Tommyknocker Pick Axe IPA

The final bottle in my sampler was the Pick Axe IPA:

Vittles:

6.2% abv

55 IBU

Dry-hopped

Appearance: 8/10

This IPA poured a hazy burnt-amber/orange color with a very thin off-white head that fell very quickly and left little to no lacing.  So far, I'm not overly impressed.

Aroma: 19/25

Floral and citrus aromas hit me first, followed up by a mellow, sweet, malty scent that I wasn't really expecting to pick up on as clearly in an American IPA.  There are also very faint hints of grass, spice, and pine, and I think I might smell something herbal, too, but it's extremely faint.  The hops aromas aren't very strong, nor is the malt aroma.  I was expecting a more solid hop nose, but then again, Tommyknocker's black IPA at 78 IBUs didn't exactly pack a wallop, either, so I don't know why I was expecting their 55 IBU IPA to be any stronger.

Taste: 28/40

Again, floral and citrus notes are apparent up front, and the taste of the sweet malt hits the tongue next.  All three of these flavors are on the weak side.  The other hop flavors are somewhat present, but you have to roll the beer around to taste any of them.  I'm not impressed by the bitterness level, either.  This is a pansy IPA, despite the 55 IBUs, especially when considering that is was dry-hopped, because I really don't taste any of the characteristics that dry-hopping should add.  The aftertaste reflected mostly the same flavors, but the malt was a little more apparent.

This is a beer that should clearly be on the hoppy end of the scale, but it's more middling, since the hop flavors are somewhat subdued, the bitterness is very subdued, and the malt profile is more apparent.  This beer might have 55 IBUs (and the Hop Strike might have 78) on paper, but in reality, there could be several factors decreasing hop utilization, from the levels of SO4 in the brew liquor, to the mash pH, to the length of boil, and so on.  

Mouthfeel: 6/10

It's pretty thin and has fairly low levels of carbonation.  At times, it even felt a little watery, which detracted from the beer even more.

Style: 3/5

The head did not persist like it should for this style, and the mouthfeel was more watery instead of medium-light bodied.  It is certainly not "decidedly hoppy and bitter," so it loses points on that count, too.

Drinkability: 7/10

Because it isn't as hoppy or bitter of a beer as most IPAs, it's easier to enjoy with a wider range of foods.  It's a decent beer to sip while enjoying a sunny day in the backyard, but don't expect it to wow you, especially if you're looking for an actual IPA.

Overall: 71/100

If you want an IPA, look elsewhere.  If you want a beer that won't sit so heavy on your palate or coat your tongue in resiny numbness, but still lets you sample some American hops flavors, you might enjoy this one.  I really didn't find much in this beer that would make me want to buy it again, but I'm glad I tried it once.

Time to find another sampler, I suppose.  Cheers!

Tommyknocker Hop Strike Black IPA

It's been a long time since I've had a black IPA, so I snagged the Hop Strike out of the sampler next:

Vittles:

6.5% abv

78 IBUs

Appearance: 9/10

This beer looks black until you shine some light through it.  Then you can see the pretty ruby gleam.  It's very dark but crystal clear.  The light tan head starts with a decent showing but falls pretty fast, leaving heavy lacing.

Aroma: 18/25

I was hit first by the roasted/burnt grain smell, which I was expecting to dominate the malty side of the profile.  I also picked up floral, chocolate, coffee, mild vegetal, and faint pine and slightly spicy aromas.  The malt smells were a little bit more dominant than the hops aroma, which I wasn't expecting, since American IPAs are usually hopped fairly aggressively.

Taste: 30/40

It's really a very average tasting beer for an IPA, especially for an American IPA.  The hops profile could barely be called assertive, certainly not aggressive in flavor or aroma.  It just doesn't pack that hop punch that I was expecting, especially since it's listed at a whopping 78 IBUs.  I've had more bitter-tasting beers down in the 30s range, to be honest.  As far as the actual flavors go, again, the malt side of the scale wins out by a hair.  Roasted grains and that earthy rye taste dominated the flavor profile, rounded out by floral, pine, bitter chocolate, and coffee.  The aftertaste was thick, bitter, and lingering.

