Anyhoo, I'm typing now so I may as well continue. When we arrived in Pittburgh PA, my brother had a fridge full of beer. Lots of Miller Lite (more of this anon) and quite a few of these Dogfish head 60 minute IPAs, nice. When we got to the Outer Banks NC, it was mostly lite beer, unf. I drank quite a few lite beers over there and most were awful; Coors Lite, Michelob Ultra, Busch Lite (ugh!). The Miller Lite was OK, surprisingly. Not great, but out of can, cold, when thirsty, it's not bad. Not chock full of flavourm but it's an imperial IPA compared to the watery muck above
I also drank a lot of Sam Adams Summer Ale - it was the best thing on draught in the local (Karoake) bar. I will take the video of me drunkenly murdering "Friends in low places" to my grave. Oh and Jameson! Lots of Jameson, everywhere we went they had these glasses (below), into which they would pour massive amounts of raw spirit.
Anyway, after weeks of cheap watery beer I needed some decent stuff so I popped into Molloy's on the Ballyogan road and grabbed a whole bunch of new (to me) beers. I'll be reviewing them over the next while so do check back...
Thornbridge Halcyon Imperial IPA 7.4% abv 50cl €5.69 link
Very expensive and strong but didn't work for me. Plenty of hops but zero malt or balance.
Buxton Axe Edge India Pale Ale 6.8% abv 33cl €3.79 link
Cloudy with a thick creamy head. Very well balanced, full flavour. citurs fruits verging onto the tropical
James Squire One Fifty Lashes Pale Ale 4.2% abv 34.5cl €2.79 link
No flavour whatsoever. Down the sink
Eviltwin Brewing Yang 10% abv 35.5cl €4.75 link
Haven't had this yet but found the Yin and it's a stout, who'd a thunk it? Supposed to mix both for a Black and Tan.
Tuatara Aoteoroa Pale Ale 5.8% abv 33cl €3.29 link
Yummy. American Pale Ale style and classic example of same. Will buy more.
Bath Ales Wild Hare Organic Pale Ale 5.0% abv 50cl €3.49 link
Pale gold, very white head, Crisp and clean - good summer drink.
Kinnegar Otway European Pale Ale 4.2% abv 50cl €3.79 link
Good bitterness but not a lot of malt. A bit unbalanced. Maybe expected too much at this abv but not great balance
Trouble Brewing Agent Provocateur 6.2% abv 50cl €3.99 link (seasonal)
It's gone from the beer fridge but I don't remember drinking it. Am I an alcoholic? Probably.
Also, for no good reason here are some capsule reviews on beers from earlier this year that I never posted:
Rogue Brutal IPA 66cl 5.8% abv €7.79 link
Underwhelming. Not bad but for nearly eight notes I'd expect to have my socks (or something else) blown (off). Perfectly drinkable but not patch on their Yellow Snow IPA.
Independent Pale Ale 50cl 6.0% abv €3.99 link
Liked this a lot, cloudy amber in the glass, lots of tasty citrussy hops at the back of the palate and a long lingering finish
Kenmare Irish Pale Ale 50cl 5.0% abv €3.70 link
Disappointing - not a huge amount of flavour.
