New Brew Thursday: 'Ghoulschip' from Allagash Brewing Company

Recently, I was lucky enough to venture up to Portland, Maine where I was able to visit some of my favorite breweries and no trip to Portland is ever complete without a stop at Allagash Brewing Company. There, I was able to pick up one of my favorite Allagash beers ‘Sixteen Counties’ but I was more curious about their coolship beers. Now, for the uninitiated, coolship is a brewing technique where hot wort (unfermented beer) is poured into a long, shallow pan so that the beer will cool down and during this process wild yeast from the air will mix with the wort to cause wild fermentation. It is an interesting process that deserves its own blog entry, but it produces fantastic sours. While I have had one to two coolships in the past I was turned onto something interesting, ‘Ghoulschip.’ A beer made and poured into the coolship on Halloween night made with pumpkin, toasted pumpkin seeds, and molasses. While pumpkin beers are not a favorite of mine this one was way too interesting to pass up and let me tell you, this beer is spooky good.

‘Ghoulschip’ pours into the glass a cloudy, straw-colored yellow with a small white head. However, after rolling the bottle and getting the sediment out, you are rewarded with a much darker yellow and an even cloudier result. It has strong notes of toasted pumpkin seeds and molasses that blend together almost seamlessly. The taste is fantastic. The initial sweetness from the pumpkin and molasses gives way to an unrelenting sourness that lingers far after the beer is gone. Coming in at a respectable 7.7% ABV, this beer won’t haunt you as the night goes on. ‘Ghoulschip’ is a unique beer in that each batch is different due to the wild yeast the collects during the coolship process and while this is my first ‘Ghoulschip’ it will not be my last.

New Brew Thursday: 'Landscapes With Haystacks' from Fiddlehead Brewing Company

As most of you know, I was lucky enough to visit Vermont a few months back and was even luckier to make a stop at Fiddlehead Brewing Company. Now, while I have had their flagship IPA a few times I was relatively unfamiliar with their other offerings and let me tell you they did not disappoint. So, when looking at the ‘to-go’ options and seeing an American Wild Ale with a fun name. I knew I had to give it a shot.

‘Landscape With Haystacks’ pours into the glass a clear, straw-colored yellow with a small white head that disappears relatively quickly. It has notes of lime and a distinct funk from the Brettanomyces used in the brewing process. The taste is amazing. The lemon, lime, and brett funk each battle each other for supremacy with neither being able to gain the upper hand for long. With a light mouthfeel this American Wild Ale packs a devastatingly sour punch, that coats the entire tongue starting from the back and lingers well after the beer is gone. Clocking in at 5.9% ABV this bottle will keep you happy while still leaving room for another.

New Brew Thursday: '55 Funk with Key Lime and Coconut’ from Greater Good Imperial Brewing Company

We are officially in the dog days of summer folks. That means trips to the beach, cook-outs, and day drinking. While it can be difficult to find that perfect summer beer I am here to tell you that ’55 Funk with Key Lime and Coconut’ from Greater Good Imperial Brewing Company is the perfect beer to kick off your drinking day.

’55 Funk with Key Lime and Coconut’ pours into the glass a cloudy, golden-yellow with a nice white head. It has sweet notes of coconut with just a little hint of lime to round things out. The taste is amazing. The initial sweetness of the coconut gives way to the tartness of the lime within seconds of the first sip with that tartness lingering on the mid-tongue just long enough. Building up with each subsequent sip. With a light, yet creamy mouthfeel and clocking in a whopping 8% ABV this one will sneak up on you if you’re not too careful. ’55 Funk with Key Lime and Coconut’ is an awesome sour is great for all seasons but PERFECT for the summer.

Brewery Trip! Trillium Brewing Company

Trillium has long been one of my favorite breweries and when I heard of their plans to move to a new location in Canton I was filled with mixed emotions. First I was excited to see what the new location would bring and what it would look like. However, I was a little sad. I had been to the original Canton location more times that I can count and it played host to countless memories, even though most of them involved waiting in line. Between new friends and amazing beers this new location had a lot to live up to and let me tell you… it does.

One of the first things you notice pulling up to the new Trillium is how massive the facility is. Between the outdoor patio, restaurant, and bar location it is significantly larger than the previous location. While the restaurant was closed when I visited the menu looked delicious and gave us something to look forwards to. Upon walking in the front doors you see some of the smaller tanks and a large rack of barrels which just fills you with excitement for those future offerings. There is ample room to sit and a few areas with couches for groups as you make your way to the bar. There are dedicated lines for both pours and cans with the can area being self-serve which I have never seen at a brewery. Additionally, you can place an online order for cans and then pick them up at the end of the visit.

I only got one pour while I was there which was ‘Weather Observatory’ and it was fantastic, it was just a quick trip for cans of ‘Plane Over Car Over Train Over Boat’, ‘Middle Aged Genius’, and a smattering of other cans/bottles. The main reason I went was because after being open for nearly a year I still had not made the trip to visit. Now that I have been, I cannot wait to go back.   

New Brew Thursday: 'Middle Aged Genius' from Trillium and Bissel Brothers

I recently made the trip back to one of my favorite breweries in the world, Trillium. Now, while I was able to visit the Fenway location a few months back I had not been to the new Canton location and let me tell you it didn’t disappoint (thanks Freddy Foreshadowing for the next post) as it was beautiful. I made the trip so I could not only visit this amazing brewery but so I could also try the newest collaboration between Trillium and Bissel Brothers, something I look forward to each year and this year with ‘Middle Aged Genius’ it was another smash success.

‘Middle Aged Genius’ pours into the glass a hazy yellow with a small white head. it has notes of sweet tropical fruit that battle each other for nostril supremacy with none able to gain the upper hand that leads to a rich, sweet, and citrusy aroma. The taste is fantastic. While it has been awhile since I have had ‘Baby Genius’ it’s significantly older counterpart amplifies everything I loved about it. ‘Middle Aged Genius’ has a rich mouthfeel that coats the entire palate with a rich, creamy, and citrus flavor with a sliding scale of bitterness that starts at the tip of the tongue and mellows to the middle. Clocking in at a respectable 7% ABV you’ll be able to finish the glass and open a second… or third.