Mouthfeel: 8/10

Moderately low levels of carbonation lend this beer more of a medium-bodied mouthfeel.  It feels a little velvety on the tongue, with just a very slight sting -- enjoyable.

Style: 5/5

As a black rye IPA, this beer would be entered in category 23, Specialty Beer, according to the BJCP, and the guidelines allow quite a bit of leeway.  I was very much tempted to give it a 4/5 here, since the bitterness aspect makes a pretty poor showing.  Maybe I'm just feeling a little lenient today.

Drinkability: 7/10

It's average for a craft beer, which means it's good compared to, say, a macro lager.  I would like to try it on tap, or, even better, from a cask.  Even so, I'd probably only have one, and I wouldn't really go out of my way to buy this again or recommend it to anyone.  I've had better black IPAs and better rye IPAs, but isn't a bad example of either type.  It's just average.

Overall: 77/100

The label works against the beer.  You see that it's got 78 IBUs, and you think, "Great!  It should really knock my socks off!" and you look forward to that bitter bitch slap, only to get a mild love tap instead.  It's a little disappointing, and it took away from my enjoyment of the beer, since every time I took a sip, I thought, "Damn, I wish this was just a little more bitter."

One left to try, and it's another IPA.  Cheers!

Tommyknocker Alpine Glacier Pilsner

The fourth beer I grabbed out of my Tommyknocker sampler was the Alpine Glacier Pilsner:

Vittles:

5.1% abv

31 IBUs

Appearance: 9/10

It pours a straw/pale golden color with a large, off-white head.  The head retains nicely, and when it falls, it leaves significant lacing.  The beer itself is crystal clear, and you can see a decent amount of effervescence.

Aroma: 19/25

A faint malt background is noticeable, as is an earthy straw/hay/grass kind of aroma.  I also picked up on mild spiciness and a slight floral character.  It smells fairly delicate.  After the head fell, I could also smell that cooked vegetable/creamed corn odor of DMS.  DMS does rear its ugly head more readily in pale lagers, but a good brewer will use methods like the roiling boil, an uncovered brew kettle, and/or a strong fermentation to help reduce the DMS.  I'm not saying Tommyknocker didn't use those methods (or that they're not good brewers).  I'm just saying there's still some DMS left over, which is allowable for this style.

Taste: 30/40

Not what I was expecting after the aroma.  The malt taste was fairly mild and consisted of straw/hay notes, a very subdued breadiness, and a barely there biscuit flavor.  The more noticeable flavors were piney/resiny, floral, and a nice spiciness that makes your tongue feel alive.  The aftertaste is heavy, thick, and lingering, and it also tastes of pine and resin, with fainter floral and spicy notes.

Mouthfeel: 7/10

This beer has a light to medium body with moderate carbonation.  It finishes fairly dry, which is accentuated by the thick aftertaste.

Style: 5/5

There are three kinds of pilsners: German, Bohemian, and Classic American.  This beer fits the German Pils category very nicely.  The only unexpected for me was the pine/resin taste.

Drinkability: 7/10

I wouldn't go out of my way to have another of these beers.  One was enough.  It's not a bad beer, but it really isn't better than average in any sense of the word.  It was a little unexpected where taste and flavor are concerned, but again, not necessarily in a bad way.

Overall: 77/100

It was a bit heavier of a taste than I was expecting out of a pilsner, and I attribute that mainly to the pine, resin, and spice flavors.  This probably would have been better to have with a meal instead of sipping after yard work.  Honestly, if someone handed me a glass of this beer and didn't tell me what it was, I probably would have taken it for an APA or even a mild AIPA.  It just didn't have the balance of maltiness and hoppiness that I thought it should have had.

