Left of the Dial

Citra, Galaxy, big fruit and grassy fresh notes in a pale ale-sized version of their iconic Snip Snap. Captures a lot of the same big flavor, just in a smaller package.

Purchased at Sapwood Cellars

2018 bottle. Farmhouse ale with honey and lemons. First taste is bitter, earthy, black tea that’s too strong, brett left too long. Lemons come in either some nice bright citrus, but this has gone too bitter/funky/floral.

Roasty, malty dunkel. Crusty pumpernickel, cola, toasted chestnuts (possibly on an open fire (seasonal)), full bodied but still very easy drinking. Tastes like bread but doesn’t make you feel like you’ve eaten a loaf of it.

Purchased at Cushwa Brewing Co.

From Feb. An annual classic with super fresh hops. This year, it’s Citra and Simcoe, harbingers of great beers to come from Sapwood. Mango, orange, herbal, light combo of lime, green onion, white wine, and dankness that play well together.

Purchased at Sapwood Cellars

Earned the Super Style: IPA - New England / Hazy (Level 16) badge!

2020 bottle. Mixed culture saison aged 21 months in red wine barbels with mixed barrels. Bottle conditioned, effervescent, soft and lightly acidic. Mild, quiet, unassuming, assured, doesn’t need to show off. Easy sipper.

Purchased at Archetype Brewing

From Feb. Sapwood’s small batch coffee beers are somehow more coffee than coffee itself, so the addition of another flavor (peanut butter) helps cut the intensity in a good way. Two great flavors that go great together,

Purchased at Sapwood Cellars

Earned the Carl the Crowler (Level 83) badge!

Can’t remember seeing a bourbon barrel aged Marzen before - certainly not one that references Catch-22, anyway. The barrel gives a slight boozy backbone to a solid Marzen with bready, caramel, vanilla, and a slightly bitter tea note at the end.

Purchased at Wild Air Beerworks

BBL aged stout w/ coffee, pumpkin spice, and lactose. Been in the fridge for quite some time. Cold brew, strong cinnamon, some clove/soices, lactose is too strong and covers every flavor with an off-putting artificiality.

DDH TIPA brewed w/ local honey. Honey helps hide the booziness with an understated but welcome sweetness, very smooth body, candied orange peel, lime, Fruity Pebbles, mango, grassy. Very good.

Purchased at Tavour

Sept 2020 biere de coupage, blend of various saisons and a barrel conditioned wit. Great carb helps the citrus and peppery notes shine brightly. Light malt/wheat and honey sweet note coats the palate, mixed culture funk is great too. Delicious, complex.

Purchased at Wheatland Spring Farm + Brewery

Bluejacket is consistently underwhelming, and neither of us wanted even a second sip of this beer. The lactose and additives were far too sweet and buried the base beer and any sense of heat. I’m not rating this b/c this can’t be right.

Purchased at ChurchKey

From 2015. This harnesses the wonderful sour flavor of key limes with a lacto-y tartness. Still very tart, dry, good citrus sweet/sour combination, like vinegar-y meringue, except that sounds gross. Can’t believe how close this is to how it was in 2016.

Purchased at The Fridge

Wine barrel aged grisette with grape must. Solid wheat base with lightly sweet white wine, slight herbal notes and a touch of brett. Subtle but really appreciate what they did here.

Purchased at Cushwa Brewing Co.

Hill Farmstead collab. Great carbonation, fizz on the tongue. Dry, sweet and sour, funky, lemony, fermenting apples, peppery saison spice at the end.

Purchased at ChurchKey

Earned the Saison Day (2024) badge!

Wine barrel aged wild ale with cherries from two MD farms. Still tart, vinous, and acetic, but after a couple of years, it’s slightly mellower and better for it. The local cherries are really showcased well here. Great dry finish.

Purchased at Sapwood Cellars

Cider/wine made with grapes, apples, and plums. Very impressed with what we’ve had from Troddenvale. Tart, acidic, guava, apples, sweetness that finishes nice and dry. Complex and layered.

Purchased at Wheatland Spring Farm + Brewery

Mild tartness, lemon, lactobacillus, herbal, oak, vanilla, meringue, dandelion, all with an earthy, herbal note underneath. Still very drinkable, but tastes like it’s lost some of its better initial balance.

Purchased at Free Will Brewing Co.

Bottle from 2016-17. 100% Brett saison. Still well carbonated. Strong bitterness, old barn, over steeped tea, apple, dry, very funk forward. Still drinkable, but more of a novelty than a beverage at this point. Rating for imagined past glories.

Worth it just for the bottle (and a lack of altbiers in the world). Chestnut, unsweetened chocolate, musty, black licorice, anise, brown bread. A bit thin and a little chalky but a solid random cheap-ish pickup.

Purchased at Hop, Cask And Barrel

Earned the Das Boot (Level 10) badge!

Saaz and Challenger hops bring old IBU wars bitterness to an otherwise sweet Belgian strong ale made with 7 different malts. The sweet roasty chocolate base is great, & the juxtaposition of deepens that & makes this more interesting.

Purchased at ChurchKey

Earned the The Dark Side (Level 36) badge!