Review - Ballast Point Brewing Co Habanero Sculpin

This was a great tasting beer with a lot of heat. While the smell is citrusy with the faint smell of peppers, the taste is all habanero. It will even burn your mouth and throat like a real pepper would. I definitely recommend trying it, but I wouldn't recommend drinking it alone. It would go great with flavorful foods like Mexican, Jamaican or Thai.

Store - Liquor Locker

This is my new favorite place. Liquor Locker is a chain in New Jersey, specializing in wine and scotch but also carries beer and what you would normally find in a liquor store. They have a great selection and some unique  bottles that I have not seen in other stores. They also sell online through the website https://www.winemo.com/

The prices are decent and the location is great. It's located  right next to the Saddle River Tours Atlantic City bus in Edison, NJ. You could make a  purchase to take down to AC with you or after you get back with your winnings.

1665 Oak Tree Road
Edison, NJ-08820
Phone: (732) 548-1272
Fax: (732) 548-2151
edison@saversclubliquorlocker.com

Review - River Horse Cherry Berliner Weisse

 

I tried River Horse Brewing Company's Cherry Beliner Weisse. It's a 4.2% ABV seasonal German Style Wheat Ale. It had a great balance of flavors, it was slightly sweet and slightly tart with no one over powering the other. The tart cherry flavoring was very natural and smooth. It also had a great wheat/cherry smell. This was a great beer to drink alone and would pair well with poultry, sea food, salads, and dessert.

River Horse Brewing Company is located in Ewing, NJ and offers tours on Saturday and Sunday by reservation only. For more about their beers and tours visit their website http://www.riverhorse.com/

Ballantine and Sons Brewing Co.

I knew this logo looked really familiar but I was having a hard time placing it. Ballantine India Pale Ale is a revival of an old recipe from Ballantine and Sons Brewing Co. The brewery located in Newark, NJ, closed in 1972 when it was acquired by Falstaff Brewing Co. It was later bought over by Pabst in 1985. Ballantine is considered one of the nations oldest breweries, founded in 1840.

I originally learned about the company after purchasing this serving tray at a garage sale for a nickle. This tray with an older logo  (circa 1950) can be found on ebay selling for ~$30. It's nice to own a piece of history, and glad that they are back to brewing.

In 2014 they re-launched the Ballantine India Pale Ale. It's a 7.2% ABV, American style IPA. It's a bitter, complex beer with hints of citrus and caramel. It has been described as an intense beer, but is well balanced.



This is what the brewery looked like in 1906.

Review- Curious Traveler Lemon Shandy

 

I tried The Traveler Beer Co.'s Curious Traveler Lemon Shandy and really enjoyed this beer. It's a shandy beer that tastes more  like lemonade than beer. It has a sweet kick to it and was very tasty. It's a 4.4% ABV beer made from Hallertau hops, lemon, and lime.
They also make a grapefruit, pumpkin, and winter(orange/pomegranate) shandy.

Review - DuClaw Brewing Co. Funk

I tried DuClaw Brewing Co's Funk beer, which is a 5% Blueberry Citrus Wheat Ale. I was disappointed with the flavoring, it was more orange/lemony with a slight blueberry taste. It smelled sweet and citrusy. It was very carbonated/bubbly when poured into a glass. Over all the flavorings were very light, and this will go well with any type of food. I would be happy if they changed the name to Citrus Wheat Ale.

Review - Jolly Rancher Soda

 

I tried Jolly Rancher Soda in the Cherry flavor and love it. It's not too sweet and actually tastes like a Jolly Rancher candy. This flavor was great for mixing with vodka. My drink was refreshing and light. It currently comes in Watermelon, Green Apple, Blue Raspberry, Grape and Cherry flavors. It can be found at Kmart and Big Lots for only $1.

Review - Coney Island Brewing Co. Hard Root Beer

 

It seems like hard root beer is the newest beer craze. I'm not complaining, I love root beer.  I tried Coney Island Hard Root Beer and was pleasantly surprised. It's a different taste than Not Your Father's Root Beer, it's not as heavy and has more of a root beer consistency with more carbonation. The birch flavoring here is very close to Barq's Root Beer, which is a personal favorite. It's 5.8% ABV and I highly recommend trying it.

Deal - Flaviar Star Spangled Bourbon Tasting Pack

This is a great deal from Flaviar, it's 50% off and 5 samples of bourbon for only $25.Apply Promo Code "1SALE25" At Checkout.

Flaviar is a Community of Spirits Lovers who want to discover new & exciting drinks in the company of their friends. Our members receive 5 Premium Spirits in 1 tasting pack every month. The sample packs can also be purchased a la carte.

 

The deal can be found here on the 1sale website. Details on the sample pack can be found here Star Spangled Sampler.

Review - Le Malt

In one word I would describe Le Malt as SWANKY. Le Malt has amazing decor inside and an upscale ambiance.  I loved the attentive, friendly and knowledgeable staff. The food was great and they are working on creating a new dinner menu. I tried a Japanese Whiskey, that was served with a giant ice ball that had a beautiful edible flower inside. I loved my drink and the whole experience. While Le Malt specializes in "brown spirits" they are constantly adding to their drink offerings, they are even serving select craft beers. If you live in central New Jersey this place is a "must" to visit. Trust me!