Two left to try, and both are IPAs.  Cheers!

Tommyknocker Vienna Amber Lager

My third Tommyknocker beer wound up being the Vienna Amber Lager:

Appearance: 9/10

It's a crystal-clear amber with an inch and a half off-white head.  The head persists nicely, and when it falls, it leaves moderate lacing behind.  The carbonation is visible and inviting.

Aroma: 21/25

Starts off malty, finishes slightly fruity, maybe like cherries?  There's also hints of barley, biscuit, mild earthy tones, and a light peppery-spiciness.  Interesting nose overall.

Taste: 30/40

On the malty side of the spectrum, this beer also has toasty, caramel, floral, fruity (again, picking up some cherry?), and spicy flavors.  I like the rich, grainy taste, but I was expecting less hop bitterness from a Vienna-style lager.  I like the other hop characteristics, and I think they combine to make a very drinkable beer, but it's a little different from what the name led me to believe I would be drinking.  I'm not really sure where the "Vienna" part comes in with this beer, since it tastes more like a regular amber lager or even a brown ale.

Mouthfeel: 8/10
Medium-bodied with a crisp finish.  Very, very faint alcohol-warmth lingers on the back of my tongue, as does a fuzzy, tingly feeling.  What little aftertaste remains is on the malty side, and it's very faint.

Style: 3/5
Vienna lagers shouldn't have any fruity esters, but I'm picking up on cherries.  The finish and aftertaste also diverge from the style guidelines, as do the IBUs -- this beer has 33 IBUs, while the style calls for 18-30.  The abv just squeaks by on the top end at 5.5%.

Drinkability: 8/10
Slightly above average for drinkability.  If my local bars offered this on tap, I'd like to try it that way, but chances are slim.  It has a good flavor but lacks the overpowering aftertaste that I'm not so fond of in other beers.

Overall: 79/100
So far, Tommyknocker Brewery seems to produce decent beers -- nothing spectacular so far, but enjoyable nonetheless.  I would probably get this beer again.  I think it would be a good beer to give a friend as an introduction to craft beers.

Cheers!

Tommyknocker Jack Whacker Wheat

Jack Whacker Wheat Ale was the second Tommyknocker beer I tried:

Appearance: 9/10

Damn that's a good lookin' beer!  With the unfiltered golden-orange body and the nearly-white foamy head, it really does make me want to take a nice long pull.  It's actually a little bit lighter in color than the picture makes look.  I should find a better spot for pics.

Aroma: 20/25

Before the head fell, I had trouble picking up on any kind of aroma whatsoever.  But, once the foam settled, the aroma was a very pleasing combination of light wheat, loads of lemon, and more subdued floral and grassy notes.  I would have scored it higher, but I didn't like that I couldn't smell it before the head fell.

Taste: 33/40

The solid wheat base accentuates the strong lemon flavors.  It almost tastes like they dissolved Lemonheads in the brew, but without that sickly sweetness.  Their website says they added lemon grass, and I like the flavors it imparts.  Just like with the nose, the floral and grassy flavors are present but very subdued.  There is also a faint but very pleasing biscuit/cracker/dough-like yeasty flavor, which I think nicely complements the rest of the flavor profile.

Mouthfeel: 9/10

It's a bit thin at first, but rolling it around your mouth releases the carbonation to bring out a mild sting and a more full-bodied mouthfeel.  I could feel the bubbles forming on my tongue, which was an interesting sensation.  This beer finished moderately dry, followed by a very slight warmth from the 4.7% abv.  The aftertaste is very light, not bitter at all, and it leaves a faint dough/lemon/wheat flavor on the tongue.

Style: 5/5

This isn't a German-style hefeweizen; it's an American wheat beer.  This beer does not have the banana esters or the clove phenols common to German hefeweizens, and that's a good thing.  American wheat beers should have citrusy, floral, or spicy esters, and the banana and clove flavors that many people expect from wheat beers would be out of place in this style.  This beer hits the nail on the head for the American Wheat Beer category.

