Green Man The Dweller Imperial Stout

Green Man Brewing Company's The Dweller is an Imperial Stout that they claim to have spent some time in the basement before becoming worthy of being bottled.  They list an IBU of 62 and an ABV of 7.5%.  The alcohol content is on par for an Imperial Stout but the IBU value seems a tad high.  This should prove to be a hoped up version.  The beer pours a wonderful dark brown and slowly forms a thick golden head.  This was surprising based on the amount of visible carbonation.  The initial aroma was a strong sweet malt flavor which you should expect from an Imperial Stout.  The chocolate flavor with the malt was very perceptible with this beer.  The balance of hops and malts was very nice.  The coffee flavors that are common with an Imperial Stout were masked by the hops flavor.  Now coming from a serious coffee drinker this may not mean much.  It takes a lot for me to say I taste coffee in my beer.  I mean if I want to drink a Java Stout that's what I'll get.  This beer comes across as a very traditional Imperial Stout with some added hops.  The fruit flavors that are traditionally associated with these beers was replaced by the mild hops flavors.  This made the Green Man take an interesting variation on this beer.  You probably know by know that I'm a fan of breweries that take some liberties with common beer styles and this is a subtle variation that I definitely approve of.  The presentation of the beer was a big plus.  The bottle made the experience seem a bit more sophisticated.  While it is easy to find many Green Man offerings on tap at my local restaurants I'd not be offended by having this bottle brought to my table.  All in all this beer should be rather approachable for anyone at all interested in darker beers.  Like many other North Carolina brewers Green Man strikes an excellent balance in all things that go into their beers.  For my initial reactions check out the YouTube video.  As always keep enjoying North Carolina Craft Beer.

Blind Squirrel Brewery IPA

The Blind Squirrel Brewery India Pale Ale comes in at 7%ABV.  Blind Squirrel describes this as an effort to be something other than a hop bomb.  They describe the flavors as citrusy, piney, and floral.  As you probably know by know I'm a big fan of breweries giving accurate descriptions of their beer.  One thing they failed to mention is that this beer forms a generous head that remains rather persistent.  The head has a creamy texture that would make many English pub ales jealous.  Generally I would attribute this to the yeast but they claim to have used an American Ale yeast which I wouldn't thing would produce a head like this.  This could then be from the two row and caramel malts.  At any rate it gave the beer some character not common to an IPA.  The pine was the predominate scent and the predominate flavor.  In my initial impression, see the YouTube video here,  I quickly compared this to Modus Hoperandi.  The flavor, color, and amount of head produced were very similar.  The Blind Squirrel offering is a bit more subdued than the Ska IPA.  I would certainly also describe this beer as "drinking a pine cone."  Now this may sound a bit intense to some people but you have to remember that this is an IPA and this is North Carolina.  Here we like to brew big, flavorful beers that rival those of the more well known breweries.  This IPA is no exception.  This isn't going to be an IPA for everyone but if you enjoy citrus and pine flavor in your IPA this is an exceptional example of blending these two flavors.  Now if you can allow this to warm just a bit you will quickly find that the piney flavors mellow and become replaced by an entire bouquet of citrus and other floral flavors.  This may be a difficult feat for some as this is an excellent IPA and perhaps my favorite from North Carolina thus far.  I didn't feel like they just threw in as much hops as they could to get an insanely high IBU number, it lists as 65 by the way.  I am a big fan of pine in my IPA but was pleasantly surprised by how it mellowed and became a very complex beer after it warmed just a few degrees.  It really felt like I got two different beers in just one bottle.  So for those of you that are fans of in your face pine flavored IPAs drink this one at fridge temp.  For those of you looking for a more traditional experience with a moderately hoped IPA let it warm a bit and you should find this one to your liking.  If you want more information about the other beers that Blind Squirrel offers head to their website.  If you find yourself in Plumtree the brewery is attached to a lodge, restaurant  and winery.  The menu looks to be standard pub fare including pizza, burgers, sandwiches, and the crow favorite fish and chips.  They seem to have a great selection of Blind Squirrel brews on hand as well.  During summers they are open Wednesday through Saturday.