Become a Creator today!Start creating today - Share your story with the world!
Start for free
00:00:00
00:00:01
Episode 173 - The Malteez 2025
46 Plays5 days ago
It's The Malteez 2025. This week we discuss our favorite beers from 2025.
Thank you everyone for your continued support and we look forward to bringing you more beer fun in 2026. Cheers!
Check out all our episodes at www.themaltinghour.com
Recommended
Transcript
Introduction to Malting Hour Hosts
00:00:15
Speaker
Welcome to the Malting Hour. i am one of your hosts, Tony Golick, joined always with... Brandon Winninger. And to his right, my left... Matthew... Okay, we gotta really hone in what that intro's gonna be for you. It can't be all willy-nilly, it's always gotta be on point. How do you introduce yourself?
00:00:35
Speaker
Matthew. I would say to Matthew Moldenhour every single time. You should. You need to start doing that.
New Year Plans and AI Jokes
00:00:41
Speaker
a new year, new you, new show. i think we're NPM. Oh, my God.
00:00:46
Speaker
I say we just, we've got enough recordings of his name on there. He's not allowed to talk in the intro, and we'll just, and to the left and right. Matthew Molden. We'll have AI do it. was going to say, we're going to have AI do your last name.
00:01:00
Speaker
I'll have Benjamin do your intro.
00:01:04
Speaker
Yoga man. It's actually a really good idea. Well, everybody, here we are. It is January, 2026. And unlike any other year in the past, we're doing the Maltese for the first episode of the year. Because, you know, the holidays came and went. We just didn't have time. So we're doing it now.
00:01:22
Speaker
It's the Maltese 2025. Do we have a song? We
Reflecting on Past Episodes
00:01:27
Speaker
don't, right? No, I usually use some type of generic fanfare. Woo! No, fanfare music, not fanfare that.
00:01:36
Speaker
Do you listen to the show? used to. See what happens when we start being on the show? I used to. No. I didn't listen to our last episode. The Krampus one's always fun. Yeah, it turned out pretty good.
00:01:47
Speaker
It wasn't as loud, which i was very happy about. it Thank God. Yeah. Because I think the first one was the absolute worst. I feel like every time I tell Becca that episode's happening, she's just like, okay. Okay. Will you guys not be that loud? I'm like, I will make sure Tim sits next to me and I'll try to keep him quiet.
00:02:07
Speaker
Because
Reminiscing with Guest Trevor
00:02:08
Speaker
he's always the loudest. It was, ah it it reminded me of the very first episode we did, at least the first half that we did at Old Irving, where Trevor spoke most of the time. Yeah. talking about Which is great. I mean, that's that's you know that's why we do the show, for the most part. And Trevor has always been, no offense, a great guest because of that. like He tells great stories, there's a lot behind it, and you know learning about what happens to bring all those ah variants to life is is really interesting stuff yeah so do you remember what's that pop quiz hot shot no i don't remember shit dude don't even remember what did yesterday how long does he toast the coconut
00:02:52
Speaker
long time Two weeks. Does not. Four hours. See? And I just bring the table knocking things off the rail. Yeah. This is way more fun. This is why I'm not sure if you're going around this year. Two weeks.
00:03:07
Speaker
You'll be around, don't worry.
00:03:10
Speaker
Anyways, so yeah.
Favorite Beers of the Year
00:03:11
Speaker
This is ah usually our end of the year show where we talk about some of the favorite beers that we've had. There's no real rhyme or reason. I tend to be... The only one who really has a top five. i actually have ten beers. Oh, jeez. Well, I have ten beers that I thought were really good. I went through my my top five. Oh, nice. um You're my top five. Almost 100% that any beer that I mentioned in 2025 could be malty is not on my list because that's just what I do.
00:03:44
Speaker
I just... I got to remember. I i was telling Virginia that today. I was like, yeah, there's a lot of episodes. I'm like, ooh, this might be a contender for the Maltese. And I usually never remember what it is.
00:03:54
Speaker
I was like, Brandon, do you go through all the podcasts and pick out all the ones Tony said? no usually like and I only have one record of him saying that from April of this year of something that might be a Maltese. Yeah, I don't think that's on the list. I'm pretty sure he talked about Doji being a Maltese, Beezer Maltese, Chicago somehow became a Maltese, even though it's not an alcoholic, cordial, like Della. Man, you got you just suggested all these old Irving beers. crazy. There's no old Irving beers on this list at all.
00:04:28
Speaker
That's a lie. i purposely avoided Old Irving. I tried to, and then the one that ended up on the list made the most sense of why it's on there. I'm sure you guys can figure it out. But anyway.
00:04:40
Speaker
Brandon, we're doing dry January. You're doing dry January. What are you drinking right now? Currently, I'm drinking Chicago. Ah, the old Irving Brewing hopped water.
00:04:52
Speaker
Chicago berry. Not honestly. Yeah, so that's the one that's a little bit berry flavored. I
Dry January and Non-Alcoholic Beverages
00:04:59
Speaker
think we're going to be working on lime version soon. It's got zero calories.
00:05:07
Speaker
No calories at all. it Zero everything. It's just water. No, do you remember that there's a Saturday Night Live skit?
00:05:18
Speaker
And they're like they're talking about food and they're like... Zagats? what what Yeah, what there it's like, this, it's like there's it's not fat. That means there's no fat in it. I don't remember that was a Farley episode or whatever. like Sounds like it's a Farley thing. There's fat!
00:05:34
Speaker
Oh, it is, because he was playing he was playing Cher, I think. they had it It was an episode where therere like it was kind of like The View or something like that. I mean, before The View. But it was bunch of women talking about it, and ah Christina Applegate was in the up episode, and he came out dressed like a woman, and he's like, I actually don't know. Fucking great.
00:05:54
Speaker
I miss that guy. Oh, I do too. All right. yes So, Drink of Chicago, hopped with... ah perhaps citric acid oh no there's acid it's hopped with acid bro so yeah he uses euphorics we get it from Yakima he uses forks what the fuck can I do this you stab it a bunch smart smart no they do a concentrated hop oil that just tries to derive the most fruity tropical notes out hops as possible it is very tasty at least the one that I had I didn't know there was different ones So that one is the same as berry. We just decided to put berry on the new label.
00:06:35
Speaker
Then I've had it. Yes. I'm less impressed. The new label is way cooler. If you guys do a citrus one, I'm very excited about that. That'd be good. I think like citrus hop water is fantastic.
