May and June 2026

May and June brought an absurd amount of delicious beers for me. I visited Greenville, SC, Asheville, NC, and then spent two weeks adventuring around California, and then visited Wilmington, NC in late June. I participated in two bottle shares, and visited Burial and inconceivable number of times. Overall I tried 239 beers over the past two months—and this list will exclude my top beers from the Firestone Walker Invitational, because those can be found here.

In no particular order, here were the best beers I had over the last two months:

M 3rd 25th The Deafening Sound of Silence from Forgotten Road Ales in Graham, NC

Always love any time I can get my hands on anything Forgotten Road Ales! This is a barrel aged Imperial Stout blend of 31 months with 18 year bourbon barrel and 18 month cognac bourbon barrel with maple syrup, cacao nibs, cinnamon, and coffee.

Zwickel Pilsner and Fonio Wild from Whaley Farm Brewery in Old Fort, NC

Finally made it to Whaley Farm and absolutely loved it! Zwickel Pilsner is—you guessed it—a Pilsner. Fonio Wild is a Saison brewed with fonio, hopped with Vista and fermented with a blend of house Saison yeast and two strains of Brettanomyces.

Third Press, Fourth Press, Howling Wilderness, Life Is Round (Batch 6), and Double Barrel Almond Suite from Private Press Brewing in Santa Cruz, CA

Incredibly thankful to have gotten to taste so many incredible Private Press beers this month! They are absolutely crushing the game and very difficult to get your hands on. Third Press is a blend of barrel aged Stouts, Barleywines and Munichwine. Fourth Press is a blend of barrel aged Stouts and Barleywines. Howling Wilderness is a bourbon barrel Stout blend conditioned on pecans, mizunara, and bourbon barrel maple syrup. Life Is Round Batch 6 is an English Barleywine. Double Barrel Almond Suite is a collaboration with Side Project Brewing and an Imperial Stout brewed with almonds and lactose, aged in bourbon and cognac barrels.

Let’s Go Chase Some Waterfalls! + Plus It Up + Keen on Peacharine from North Park Beer Co in San Diego, CA

I absolutely love North Park and essentially booked a long layover in San Diego just so I could visit them! Let’s Go Chase Some Waterfalls! is a Triple IPA in collaboration with Brujos in Portland and Green Cheek in Orange. It is hopped with Citra, Strata, and Manilita. Plus It Up is a triple dry hopped Hazy Double IPA with Southern Cross, Nelson Sauvin, Waimea, Citra, Citra Cryo, and Rakau SubZero Hop Kief. Keen on Peacharine is a triple dry hopped Hazy Double IPA with Citra, Citra Cryo, Citra DynaBoost, Freestyle Rakau, Freestyle Nelson Sauvin, and Freestyle Peacharine.

Parliament + Smoke & Stories + Aoraki with Mango from Fidens Brewing in Albany, NY

More juicy goodness from Fidens, who is surprised? Parliament is a double dry hopped Double IPA with Citra, Citra Liquid Lupulin, Nelson Cryo and Riwaka Cryo hops in collaboration with Troon Brewing and Wild Bird Research Group Inc. Smoke & Stories is a quadruple dry hopped Double IPA brewed with Citra, Nelson, Superdelic Cryo, Egger's Special, Motueka and Motueka Hop Kief hops. Aoraki with Mango is a Triple IPA with mango, and brewed with Nelson, Nelson Cryo, Motueka and Motueka Hop Kief hops.

Protections Spells (2025 Blend) from Floodland Brewing in Seattle, WA

Has Floodland ever missed? I don’t think so. This is a blend of Saison aged in oak and refermented on pluots.

That Time When I Left All Of Myself In A Bed Stuy Juice Bar + The Dynasty + The Fabrication of a Most Diabolical Empire + 13th Passing + Be As You Were And Always Could Be + 13th Floor + 13th Row from Burial Beer in Asheville, NC

It was Burial’s 13th anniversary in June so yes there are 7 beers from them that absolutely blew me away over the past two months! That Time is an Imperial IPA collaboration with Other Half Brewing with oats + Mosaic Incognito, Motueka, then double dry-hopped with Necatron, Mosaic Cryo, Hallertau Blanc, Motueka, and Eclipse Liquid Lupulin. The Dynasty is a Quadruple IPA in collaboration with Fidens Brewing with oats + Citra Incognito, Riwaka, then triple dry-hopped with Galaxy, Riwaka, Loza Farms Comet, Rakau, Citra Hyperboost, and Riwaka Amplifire. The Fabrication is an Imperial IPA in collaboration with Xul Beer Co with oats + double dry-hopped with Coleman Farms' Citra, Galaxy, Nectaron, Rakau, Citra Cryo and Hyperboost. 13th Passing is a bourbon barrel aged Barleywine with whole vanilla beans from 13 different “distant lands” in collaboration with Horus Aged Ales. Be As You Were is a Double IPA with Mosaic, Galaxy, Nectaron, Dolcita, Nelson, Rakau, Strata, Krush, El Dorado, Vic Secret, Motueka, Simcoe, Comet, Incognito, Cryo, and Liquid Lupulin. 13th Floor is a bourbon barrel aged Imperial Stout blended with bourbon barrel aged Barleywine. 13th Row is a bourbon barrel aged Imperial Stout with coffee, pecan, cashew, cherry, maple, dulce de leche, coconut, blueberry, cocoa nibs, vanilla, smoked sea salt, strawberry, and Thai banana.

