Wytchmaker Rye India Pale Ale

Wytchmaker Rye India Pale Ale
Jester King Craft Brewery
Austin, Texas
6.70% ABV
Style: American IPA

C: Cloudy with some nice "yeasties" in the bottom of the bottle
H: Orange/Amber
N: Citrus Notes, Caramel, Touch of Grass and Floral Aromatics

The Ferm: Well I am not gonna lie, writing has been quite hard lately. My head just isn't in the game. No I did not go on another cleanse or decide to take a week off of beer. Still drinking some fun stuff and building up the tasting notes in my head. Just hit that wall where I didn't feel like getting back on the horse. Just when I thought man, maybe it is time to hang the old hat up, I had a beer that brought me back to the beginning. No, I didn't crack a Dogfish 60 minute or a Ruination IPA from Stone. I had the Wytchmaker, for the first time.

Big thanks to EvilTwin for bringing this bad bad over to the house the other day. Since my review of Black Metal Stout, I have been looking for any and everything from Jester King Craft Brewery. This beer again lived up the my self made hype.

The beautiful thing about this orange-ish/amber liquid of the Gods, was that it made me sit back and think...not of grade school and the teacher that was a witch, or the time when I was in a haunted house and the witch jumped out at me and it scared me to...well you get the idea. This beer brought me back to about 3 years ago when I was just getting into beer. The sweet caramel flavors mixed with the bite from the hop and the all around refreshing flavor of the beer, reminded me why I love this industry so much.

Going out on a limb and saying this is one of my favorite IPA's to date, and without a doubt the BEST RYE IPA. This was a huge treat!

Score: 4.49

ISO: EVERYTHING JESTER KING!

Surly Furious

Furious
Surly Brewing Company
Brooklyn Center, Minnesota
6.20% ABV
Style: American IPA

C: Clear
H: Light Amber in Color
N: Great Aroma! Fruity Notes of Citrus, Piney Hops

The Ferm: Ahh my love for Craft Beer in a can continues. Honestly is there anything better than a solid IPA or Stout out of a 12oz can? YES THERE IS! A TALLBOY CAN! OHH YEAH!
Surly knows how to lay the smack down on the other 12oz can companies by putting their beers out in tallboy cans...thats right a Craft Beer Tallboy! Seriously whats next...a 40oz of Stone Ruination? (that would be heavenly).

::Note to self; if I ever make it big in the brewing scene I must wax top a 40oz bottle of something!::

OK, so Furious....honestly the only thing that made me "Furious" was the fact that I ran out of this beer. The aroma on this IPA is heaven in a can. Tons of Citrus Sweetness and Piney Hops dominate the nose! For an IPA lover this is it! The body of the beer is quite light, but the malt does shine a bit on the taste of the beer.

This beer brings me back to March 2010 at the Hunahpu Release in Tampa when this beer first touched my lips....man I will long for the day that this beer is in my stomach again!

Score: 4.25