235. Alameda Brewing Yellow Wolf Imperial IPA

This is the last of the Imperial IPAs from my LetsPour.com order. If you have not checked out their site yet you should. Lots of great West Coast brews at reasonable prices and free shipping when you order 6 or more bottle. I have placed 2 orders with them already and both arrived quickly, well packed and the beer was top quality. I really enjoyed the 6-Imperial/Double IPAs from my first order. All from brewers I would not otherwise be able to get in Maine.


This was probably my least favorite of the 6 but still a quality beer. Pours an unfiltered orange with solid white head. Picture is a good representation of the beer's color. Aroma is almost all hops; pine and fruity and very pleasant. Taste is just OK with some citrus notes that lingers. Beer is easy to drink for an 8.2% ABV beer and was certainly refreshing. Overall a quality beer but not up to the high standards of other West Coast Imperial IPAs.
Pros: Easy to drink

Cons: Mediocre taste

Alcohol Content: 8.2% ABV
Calories: ???
IBU (Bitterness): 103
Rating: 
Brewers Website: Alameda Brewing Co

Brewers Description: With over 100 IBUs Yellow Wolf has enough eye-popping intensity to satisfy even the most ardent hopheads. It has bright piney nose and light golden color. We suggest pairing it with sunshine.

234. Stone Ruination IPA

I had this beer on tap a few weeks at Ebenezer's Pub and really enjoyed it. Came across a bottle at a local store and decided I should have it again. Very little change from having it on tap so it still gets high marks from me. 

Pour is a nice orange with two finger white head. Tons of aromas coming from this one; mostly hops - pine, tropical fruit and only a hint of sweet malts. Taste mirrors the smell with the sweet malts up front and then the hops kick in and do no stop. Loads of fruity hop flavors here and a nice dry finish which only makes you want more. Alcohol content is hidden well in the complexity of the beer. This is a very easy to drink DIPA with an alcohol content that is not overpowering.  Stone did an excellent job with this one and I would recommend anyone give it a try. 

Pros: Well balanced with lots of hops

Cons: 

Alcohol Content: 7.7% ABV
Calories: ???
IBU (Bitterness): 100+
Rating:  

Brewers Website: Stone

Brewers Description: So called because of the "ruinous" effect on your palate! This massive hop monster has a wonderfully delicious and intensely bitter flavor on a refreshing malt base. One taste and you can easily see why we call this brew "a liquid poem to the glory of the hop!" Those who seek, crave and rejoice in beers with big, bold, bitter character will find true nirvana in Stone Ruination IPA!

233. Geaghan Bros Smiling Irish Bastard

Recently took a trip to Bangor to meet with some clients and decided to have lunch at Geaghan's Pub which includes Geagan Bros Brewing. I sampled the 4 beers they had on-tap and decided on a growler of Smiling Irish Bastard to take home. Beer pours a nice orange with solid white head. Minimal aroma but some light malts.


Taste is solid with a nice balance of malt and hop flavors. Very easy to drink and would go well with just about any meal. Looking forward to my next trip to Bangor so I can grab another growler from Geaghan's. Oh and the food was good too. Be sure to give them a try if you make it up that way. 

Pros: Easy to drink and very well balanced

Cons: 

Alcohol Content: % ABV
Calories: ???
IBU (Bitterness): ??
Rating:  
Brewers Website: Geaghan Bros Brewing

Brewers Description:Our brewer's favorite staple beer is copper in color with moderate maltiness and features grapefruit hop character. This pale is brewed with traditional Cascade hops from the Pacific Northwest that linger on your palette. The name says it all: American strong, like Officer Bernie Welch, a legend in the Bangor Police Force. From Freeses’ Department Store through “Devil’s Half Acre,” with his billy club in hand, he wiped the smile off more than one hooligan’s face while keeping Bangor’s downtown safe.

232. Sixpoint Resin

This is my first beer from Sixpoint and it was a good place to start. They have a very uniquely styled can - very tall and thin sold in 4-pack boxes. They also have a very interesting website (see link below) including videos for their beers - Sixpoint Resin Video here. 

