Can you believe the year is just about wrapped? To end the year 2018 we have decided to have each Daily Nerd contributor tell us what their favorite beer they had this year was. Turns out we really love IPAs!
Vinnie Ortez
Penultimate Unicorn (10%)
Proclamation Ale Company
Brewed in Warwick, RI
Proclamation's mini-Voltron. A combination of the three original Derivatives with a ripple of fruitiness without tasting too boozey for a triple IPA. Galaxy, Citra, and Mosiac come together for an unexpected delicious brew that's so rare and sought after that it deserves the name Penultimate Unicorn.
The first time I got to experience the unicorn was this summer for their first can release of it at their new location in Warwick, RI. It was a beautiful summer evening with food trucks and friends that I'll always remember. We were lucky enough for another release of it yesterday, right before the end of 2018.
No matter how cold it gets this holiday season, this soft and gently dry 10% triple IPA will do just fine warming me up.
Casey LaMarca
Solar Plexus (9%)
The Tap Brewing Company
Brewed in Haverhill, MA
This gem of a beer is called Solar Plexus and it can be found at The Tap Brewing Company in Haverhill, MA. It's a juicy double IPA that you can bring upstairs above the brewery to The Game Pad, a video game bar where you can play everything from Nintendo 64 to Play Station VR. You can also take a 4 pack to go and have a night with anyone you please. My beer of the year is nostalgic and fresh, good on both a warm summer beach day and a cold winter night.
Jack Anderson
Waterlemon Cay (8.5%)
Tilted Barn Brewery
Brewed in Exeter, RI
It isn’t easy to pick a favorite beer of the year when you live in a place like New England that is packed with microbreweries...and you have a bit of a spending problem.
While stout season may be in full swing now, this batch of Waterlemon Cay (NOT watermelon), a fairly new addition to the rotational Tilted Barn Brewery lineup, was perhaps the most memorable beer of the year. Brewed with Nelson Sauvignon hops in this batch, (known for their white wine-like flavor), the fruity bubblegum aromas of this DIPA just exploded out of the can. I can’t put my finger on it but it tasted like some candy from my childhood that was melted down and made into a beer...zebra stripes? Runts? Who knows. But something was in the water at TBB that week, because the batch of Milo’s Phoenix that was released alongside it was also the best in my memory.
Gotta love the batch-to-batch changes and adjustments that you can taste from such small-scale breweries. The icing on the cake was that after picking up my cans of Waterlemon Cay, on an unseasonably warm Saturday in mid-October, I was able to enjoy it on the waters of Greenwich Bay on a perfect sunset kayak cruise with friends. I’m already dreaming of warm Saturday mornings spent day drinking at tilted barn next spring and summer. For now, the wood stove and pets often found roaming around Tilted Barn will have to provide solace through the winter months.
Steven Galante
Lemon Blueberry Pale Ale (4.4%)
Woodstock Brewery
Brewed in Woodstock, NH
I chose to pay respect to New Hampshire beer. The Lemon Blueberry Pale Ale from Woodstock, Brewery was perfect for a summer day when you're outside grilling. Their Papaya Ale is also going to be one to look out for!
Christian Renzi
Swish Double IPA
Bissell Brothers
Brewed in Portland, ME
I can't speak to the technical aspects of Swish or the ingredients that go into it. I just know that it's really really good. I picked a beer from Bissell Brothers because I think they might be my favorite brewery right now.
They're located outside downtown Portland, Maine. I took a trip up there with my girlfriend in February of 2018 and this was one of our first stops. Combine it with the dope fried chicken we had while tasting some delicious IPAs, it turned out to be one of my favorite brewery experiences this year. Swish wasn't available in cans that day but I had it on tap. It's a must try for anyone who is in Portland.
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