Founders Más Agave

Lately I have been all about the lighter, more refreshing beers that are best enjoyed with warm weather. That is clearly reflected in my previous blog on Naturday. For the past week or so, I have been drinking that and Genesee’s Ruby Red Kolsch. Both of those beers are refreshing and great values, and as much as I want to continue to look at lighter beers that compliment the warm weather, I can’t pass up an opportunity to blog about the latest offering in Founders Barrel Aged Series.

If you have been reading my blog for awhile now, you know I am a big fan of the Barrel Aged Series. My favorite part about it is how creative Founders gets with each new release. While I have liked some more than others, I really enjoy a brewery that continues to take chances, especially one on the scale of Founders. 

With the classics(CBS, Backwoods Bastard, KBS) taking up the last few months of releases, Founders’ Barrel Aged Series returns with an extremely fun & creative take on a beer version of a margarita. Más Agave is an imperial lime gose, brewed with agave and aged in tequila barrels. From the moment this beer was announced, I started counting the days until I could get my hands on some.

It’s fair to say I had high hopes for Más Agave and I was not disappointed. The aroma teased that Founders was successful with their take on a beer margarita. Lots of zesty lime on the nose, with agave sweetness and salt, with a touch of tequila & vanilla and spice. On the palate, Más Agave is a touch syrupy. Tart lime and sweet agave dominate the flavor. The barrel comes through as well, adding a touch of oak, tequila and vanilla. The flavors are strong here and leave little subtlety. The finish adds the perfect amount of salt, which brings a touch of balance to the sweetness and really makes this margarita-style beer work.

With a 10% ABV, the latest entry in the Founders Barrel Aged Series is deceptively easy to drink. I personally am a huge fan of it. I plan on making this the first of many 4-packs in my refrigerator throughout the summer. I also think this is the strongest entry(aside from the classics) in the barrel aged series in quite some time. Founders has crafted a fun, fantastic beer here and I highly recommend you pick it up.


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Thanks for reading. Sláinte!

Natural Light Naturdays

When I first read about Natural Light Naturdays I thought it was a joke. I took it about as seriously as a snail flavored beer announcement of April Fool’s Day. Then when I found out it actually was a real beer, I instantly dismissed it. I knew I would try it at some point, but I thought for sure my low expectations would not be met and I would end up dumping the remainder of it down the drain.

When Naturdays started getting distribution to Western NY, I found myself  in no rush to buy it. However, I was stunned by how quickly it was flying off of shelves. Then, in an even more surprising turn of events I started hearing positive things from fellow beer enthusiasts. I was still skeptical but I decided to accelerate my time table for trying it and purchased a 30-rack. I justified that purchase because it was extremely inexpensive and  I was having a get together over the weekend. I thought most people there out of curiosity alone would give it a try. Later that night, I opened a can and got the biggest surprise of all.

After I took my first sip of Naturdays, I found myself staring at the can, stunned. I took another sip, then another, and before I knew it the can was empty and I was reaching for another. I could not believe how smooth, refreshing and easy to drink Naturdays was. It beautifully blends together strawberry lemonade and a light lager. Both are present and neither dominates the flavor. It is not overbearingly sweet either, and I was thrilled about that. The finish is crisp and clean, and that concluded a shockingly good drinking experience.

There is no need to dive deeper into more subtle notes of Naturday. I do not believe one spends less than 20 dollars on 30 beers to do that. I will just say that Naturday is a really fun, refreshing, crowd-pleasing summer beer. One that goes very fast at a party and one that I can’t believe will be taking up real estate in my refrigerator all summer long.


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Look for me on Instagram & Untappd and Twitter @ACraftyLook

For more beer reviews check out: http://www.acraftylook.com

Thanks for reading. Sláinte!

Dogfish Head Super Eight Super Gose

From the moment that Dogfish Head & Eastman Kodak's collaboration beer SuperEIGHT Super Gose was announced, it was only a matter of time until I blogged about it. I am a fan of Dogfish Head's beer and I am the son & nephew of long time makers of Kodak film products. For that reason alone, I could not pass up an opportunity to try this beer as soon as distribution hit Western NY. 

What makes SuperEIGHT fun is that it is a 2-for-1 beer. It is a light, fruited session gose and it also develops Kodak's Super-8 film. It pulls this off by having a low pH which means that SuperEIGHT is going to be a touch acidic but that should work perfectly for the style.

As the can says, SuperEIGHT pours a vibrant red. Besides the beautiful color, the lemon, lactic sour aroma was the first thing I noticed as I poured the beer. The aroma is also very fruity, grainy, and a touch floral with the berries and prickly pear really shining. The pear added a really nice note of watermelon and that is the first thing I noticed and loved about my first sip. Raspberry and watermelon really come through in the flavor before a touch of malt and grain. The finish is very tart, with a touch of salt, bubble gum, green apple and lemon rind. The lemon rind lingers on the palate long after the beer is gone and to be honest is not ideal. Also, I can't say all SuperEIGHT ingredients are noticeable. The mango in particular seems MIA which is disappointing but there is still a lot going on here and this beer is a lot of fun. 

SuperEIGHT is one of those beers where Dogfish Head's unrelenting creativity pulls off something really cool. Sometimes, their use of adjuncts goes a touch a overboard and while this beer is no different, I found myself really enjoying it. With summer just around the corner, SuperEIGHT would serve as a wonderfully refreshing beer to both make and develop summer memories. I highly recommend picking it up.

To discuss this blog or all things beer like my Facebook page

Look for me on Instagram & Untappd and Twitter @ACraftyLook

For more beer reviews check out: http://www.acraftylook.com

Thanks for reading. Sláinte!