Beer pours a nice deep red color with impressive head that leaves a lot of lacing on the glass. Smells mostly of pine but some citrus and sweet malts. Taste is what I would expect from the aroma, pine hops, sweet malts and some grapefruit. Easy to drink for a 9.1% ABV beer. This will not be the last beer I drink by Sixpoint. 

Pros: Easy to drink - lots of flavor - well balanced

Cons: 

Alcohol Content: 9.1% ABV
Calories: ???
IBU (Bitterness): 103
Rating:  
Brewers Website: Sixpoint

Brewers Description: Whatever flames upon the night. Man's own resinous heart has fed. A beer that celebrates the extraction of hop resin for a concentrated yet balanced brew. 

231. Goose Island 312 Urban Wheat

Another single picked up from a local convenience store. I have read about Goose Island only because they were sold to InBev Anheuser Busch (owners of Budweiser) last year. All articles stated the beer would not change and they would simply have more money to expand and distribute to new States. Hopefully the 312 Urban Wheat is not a good representation of their other beer. 

Beer is a very pale yellow with almost no head. Slight wheat smell but not much else. Taste is watery and slightly sweet. It is refreshing but mostly tasteless. Finished the bottle but very glad I only bought a single.

Pros: Refreshing

Cons: Bland, watered down 

Alcohol Content: 4.2% ABV
Calories: ???
IBU (Bitterness): 20
Rating: 

Brewers Website: Goose Island

Brewers Description: Inspired by the city of Chicago and densely populated with flavor, 312’s spicy aroma of Cascade hops is followed by a crisp, fruity ale flavor delivered in a smooth, creamy body that's immensely refreshing.

230. Flying Dog Doggie Style Classic Pale Ale

Grabbed a single of this the other night from one of our local pizza places. The artwork and names of the Flying Dog beers are entertaining by themselves and it is a good thing as this one did not have much else going for it. 

Color is nice orange with a slight head that disappeared quickly leaving almost no lacing on the glass. Aroma was minimal but a bit of hops - nothing that is going to draw you in. Taste is bland, watered down and simply tastes like beer. Cannot pick out any characteristics of the malt, hops, etc. After I finished this off I went to the fridge and grabbed a Sebago Full Throttle Double IPA just so I could taste something worthwhile. 

Pros: Easy to drink

Cons: Bland, watered down 

Alcohol Content: 5.5% ABV
Calories: ???
IBU (Bitterness): 35
Rating: 

Brewers Website: Flying Dog

Brewers Description: The alpha of the pack, Doggie Style complements a wide range of foods. Flavor notes: Graswsy, citrus and slight perfume hop aromas with subtely sweet malt body. Pairs with: Cheddar cheese, burgers, barbaque, Thai, Mexican.

229. Marshall Wharf Cant Dog Imperial IPA

I tried a beer from Marshall Wharf a few weeks ago at Frontier in Brunswick and since then I have been trying to find a way to get to brewery for a growler. I had a meeting in Camden last week and took the extra few minutes to get to Belfast. Fortunately my timing was good and I caught someone in the brewery as they are not usually open on Wednesday. I decided to get a growler of Cant Dog Imperial IPA as I like big IPAs.

The growler is one of the nicest I have purchased with the logo on the front and an About the Brewery on the back. The beer was a bit disappointing. Actually I should be more specific the beer was not bad but it certainly did not look, smell or taste like a double IPA.

Back of Growler

Color is very dark for an IPA and certainly not the normal bright orange you see in most. Aroma was minimal but had some sweet malts but almost no hop aroma which was a bit surprising. Taste followed with lots of malt, a fair amount of alcohol and a slight bite towards the end. Again no citrus, pine or floral tastes you typically get with IPAs. The first day I tried this I thought maybe something I ate was throwing off my palate so I tried again the next day and the next and it was the same. 

Overall this was not a bad beer but I had to give it a fairly low rating as it does not compare well with the other double IPAs I have reviewed. Marshall Wharf will be canning their beers this summer and I look forward to trying more from them. 

Pros: Strong

Cons: Lack of hops 

Alcohol Content: 10% ABV
Calories: ???
IBU (Bitterness): ??
Rating: 

 Brewers Website: Marshall Wharf

Brewers Description: This beer is the one beer that our brewers and I would take to that mythical deserted island if we could only bring one Marshall Wharf beer. Huge malt backbone matched with huge amounts of hops.