00:06:48
Speaker
Because, you know, citrus and hops. I do it at home. I put a little bit of lime in my bubbly water. Oh, nice. that's good You also put the lime in the coconut. yes have you guys ever done that before?
00:07:01
Speaker
Yeah, you drink the bull dough.
Beer Can Sizes and Quick Drinking
00:07:05
Speaker
Where does that come from? I mean, know the song, obviously, but like, how did that become? I feel like that had to be a reference to some kind of tropical drink served somewhere.
00:07:14
Speaker
We should do that on an episode. Put limes and coconuts? Yeah, just see what happens. And drink the bull up. And that's how the episode ends. And then can we also add some rum? Yeah, sure. I'll see.
00:07:26
Speaker
Matthew, what are you drinking right now? water nice I'm doing the dry, wet January. doing the wet January. i have to have a non-alcoholic beverage in between my alcoholic beverages. and Smart.
00:07:40
Speaker
Nice. I'm seeing how fast I can drink this water. He gets wet, then wetter. Wait, so you have to drink the entire... Yeah. Wow, you're going to pee. the samples don't count, but that Della went down.
00:07:53
Speaker
The Della went down real quick. The Della went down to Georgia. I'm almost done with this one. You know, it's the problem with 12-ounce cans. Mm. I like building 12-ounce cans. They just dis disappear. Yeah, blame it on the can size.
00:08:06
Speaker
Yeah, blame it on the can size. Yeah, I
NFL Playoffs and Team Jokes
00:08:10
Speaker
will. Yeah, so I'm not i'm not doing dry January, but i'm other than tonight, which is happens to be a weeknight, I am not drinking beer during the week, which is also preventing me from wanting to... It's kind of it's funny, it's like forcing me to do kind of a dry January because and don't necessarily want to be like, oh I'll drink some seltzers or I'm just going to drink bourbon.
00:08:31
Speaker
I might have a drink towards the end of the night, but there's never a night where i'm like, I'm drinking straight bourbon or I'm drinking all these seltzers all night. so Well, Saturday night's going to happen with the Packers. Well, Saturday night will be shit-faced.
00:08:43
Speaker
By the time this episode's out, we know that the Bears have already moved on to the next round. So, go Bears. In 2027.
00:08:51
Speaker
Anyways. They had a great season. i can't fucking deny it. Well, the good news is is that if we get knocked out the first ah round, you guys will for sure get knocked out by San Francisco because as much as Aaron Rodgers says that he owns the Bears, the 49ers for sure own Green Bay Packers. They do. I also just noticed today that Packers have 15 players on injured reserve. Yeah. You guys are gonna be sitting on the couch. no matter what so sorry there I'm actually surprised we made the playoffs. Yeah, so is everybody else.
00:09:20
Speaker
So is everybody else. Except your fan base. Well, because we're just used to winning. but Winning to
2025 Favorite Beers Segment
00:09:29
Speaker
a certain degree and then choking in the playoffs.
00:09:33
Speaker
Choked less than the Bears. No, we just don't make the playoffs. Anyways, let's move on. Let's talk about some of our favorite beers of 2025.
00:09:41
Speaker
I have 10, but I'm going to do the five and I'll do like honorable mentions when we get to the second half of the episode. ah Brandon, do you have a list at all? Do just have random beers? Like you normally just have random Yeah, I do have random beers. Not ah not in any particular order.
00:09:56
Speaker
um I do have like my top two. Okay. well well How many do you have? Do you have five you can go with? I do have five. And I've got a couple more on there that i was like wishy-washy about putting them on the list.
00:10:10
Speaker
But one one that's actually on the bottom of my list. um which Which is a top. yeah It's part of the top. Bottom of the top. Okay, take it easy. What the fuck is going on here, guys? Come on! A beer that I had at the beginning um at the beginning of the year had it in march um it was a 2024 beer that we had it was a nuclearus barley wine oh that's right forgot about that one and i enjoyed that one very much how did we come to have that know me it's quite possible in april yeah i was up in ah kenosha for it was in march when i had it oh so
00:10:54
Speaker
I don't know if it was one that you had laying around or I had laying around or... Yeah, maybe. I may have had it. had it Oh, I think I did probably have it. I think that was my last can of it because I did... Did I bring... so Yeah, you went. Yeah, we split it. I gave you two and I had two.
00:11:08
Speaker
Yep, yep, yep, yep. Yep, had it then and it was drinking fantastically. I forgot all about that. You know, and I i tried to... i Actually, I'm going to... I'm not... I'm lying, I didn't try. What I should have done, because I usually just go through Untapped
Pickle Beer Discussion
00:11:22
Speaker
and then i realize, oh, I don't always check in all the episode beers. um yeah And i just went through Untapped and looked at my highest ranked beers.
00:11:33
Speaker
And there are some beers on my list that maybe I ranked higher. Then the other one, like as far as like my top five, like maybe I ranked my number five higher than my number three. It just happened to be like, oh, this one stood out to me more.
00:11:49
Speaker
Yeah. I mean, that's kind of what I do. and i i look at the ratings, but then I also, like if it's a beer that i went like I know I went back to a couple of times, you know like not in the same night, like, oh, like I had that again you know a month later or something like that, then I'd be like, all right.
00:12:07
Speaker
That one is possibly up there. Because if I get, like, my threshold is like 375 and up if I'm looking at untapped. Mine was 3.5. No. Oh, yeah.
00:12:20
Speaker
What's going on over there? What are you doing? I was trying to remember. i was like, right a no well, one, and I couldn't because I don't use untapped. Do your diary. Uh, was. You're going to lose your name to me on the show today. had the thought earlier, and I didn't go back to listen to the episode. I was like, one that would have probably made my list is one of the revolution barley wines that we had. Hmm.
00:12:44
Speaker
And I couldn't remember which one that I loved. I do have... and i was like, well... think no I don't know if that's a better to look it up But I do have a Revolution beer in my honorable mentions.
00:12:57
Speaker
What do you have for your number five, Matthew? ah Well, so I have like a top three and then like two honorable mentions. Also, shout out. New Glarus made the list this year. Way to go. Woo-hoo. I didn't put Nucle X on my list this year just because it would have been pretty much one of the sours, and I know I did it last year. i was like, yeah, i still love that beer. That's okay. That's okay, man.
00:13:17
Speaker
Whatever you like the most this year. That's the joy of the Maltese. So, one of my own mentions from Beloit
Non-Alcoholic IPA Tasting
00:13:24
Speaker
is G5. I had it at Fobab.
00:13:27
Speaker
Smoke show on the state line. Hmm. ah It was kind of a cocktail-based one with tea, lemongrass, honey, and ginger. Jesus. It's like 5.5%. Okay. And it was just real easy drinking.
