My Top Beers in November 2023

November was a month full of travel! I visited Charleston SC, Hickory NC, and took a road trip through Virginia, Kentucky, Tennessee and Georgia. I tried 130 different beers in November, and here were the best beers I had over the past month:

A Decade Under the IPA collaboration brew from Fonta Flora Brewery in Morganton, NC

A Decade Under the IPA is a celebratory IPA dry-hopped with 10 different hops, selected by 10 different breweries for Fonta Flora’s 10th anniversary. This was easily the best West Cosat IPA I have ever had. The hops were: Bearded Iris - Mosaic, Burial - Simcoe, Fast Fashion - Anchovy, Firestone Walker - Azacca, Green Cheek - HBC 582, Highland Park - Nelson Sauvin, Monkish - Chinook, Other Half - Motueka, Russian River - Amarillo, and Trillium - Citra.

Houtenhamer (2021) from Burial Beer in Asheville, NC

Houtenhamer is a Double Barrel-Aged Imperial Stout aged twice in bourbon barrels. The 2021 edition came in at a whopping 16.2% ABV. Houtenhamer is Burial’s classic no-adjunct Stout and always a favorite. I had been hanging onto this bottle for a while and was very impressed!

Mixed Berry Cobbler from Southern Grist Brewing in Nashville, TN

Mixed Berry Cobbler is a Fruited Sour with lactose, vanilla, cinnamon, blueberry, blackberry and strawberry purees. Southern Grist always makes great Sours but I loved all of the different fruits in this one in particular.

TenneSPON Traditionelle from Barrique Brewing and Blending in Nashville, TN

TenneSPON Traditionelle is a Wild Ale that is a blend of one, two and three year old spontaneously fermented Lambic-inspired ales. My visit to Barrique was filled with delicious beers but this one took the top spot. I love a non-fruited Lambic and this blend was superb.

PB&J Mixtape from Xul Brewing in Knoxville, TN

PB&J Mixtape is a Fruited Sour inspired by peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. I have been lucky enough to have this beer several times in 2023 and every time it is fantastic. It truly tastes like you’re just biting into a sandwich, in all of the best ways.

Bone in the Throat from Root and Branch Brewing in Copiague, NY

This was Batch 6 October 2023 of Bone in the Throat, an Imperial IPA. I have lost count of how many times a Root and Branch IPA has made my “best beers” list—they absolutely crush the IPA game.

Pressed from Phase Three Brewing in Lake Zurich, IL

This was the Maple Batch 2 version of Press from Phase Three. It is an Imperial Porter with Tugboat Coffee and maple syrup. Normally I don’t love Porters but the coffee/maple combination in this one was absolutely delightful.

Check back in February for my top beers from December and January! Cheers —Alexis

My Top Beers in May

May brought less beer consumption for me—I tried 72 different beers over the past month—but there were still some truly delicious beers. This month’s list is comprised of 100% IPAs which is pretty odd for me! Overall since I didn’t have that many beers this month, I didn’t go to many breweries, and the weather has warmed up, I guess that led to a need for more haze craze than anything else. Plus, I spent 12 days adventuring around southern Utah and northern Arizona going on stellar hikes and not drinking very many beers, and the ones I did have were more so trail beers than fantastic sippers.

Here are the best beers I had over the past month:

Triple Farmer from Fidens Brewing in Colonie, NY

Triple Farmer is a Triple IPA with Citra, Galaxy, Mosaic and Nelson hops. This was the best beer I had in May—I rated it a 4.75 on Untappd. It was smooth, juicy and delicious!

Bloom and Blossom from Monkish Brewing in Torrance, CA

Bloom and Blossom is a Double Dry Hopped Double IPA with Galaxy, Rakau and Mosaic hops. I was lucky enough to have several Monkish beers in May and they were all superb, but this one was particularly packed with flavor.

Water Balloon Fight Club from Monkish Brewing in Torrance, CA

This is a double dry-hopped version of their Water Balloon Fighters Double IPA with Mosaic, Citra, and Simcoe hops. Another fantastic beer from the folks at Monkish!

Do We Live in A Society of Spectacle? from Root and Branch Brewing in Copiague, NY

This is the Citra batch 5 version of Do We Live In A Society of Spectacle. It is a multi-oat/wheat Double IPA with all Citra hops. It’s hard to not love a fully Citra hopped beer, they are always fantastic!

What Changed? from Fonta Flora Brewery in Morganton, NC

What Changed? is a Double IPA dry-hopped with citra incognito, motueka, rakau and topaz hops. I love that Fonta Flora has just recently entered the Hazy IPA game and is already putting out absolutely fantastic beers! This was super crushable.

