New Brew News – August 14, 2017

Our Thoughts: This beer is the perfect example of why Crane is so good at what they do. They take a classic style like the saison and turn it on it's head to produce something still recognizable for the style, yet out of this world. Jalapina saison is a Belgian style saison brewed with jalapenos and pineapple. Sweet and heat, spice and fruit, earth and yeast, yin and yang. Somehow, out of all of the chaos, Crane still manages to achieve balance in this crazy world of ours. It's one of the keys to great beers and a key to life in general.

Our Thoughts: If beer casts a spell on you like it does us, Heavy Riff has the perfect pint for you. Hopnotized is a behemoth that tips the scale at 11.5% ABV and is labeled a TIPA (Triple IPA). While Heavy Riff may be known for their fantastic brown ale, Velvet Underbrown, they are no slouch when it comes to hoppier beers, so this will undoubtedly be a mesmerizing experience that will leave you spellbound.

Our Thoughts: While we love seasonal beers, we're of the opinion that some styles can can be drank anytime of the year. Oktoberfests (or Marzens, for all you hardcore style nerds) are a great example of flavorful beers that go down smooth no matter what the calendar says, These beers are typically rich, toasty, lightly hopped amber lagers that come flying off the shelves at you right around this time each year. With so many breweries pumping these out, it's easy to be overwhelmed by choice. We're happy to help you narrow down your selection by recommending Knothole, a new Marzen style lager from one of our favorite breweries, Logboat. We've yet to be disappointed by anything they have released, and we're sure Knothole will be a worthy addition to their stable of brews. Get out your stein and hoist it high! Prost!

Our Thoughts: As we alluded to earlier, one of the keys to making great beers is balance. If one ingredient dominates, it throws the whole thing off kilter and results in an unsatisfied customer. For this new beer from Schlafly, they've made sure to keep this principle in mind by concocting a brown ale with the addition of raspberry and jalapeno. The sweetness of the raspberry balances out the pepper heat and spice, while the brown ale base adds a layer of caramel and chocolate without getting lost in the mix. To us, this sounds complex, yet devilishly drinkable. This will be available in 750 ml bottles.