for the price; it's the right barleywine for you.  And me.

Review #5 Three beers from my hometown craft brewery

It's time for the Hometown Beer review!  Lancaster, or The Lanc-Lanc, has been putting itself on the craft beer map for a little while now, you know, since 1810 when it was producing 7% of the beer for the whole U.S.  Enough history, let's just get on to the beers.  These are 3 of the 4 beers that come in the variety 12 pack (what's missing is the Strawberry Wheat- my fave- which I drank all of and didn't save a bottle.  Just order it, it is epic.)

The variety 12 pack is shaped like an origami barn.  How cute!  It's fun!  Amish people, barns- get it?  O.K., I am killing space.  Why you ask?  Because the beer on the top-left (Amish Four Grain) isn't really worth drinking.  Sorry LMB, hometown, and friends.  This is way too bitter for a Pale Ale, and tastes really funky.  Like swamp funky.  You might like it though, if you like that sort of thing.  If you do, please contact me about my new script for 'Toxic Avenger 3D'.  I will be pitching it soon.

Now on to the Milk Stout.  It's creamy, almost buttery, silky smooth, with notes of burnt caramel, and a nice finish- wait is that- OMG yes it is, it tastes like marshmallows floating in coffee and cream.  This beer is ridiculous.  Ridiculously good that is.  I have never tasted a milk stout like it, nor a stout for that matter.

I can imagine drinking this beer ice cold in the middle of summer and not blinking an eye.  It's the Yoo-Hoo of beer.  The fresh Amish chocolate milk for adults that the Central Market should be serving on a daily basis.  Cot Damney, this beer is amazing.  So easy to drink.  Heavy, but oddly light.  This is a beer to be treasured.  It ALMOST makes me want to drive home again just to have it.

One more:
If the Hop Hog is one thing, it ain't hoppy.  Reminds me more of a traditional Pale than anything else.  It has some really amazing cherry, pine, and dry hop notes in the nose.  It has an underlying malty sweetness that dominates the rest of the flavor of the brew.  This is NOT a problem for me as I would prefer most of my beers this way.  The pour is caramel/golden and has little head.  The carbonation is perfect in the bottle and on draft.  The warthog drawing is pretty awesome too.

WWKD (What Would Kenny Do): If you want a mind blowing IPA, sorry.  If you want a great Pale Ale, get the Hop Hog.  If you want ecstasy in liquid form get the Milk Stout, Strawberry Wheat, or the sinfully sweet Shoo-Fly Porter.  They also have awesome food and some other great seasonal brews.  If you happen to be in the Lanc-Lanc, it is a definite must visit.