CHERRY HILL, NJ – Flying Fish Brewing Company (1940 Olney Avenue, 856-489-0061), is excited to announce the debut of their new Exit 16 Wild Rice Double IPA, the latest entry in their “Exit Series” of big-bottle beers honoring their home state of New Jersey. Exit 16 bottles will be available by mid-March and will also on be on draft in limited quantities throughout the region. Read the rest of this entry ?
Direct from Flying Dog comes word of Raging Bitch hitting shelves in January of 2010. Brewed to celebrate Flying Dog’s twentieth anniversary, Raging Bitch is “…an American IPA fermented with Belgian yeast” and “is beautifully balanced between the Belgian fruity and citrus hop characteristics at the relatively high alcohol at 8.3% ABV.”
Aside from celebrating with the release of this Belgian-style IPA, Flying Dog will also be “… hosting a 20th Anniversary party at the Brewery and events in major markets across the country throughout 2010.”
Below is the press release in it’s entirety. You can visit Flying Dog on the Web at http://www.flyingdogales.com or on twitter at http://www.twitter.com/flyingdog.
FLYING DOG BREWERY RELEASES RAGING BITCH, A BELGIAN-STYLE IPA TO CELEBRATE ITS 20TH ANNIVERSARY
RAGING BITCH WILL BE AVAILBLE IN JANUARY 2010
FREDERICK, MD, December 10th—Flying Dog Brewery proudly announces the launch of RAGING BITCH, a Belgian-style IPA, to celebrate its 20th Anniversary in 2010. Raging Bitch, both the beer and the art that graces its label, prove that even after 20 years Flying Dog is as edgy and provocative as ever.
The cutting edge art on the Raging Bitch label is yet another contribution from Ralph Steadman, who has created original art for all of Flying Dog’s beers. “The Raging Bitch label is my personal favorite”, said Stephanie Kerchner, Director of Marketing for Flying Dog. “This package reflects everything that Flying Dog stands for and the women of Flying Dog absolutely love it”, she added.
The beer itself, an American IPA fermented with Belgian yeast, is beautifully balanced between the Belgian fruity and citrus hop characteristics at the relatively high alcohol at 8.3% ABV. Raging Bitch comes on the heels of Flying Dog being honored as Mid Sized Brewing Company of the Year at this year’s Great American Beer Festival Flying Dog and after winning a string of medals and honors across Europe and Asia. “This has truly been a milestone year for Flying Dog. It is very exciting to be celebrating our 20th Anniversary and Brewery of the Year going into 2010 with Raging Bitch,” said Kerchner.
The decision to celebrate its 20th Anniversary with the Belgian IPA became apparent after multiple successful batches and great consumer, distributor and retailer feedback. “Raging Bitch represents what is fun about the recipe creation process and what goes into creating high-quality craft beer. The brewers of Flying Dog are very excited to have a beer like this to celebrate our 20th anniversary,” says Matt Brophy, Sr. VP of Brewing Operations.
Flying Dog will be hosting a 20th Anniversary party at the Brewery and events in major markets across the country throughout 2010. “Details are still in the process of being finalized but I can assure you the events will all be true Flying Dog celebrations full of Raging Bitch and Gonzo spirit,” says Kerchner.
Raging Bitch will begin shipping on December 8th and will be available in 6-packs and draft in January of 2010. Raging Bitch 750 ml limited edition hand-corked champagne bottles, which include a numbered poster are available for purchase at the Frederick, MD brewery on Saturdays during tours.
About Flying Dog
Flying Dog was founded in Aspen, CO in 1990, relocated to Frederick, MD in 2008, and is currently Maryland’s largest brewery. The Flying Dog Brewery is located at 4607 Wedgewood Blvd., in Frederick, MD and its world-class “litter of ales” is available in 48 states and 29 countries Flying Dog’s core values of “purposeful, provocative and irreverence” flow through the veins of the brewery’s founding owners George Stranahan and Richard McIntyre. George and Richard were good friends with the “Gonzo Journalist” Hunter S. Thompson, who coined the brand’s tagline “Good People Drink Good Beer,” and also with the “Gonzo Artist” Ralph Steadman, who illustrates the brand’s packaging. For more information please visit http://www.flyingdogales.com.
Contact:
Stephanie Kerchner
2401 Blake St., Denver, CO 80205
303.250.1888
Today I interviewed for and received a $1,000 scholarship for the 2009-2010 school year, so in celebration I decided to finally try Dogfish Head’s 60-Minute IPA (the continually hopped India Pale Ale). Dogfish Head is a Delaware brewery, and I have tried and reviewed their India Brown Ale before, but that was the only one of their beers I had tried, until now.