Double Grid from Hop Butcher for the World in Chicago, IL

Double Grid is a Double IPA with Citra and Mosaic hops. I don’t get my hands on enough beers from Hop Butcher, and this brew reminded me of how amazing they are. I was thrilled that Pop The Top had this on tap!

My Top Beers in March 2023

March was a packed beer month with a few days in Hendersonville and Asheville, NC and then a week in Greenville, SC—check out my Greenville beer and travel guide here. I tried 198 different beers in March, a lot of which were consumed while watching March Madness, at Altered States festival from The Eighth State Brewing Company (check out my recap here) and at bottle shares.

In no particular order here are the best beers I had in March:

JFK2LAX: SFO Layover collaboration brew from Monkish Brewing in Torrance, CA and Other Half Brewing in New York, NY

This is a Triple IPA with Citra, Simcoe and Motueka hops. I am a huge fan of the JFK2LAX series and this edition was a delight! I rated this a 4.75 on Untappd because it was so ridiculously good.

Damage: Batch 100 from Root and Branch Brewing in Copiague, NY

This is a multi-oat/wheat Triple IPA from one of the best IPA breweries in the country. Root + Branch crushed this brew and I am very happy to have one more can of it in my fridge. It is extremely smooth and flavorful.

The Morbid Comfort of a Welcome Regression from Burial Beer in Asheville, NC

The Morbid Comfort of a Welcome Regression is a Triple Dry Hopped Triple IPA with Simcoe, Vic Secret and Eclipse hops. Anytime Burial drops a new Triple IPA I am excited but this one was superb. It has that classic Burial hint of sweetness without being overly boozy.

Triple Vegan from Fidens Brewing in Colonie, NY

Triple Vegan is a Triple IPA with Citra, Galaxy and Nelson hops. As you may know, it is the triple version of their iconic brew The Vegan. Coincidentally I just had the original brew, The Vegan, yesterday and it pales in comparison to Triple Vegan. This is rich in flavor and incredibly easy to drink.

Hyperbolic from The Eighth State Brewing Company in Greenville, SC

Hyperbolic is an Apple Brandy Barrel Aged Imperial Stout aged 1 year and 11 months in a Laird's Apple Barrel with toasted coconut, cassia bark, and Madagascar vanilla. It was tough for me to choose just one Eighth State Stout to include on this month’s top beers list, but Hyperbolic soared above the rest. Apple Brandy Barrels are always my favorite! I enjoyed this at their Altered States festival.

Fostering Divine Culture collaboration brew from Resident Culture Brewing Company in Charlotte, NC and Divine Barrel Brewing in Charlotte, NC

Fostering Divine Culture is an Imperial Stout aged in Laird’s Applejack barrels for 22 months then conditioned on rum barrel chips, wild Thai banana, toasted coconut, and vanilla. This was brewed in celebration of Divine Barrel’s 5th Anniversary. I enjoyed it at Community Tap in Greenville and I snagged a bottle at Resident Culture’s taproom once it dropped!

One Thousand Years from The Veil Brewing Company in Richmond, VA

From The Veil: “One Thousand Years was the 1000th batch of beer ever brewed at The Veil back in early 2019. The recipe is an amped-up recipe inspired equally by Pallbearer, Circle of Wolves, Sleeping Forever, and one of our favorite Imperial Stout collaborations. It spent 12 months in Laird's Apple Brandy barrels and then another 12 months in Buffalo Trace bourbon barrels.” In my eyes this is basically a cuvee of The Veil’s best brews and it was absolutely phenomenal!

Sequence Collaboration Brew from Homage Brewing in Pomona, CA and Highland Park Brewery in Los Angeles, CA

Sequence is a barrel aged Saison with spent Matsumoto peaches, spent nectarines and Osmanthus flower. Eighth State was pouring this at one of their events before the festival. Sequence is refreshing, flavorful and unique.

My Top Beers in September & October 2022

September and October brought more fantastic adventures & ales—who would’ve guessed!

In September I spent 17 days exploring the Southwest in Phoenix, Scottsdale, Tucson, Sedona, Flagstaff, the Grand Canyon, the greater Las Vegas area, Palm Springs and Joshua Tree National Park.

October brought the Snallygaster beer fest in Washington D.C. with a stop in Richmond on the way and a relaxing mountain weekend in Bryson City, NC! I also had the privilege of visiting Asheville twice and spending lots of quality time in Charlotte!

All of this lead to some killer beers—below is my top beers in September and October, in no particular order:

All We Become Is Just Dirt In The Ground at Burial Beer Company in Charlotte, NC

This is an Imperial IPA mashed with oats and barley, whirlpooled with Incognito, Cryo, and Phantasm, made from New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc skins, then double dry-hopped with Simcoe, Citra, El Dorado, and doses of Citra and El Dorado Cryo.