Stef, Way Bright, and Four Meters from Lesser-Known Beer Co in Winston-Salem, NC

Lesser-Known can do no wrong in my eyes and makes this list every time I have the opportunity to get my hands on their beers! Stef is a Zwickelbeer. Way Bright is an Unfiltered Pale Ale. Four Meters is a Helles Lager.

Analog Clock, Down Slope, Beauty Sleep, If Memory Serves, Veiled Alchemy, and Equator’s Edge from Sante Adairius Rustic Ales in Capitola, CA

May brought visits to two SARA taprooms in Capitola and Santa Cruz, and then I came home to North Carolina and Wooden Nickel Pub in Hillsborough had a SARA tap takeover #blessed. Saison for days!! Analog Clock is a barrel aged Saison blend. Down Slope is a barrel-aged Saison with Pinot Noir grapes. Beauty Sleep is an oak aged Saison with raspberries. If Memory Serves was fermented in two separate stainless vessels with two distinct strains of Brettanoymces. Veiled Alchemy is a Vermouth barrel-aged Saison blend. Equator’s Edge is a barrel-aged Saison with pineapple and guava.

Hella Local Michelada from Tioga-Sequoia Brewing in Fresno, CA

Hella Local Michelada is a Blonde Ale infused with Pro-Mix 559. I don’t even normally like micheladas (though I love bloody marys!) but this was absurdly good.

Phoenix Nox from Pure Project Brewing in San Diego, CA

When I saw a collaboration with Horus Aged Ales on the Pure Project menu while in San Diego I knew it was going to be amazing. This is an Imperial Stout aged for up to 26 months in a decadent blend of Buffalo Trace, Heaven Hill, and Cutwater bourbon barrels. Then Geisha coffee from Costa Rica, Filipino coconut, Tahitian vanilla, and maple sugar from New Hampshire were added.

Woodstock Double IPA: Peacharine, Paradisi, Citra and Simcoe + Platinum Fern + 14th Anniversary from Tree House Brewing Company in Charlton, MA

Tree House cans don’t always overly impress me, but the last two months featured three absolute bangers for me! Woodstock is a Double IPA with Citra, Simcoe, Paradisi, and Peacharine hops. Platinum Fern is a Triple IPA with Nelson, Peacharine and Motueka hops. 14th Anniversary is a Double IPA.

Tempo from Weaver Hollow Brewery in Andes, NY

Tempo is a Saison from Weaver Hollow, and always a superb beer. Unfortunately it appears Weaver Hollow may not be operating any more? It is not clear. This was my last bottle from them so I certainly hope that is not true!

Quy Is The Answer (2026) from The Answer Brewpub in Richmond, VA

Ah an Imperial Stout from The Answer—always a gift. This is a California Apple Brandy barrel aged Imperial Milk Stout with Vietnamese Weasel (Chon) coffee, Saigon cinnamon, Madagascar vanilla, in-house bourbon barrel aged Vermont maple syrup and Quy's special chili blend. Sheesh!

Oude Gueze Cuvee Armand & Gaston Season 16|17 Blend 1 from 3 Fonteinen in Lot, Belgium

10 year old Lambic? Count me in! This is a blend of Lambics aged on 4 different barrels, originating from wort of 8 different brews.

Redux Blend 1 from Side Project Brewing in Saint Louis, MO

Couldn’t wrap up a top beers blog without a Side Project bottle of course! Redux is an Imperial Stout finished with maple syrup, coconut flakes, and ground cinnamon.

Check Back next month for my top beers of July!
CHeers —Alexis

May and June 2024

The last two months were absolutely stacked with incredible beer for me. I started May in Charlotte with brewery hopping and bottle sharing before heading out for a 29 day road trip across Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Vermont, Ohio, Michigan, and West Virginia.

Mosaic and I visited some of the top breweries in the country (& world) so it is quite difficult to narrow down a list of top beers. This list will look a little different from my normal—in some cases I am listing more than one beer from a brewery because they were that good.

I rated all of these at least a 4.5 on Untappd, for reference. In no particular order, out of 310 beers tried, here were my top beers from May and June 2024:

Triple Vegan + DDH Eugene’s Axe + The Butcher+ Triple Jasper with Nelson from Fidens Brewing Company in Albany, NY

Fidens has been a favorite for me over the past couple of years, so I was stoked to visit their taproom. Their beer on tap is just simply superb, and of course I stocked up on cans to bring home as well. They were also pouring at Nucleate from HOMES which I attended while in Michigan, so I have been quite spoiled with Fidens over the past couple of months!