00:13:41
Speaker
Delicious. That's why I brought this one. Because this is another sour that's like 5.5%. I was pointing to a jelly pumpkin beer. Yep. Called La Bida. That I suggested we save to drink with Brandon when he's done not drinking. so you're just being a tease.
00:13:56
Speaker
You're being the tease. Thank you. What kind of what kind of beer was it? I mean, I said it's cocktail inspired. Like it's just a nail. It was a sour. Oh, okay. Sorry. Nice. I almost had a sour on here, but I didn't end up putting one on there.
00:14:10
Speaker
It's on my honorable mentions. My number five comes from Southpaw Brewing, which apparently is from New York, but they also have a Florida tap room, which I got to go to when I went down to Florida to see my mom.
00:14:26
Speaker
And we stopped in there. Their food was fantastic. And this is their Espresso Nutcase Porter. Which was really good. um It was also $9 for the pint.
00:14:38
Speaker
Which was a little crazy. It was also an old person community. like kind of in that area but um What's the ABV? That's a great question. i was like, if it's a 10% $9. No, it's not a it is
00:14:57
Speaker
It doesn't say. I don't know. It might be six or seven. that Don't do that. We're not doing that. cannot tune it I don't care if kids do it. That's great. but We're not doing it.
00:15:13
Speaker
We're adults. i' talk about it was yeah we all know what um does benjamin do that oh yeah ah He said the other day, he goes, hey, he's like, Dad, I think it was yesterday we were driving.
00:15:29
Speaker
Like, I took him around. we were We went to the mall and did stuff. And he was like, you know, is not that cool anymore. was like, yeah? was like, yeah. Now all the kids are doing 2-1. And I was like, they better not be. Who the fuck's 2-1? Yeah.
00:15:48
Speaker
The age that they can start drinking. This beer was really good. It was very roasty and you could definitely taste the the coffee in there. it was It was great. And it was a hot summer day in Florida and we were sitting in air conditioning. i was like, why not? Why not have an espresso porter?
00:16:03
Speaker
So it was was very good. I was very happy with that beer. So shout out to Southpaw Brewing. Yay. right. Woo. Look at us. Just moving along. Just knocking it out. Just knocking them out. Brandon, let's go with your next one. um So a couple in here, but one that I feel like deserves to be on the list that I surprisingly enjoyed was Donna's Pickle Beer.
00:16:28
Speaker
All right. Nice call. That was really good. That was really, really good. Yeah. That was a very fun beer that I didn't think I was going to enjoy. Yeah. remember listening to you guys talk about that one. and That was one where i was like, I don't want to try this beer. Really? do you not like pickles? I love pickles. i don't understand pickle beer. Really?
00:16:48
Speaker
So i like I like... And I've only had one, so I was like... and That's your problem right there. I like ah homemade pickles or like restaurants that make their own pickles or at least they're like fresh. I do not like...
00:17:00
Speaker
getting jar of pickles that it's green all the way through. I just don't like it. It's not, but just just don't like it. Speaking of pickles, Becca got me a jar of Gino's pickles from the Krampus market.
00:17:13
Speaker
I still some habanero ones. Yeah. didn't finish mine like not that long ago. And what I was doing with it too, was like, I literally like took all the pickles. I finished the pickles and then I chopped up more cucumber and just dropped it in there and let it sit in there. That's all nice.
00:17:29
Speaker
And then i got tired of chopping up cucumbers. And then I just started drinking. No, I took like, there was like chunks of garlic in there. And I took that out and I was just like, chopped it up. And I was like, putting the blue garlic. Yeah. i was like putting it on toast. I was like, this is amazing. The chemical reaction. I remember the first time i was doing pickling and there was garlic in there. i'm like, something's wrong. The garlic's turning blue. But that's a chemical reaction.
00:17:52
Speaker
It's fun. Yeah. Donuts pickle beer. It was really good. You should try it. You should try it. matthew Yeah. It's worth it. It is worth it. want to play hide the pickle? Oh, Jesus Christ. That's all, folks.
00:18:04
Speaker
Good night, everybody. That is how the Maltese ended. We got through four beers. Do you want to play hide Donna's pickle beer? Jesus Christ. Oh, yeah. What's the timing on that? That's why remember. You've got to remember. Matthew, let's go into your number four.
00:18:23
Speaker
My number four, and this will be my last one that I reference Fobab on, but it's a great place to try ton of awesome beers, is... Brandon, give me a time real quick so I remember.
00:18:34
Speaker
Oh, that's a good snap. Where time was? About 24 minutes. 24 minutes, which like 20 of those minutes was us talking beforehand. All right, sorry. ahead. Another Fobab beer.
00:18:47
Speaker
Another phobab. This guy. This guy's getting crazy. Zool. ah dot ah Das Cake from Zool out of Knoxville.
00:19:01
Speaker
Have you had them before? No, but we had a Zool beer from someone in California one point. Right, Braden? Yes. Well, so Zool's the brewery. Right, no, we had a beer that had the name Zool in it. The first one we had was at Great American Beer Fest. That was the one that literally tasted like liquid fudge. Oh, God.
00:19:20
Speaker
It's the only beer I went back for twice. they That's probably the same brewery. so they there It is the same brewery. Is it? Yeah. Zool. Oh, I thought that was the name of the beer. No, XUL is the name of the brewery. Ah. Oh, nice. They make some amazing beers. they They've been out here for some climbs with Microphone. They're the more beer fest.
00:19:40
Speaker
They do some really high super thick yeah crazy. that the The one that, before you yours, the one that we had, and I think we've talked about it numerous times, it literally was like having brownie batter without it being like, oh, I can't drink this. It was, we had the sample and I was like, I gotta to get back in line and have another one. Yeah. It was, oh no, you're right.
00:20:02
Speaker
So it it wasn't a Zool beer. um It was Modern Times that we had. Oh, yeah. And the beer was Fellowship of Zool. Yeah. Oh. Yeah, Modern Times. What happened? Sorry. um So yeah, this was the Barrel Age Das Cake. ah And so, but this was... German Chocolate Cake?
00:20:20
Speaker
Kind of. Yeah, so it's ah aged in Willett, Russell's, and Weller barrels. ah The barrels were earliest 19, oldest is 28 months, and it was coconut, vanilla, and cacao nibs. So, yes.
