Craft Beer NYC

Slamming in at 9.2% ABV, this imperial IPA is a serious beer.   The perfectly named, "Hardcore" IPA, from the guys at BrewDog brewery in Scotland, is another great example of how James and Martin continue to create intensely strong ales that inspire craft beer enthusiasts all over the world.  This one uses Maris Otter malts and a triple dose of North American hops (Centennial, Columbus, Simcoe, Amarillo, and Citra).    This serves as a TVMA rated older brother of the softer and weaker TV14 Punk IPA from their core selections. 9.2% ABV 10.0/10 Thundercat Hops https://www.brewdog.com/beer/amplified/hardcore-ipa

The origins of this dark beer go back to 1516, but it continues to be a top beer as a 2010 Asia Beer Award silver medal winner in the dark beer/dark wheat beer category.    Prince Luitpold of Bavaria currently serves as the CEO of König Ludwig GmbH & Co. KG Schlossbrauerei Kaltenberg, located in  Fürstenfeldbruck  in  Upper Bavaria .  The royal monarchy of Bavaria has always played an important role in establishing the tradition of beer as part of the Bavarian culture.  Prince Luitpold has stated that the Weissbier Dunkel brand is one of his favorites.  It is also the most popular dark beer in all of Germany.  Bavaria was an independent, mostly Catholic, state in Europe until 1918 when the Monarchy fell and it became part of Germany.   The current slogan  "Bier von königlicher Hoheit," or "Beer of royal highness,"    refers to the brewery's long heritage which can be traced back through the Kingdom of Bavaria. ...

Wolaver's Organic Ales are top performers in almost every category, including their IPA.  Coming from an overall sustainable and environmentally friendly mindset, the brewers of Wolaver's are a perfect fit for Middlebury, Vermont.  The portfolio has a consistent and well designed branding for the label design and artwork on the six-packs.  The IPA is a solid entry, with a fresh crisp flavor and tasting notes of spicy American hops balanced with sweeter Munich and caramel varieties.  This sits in the lower range of ABV for American IPA's so this can be enjoyed all year round in mass quantities.   If you're looking for an organic and certified Non-GMO product you have found your perfect beer!   "Better Beer Better World" as they say on every bottle! 6.5% ABV 8.5.10 Non GMO Hops Meet your brewers! http://wolaversorganic.com/about-us/our-team

This brand new spring seasonal from the creative minds of Flying Dog, actually took 3+ years of development to fine tune the recipe.  Using Czech Saaz hops and German yeast, they add in cherries and top secret fruit flavors to create a sweet and tart concoction that pairs well with dessert and light fare.   Traditional this could be served as a dessert beer, but it feels similar to a Belgian fruit beer like Kasteel Rouge.  This is a limited release so if you see some, go ahead and grab it before it rotates off the shelves at your favorite market.  For NYC customers, Whole Foods is carrying this one in addition to always keeping the core year round selections of Flying Dog in stock.  In the words of Hunter S. Thompson "Good People Drink Good Beer" 4.7% ABV 7.5/10 Warrant Cherry Pie's http://flyingdogbrewery.com/?beers=supertramp-tart-cherry-ale Martha Stewart Cherry Ice Recipe http://www.marthastewart.com/354075/cherry-ice

This new entry in the Sierra Nevada portfolio bring a new step in hop experimenting in American craft beer.   This is the first IPA or any beer to use fresh farm distilled hop oil extracted from steaming fresh wet hops straight off the field.  They combine traditional whole cone hops in the boil kettle to create a truly hopified experience and an exceptional IPA.   Slightly less ABV than the Hop Hunter's cousin the Torpedo, the bitter tasting notes are balanced with the Two-Row Pale, Caramel, and Flaked Oats malted barley.  The finishing hops in the kettle are Cascade, Simcoe, and Crystal.  Hop Hunter embodies the adventuresome spirit of our modern day craft beer revolution. 6.2% ABV 8.5/10 Fred Dryer's http://www.sierranevada.com/beer/year-round/hop-hunter-ipa

The brewmasters at Shipyard just celebrated their 20th Anniversary up in Portland, Maine.  Fred Forsley and Alan Pugsley now distribute their craft beer in all 50 states and have achieved the ranking of the 14th largest craft brewery in the country.   The American Black IPA is starting to be one of my new favorites and has had a recent surge in popularity.   The Shipyard version is a fall and winter seasonal that was started in 2013.  They combine the crispy pine notes of American northwest hops (Nugget, Simcoe, Chinook, and Citra) with a rich full bodied malty dark ale.  They use 2-Row British Pale Ale, Munich, Brown, Whole Wheat, Black Prinz, and Chocolate for the malt character and the fermentation is done with a Top-Fermenting English yeast.  The result is a dark black full bodied beer that will please IPA and Stout fans worldwide! 6.2% ABV 8.5/10 Blackbeard's Treasure https://shipyard.com/content/black-ipa

This coffee and IPA hybrid was brewed specifically for Whole Foods markets.   Positioned as a fall/Winter seasonal or limited edition this one was a unique collaboration that performs above average.   Usually coffee infused beers are saved for stouts or porters, so it was interesting to hear that this one is a cold-brewed Stumptown coffee infused IPA.   Bringing the fair-trade magic of the pacific northwest, Stumptown Coffee Roasters brings tradition of innovation combined with the creative minds of Captain Lawrence in a perfect way to create a new American tradition for the sleep deprived creative minds. No Sleep till Westchester!  There was still ample supplies left at the Whole Foods on the Upper West Side, but supplies will be dwindling soon as they rotate into spring and summer seasonal ales. 6.5% ABV 8.0/10 Westchester Coffee Bean's http://blogs.villagevoice.com/forkintheroad/2014/10/set_your_clocks_straight_with_hopsomniac_ipa.php

Germany takes pride in their brewing heritage and their cultural impact on brewers throughout the world. In 1516, they legislated this cultural connection to their brewing to enforce that regional varieties such as Früh Kölsch were preserved from imitators and copy cats, similar to modern day patents and copyright protection laws. Kölsch is only brewed in or around Cologne in the Rhineland region of Germany, which holds the rights to the official name "Kölsch". This brings "local" production to a whole new meaning that the rest of the world can learn from.  Cologne is also home to the German tradition of Karnival, a slight variation on Mardi Gras.  Kölsch is a top fermented light hoppy beer, that has tasting notes similar to mild lagers or pilsners. This very drinkable creation with a dry hop finish and a medium golden color, offers refreshing year round session quality that can stack up against any American imitators. 4.8% ABV 7.0/10 Cologne's  htt...