Here’s what they say on their Web site:
A session India Pale Ale brewed with Warrior, Amarillo & ‘Mystery Hop X.’ A powerful East Coast I.P.A. with a lot of citrusy hop character. The session beer for hardcore beer enthusiasts!
The Pour
This pours to a beautiful golden color, with a two and a half finger thick head that is almost completely white and very thick and pillowy. It seems to last a good while too, leaving an average amount of lacing on the glass. The beer is somewhat cloudy held up to sunlight. It looks like Spring or Summer in a glass. I am very eager to try this beer!
The Nose
First reaction on experiencing the bouquet: wonderful! There are definitely lemon and orange notes in the nose. There is also a nice hoppy touch to it, but with a slight sweetness. It kind of gives you the thought of biscuits or crackers with honey. That’s the kind of crisp buttery nose you pick up.
The Taste
My mouth watering in anticipation of the citrus and hops sure to come, I took my first sip….it was not what I was expecting at all. With each style of beer, one expects certain flavors or experiences. With a good stout, I expect dark malty goodness and likely coffee or chocolate flavors. With a good nut brown ale I expect some nuttiness and a good balance between malt and hops. With an IPA, I expect some great mouth puckering to occur. That’s not what I got. This beer is sweeter than I expected. There is honey present in the taste, and it’s medium-light bodied and crisp yet smooth. As it warms slightly, the hops flavor comes out a little more, but it never develops into a lovely mouth puckering dry bitterness. This beer has a pretty round mouthfeel. The finish is not exactly clean, more like a sweet afterfeel, if that makes sense. I also picked up hints of banana on the finish.
Then, the second bottle (and subsequent bottles) gave me much more hops. All the flavor profiles were there but hoppier and mouth puckering, in a good way.
Overall
Overall this is a tasty beer. The hops came through on subsequent bottles and really made this an enjoyable beer. A very good IPA, though perhaps a little lighter on hops than expected.
Recommended: Yes, this is a well-crafted IPA with very good flavor profiles. Enjoy in good health!
Price: $10.79 / 6-pack
ABV: 6.0%
I don’t review higher alcohol beers very often. I suppose it’s because here in Tennessee, you can’t sell liquor (and high-alcohol beer) in the same store as regular beer, and the selection of higher alcohol beers is usually not a vast one. So I end up buying regular beer up to 6% ABV or so.
This time I really wanted to do a beer review of something pretty hoppy and higher alcohol, so I got Pyramid Brewery’s Thunderhead India Pale Ale. It’s just barely “higher alcohol” at 6.7%, but I haven’t had a Pyramid brew since I started this blog and wanted to check them out. Here is what was on the neckband:
Way back when, IPAs were loaded with hops to stand up to oceans, elephants, finicky colonists and spicy curries. Likewise, our India Pale Ale is a powerful beer for bold tastes.
So on to the tasting….
The Pour
I poured as I walked from the counter to the dining table. When I set it down in front of me, about two feet away, to examine it’s color, clarity, etc., I could already smell the hops in it. This pours to a nice coppery caramel color. It had a decently thick head with slight lacing on the glass, mostly as you drink it. It looked like it might have medium carbonation but was quite clear and looked light bodied.
The Nose
As I said, I smelled it before I even intended to. I usually focus on the visual appeal of a beer first and don’t even try to smell or taste it before I can describe it’s color and predetermine what sort of body it might have. This had a great flowery and spicy hop aroma. But it was also bready and crisp with some caramel notes. It’s a nice buildup to the taste.
The Taste
This hits your palate with smooth caramel flavors and slight maltiness. But just as you notice these flavors they are gone. You get a nice burst of pleasantly bitter hops that rush through your mouth with a crisp, clean feel and flavor. The hops wipe out the caramel and malt notes you initially find, and it almost seems like it’s cleansing your palate for the next sip. The hoppy bitterness hides a subtle sour citrus in the background. The slightly higher alcohol content is barely noticed on the finish.
I thought this was an excellently hoppy beer. The hops cleanse your palate and make you want to experience the brief caramel and malt again and again. It’s supremely drinkable and a great summer choice. If you like hoppy beers, this is a great one for delivering on the hops without overpuckering your mouth.
Recommended: Absolutely! This takes a pretty common type of brew, the IPA, and makes it stand out among its peers.
Price: $1.99 for a 12-oz bottle
ABV: 6.7%
Coming Soon: A review of the brews created by the 2007 Samuel Adams® American Homebrew Contest® National Champions! They are Rodney Kibzey’s Weizenbock and Sam Adams employee Lili Hess’ Grape Pale Ale. Now apparently the grape pale ale has hints of green grape, which when you think about it sounds pretty good. As long as it’s not like drinking grape jelly, I’m ok. Look for these reviews soon
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