00:20:36
Speaker
Exactly. Hence the Das. The German. Yeah, but no pecans. And the chocolate. Yeah, that's pretty close, though. I know. Okay. But it was thick. That was a thick boy. Did you have pecans in your German chocolate cake? I will reference you to the last malting hour. Dude, don't fucking... I'm not going to go I want to say that... do you not listen to the episodes? No, I don't. So, the Das Cake was the first one we had.
00:21:01
Speaker
Was it? It's the first one I had. Oh, maybe you had a sip of yours. You possibly did. And I just remember it being like overly sweet. Like it was super sweet to the point where i was like.
00:21:12
Speaker
That was a rough day for us. I didn't enjoy it too much. That was, that was, that was, that was honestly Fobab this year. and This is not a knock at Fobab. It just happened to be the beers that I think we were grabbing or maybe the day for us.
00:21:23
Speaker
We were, ah everything just tasted really sweet yeah that day. And I think it may just been the ones that we were going for and I should have just expanded my horizons i do and tried different beers. I do have some on my list from that.
00:21:36
Speaker
so I don't, I'm interested to see what you have because I'm wondering if one of the ones I'm thinking of that I forgot about might be on that list. What's your next beer, Tony? Oh, thank you so much, Brandon, for asking. I appreciate that. Even though Matthew was looking at me and he could have said that. ah My next one. I just got lost in your eyes. Aw, thanks. ah The next beer is a local beer. Crazy, I know.
00:21:59
Speaker
It is Lake Effect Brewing's Amber Ale. Because, as everyone knows, I love Amber Ales and i was so excited When we went there and that was on tap and I got to try it and it hit everything that I wanted from an Amber ale. Clint and I have had conversations before about, you know, Amber ales are delicious, um but it's also like, is that a beer that you can always like package and sell? No. And he said once he finally had tap room, he would put an Amber ale on tap. So it was nice. Like, cause we went there the middle of the summer, I think.
00:22:38
Speaker
It was still nice out. yeah Yeah. And yeah, I was super excited to have it and it was delicious. And Amber Ale is underrated. this was This was close to being number three.
00:22:52
Speaker
Number three just edged it out just a ah little bit. But the Amber Ale is really good. And if you're in Chicago or if you're visiting Chicago, be sure to stop by at Lake Effect because... They've got good beers. Their pale ale almost and ended up on here as well. Ooh. Yeah. Would have been a good call. I've got to get back over there. I'm sorry, Clint.
00:23:11
Speaker
I'm sorry. Brandon, what beer did you just crack open that we're about to try? um I cracked open ah Pipeworks N.A. Ninja vs. Unicorn. It is a non-alcoholic double IPA.
00:23:25
Speaker
Yeah, i'm I'm really excited because just looking at the can, because they said contains less than 0.5, they probably did the reverse process of stripping the alcohol out of it. So they probably started with actual double versus Ninja versus Unicorn. Yeah. yeah I just finished my sample and I'd like to say this. It doesn't taste like fucking wort, which is what I have ah my biggest issue with a lot of NA beers, where it's just like,
00:23:55
Speaker
Brewing like before you ferment beers right before like it's yeah a lot of any a beers have that that tastes like a It's funny that it's a double IPA because it to me it It's it's hoppy, but it comes across like a really nice subtle pale ale Yeah, and I think that's the taking all the alcohol absolutely because I think that is like a starter does a double that's why you have the nose Yeah, and it's interesting that you talked about work because it kind of smells that way to me. Yeah The fuck that's the chair Sorry, that was the demon. He shit his pants.
00:24:28
Speaker
That was Zool. No, i it's the Demogorgon. um So, yeah, the the nose actually smells a lot like wort to me, but then you're right. It does have that kind of just like a really thin, easy drinking body. but i could I could drink a whole 16-ounce can of that and oh yeah be satisfied as a beer.
00:24:49
Speaker
Which I think only... Who is it that's here? in Oh, Gobering. Gobering was one of the other ones. And then Athletics Sour beers are the ones that I really like.
00:25:00
Speaker
Those are pretty nice. when i When I was grabbing this from Beer on the Wall... Shout out to Beer on the Wall again. um like i was I went up had shown him my ID and the guy there was a guy sitting at the bar and he asked the guy behind bar, he's like, have you tried this yet? And he's like, oh, actually, yeah, when they brought it in, we actually did a side-by-side with the red like oh nice the regular version.
00:25:23
Speaker
And he's like... Obviously, he's like, original, like, the alcoholic version wins, but he's like, we were impressed with, you know, how well done this was. And i have to agree. Like, I think it's a very well done beer. yeah It doesn't taste like a watered down.
00:25:41
Speaker
Yeah, it's, man, that's that's really good. I'll be buying more of this. Yeah. Did you buy a single can or did you buy a four? bought single cans. Okay, I'm curious how much a four-pack goes for. Probably close to the same amount. Yeah, the single can was $3.49 if you're on the list. Yeah, so it's probably the same. It's close to getting a regular four-pack of Ninja vs. Unicorn, which makes sense. Well, yeah, they're using the actual recipe and everything else.
00:26:05
Speaker
I mean, that's the thing. I know some people get upset. It's like, well, there's no alcohol in it. It's like, well, it's pretty much the same process. That yeah happens like... It's the same process plus more, plus you lose the volume. So like, if anything, it should actually be more expensive than what it takes to make them, especially if you do this method. I think I'm going to grab a can of that and have Virginia taste it and see what she thinks because she definitely leans more towards like the pale ales or like fruitier IPAs than are obviously like super bitter. And I think that she would enjoy that and it'd be nice to be like, oh, by the way, there's no alcohol in it. And then
00:26:42
Speaker
Idiot. no you Don't give this to me. No, tell her's and tell her it's like, oh, it's 8%. Give her a couple of them and see if she just starts acting loosey. She's like, whoo. She does the whole, like, whoo.
00:26:55
Speaker
That's wrong. oh She turns southern. Oh, my. while i never Why'd you turn into Paula Deen? What is happening? Oh, no. We talked about this before the show started. This could be it. This could be it. and You want to get a little bit stronger now with Brandon now? Please do. I mean, we wait we're going to. i also So I also have ah a beer.
00:27:20
Speaker
Man, Brandon, I wish you could take like a tiny sip of this because bomb pop. like we had that No, no. You're thinking of the one that I got from Wisconsin, the ah place that's off where the boats are. Yeah, yeah, No, this is from, don't fucking know where this is Oh, Brothership Brewing.
00:27:39
Speaker
And I saw this around the 4th of July when we were doing the 4th of July cocktail and going to see the Chicago Dogs. um And I bought this and I bought it because I thought Virginia and I would like it. And then we never got around drinking it.
