Blue Moon Brewing Company's Full Moon Winter Ale

An abbey ale... brewed with Belgian sugar... by a macro brewer. What the Hell, I like Budweiser, we'll see if this is any good.

Pours a nice, fairly opaque amber with a very nice head--although I poured it fast, so we'll see if there's any taste left once the head is gone. Blue Moon Brewing Company's Full Moon Winter. Pretty nice smell to it. Fairly malty and slightly peppery, like a winter (warmer?) ale should be.

Meh. Very weak in the feel compared to the appearance. Empty cardboard bitterness that fades almost immediately and leaves you with a feeling like you're missing something. Or maybe that something has even been taken from you. Or like you've been fondled by a stranger, or something.

If it was a movie, I'd want my two hours back. Instead, I'm just going to pour it out and be glad I didn't have to buy more than one of them, and them I'm going to go take a shower. Although I don't know if I'll ever feel clean again.

Tommyknocker Brewery's Imperial Nut Brown Ale

Imperial brown? I see a shark being jumped.

Pours a deep brown. Moderate head that disappears making it look more like a Coke than anything else. Smells, I don't know, like a wanna' be stout. Tastes about the same. More hops than a brown should have, even an imperial, whatever that means for a brown. Otherwise it tastes like a slightly nutty standard stout.

Meh. It's like a boring brown, but bigger.

Twisted Pine Brewing Company's Raspberry Wheat

Drinking this one in the middle of the day so I can cover it up with other beers later--like that DR11 I just scored.

Pours a very slightly hazy yellow to light amber. Big foamy head that I'm hoping will go away, and makes me wonder if I need to switch dishwasher soaps. We'll have to try out that theory with a few more beers. Very strong carbonation despite the foaming and despite the fact that it has to be almost two years old--I've been avoiding it for a while.

Yup. Raspberry and wheat. Has a zippy wheat smell that is just right though.

Same in the taste, but without the wheat zip. The raspberry just drags it down.

It has to be right on style, but why there are beers like this I will never understand. It is not pleasant to drink.

Twisted Pine Brewing Company's Red Mountain Ale

Pours a fairly deep red, almost brown, with a nice tan head that stays. Smells like a pretty strong pale, with grassy hops and a sweeter than normal malt for an amber/red.

The taste is back down to a red though. Standard amount of bitterness that is less grassy than the smell, and no real sweetness. Instead, more of a grainy malt taste that suits the style well. A bit watery in the feel, is my only complaint, and otherwise it's a pretty good red.

Left Hand Brewing Company's 400 Pound Monkey English-Style India Pale Ale

Pours a yellowish amber with a decent enough light tan head. Slightly grassy, more malt than the last IPA I had, which is a good sign.

Tastes nice, I'm betting this has been laying around a while so I bet it would be better if it was newer. Grassy hops that are fairly moderate, with a lighter body than I would like.

All in all, there's nothing that stands out about this one. Not bad, but not great, just a middle of the road IPA. That's about par for this brewery, from my experience.

Twisted Pine Brewing Company's Hoppy Boy IPA

Damn. Foams out of the bottle, then again right out of the glass. Too bad, because it smells like it would be a good IPA.

Pours a nice amber with a tan head, and there must be some carbonation left because it's loosely filtered with particulates that rise to the top and then sink again. Smells nice. Very grassy, and slightly sweet.

Despite the apparent carbonation, it feels dead. It tastes nice because it's still pretty grassy and bitter and despite the slight sweetness there's no feel to it at all. I'm certain it's because of how it foamed out, but regardless of why it makes this a weak beer because it just feels wrong.

Great Divide Brewing Company's 16th Anniversary Wood Aged Double IPA

This is one of the first breweries that I remember being different. And although I traditionally don't like wood aged beers because they're overdone with scotch, I'll try everything Great Divide makes.

Pours slow, with a ton of body. That's a good sign. Deep amber with a huge tan head and a great smell. Slight vanilla that comes from the oak, but mostly floral hops and a slightly sweet malt.

Tastes about the same. Solid body and a great bitterness that isn't affected by the oak, which isn't too scotchy like some brewers try to make it. Good stuff, and another reason this brewery has set itself apart from the start for me.