2017 Sierra Nevada Beer Camp Across the World

The 2017 Sierra Nevada Beer Camp Across the World mix pack was a must-have purchase for me. It's also the reason I'm a little behind on my blogging. I wanted to give each beer the proper attention it deserved. The last thing I wanted to do was quickly go through them all in a couple of days. So I took my time and gradually made it through the 12-pack. In the past, I have enjoyed going through the Beer Camp mix packs. I find the whole concept of a fantastic brewery collaborating with other fantastic breweries very exciting. Unfortunately each year, after all is said and done I usually find myself underwhelmed by most of the beers in the pack. Perhaps underwhelmed is the wrong word, a better way to put it is I find most of the collaborations forgettable. Of the mix packs from the past, I honestly can only remember a handful of the beers from them. That's not to say that the beers were bad, they just were nothing I would find myself buying a six pack of. When I saw the list of the 2017 Beer Camp collaborations, I immediately put my thoughts of the previous Beer Camp mix packs aside. Opening it up to breweries around the world is a tremendous idea. I just hoped it would yield some amazing results. This blog is not about reviewing each beer individually, but more about reviewing the pack as a whole. Is it worth the 25+ dollar price tag? Or is your money better spent elsewhere?

The truth is the Beer Camp Across the World is a mixed bag of great, pretty good and bad. We'll start things off with the bad. The worst beer in the pack is the collaboration with The Bruery. Raspberry Sundae may have sounded like a great idea on paper but it is bland and tastes more like soap than beer. Like many others I really enjoy beers from The Bruery, so this one was a huge disappointment. Another disappointment was the Dry-Hopped Berliner Weisse collaboration with Saint Arnold Brewing Company. With a massive cat urine aroma and a bland flavor profile it did not work for me at all. The only other one I really did not like is the Hoppy Belgian-Style Golden Ale collaboration with Duvel Moortgat but I would not put much stock in that. I am not a Duvel fan, so this one tasted pretty much how I expected it to, I just did not enjoy it.

Pretty good is the way I would describe the majority of the beers in the pack. As a one-off they worked for me, but I would hesitate to invest in a 4- or 6-pack of them. In this category I would put Boneyard Beer's West Coast IPA, Garage Project's Campout Porter, Mikkeller's Thai-Style Iced Tea Ale, Fuller's Atlantic Style Vintage Ale, Avery's Dry-Hopped Barleywine and Kiuchi White IPA. I wanted to love the Avery collaboration but found it a touch metallic. The Kiuchi White IPA was a beer I found myself enjoying more and more the further I got into the glass. Of any beers in this category I would want to try again, it would be that one.

The beer I wanted to love was the East Meets West IPA collaboration with Tree House Brewing Company. This was by far the one I was most excited about in the entire pack. I thought it was great, but not as great as it could and should have been.

The best beers in the pack are the Dunkle Weisse from Ayinger Brewery and the Ginger Lager from Surly Brewing Company. The Dunkle Weisse is not as flashy as other beers in the pack and that is what works for it. It's just a great dark wheat beer. I would love to see this get a wide release. The Ginger Lager was something I thought I would absolutely hate. The addition of cayenne pepper added a nice touch of spice and the oak added complexity. When the glass was empty I was legitimately sad at the thought that I might not be able to drink it again.

For me, the Dunkle Weisse and the Ginger Lager were two beers that will stick with me from this year's Beer Camp Across the World collection. For the most part, I enjoyed the beers in this years pack. Sure, a lot of them are better suited as one-offs, but the pack as a whole delivers more hits than misses. If this year's pack did anything, it left me looking forward to seeing what collaborations next year brings.

My overall rating for the entire Sierra Nevada's 2017 Beer Camp Across the World pack as a whole is 3.5/5.

More importantly, is Beer Camp Across the World worth the 25+ dollar price tag? For the most part, yes.

Rating Scale:
1. Repugnant and undrinkable
2. Acceptable but forgettable
3. Good, worth a purchase
4. Excellent, a step above the norm
5. Truly Exceptional. Drop everything, BUY IT NOW!

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Thanks for reading. Sláinte!

The Bruery Or Xata

Until last week I had absolutely no luck obtaining a bottle of The Bruery's Or Xata. It just became one of those beers I always seemed to miss. To be fair, I put practically zero effort into obtaining a bottle. I just figured at some point I would be beer shopping and stumble upon a bottle by chance. So for a while now I have browsed The Bruery's bottle section with no luck. Perhaps it's not fair to say no luck, the beers I have tried from them have been pretty great. However, the day finally arrived and I stumbled upon a bottle of Or Xata. After a few days of admiring it in the fridge, I was ready to crack it open and see if it was worth the wait.

Based on the Spanish/Latin American beverage Horchata(which is typically a spiced creamy rice and/or almond beverage), The Bruery's Or Xata pours gold with a white head. The aroma is absolutely wonderful with sweet breadiness, vanilla and cinnamon. Aside from the malt, the aroma left little evidence that this was beer. When I took my first sip, I realized that was exactly the case. The wonderful flavors of cream & vanilla start out bold before finishing with a beautiful hint of cinnamon. I do not want to understate how creamy the mouthfeel of this beer was. It was so creamy, I had to keep looking at the glass to verify it was beer. As I write this I am still not sure it was. Another great thing about Or Xata is how well balanced the vanilla and cinnamon are. Both are bold but they are bearable. The makers of some pumpkin & holiday beers should use this as an example on how to properly use cinnamon.

I may sound over the top in praising this beer. That's because I genuinely think it is that good. The only real drawback here is to me is this does not taste much like beer. It tastes like a fantastic dessert beverage, that I could get used to having after a meal. Another reason this does not remind of me of beer, is the 7.1% ABV is virtually undetectable. That makes this a dangerously easy to drink, deceptively strong adult beverage. It also makes this a beer I can't wait to stumble upon again.


Overall I would rate The Bruery's Or Xata a 4.25/5. It does not taste much like beer, but it is super delicious.


Rating Scale:
1 - Repugnant and undrinkable
2 - Acceptable but forgettable
3 - Good, worth a purchase
4 - Excellent, a step above the norm
5 - Truly exceptional　

To discuss this blog or all things beer follow me on Twitter & Untappd at@ACraftyLook

For more beer reviews go to: http://acraftylook.blogspot.com/

Thanks for reading. Sláinte!