Burial continues to put out bangers from all sides of the spectrum—Pilsners, IPAs, Stouts—you name it. It is surreal to think that their Charlotte taproom has only been open for 5 months, so many great beers have already been had here!

All We Ever Wanted Was Everything collaboration brew from Other Half Brewing in New York, NY and Root + Branch Brewing in Copiague, NY

This is an Imperial IPA with Citra, Riwaka and Motueka hops from two of the best IPA breweries in the country—Other Half and Root + Branch. I was luck enough to have this one on draft at Other Half’s Washington D.C. taproom and in a can from the release in NYC and I loved it both times!

Cake Day from Bottle Logic Brewing in Anaheim, CA at The Wandering Tortoise in Phoenix, AZ

Cake Day is a Bourbon Barrel Aged Imperial Chocolate Cake Stout aged in a combination of Bernheim, Four Roses, Heaven Hill, and Old Fitzgerald barrels with a blend of Ghanaian and Ecuadorian cacao nibs, vanilla frosting and sprinkles. This was brewed to celebrate Bottle Logic’s 8th Anniversary and was truly superb. The Wandering Tortoise is a fantastic beer bar in Phoenix with a huge draft list and fantastic can and bottle selection as well.

Double Dry Hopped Double Citra Daydream from Other Half Brewing in New York, NY

This is an Imperial Oat Cream IPA with Citra pellets and Citra Lupulin. Other Half does it again—no surprise there. This was a stellar brew and the perfect accompaniment for a relaxing weekend in the mountains.

The Heart of Chaos Triple IPA from Fidens Brewing in Colonie, NY at Snallygaster

The Heart of Chaos is a Triple IPA with Citra, Nelson and Mosaic hops. This was brewed to celebrate 3 years of Fidens! This was my favorite beer from the Snallygaster beer festival in D.C. and a delicious brew.

Dagligt intag collaboration brew from Trillium Brewing in Boston, MA and Omnipollo in Sundbyberg, Sweden

This is a Fruited Berliner Weisse with raspberries, strawberries, blueberries, cranberries and milk sugar. Trillium and Omnipollo’s collabs are always next level, but Dagligt Intag took it to the extreme. This beer is absolutely loaded with fruits but is still incredibly balanced and delicious.

Spellbinder at Wren House Brewing in Phoenix, AZ

Spellbinder is Wren House’s house Hazy IPA with Cascade, Mosaic and Citra hops. This beer won gold in the Hazy/Juicy IPA category at Great American Beer Festival in 2020, so I am not alone in my assertion that this is a fantastic beer. I enjoyed everything I had at Wren House and the vibes were great as well.

Check back next month to see my top beers of November!
Cheers—Alexis

My Top Beers in June 2022

June’s top beers are mostly centered around my trip to New York, but I had some great beers in Charlotte too. Burial Beer also opened in CLT in June so it was a struggle to not list every one of their delicious beers that I had on tap! My top beers over the past month are listed below in no particular order:

Ultrasphere from Hudson Valley Brewery in Beacon, NY

Ultrasphere is a Sour IPA with raw wheat, malted oat, milk sugar, raspberry, vanilla and hopped with Citra & Mosaic. Hudson Valley is best known for their Sour IPAs so when I visited their brewery I knew I had to get a good selection of them. Ultrasphere is slightly sweet but not in an overpowering way and very easy to drink.

Peach Pink and Green Saison from Homage Brewing in Pomona, CA

This is a dry hopped, barrel aged Saison with falanghina grapes, masumoto peaches and Sabro hops. Homage was one of my favorite breweries I had at Green City, Other Half’s festival. This Saison was perfectly balanced and refreshing—I could easily drink a whole lot of this brew.

Salmagundi Vol. 1 from Weaver Hollow Brewing in Andes, NY

Salmagundi is Weaver Hollow’s series of blended farmhouse ales. Volume 1 is a blend of a barrel-fermented Saison brewed with a single European malt and single European hop, aged for 6 months; and an herb beer brewed with hibiscus, lemon verbena, and kaffir lime leaves, which was fermented in stainless and aged extensively in French oak. Weaver Hollow is always a delight and I was thrilled to see the selection at Beer Street, a fantastic beer bar in NYC.

Bone and Throat from Root and Branch Brewing in Copiague, NY

Bone and Throat is a dry hopped Double IPA from Root and Branch. After having a plethora of Root and Branch beers in cans it was very exciting to get to finally try their beers on draft. Root and Branch makes some of the most consistently delicious IPAs in the country.

All You Know For Certain Is That You Know Absolutely Nothing At All collaboration beer from Burial Beer in Asheville, NC and The Eighth State Brewing in Greenville, SC

This is an Imperial Stout with pecans, toasted coconut, Thai banana, rum barrel aged orange zest, cinnamon, nutmeg, maple syrup, and Vanuatu vanilla bean. When Burial and Eighth State team up you know it is going to be something wild, and that is exactly what is happening here. Somehow all of the adjuncts come together perfectly to create a delectable, thiccc Stout that leaves you wanting more.