00:27:53
Speaker
Apparently she was waiting for me to suggest to drink it. And here we are ah in January of 2026. And this was canned on June 17, 2025.
00:28:04
Speaker
It's supposed to be like a mom pop. So if you'd like to take a tiny sip, you can. You can always swish You don't have to do anything. No, I'm just curious. I'm not sure how it's going to be. We'll find out. I think we're around a break time. So you know what?
00:28:21
Speaker
let your take break we'll be right back
00:28:29
Speaker
That was a good timing for and we're back. I wasn't recording. Damn it. And we're back. Okay. Welcome back, everybody. He's always record. He is. It is Maltese 2025 here in 2020. Oh, man. That is colorful beer. Maltese 2025 here in 2026.
00:28:46
Speaker
um We've gone through our top... Yes. And also got to try ah Pipeworks Unicorn vs. Ninja... Double IPA, N-A, N-A double IPA, and it was fucking fantastic, and I'm looking forward to... Dude, he doesn't want it. Smell it! I smelled the can! I smelled it! I smelled it, which means he dealt it.
00:29:10
Speaker
ah Oh, jeez. So the beer... is What beer did I just open up there, Matthew? Brother Ship Brewing. Brother Ship. It's not like you said Brother Shit. Brother Ship.
00:29:23
Speaker
Plasma Wave, Bombs Away, Popsicle-inspired Sour Ale, Raspberry, Cherry, and Lime. Oh boy. We should have had this around the 4th of July. Does it still hold up?
00:29:35
Speaker
Yeah, mean as I said, it was canned on June 17th, 2025. I'm sure it was a little bit better back then, but not terrible.
00:29:47
Speaker
Overall, it's very good. we had a little technical glitch so we're just picking back up and It's funny because I pointed at you. i was hoping you were going to up to be like, a thumbs up for recording.
00:29:59
Speaker
That's fine. yeah And guess what? I'm not editing that as I normally normally do. Yeah, this is tasty. This would have gone really well with all the other stuff we had around the fourth of July. what cocktail does she make?
00:30:11
Speaker
The cocktail I made had to do with... That's right. I feel like that's where it went off. That is where it went off. Yeah. ah So it was lemonade. It was supposed to be Smirnoff's red, white, and berry or red, white, and blue and blue Gatorade with strawberries inside of it. This was a TikTok thing I saw. I think you sent that to me. Yeah. It was very good. um So instead I did the... So I did the sugar-free lemonade.
00:30:40
Speaker
Couldn't find the Smirnoff, so I got Zvetka's Blue Raspberry, which was fucking really good. Okay. Really, really good. Which I i feel like it's probably the same thing. Yeah. bad Cheaper. But it was it was really tasty because I had it separate and i was like, is that alone tastes like a fucking bomb pop or rocket pop. um And then i added some blue Gatorade and then the strawberries and let it sit.
00:31:06
Speaker
We had it the next day and we drank almost all of it before I went to the dog's game. Yeah. All natural, right? Yeah. All natural. Natural enough.
00:31:17
Speaker
It's enough. Brandon, I think you would like this. This is definitely, um it's it's it's not, it's not one of those sours where it's like, oh God, it's yeah burning my chest. It's,
00:31:29
Speaker
and may I don't know how i mean andt know how it would be when we had a fresh, but it it is a nice like tart, subtle. You get all the berries. The Harbor Brewing one was a sour, too. Yeah, and that was that was really good. I was just thinking about that because the beer and cheese thing in Kenosha that we went to last year is coming back up in April. And I was like...
00:31:52
Speaker
I know that that particular Harbor Brewing isn't open, but like, I kind of want to go back up in the summer, like go to New Glarus and like make a trip and kind of go around and swing back by Harbor Brewing because they had some good beers there.
00:32:04
Speaker
You're baking cheese fest. Yeah, maybe. Anyways, Brandon? When is that this year? I don't even know. It's always in June. It's always in June. right Right around middle June. I think like June 16th.
00:32:17
Speaker
It's only in my dreams. As real as it may seem. Only in my dreams. It's only in my dreams. Sorry. Rain, what's your number three? So this one is a faux bad beer. This is Resident Culture's Barrel Age Ego Death Compost. Oh, I remember that. remember trying that. um And it was very reminiscent of literally eating a cookie.
00:32:44
Speaker
Like it had... Sometimes it tasted like Oreos. Sometimes it tasted like that it was just so many different flavors in there that I was i was impressed on how well it was done. um And i i really enjoyed drinking it. so yeah I don't know if that was one that I also went and had, but I definitely remember trying it from yeah you and it was really good.
00:33:06
Speaker
Yeah. that The description is pretty good. It says, 2025 vintage is a blend of imperial stouts aged in Yellowstone, Kentucky bourbon and Buffalo trace bourbon barrels for a period of 28 to 30 months. Jesus. Then conditioned on toasted hazelnuts and cocoa nibs. Hey, relax. It was further conditioned on butterscotch chips, dark chocolate chips, what potato chips, pretzels and graham crackers. Come on, guys. on Potato chips? Yeah.
00:33:32
Speaker
Potato chip cookies are the best. Fanny's used to do those. They used to the potato chip sugar cookies that were fantastic. Oh, I remember. Yeah. Never such a cookie. It's like a sugar cookie and you smash up potato chips and so you can sweet and salty. and Does Virginia know the recipe?
00:33:46
Speaker
Probably. She knows the bagel recipe and she just made bagels. She also knows the cinnamon roll recipe. I know. She knows things. Oh, actually, Stephanie sent me a picture recently. She just made them for the first time in a long time.
00:34:00
Speaker
I feel like... She should have sent it to us. Yeah. Fuck. that That too. We'll have to figure that out for next end of summer and fall. Matthew, what is your number three?
00:34:11
Speaker
My number three is I got to try River Norse. And this is two years in a row now. They have one beer from them. ah Their 13th anniversary stout. Which I had to look up because... This beer had so many things going on.
00:34:25
Speaker
Sorry, I took it from untapped here. It's the blend of their double, triple, and quadruple barrel-aged Imperial Stouts. Jesus. Including Colorado Bourbon, Colorado Rye Whiskey, X Honey, and X Maple Syrup Whiskey, Colorado Straight Whiskey, and Colorado Single Malt Whiskey Barrels. That's enough.
00:34:42
Speaker
This beer is complex and rich masterpieces with a bold 22.8%. twenty two point eight percent Jesus. you get? Is the rare bear fist? Uh-huh. knew it, you son of a bitch. Tim, Trevor, and i all, we were sitting next to him we're like, yeah, this thing is fucking insane.
