Bad Penny Brown Ale

Brewed by the Big Boss Brewing Company in Raleigh, North Carolina. The thing that drew me to Bad Penny was the label and branding of the beer and brewery. As a designer I am always looking for things that excite and inspire me and this is one of those times. The design is fantastic and one of the better options in the craft beer world. All of Big Boss's brews have this same kind of design and feel. Very cool.

Now on to the beer itself.

Bad Penny is a brown ale and a pretty good one at that. Pours a dark brown, more like a porter than a brown ale, with a creamy off white head. Smells of dark chocolate and coffee. The taste reminds me a bit like a chocolate soda, it has this thin malty flavoring with a hint of nutty/hoppy bitterness at the end.

This really felt more like a porter than a brown ale, but I think that the bitterness at the end categorizes it as the brown ale over a porter/stout. Can't wait to try another brew from Big Boss.

Who: Cathy
Where: Home
Price: $$$
Score: 4 / 5

Happy Drinking!

Green Man Ales ESB

This was the growler we picked up in Asheville, NC. Cathy had tabbed Green Man Brewery as one we needed to try before we even made the trip. We picked this up at Brusin' Ales in downtown Asheville.

Green Man Ales ESB from the growler was very delicious. Pours out a dark amber / red and smells of toasty caramel and earthy hop tones. Was a pleasant medium bodied brew with a slight touch of sweetness and hop bitterness. It was very easy to drink and you could get 3 or 4 down with not problems.

The only issue I had was the $3 bottle deposit! I understand the concept and would be fine with it, except we live in Ohio. I am not able to get back to NC to recover the cost and we recycle everything anyways! That extra cost pushed the price of the growler to $14 (for 4 pints). Either way it was a good beer and hope to be able to try a few more from Green Man in the future.

Who: Emily
Where: Em and Bill's
Price: $$$$
Score: 4 / 5

Happy Drinking!

Cottonwood Endo IPA

From the Carolina Beer Company in Mooresville, NC.

Cottonwood Endo IPA was a pretty good American IPA. I really enjoyed this beer and wish I could get it up here in Ohio. Poured a copper brown ale and smelled of caramel malt and hops. It was a nice blend of the hop and malt flavor, it was less hoppy or bitter than other IPA's, but not bad. Was a medium bodied beer and it could get easy to lose count on this one.

Who: Em
Where: Em and Bill's - Johnson City, TN
Price: Free
Score: 3 / 5

Happy Drinking!

Asheville Brewing Scottish Red

Beer #2 from Asheville Pizza and Brewing Co was the Scottish Red.

Deep amber/red color typical of Scottish Red beers. Smells of malt and toasty caramel. Head was nice and left pretty good lacing as the beer went down. Very smooth taste that was similar to the smell. Toasty caramel with sweet malt and a slightly bitter finish. Cathy really enjoyed this beer because it has both the sweet and bitter combination.

I wasn't overly impressed with the beer but it was a pretty good Scottish Ale. Glad we got to give it a try.

Who: Cathy
Where: Asheville Pizza and Brewing Co
Price: $$
Score: 3 / 5

Happy Drinking!

Asheville Brewing Shiva IPA

Cathy and I took a long weekend to visit friends in Johnson City, TN and on Friday we took a day trip to Asheville, NC for some shopping and a few beers.

The first stop was the Asheville Pizza and Brewing Company. While we didn't try the pizza, the beer selection was right on. The beer-tender suggested the Shiva IPA (pronounced She-Vah) and I listened.

Had from the draught it pours a cloudy yellow/orange color. Smells of citrus and floral hops. Tastes very much like the smell, a great combination of grapefruit and hops. Surprisingly smooth yet bitter. A very pleasing beer start to finish. The beer was very drinkable and I easily could have had 3-4 and not gotten tired of it. Sadly, we were on time constraints and had to move on. If I ever see this on tap I would have it again.

Who: Cathy
Where: Asheville Pizza and Brewing Co
Price: $$
Score: 4 / 5

Happy Drinking!