Saison Bernice from Sante Adairius Rustic Ales in Capitola, CA

Saison Bernice is a Farmhouse Ale with multiple yeast additions, including Brettanomyces, and is further aged in the bottle. This was my second favorite beer at Green City, after Homage’s Saison. Saison Bernice is always a true pleasure to get to try—it is a perfect beer in my opinion.

The Beer formally known as La Tache from The Ale Apothecary in Bend, OR

The Beer Formerly Known as La Tache is a Table Sour made of malted barley, wheat, Goschie Farms Cascade Hops, honey and house lactobacillus culture. It then spends 3-9 months fermenting in barrels prior to a month-long dry-hopping in oak barrels. Everything The Ale Apothecary makes is unique and funky, and this was no exception. I was taken aback by just how fantastic this was.

Check Back next month to see what my top beers of July are! Cheers—Alexis

My Top Beers in April 2022

April was a crazy month of travel and beers—so crazy in fact that I didn’t write a March top beers round up because I was on the road at the end of March and first couple of weeks of April, sorry friends! This past month I visited Wilmington NC, Charleston SC, Savannah GA, Miami FL and Seabrook Island SC. I also attended two beer festivals in April—Cape Fear Craft & Cuisine in Wilmington and Wakefest from J. Wakefield Brewing in Miami. That all adds up to a lot of beers, so the ones that made the cut here are truly the best of the best!

In no particular order, here were my top beers in April 2022:

MawMaw’s Humbleberry Pie collaboration brew from Two Tides Brewing in Savannah, GA and Inner Voice Brewing in Decatur, GA

MawMaw’s Humbleberry Pie is a Fruited Sour with raspberry, blueberry, strawberry, vanilla, cinnamon and graham cracker. It is packed with flavor and extremely easy to drink, but still comes in at 7% ABV.

Apple Brandy Barrel Aged Stepping on Toes collaboration brew from Westbrook Brewing in Charleston, SC, The Eighth State Brewing Company in Greenville, SC, Evil Twin Brewing in New York, NY and Edmund’s Oast Brewing in Charleston, SC

This is an Imperial Stout aged in Laird’s applejack apple brandy barrels for over two years then infused with toasted coconut, banana, macadamia nuts and vanilla beans. This beer is basically everything I love infused into one brew—apple brandy barrel aged, coconut, banana, and vanilla! This was an exceptional brew. I had the original Stepping on Toes last year and this one completely blows the other out of the water. Highly recommend if you can get your hands on it!

Simple Thoughts from Tripping Animals Brewing in Doral, FL

Simple Thoughts is an Imperial Stout aged for 15 months in bourbon maple barrels and conditioned with wild Thai banana, coconut, cacao nibs, peanut butter and Madagascar vanilla beans. Peanut butter Stouts can be a miss for me, but I was thoroughly impressed with this brew at Tripping Animals. Everything I had there was fantastic!

Around The Sun 2 from Edge City Brewery in Charlotte, NC

Around The Sun 2 is a Sour IPA hopped with Citra and conditioned on mangos, tangerines, kiwis and Cloister honey. Edge City released this beer for their 2nd Anniversary in April, and the first version of Around The Sun was released last year for their 1st Anniversary. This beer is the perfect balance of tartness, fruitiness, and smoothness. I had this beer 3 times in 24 hours, so I can definitely say I fully endorse it.

Citra Cutting Tiles from Trillium Brewing in Boston, MA

Cutting Tiles is Trillium’s single hop Double IPA series with raw wildflower honey. This Citra version of Cutting Tiles was fantastic! Anything Citra is usually going to go over well, but the addition of the honey sweetened things up a bit and smoothed out the beer. Another win from the folks at Trillium!

Napping Under the Echo Tree from Lua Brewing in Des Moines, IA

Napping Under the Echo Tree is a Fruited Sour with dragon fruit, passionfruit, mango and guava. This was my first time trying anything from Lua and I absolutely loved it! I will definitely be hunting for them on my Midwest road trip this summer!

The Theory and Practice of Oligarchical Collectivism Chapters 1, 2 & 3 from Root and Branch Brewing in Copiague, NY

I did a side by side of all three chapters of The Theory and Practice of Oligarchical Collectivism and thoroughly enjoyed each one! Chapter 1: Ignorance is Strength is a Double IPA, Chapter 2: Freedom Is Slavery is a Triple IPA and Chapter 3: War Is Peace is a Double IPA. Each Chapter was pretty similar, but overall Chapter II was my favorite!

CHECK BACK NEXT MONTH TO SEE MY TOP BEERS OF MAY 2022!
CHEERS—ALEXIS