00:34:59
Speaker
That sounds amazing. It sounds like one of those beers that can either go one of two ways. Either it's going to be amazing or everything's going to muddled and you're not really going to taste much.
00:35:11
Speaker
From what you're saying, sounded like it was amazing. It was all beautiful harmony. It's crazy that's your number three. oh okay What's your number three? to get to it I don't know if Brandon just opened up, though. He's got another NA beer over there.
00:35:28
Speaker
Ooh, Untitled Arts flavor, Mango Dragon Fruit Sour. Ooh, can i try a little sip that? Yeah, that's pretty good. Yeah, ah Sour NA beers to me, as i've I think I've said many times, work very well.
00:35:44
Speaker
Ooh, man. That is tasty, right? kind of thick too. Yeah. I mean, it is Untitled Art. No, I mean, Untitled Art awesome. That's... Fuck. Man.
00:35:54
Speaker
I mean, a beer like that is something I would bring to work. Right? Like, to have during lunch. Like, it's kind of like I don't want to say it's smoothie, but there is like a I would. Yeah. Fair enough.
00:36:08
Speaker
I feel like might drink more of it, but yeah, man, that is delicious. Yeah, it's borderline like a slushy. Yeah, I was going to say that. I had like a small sip, so I wasn't sure. Actually, seeing it in your glass, that looks like.
00:36:23
Speaker
Oh, no, I left my slushy out, my smoothie outside. See, I almost feel like sour NA beers are cheating because you can do a lot more with it. Yeah, you're using all the fruit. well Especially if you like you love sours. like What a perfect way be like, oh, I'm cracking open a beer. yeah It's the the motion.
00:36:39
Speaker
The motion of the ocean. What? That's not. That's why not. That's very good. Yeah, really well done. because I'm getting, you predominantly I'm getting the mango, the dragon fruits there too. but I still don't know what dragon fruit tastes like. I've never had just dragon fruit. Really? Yeah.
00:36:56
Speaker
Really? was like, go to California. I couldn't tell you what it tastes like. I guess that was a little bit of like living in California. Everyone had like a dragon fruit plant.
00:37:09
Speaker
And so everyone just would like, hey you chop up a dragon fruit, you freeze it. Frozen, it's delicious. because you can spoon it out like ice cream I lived in San Diego for a month. That was it, dude. I didn't get to try any dragon fruit. okay Why not? oh mi'am Did you not have friends?
00:37:24
Speaker
No, it was a work thing. So you lived there? Yeah, in a hotel for a month. I moved a company from San Diego to Rosemont here in Illinois. Bought an Xbox while was down there.
00:37:35
Speaker
Hey, way to go. Thanks, man. That's why you didn't play with the dragon fruit. Ran up my room service bill. You were just playing with your joystick. It was all Red Stripe, pretty much. Hey, hooray.
00:37:49
Speaker
And they gave us a bunch of money to like go out to eat, and I'm like, I got a full kitchen. So I ended up ah saving a bunch of the gift cards they gave me to give to family and friends for Christmas. I'm like, here's a $100 gift card, Mom.
00:38:01
Speaker
There you I thought it was money. My sister, too. I'm like, here's $100. Who loves you, babe? Anyways, that's very good. um My number three. um This almost didn't make it.
00:38:17
Speaker
Because I felt like, can we put this on there? But then in my mind, I was like, it's got to go on there. Because of how much I talked about it. Or at least my feelings about it.
00:38:30
Speaker
It's Old Irving's Coffee Chomperato. Because, I mean, honestly, like i've always I've always struggled with Chomperatos, and I felt like this this had to make it. This had to go on the list.
00:38:43
Speaker
There was other beers that were ah from Old Irving that I considered, but... For how much I loved that beer, and I just drank the last one on Christmas Day, for the day after Christmas.
00:38:55
Speaker
um Yeah, man, that that that was up there. it's It's so good. And if you didn't get to try it, sucks to be. you
00:39:03
Speaker
Yeah, I was like, we're out at the brewery everywhere. There might be a couple of accounts that do some events with it. I'll have check in with when they're doing the event. But yeah, that was mountain my favorite, especially getting the coffee to actually come through. it was It was really tasty. It was very good. And the spice was perfect. So I had to throw it in my top five.
00:39:21
Speaker
Thank you. Understandable. Very well done beer. Want to crack open a new one? Sure, Brandon. Sure. was Let's it over to you, Brandon.
00:39:33
Speaker
Oh, God, I'm in the puke everywhere. um feel like this is cheating. Uh-oh. But it has to go on the list. It's Doji. King Henry. Ah, this year's King Henry. Yes. Yeah, no, that's not cheating, dude.
00:39:47
Speaker
That was... i i was hesitant. I may have mentioned this, but I was hesitant when they were releasing that because and was afraid it was going to be a shadow of the former king.
00:40:00
Speaker
um But very well done. And like to that point, too, like the King Henry that we had was 10 years old. Yeah. Maybe older, a little older. Yeah.
00:40:13
Speaker
but fantastic. It turned out so well. I was i was really pleased with how how well it was. And again, like we talked about, That entire lineup, you know, like I was really going with, like, i was struggling with, do I put the Bakaba on there? because i really liked that. I was the same way, man.
00:40:31
Speaker
But I was like, no, man, like king like, that whole lineup that we had, everything got progressively better and, like, capped it off with King Henry. I feel like that was the best way to cap it off. Yeah, no disrespect to ah Goose Island. They did not make my list. I just felt like...
00:40:45
Speaker
Like when we do the quote unquote rating of the Bourbon County lineup, you know, we always leave out regular yeah Bourbon County because i mean, that would win number one all the time.
00:40:59
Speaker
I just didn't feel like it was fair to like to throw it out. Like not that it beat out all the beers on my list, but like, how do I choose it? I feel like I already gave it a ranking. It's in its own category. And and that's where yeah it remained.
00:41:11
Speaker
its You put it in the hall of fame. You retired the number. Yeah, essentially. But yes, i am ah I still have my rare from last year, and I don't plan on opening up this King Henry right away.
00:41:25
Speaker
Because I'm pretty sure at some point the next five years, we will have an opportunity to drink it again. It'll be nice to taste how it is, and I don't know. We'll see what happens when I decide to open There you go.
00:41:38
Speaker
Matthew, but before I move on to your number two, what did you just open up? a Bell's Expedition Stout from 2023. Just a classic.
