Drink of the Day: Flying Dog Bloodline Blood Orange IPA

If you're looking for a fruit beer, Bloodline probably isn't for you. It isn't sweet or mild. If you want a fruit-influenced IPA along the lines of Stone's Grapefruit Slam IPA, however, this is an excellent choice. Like all of Flying Dog's beers that I've had, it's fairly strong (7% in this case) but very well-crafted, with enough body to offset the significant bitterness. The orange is subtle - if I were tasting blind, I might not even notice it. It adds a slight fruitiness to the bitterness of the hops, and I like it a lot.

I think Bloodline is seasonal, so you probably won't be able to find it for long. If you drink a lot of traditional American IPAs, this is worth a try for something just a little bit different.

Drink of the Day: Boulevard Mid-Coast IPA

I have a soft spot for Boulevard Brewing Company - I lived in Kansas City for two years. (Also, they're a phenomenal brewery.) They don't distribute much to the East Coast, so whenever I see some in the store I snap it up. The Mid-Coast IPA is one of Boulevard's "tasting room" beers, which they recently started selling as part of samplers. The sampler I purchased had the Unfiltered Wheat, 80 Acre (mildly-hopped wheat), Westside Rye, and Mid-Coast IPA. The IPA is likely the best of the bunch, and one of the best beers I've had from the brewery behind Tank 7 and Grainstorm.

Mid-Coast is my favorite kind of IPA: very well-hopped but not too boozy. A lot of strong American IPAs go overboard on the alcohol, up to 9-12%. Not only do I feel like taking a nap after drinking those, they have a hard time tasting balanced. Mid-Coast, by contrast, is well-hopped at just over 100 IBUs, but is under 6% ABV. I feel like I can drink a glass rather than just sip it. It's also not overwhelmingly bitter, even with 100+ IBUs. The hops are slightly floral and round out the beer rather than simply making it bitter. One of the better IPAs I've drunk.

Drink of the day: Troegs Mad Elf

I've never been a huge fan of Troegs Brewing Company. But we got a bottle of Mad Elf as a present this past year, and I've been waiting for the right time to break it out. Today is rainy and gloomy: perfect.

Mad Elf is a very strong Belgian ale (11%) brewed with honey and cherries. It pours an unusual, almost artificial, pinkish-red color, theoretically from the cherries (although I'm not entirely convinced). The taste is much gentler and subtler than I was expecting - I thought it was going to be a fruit-splosion like the Black Diamond Grand Cru that Florence and I had several weeks ago. Instead it's slightly sweet and fruity but not overwhelming, and less boozy that I was expecting as well. It's surprisingly well-balanced, although it could do with a bit more bitterness to counteract the fruit and alcohol. Worth a try if you like fruity Belgians.

And it came with a tulip glass, which is most excellent.

Drink of the day: Millstone Gingeroot cider

The title of this series has already changed: tonight I'm writing about cider! Millstone Cellars is a small cidery and meadery in Monkton, Maryland, about 35 minutes from where we live. They've restored a beautiful 1800s grist mill and miller's house - it's worth visiting for the architecture if nothing else. Florence and I went with some friends last month for a tasting and tried several of their ciders and meads. The first one we're drinking is Gingeroot, which is (unsurprisingly) a ginger-infused cider.

At the tasting I remember it being okay, if not particularly great - it was slightly sweet and overwhelmingly gingery. The person running the tasting mentioned that Millstone's sparkling ciders, of which Gingeroot is one, can be aged for a few weeks to allow the residual yeast to ferment the remaining sugar. Not liking sweet alcoholic drinks, we did that and opened it tonight. It's very different from the version we tasted. Now the cider is slightly sour and more evocative of apples than strictly tasting of apples. It's hard to explain - I've heard it described as a French cider style rather than a British one. It's still gingery, but the sourness balances that flavor much better than the original off-dry version did at the tasting. Well worth the purchase if you live nearby - Millstone is also available at several stores in Baltimore City, Baltimore County, and Carroll County. They also ship to Maryland addresses in accordance with the state's new law on direct-shipping, but the shipping is fairly steep.

Millstone Cellars
2029 Monkton Road
Monkton, MD 21111
Tastings most Saturdays and Sundays 12-5pm

Beer of the Day: Allagash Odyssey

I've decided to start a new series on interesting beers I come across, inspired by my recent membership in the craft beer club of College Square Liquors, my Friendly Local Beer Store. Every week I get an email with a list of new beers they have in stock, and I happily head over to the store and buy a couple to try.

A few weeks ago, that list contained Allagash Brewing Company's Odyssey. I've known about Allagash since I visited Portland (Maine) a few years ago - they're an excellent brewery, so this was worth checking out. Some research told me that Odyssey represents one of my favorite beer styles - the dark wheat beer. It's sort of a hybrid dark wheat/Belgian to be more accurate, but I let that slide. Dark wheat beers (or dunkelweizen in German) combine two styles I love into a wondrous whole. I had one with my cousin in Toronto a few years ago - sadly, I can't remember if it was Erdinger or Paulaner, but it remains the best beer I've ever had.

So I had to try the Odyssey. It comes in a 750 mL bottle with a champagne-style cork top, which I've come to love. No special equipment needed - just wrist strength and care. It's ultimately much closer to a wheat than a Belgian - no syrupy, fruity, or boozy flavors that I normally associate with Belgian ales. Actually, it's remarkably clean and subtle considering the ABV is just over 10%. Instead, it's much closer to what I was hoping for - a dunkelweiss. It's slightly bitter, more dry than sweet, with the crispness I associate with wheat beer. It's also slightly oaked - not to the point of an Oaked Arrogant Bastard, but it's noticeable and blends very well with the other flavors.

This beer isn't cheap - I paid $15 for the bottle, more than I usually pay for beer. But it's worth every penny, and I'm buying another bottle this weekend if it's still in stock.