Le Malt
1021 St. Georges Avenue
Colonia, NJ 07067
732.510.7700
info@lemalt.com

Review - Samuel Adams Rebel IPA

 

Rebel IPA is everything it promises to be. It's an IPA brewed with 5 different hops for a complex hoppy taste. It's made with American Cascade, Simcoe, Chinook, Centennial, and Amarillo. It's a very complex beer with slight citrus and grapefruit flavoring. It's not as bitter as a traditional IPA and 6.5%ABV. I really like this beer, although I'm usually not a huge fan of IPAs, I like the complexity of the flavoring. It's a great "diner beer," meaning different foods bring out different flavoring in the beer and vice versa.

Deal - Hard Cider Tasting and Cidery Tour

Groupon currently has a deal for 3 ciders and a cidery tour from Bad Seed Cider for only $12 for two people and $20 for four. Bad Seed Cider is located in Highland NY about 1 hour and a half from NYC, and perfect for a summer day trip. The Orchard where the apples come from is about a 6 minute drive from the cidery and open for apple picking from Labor day weekend to October 31st, 9-5 daily.

To purchase the Groupon deal, follow this link https://www.groupon.com/deals/bad-seed-cider-co-5

Review - Boddingtons Pub Ale

 

I tried Boddingtons Pub Ale in these tall 1 pint cans and loved it. It's a light, drinkable, great tasting beer. It's a 4.6% abv English Pale Ale style beer with faint hints of butterscotch and caramel. It would pair well with just about anything, because the flavor is not over powering. As I drank my can, I could hear something rattling around in there. I learned there is a little widget in the cans, that help create bubbles and a creamy head. While this beer seems to be a hit or miss, with a lot of mixed reviews, I'm a definite fan.

Review - Anderson's Valley Summer Solstice

 

I found a lot of reviews online claiming that Anderson's Valley Summer Solstice is the "Cream Soda for Adults." Of course I couldn't wait to try it, since I'm a huge fan of cream soda. Did it live up to the hype? No. It smelled more like cream soda, but didn't really taste like it. It was a great, sweet smelling beer. The taste was light, and neither sweet nor bitter with a creamy aftertaste. It's a very drinkable beer, but no where near tasting like cream soda. It's 5% ABV and a seasonal beer offered during summer months.

Event - The Imbible: A Spirited History of Drinking

Sounds like a ton of fun, it's an off Broadway play that takes place in an authentic speakeasy. You will learn the history of drinking while you enjoy 3 drinks that are included in your ticket price. The show is part comedy, part musical and includes demonstrations of brewing beer and distilling spirits. You will be treated to a 10,000-year journey through history and across the globe.

Here are some of the reviews



For information about the show and to buy ticket follow this link http://imbible.org/

Review - Samuel Adams Merry Maker

Samuel Adam's Seasonal Merry Maker beer is a dark Guinness style stout beer. It has a nice chocolate, coffee smell. It has a sweet taste and is very drinkable, it's not too heavy. Its a mix of cinnamon, clove, nutmeg, and ginger spices. It goes well with sugar cookies, cinnamon cake and chocolate cake. It is a 9.0%ABV beer, that takes some time before it hits you.

Grilling with Beer

It's Bar-be-que season, and I found this great article about grilling with beer. There are several things I never thought of, like using beer to soak wood chips, or as a spray, or mop sauce. Check out this article for 7 ways to use beer for grilling plus some recipes.

7 Smart Ways to Use Beer When You BBQ, Plus 6 Beer-Blasted Recipes!

Review - Abita Harvest Lager

Another great summer beer. Abita Harvest Lager is a light pilsner sytle beer, brewed with Louisiana strawberries. It has a great balance of strawberry flavoring and is not too over powering. It's a nice tasting light beer perfect paired with summer salads. It's 4.2%ABV.

Abita's Harvest series is one of my favorites, they also make a grapefruit and lemon beer. Their Purple Haze Lager made with raspberries, is something you should try if you like fruit beers.

Website - The Beeroness

Lately I have been obsessed with The Beeroness website. She offers amazing recipes for cooking with beer. Her recipes range from dessert, to chicken, beef, pork, fish, to veggie meals, to smoothies and even onion rings.  She is a gourmet chef who takes the time to create these recipes with a wide selection of craft beers.

She even has a cookbook for sale, but the recipes on the website are still free. Please check out http://thebeeroness.com/ for some great recipes.

Review - Victory Kirsch Gose

I tried Victory Brewing Company's seasonal Kirsch Gose Sour Cherry Beer. It had a tart, citrusy smell. It had a citrusy cherry taste, was very tart and had the definite taste of salt. The after taste was sweet and tasted more like cherries. This was unlike other sour cherry beers I've tried in that it was a Gose style as opposed to an ale. I prefer sour cherries in an ale style beer, but this does make a great dessert beer. It goes well with cheesecake and chocolate.