00:41:51
Speaker
That's like my favorite Bell's beer. It's so good. anderen stylele yeah if you to i mean i know it's only technically two to three years old. Man, that is drinking like a fresh Expedition Stout.
00:42:04
Speaker
yeah It's good. you know It's one of those stouts that... borderlines the... i don't get the metallic taste, yeah but it borderlines that like bitterness where...
00:42:19
Speaker
I could almost get it depending on how the, whatever roasted grains they use, but it is always like such a nice bitterness that is beyond like the baker's chocolate.
00:42:30
Speaker
Yeah. I had to double check. I was like, is there coffee, like espresso beans in this? Cause that bitterness definitely, it it's that old school stout. And it's nice and cold, which is, you know, for certain stouts, like not like ice cold, but it's still pretty cold. And,
00:42:47
Speaker
To me, that makes this much more approachable for me. Like, I really like how... What's the ABV on it? 10.4. Okay. What? ten point five why i go play forward and and For some reason, I thought it was higher, but no, that's... Well, it drinks... The alcohol hits yeah harder.
00:43:09
Speaker
Like, it has that bitterness. It's thinner. it You don't have all that extra sugars just hiding the alcohol. Yeah. It's funny, though because it doesn't taste boozy to me. No. I don't have an alcohol burn or anything. Like, if I didn't... I couldn't have guessed the ABV on this.
00:43:29
Speaker
I would have guessed above that. I'd get some of that berm right in the of the... That's you, dude. That's your job. That's what you do. Okay? And you're better at it than I am. How did it hit the back of your throat? It hit the back of my... Son of bitch.
00:43:44
Speaker
Every time you say things like that, I just picture you and I sitting at my dining room table so close, face-to-face, talking about beers. You're the one that sent me the Instagram earlier.
00:43:58
Speaker
It was basically a woman that wanted to meet single men at a sports bar. It's just dudes. You can't meet us at a sports bar. This is where we make out. It's our space.
00:44:10
Speaker
What? What? ah Matthew. Wait. Yeah, it's your turn. What is your... number two Number two. My number two goes back to basics.
00:44:22
Speaker
Gnosis Brewing Bee Pills. It's a pilsner. Wow, nice. Yeah. No shame, no shame. From Indiana, it is i have a baby dry hopped with citra and brewed with orange blossom honey.
00:44:38
Speaker
Sounds fantastic. And it's super crisp, clean, really easy drinking, but that like honey and citra just has this beautiful aromatic body to it.
00:44:50
Speaker
That sounds good. drank a lot of those ah at Crafted. It'd be nice if ah you brought some for us sometime, but it was on draft. Okay. But i mean, do they have like crawlers to go?
00:45:03
Speaker
At Crafted? I don't know. Have you been to Crafted in Mokina, Illinois? No, I don't think I've ever been to Mookie, Illinois. No. Well, you should go. I should what? You should go. You should go. You should go. You should go. You should go. I thought we were getting rid of vowels in 2026. Brandon, how are you dealing with this? We're defunding vowels.
00:45:22
Speaker
No. Brandon's doing the sleepy eye rub that's not from drinking. it's He's tired. He's listening to us. He's an adult. Fuck you guys. Give me that cocktail beer. All right. So my number two is from Hopewell.
00:45:41
Speaker
It is or die pale ale. That's right, everybody. i had to put a pale ale on this list because i went from a porter to an amber to a barrel aged stout. Went for a pale ale, ride or die is a pale ale you can depend on bonafide fridge staple. And, uh,
00:45:59
Speaker
I had this back in February um before I moved out of my old place, and i remember enjoying it thoroughly, like it was crisp and refreshing and citrusy and just really nice and very approach approachable, and I have bought it numerous times from Beer on the Wall when it was available. Like ah usually do like a random 4-pack or whatever, and If that's there, it happens to be there throughout the year, I do grab that beer because it's very, very good.
00:46:32
Speaker
Yeah, never see it in your fridge, so. Because I drink it right away every day. I see how it goes. That's what you should do with beers. Drink them right away. Now keep them in a closet in your basement.
00:46:42
Speaker
or Or keep it in your fridge for six months. yeah The fuck? All right, before we move on, I'm going to a quick rundown of my honorable mentions before we get to our number ones, since we're on me.
00:46:56
Speaker
Hot Butcher's Zombie Hopsicle, which is very good. i did have a lot of high-rated Hot Butcher beers this year, and they weren't all like Hazy's. It was all like IPAs or Pale Ales. So i was pretty surprised about that. There's no Hazy's on my list this year.
00:47:12
Speaker
Revolutions 15-Year Cherry Ambarana, which is, I believe, their barley? No, the 15-Year beer that also had cherry and ambarana, which is a cinnamon, I believe.
00:47:25
Speaker
That was really good. This one almost made the list. Double Clutch, Evanston Gold Vienna Lager. had that last year ago. ah Virginia and I went to, we took a Saturday, we went to Alarmist.
00:47:36
Speaker
We went to Double Clutch and then went to Revolution just to have a couple of beers in all those places. kind of a Saturday, you know, supporting businesses during dry January. Next was Black Stack Brewing Extra Mustard. That was a double IPA.
00:47:51
Speaker
And I had that in the Arlington Heights Beer on the Wall meeting up with my friend Mike. We had a couple of beers, and that one stood out. like That was very close to making it. I think you brought that, because I had that too. Really? Yeah. that might have been when Maybe I grabbed a can we had it some point? yeah I don't know if it was on an episode or if we had it, um but that was in my honorable It might have been, a you know what, I may have bought that can and then maybe around the 4th of July, one of those beers that we drank together. It was May 31st. So it's not the 4th of July. Memorial Day? Anyway, and my very last one was Roaring Tables Whip Smart, which was a Gosa, I believe, that had grapefruit. But now I don't remember. Let me see if I can look it real quick. I remember, like, I i held on to it for a while and then...
00:48:43
Speaker
I one day I got it for Virginia to try and we didn't end up having it. Oh yeah, it's a bright and tangy and Under current of salinity. Brewed with Japanese yuzu ah and kabosu juice.
00:48:59
Speaker
Yeah, it was very good. Lemons, limes, subtle umami. It was very good. it was like a nice, refreshing beer to have. So those were my honorable mentions. Brandon, do you have some other beers you'd like to honorably mention? Actually, before that, we'll do Matthew okay because then you can do your honorable mentions in your number one.
00:49:17
Speaker
Yeah, my my honorable mention was mostly because I couldn't remember if it was this year. Oh. Which we had in one episode. it was the Dane County Scotch Ale. Oh, yeah. I really enjoyed.
