The endless variety of limited release and seasonal beers are a huge part of what makes better beer so great. The following are a few releases that we'll have our eyes on in January.
Available in Indiana:
Bell's Hopslam - According to World Class Beverages we should see this year's batch of Hopslam on store shelves on January 10th. It was November of 2006 when we first turned our attention to Hopslam - we've been in love ever since. It's never better than when fresh (though - and I know this is sacrilege in beer circles - I kinda like it with some age on it, too)
Rogue Double Mocha Porter - The Imperial version of Rogue's Mocha Porter should be available through April, but will first hit store shelves in January.
Rogue Chatoe Rogue First Growth Dirtoir Black Lager - The Chatoe Rogue series of beers are a wine-like attempt to create limited beers with homegrown hops and malt. "Dirtoir Black Lager and the brews to follow are all GYO Certified, First Growth, Appellation products made with hops and malt from our Department of Agriculture's Hopyard and Barley Bench." (Rogue website)
Sierra Nevada Bigfoot - A classic in every sense of the word. A great and affordable beer to start your aging/cellar collection with. This one usually hits sometime in January. Reviewed by HBG way back when.
Available Outside of Indiana:
You may be the type of beer drinker who casts a bigger net than what's available in just Indiana. The following releases are on our nationwide radar.
Avery Margarete Barrel-Aged Sour Cherry Stout - Margarete Stats: Barrel-Aged Sour Cherry Stout Brewed with Rocky Mountain Water, Malted Barley, Sour Cherries, Turbinado Sugar, Hops and Yeast. All 59 cases of Margarete will go on sale one time only from the Avery Tap Room in January. If anyone reading lives in Boulder..
Deschutes Red Chair Northwest Pale Ale - According to Deschutes: “The hop flavor in the Red Chair is unlike any other beer – the geranial hop notes come through like a freight train.”
Troegs Nugget Nectar - This comes out in last January and early February. You have to drive to Ohio to get it, but it is well worth it. From the brewery: "Squeeze those hops for all they’re worth and prepare to pucker up: Nugget Nectar Ale, will take hopheads to nirvana with a heady collection of Nugget, Warrior and Tomahawk hops. Starting with the same base ingredients of our flagship HopBack Amber Ale, Nugget Nectar intensifies the malt and hop flavors to create an explosive hop experience."
Nice work Avery and Rogue. Are they in a battle for the longest beer names in history? There's definitely a point of diminishing returns when you put too many descriptors in a beer name.
ReplyDeleteI also enjoy Hopslam with some age on it. I always buy a shitload, enjoy most of it fresh and hang onto a couple bottles for fun. Undoubtedly different, but still quite enjoyable.