Drinkability: 8/10

It's a decent and enjoyable beer, but I wouldn't spend extra money for one.  I'd prefer something like this to have with a meal, and I'd love to try it on tap, but chances of that happening in the foreseeable future aren't that great.  I would recommend it to anyone who likes lighter flavors in their beer.  It would probably go exceptionally well with grilled chicken or fish.

Overall: 84/100

So far, I'm fairly impressed with Tommyknocker Brewery.  Both of the beers I've tried so far have been enjoyable, flavorful, and somewhat on the malty side of the scale.  I still have four of their beers to try, and I'm looking forward to them all.  I haven't yet decided where I'll rank these guys in my mega-list of brewers, but they'll be going in the database later today, and I can sort the rest out after I've tried a few more of their brews.

Cheers!

Tommyknocker Maple Nut Brown Ale

It's been a few days since I've tried a new beer (hence the lack of new posts...).  So, I swung by the bottle shop on my way home today to see what kind of selection they had to offer.  Lately, they've been getting some different craft beers, though the bulk of what they offer still seems pretty bland.  Anyway, I saw a sampler from Tommyknocker Brewery, and I've never tried any of their beers before, so I thought, what the hell, why not?  What I like about it right off the bat, before even opening up the box, is that there are 6 varieties (2 of each) instead of the usual 3-4 that most samplers offer.  (The only other brewer that I've seen do this so far is Sam Adams, so sidebar kudos to them!)

So, I grabbed a bottle out of the box without looking.  I wound up with their Maple Nut Brown Ale:

Appearance: 10/10

It's a rich, dark amber with ruby highlights.  The off-white head retains nicely, and when it does fall, it leaves very pretty lacing on the mug.  This beer screams, "Drink me!"

Aroma: 20/25
The nose is mainly roasted malt with nutty and caramel hints.  I can't really make out any maple, but that isn't really surprising, since the aromatics in maple syrup can be carried off by the heat if the syrup boils too long in the brew.  It's still an appealing aroma, despite the lack of maple scent.

Taste: 31/40
After a second or two, I can pick up on the roasted malt flavors, some subdued nuttiness (hazelnut?), and an extremely ephemeral wisp of maple.  That burst of flavor is very brief, though, which was a little disappointing.  I actually taste more flavor in the aftertaste than I do while the beer's in my mouth.  In the aftertaste, I get the maple flavor much clearer.  I also get a very rich, malty background, nuttiness, maple sweetness, a tinge of coffee, and a dab of toffee in the aftertaste.

Mouthfeel: 7/10
This beer seems to have two faces: at times, it's thin and watery in both flavor and mouthfeel.  Then, it switches up on you and you get a burst of flavor along with a full-bodied sensation, but neither one lasts very long.  Moderate carbonation brings a very mild sting to the tongue.  It finishes with a slight alcohol-warmth in the back of the throat and mild dryness on the front of the tongue.

Style: 5/5
While it seems a little thin, like it somewhat lacks that robust flavor I associate with brown ales, this beer actually matches the guidelines for this style pretty well, though it is bottomed out for IBUs -- brown ales usually range from 20-40, and this one squeaks in at 20.  And, like I said, one sip might be thin and bland, but the next sip might be full and robust.  I'm not sure why I'm getting such an inconsistent taste out of it.

Drinkability: 8/10
Very drinkable.  This would pair well with anything but light fish, really.  Heavier-tasting seafood, like maybe shark steaks, would probably go extremely well with this, especially if done on the grill.  This is also a pretty good beer to just sip on a lazy afternoon, like today.

Overall: 81/100
Despite the uneven tasting experience, I like this beer.  It's on the maltier end of the spectrum, which is what I tend to prefer these days.  It's probably not the first brown ale that would come to mind if someone were to ask me for a recommendation, but it is decent.  It's also nice to find a beer with these flavors in a beer with only 4.5 abv.

Cheers!