Ales

This is a special beer as it isn't originally an American one. The story of this beer starts in Ringwood England at the Ringwood Brewery where it stands as their flagship beer. Lucky for us colonials Shipyard Brewery's brewmaster Alan Pugsley worked at the Ringwood Brewery and tutored under their brewmaster who allowed him to take this recipe to America and be brewed solely under the Shipyard name. So what we are tasting isn't just another great Shipyard beer but a great European beer that no other brewery can offer. But what makes this beer so special isn't it's history but the special Ringwood yeast strain that is used. This yeast comes from the town of the same name that imbues a unique buttery (diacetyl) flavor which gives beer a rich, buttery smooth palate. So if you like ringwood beers then you must go out and try this one. It's a rich, sweet, medium bodied, buttery yet bitter beer that is balanced extremely well. I highly recommend. Cheers! Read More »

This was quite an interesting review as site and smell aspects of this review were some of the best I've done, yet the flavor didn't match up. Anchor is no slouch when it comes to making some incredibly flavorful beer, however I think more of a balance could be struck with this Bock style beer. Read More »

Mudslinger Spring Ale is a re-branding of their nut brown ale. I’m not sure why they rebranded it, I can only assume it’s to match their catchy seasonal naming convention (ie: Rope Swing, Late Harvest, etc). Either way it’s a great name for this sweet nutty ale. Being a nut brown the predominate flavors are going to be sweet and this doesn’t disappoint. This heavily malted beer has lots of chocolate, nutty, caramel and vanilla flavors to satisfy even the most discerning sweet tooth. Yet all is not lost for the hope heads among us. Certainly this is a sweet beer but Red Hook has added just enough hops to give this sweet ale an earthy, grassy bitterness that not only does a great job at balancing the beer but really tastes like springtime. The only downside I found was the thin mouthfeel. The carbonation was quite high so it gave a thin and somewhat watery feel. Your millage may vary so make sure you check this beer out for yourself. Overall I’m happy with the beer and could easily drink a few on a nice spring day. Cheers! Read More »

Taste is quite unique. Flavor starts out just like the smell with a predominance of raisins. This raisin, dark fruit flavor gives way to all those delicious spices: cinnamon, nutmeg and my favorite - vanilla. The brown ale this beer is based on throws some nice bittersweet chocolate into the mix. While this is certainly a sweet beer there is just enough bitterness to cut through the cookie and remind you that you are drinking a really (really) good brown ale. The finish is dry and a the flavor of raisins lingers a bit. Read More »

Like the smell would suggest the flavor is predominantly sweet. Big flavors up front with molasses, chocolate and caramel being easy to spot out of the gate. Flavor rounds off with an earthy hoppy bitterness that really helps cut through the bold sweetness of the malts. There is also a nice biscuity flavor that blends very well with the hops helping to give it a dryer finish that clears the palate readying you for that next sip. Aftertaste is subtly sweet with hints of those earthy hops. Read More »