TheBeerObserver

Magic Hat Howl is a winter seasonal from the brewing team in Burlington VT. It pours dark, almost black, like a porter - with a caramel-colored foam and molasses nose with spice hints - I detect allspice and nutmeg, with some pine notes too.

There was a time in the early days of the craft beer movement when experimentation ruled the game. The best breweries released a steady stream of new and seasonal beers year round. When I brewed at Boston Beer Works, we prided ourselves on having 12+ beers on tap - including a range of strong beers, hoppy beers, exotic styles and drinkable session beers for everyone else.

Anderson Valley Brewing Company is one of my favorite small California microbreweries - their beers are consistently outstanding across the board. Finding a fresh six-pack on the East Coast is always a treat. With that, I couldn't pass up a chance to try their Winter Solstice Seasonal Ale.

Brooklyn Winter Ale is a Scottish Ale, a rich malty beer brewed for cold, winter nights on the heather. Rich amber color with a deep red hue. The pour was just ok, a bit lacking in foam head despite all the malt in the beer.

The aroma is sweet, with hints of caramel and almond, no noticeable hop presence.

Sierra Nevada's Estate Brewers Harvest Ale is a beer makers play on the regional winemakers focus on their terrior, the flavor characteristics produced by the unique local environmental conditions - the fertile soil, rainfall and Central Valley setting. All of the hops and barley used in this beer are grown on-site and, given the brewery's long time affinity for pale ales, the resulting beer is a reflection of their passion for aromatic, hoppy beers.

When I see an Imperial IPA on the shelves of a package store, its as if the store owner has already put it in my shopping cart. The purchase is a done deal, I just can't resist and Harpoon's Imperial IPA - with its Halloween-esque label - was no different.

In honor of this weekend's Great American Beer Festival, I'm breaking open a true Düsseldorf Altbier that I've been saving for a few weeks - Uerige Alt.

Düsseldorf Altbiers have been a personal favorite for a long time - its what the American Amber style should be. Red in color, with caramel and subtle chocolate notes from the caramel malt and a nicely balanced hop flavors. Altbier literally means old beer and refers to the brewing method prior to lager brewing, with the use of a warmer, top-fermenting yeast. However, because the style originated in Germany, its "lagered" much longer than a British ale - resulting in a clean, crisp flavored ale.

My summer long quest for hefeweizen hit pay dirt, ironically, on the final day of summer. I tweeted about the release of Sierra Nevada Kellerweis back in June on the day it first shipped, but didn't actually find this beer in a package store until yesterday. This happy discovery certainly made up for the 3 hours I spent in my car commuting to work that day (ugh).