Sierra Nevada Brewing Brings Beer Camp to Maine

(Originally published in Maine Today Magazine on July 31, 2014.) Remember in 2012 when Mumford and Sons thundered into town with their Gentlemen of the Road Tour? Portland was one of only four U.S. tour stops. The most powerful Americana band in the world turned its eyes on our city for a night. The event …

Watch out, Heady Topper, Maine Beer Company Shows Us It’s Time For Dinner

I’m on a journey to drink them all.  And on this journey, I’ve drank a lot of them.  Heady.  Pliny.  (The Elder, not the Younger.  Yet.)  Double Sunshine.  Hill Farmstead Abner.  Zombie Dust.  90 Minute.  60 Minute.  Smutty.  Lunch. On this path to IPA enlightenment, I’ve tasted greatness.  So strap in tight and hold on …

Zombie Dust is a Monster Brew

I’ve figured it out.  It came to me while I was enjoying a glass of Zombie Dust this past weekend.  It all seems so clear now I feel foolish to have missed it before. Here it is: the key to making world class beer is keeping the taste notes simple and graceful. Here’s another way …

Maine Beer Company’s Lunch is the Best Beer in Maine

Yeah, bold title, but it’s true.  Maine Beer Company’s Lunch is the best tasting beer in the great state of Maine.  And that’s saying something in a state that boasts a deluge of world class brews. The new hip beer on the scene is the sweet/sour, yeasty saison.  In Maine, craft beer disciples are gushing …

Pliny the Elder Vs. Heady Topper: A Fight for World Dominance

Drinking Pliny the Elder a few weeks ago with Tim, we got to musing over whether or not there’s any reason to rank beers.  If a beer kicks your palate’s ass, then why start rating it against other beers?  Why do humans feel the need to categorize and make best-of lists? As humans, we like …

Does Pliny the Elder Stand Up to All the Hype?

The story of how I got my greedy mitts on a bottle of Pliny the Elder is almost as integral to the mystique of the imperial IPA as the complex taste wave the beer possesses.  In some camps, there’s an argument that Pliny’s stories of inaccessibility — it’s only available in parts of California — …