Triple Vegan is a Triple IPA with Citra, Galaxy and Nelson hops. DDH Eugene’s Axe is a double dry hopped Double IPA with Citra and Galaxy hops. The Butcher is a Double IPA with Mosaic hops in the whirlpool and dry hopped with Galaxy and Nelson. Triple Jasper with Nelson is a Triple IPA with Citra and Nelson hops.

Samuel (Batches 2 and 5) + Wheat Blanc (2022) from Hill Farmstead Brewery in Greensboro Bend, VT

Visiting Hill Farmstead is a remarkably peaceful and relaxing experience. Their taproom is essentially in the middle of nowhere and offers draft pours but also bottle pours.

Samuel is a Saison with organic buckwheat, organic spelt, and Vermont wildflower honey aged in wine barrels and bottle conditioned. I enjoyed Batch 2 and Batch 5 in a side-by-side tasting thanks to some great friends before heading out on my trip, and then I was lucky enough that Hill was pouring Batch 5 while I was at the taproom as well.

Wheat Blanc is a Farmhouse Ale aged in oak and hopped with Hallertauer Blanc. This beer is a little more basic but an absolute delight.

Staglore + Penumbra from Freak Folk Bier in Waterbury, VT

Freak Folk is a wildly underrated brewery in the wildly underrated small town of Waterbury. Their beers, no matter the style, are superb. Two of my favorites from my visit were Staglore and Penumbra. Staglore is a Saison brewed with foraged staghorn sumac and conditioned in oak puncheons with mixed culture. Penumbra is a Saison fermented with mixed culture and matured in oak for 28 months then aged nearly 5 years.

A Test of Awareness + Crown of Illusions + Let’s Get Out of Here from Troon Brewing in Hopewell, NJ

Troon! Hyped and worthy. They don’t have a taproom, but you’re able to try their beers on draft at Brick Farm Tavern on their property + they release crowlers occasionally. I tried all of their beers on tap and loved the entire experience.

Each of these top three beers I had from them are deemed “Hoppy Ales” as they don’t giveaway much of anything, but they were all superb. I was lucky enough to have Let’s Get Out of Here on draft and in a crowler and it was top tier.

Ninth Passing from Burial Beer Company in Asheville, NC

Ninth passing is a Rum and Bourbon Barrel Aged Imperial Stout with toasted coconut, cocoa nibs, and vanilla beans brewed to celebrate Burial’s ninth anniversary. They’ve since celebrated 11 years, so I figured it was time to crack this bad boy open. Absolutely delicious!

Barrel Aged Space Cuvée from Equilibrium Brewery in Middletown, NY

EQ is a tried and true favorite. While in the Hudson Valley area I knew I had to pay another visit to this gem. The beers, food, and vibes are all great! This particular brew is an Imperial Stout aged in a Weller barrel for 34 months with a vanilla cuvée, vanilla granola and caramel toasted coconut added.

Doubleganger + Golden Fern from Tree House Brewing Company in Charlton, MA

Tree House is one of the OGs in the Hazy IPA game and it felt like a right of passage to visit their beautiful taprooms across Massachusetts. Their location on the beach of Cape Cod in Sandwich is tough to beat with gorgeous views and chill vibes. The main space in Charlton is gorgeous and massive. Deerfield is newer and quite peaceful.

I enjoyed numerous great beers from them on my taproom journey, but Doubleganger and Goldern Fern were my top two. Doubleganger is a Double IPA that is the amped up version of Doppelganger. Golden Fern is a Double IPA with Nelson, Peacharine, Motueka, and Waimea hops

‘Nana This from CLAG Brewing Company in Sandusky, OH

‘Nana This is an Imperial Stout aged 15 months in Old Carter barrels, conditioned on coconut, coffee, vanilla beans, cinnamon, cocoa nibs and banana. CLAG can do it all—IPAs, Lagers, and this decadent Stout. Their taproom is out of the way (unless you’re visiting Cedar Point!) but absolutely worth a visit!

Say Yes from Lua Brewing in Des Moines, IA

Say Yes is a Fruited Sour with blackberry, boysenberry, and blue raspberry. Lua always has great beers and I was very happy to see them at Nucleate from HOMES. This Sour was superb—packed with flavor and easily a favorite of the festival.

Second Hand Coffins collaboration brew from Foam Brewers in Burlington, VT and Widowmaker Brewing in Braintree, MA

This Oat Triple IPA from two New England greats. I enjoyed it on tap at Foam, which helped make up for the fact that Widowmaker was closed when I was in the area. Deliciously juicy and great with views of Lake Champlain.

Parlance: 2022 Harvest Shiro from Suarez Family Brewery in Hudson, NY

Suarez is an interesting spot to visit with just two beers on tap and a handful of onsite bottles. Their beer is always top-notch. Coincidentally right before I left Charlotte and was able to visit Suarez I decided to crack this bottle. This is a Country beer with Shiro plums and is absolutely delicious!