00:49:29
Speaker
it was either early this year or late. I mean, this year being 2025 or late 2024. I know. Couldn't remember. I think it was 2025. I think so, too.
00:49:40
Speaker
It was after camping. It was very good. camping and It was before we were went camping. i had a can in my refrigerator at my place. so it's gotta be yep it was it was when we went to the beer breakke and cheese fuss and you guys were there heck brought it back ah Yeah, so that's my honorable mention.
00:49:55
Speaker
um Just a really solid Scotch. It was very good. i I'm a soccer for it. Oh, that that's it. That's your other. are You don't have anything else? The other one was Revolution, but can't remember the name of the barley wine.
00:50:09
Speaker
it the one we drank on the island? ah No, it was on on the podcast, and then we went over all the ones that we liked the best. so ah Go back and listen to the episode, everybody. You can probably find it. Brandon looks like he's digging right now. He's the only sober one here in the basement, so his skills are... I mean, his skills are not sober. I found out when... Well, the Scotch Ale was ah the 14th.
00:50:33
Speaker
or Not the 14th. That was after that. ah After the final four? The 7th of July. because we also did Goldfinger, Half Acres Gossamer, New Glarus Serendipity, so cuga Two Women, and Tropical Hopslam. Oh, that's when he showed up with a whole bunch of random beers. Yeah. Oh, yeah, that's right. Tropical Hopslam. I forgot about that. That was something.
00:51:02
Speaker
ah Brandon, your honorable mentions into your number one. Let me go back to the one. I was trying to get the full name of it. So honorable mention, Afterthought Brewing was one that we had actually on the show. Cezanne Mir, the Malbec Brewing. Ah, yeah. Oh, dude. Good call. Yeah, that was really good. That was a tasty beer. And atlas that was a contender for...
00:51:24
Speaker
like on my top list too um because we had that this year that was brewed or bottled december 28th 2019 so that was forgot about that that was really good a little over just almost five years old i think when we had at the time or six years old oh yeah correct math math is hard who needs it um yeah that that was that was super tasty um what else did i have on my Oh, more brew. no Nevermind. that's ah That's my number one. so Oh no. You know what? It's funny you say that because I almost put a more brewing pale ale in Hopewell. Beat that out.
00:52:03
Speaker
Honorable Mention, I'm going to give one to Old Irving. I really enjoyed Tiki Prost. You know, that was also close to being on my Honorable Mention as well. And I didn't have the Coffee Prost, so I feel like if I had that, that probably would have been one. Yeah, I was really excited that they did that one.
00:52:20
Speaker
And then close second to that, I mean, I'm not necessarily throwing this on there, but I had, um i stopped into, it was in December, i stopped into Old Irving for something. I think i was picking up food.
00:52:32
Speaker
And it wasn't ready yet, so was sitting at the bar, and I had um coffee roast. Coffee roast was yeah also very tasty.
00:52:43
Speaker
Kudos to you guys for making some tasty food. Way to go, Old Irving. Thank Now give us our check. We get to come to the Christmas party. Yeah, we'll be there. We're there. We did Cuban food.
00:52:54
Speaker
No, both of those... were really fun because I love cinnamon prosts and people obviously like them all the time. And so it's always been on Trevor's mind of just making more fun breakfast beers and kind of expanding. Hopefully we get to do a couple more fun things.
00:53:12
Speaker
And so last year we finally did like maple. Maple was delicious. Maple prost. And we did that for the Loyal Taphouse, their advent calendar. And so this year in the middle of summer, I was like, Just as a really small scale, i was like, can we play with the pro space and things? And then Trevor added the lime and the pineapple. and Do coffee again because I didn't get a chance to try it.
00:53:33
Speaker
It's still on draft. Okay, guess I'm going this week even though I'm trying to stay in this month. I'll just come by. come Come say hi to me. Yeah, maybe. Just a little wink and a nod. Hey, how are you doing? Let's a little bit this. Brandon, what is your number one beer?
00:53:50
Speaker
My number one beer for... Is it from Moor Brewing? It is from Moor Brewing. Mind's blown. Moor Brewing's Double Origin. oh Did we... When did we have that? When did you have that?
00:54:03
Speaker
That sounds familiar. had it in March, and I think that might have been when I went to pick it up. Is that in that box? No, this is... a Oh, henna. Oh, that's been sitting there for... no There's dust on top of this. Yeah. But yeah, Double Origin, it was aged 26 months and four roses. I didn't have that. was And 10-year-old Buffalo Trace Mash Bill number two. it. Three hours before being conditioned on hand-toasted coconut, Ugandan coffee nibs, and dark matter coffee. Stop rubbing it in, dude.
00:54:34
Speaker
We all wanted it. was You got it. It was really fantastic. I should have a bottle of it somewhere. No, no. Crack it open. Oh, yeah. It's this. Yeah. No, crack it open.
00:54:47
Speaker
Shatter my teeth because there's no cap on there. Yeah. David, ah the head brewer there, so since I first tried the barrel-aged tiki sour he did, I'm just like a fan for life of his. More stuff is fantastic. It's really good.
00:55:04
Speaker
that was my That was my top beer. Good choice. It's funny that you chose that and that Moores Pale Ale that I had this year was almost on. I mean, that I think it says a lot. I probably should have put it on my honorable mention, but I didn't because I'm a jerk. It's okay. Matthew, what's your number one beer of the year?
00:55:22
Speaker
My number one is Perch. hold it oh sorry. yeah but It kind of comes from because ah our brewer has been, obviously, Max at the brew pub makes Beezer all the time there, and it's delicious, and we do great things with it.
00:55:40
Speaker
And i was talking about Perch, and we know Preston. He's done great things. And he's like, yeah, I really like... they're hazy. And I was like, yeah, but I mean, it's not anything of like ours. And he's like, it's really fucking good.
00:55:53
Speaker
And so I went and tried their kick push that won some really high awards this year that I was unaware of because I just know and love them. And his hazy IPA kick push is that like pineapple color. It's so aromatic, tropical, and really was one of those where I started drinking that in Beezer again. And I was like,
00:56:17
Speaker
think I actually really like hazies again. Yeah. It's funny that you say that because the couple of hazies that I have grabbed this year, because I will normally stop over at Beer on the Wall, like on a Thursday or Friday, and like grab...
00:56:32
Speaker
four to six beers normally. Sometimes I go over the edge and I grab a whole bunch because there's a bunch i want to try. But ah Virginia is mainly lager person.
00:56:42
Speaker
Like Bud Light is normally hers, but now it's been Coors Light. She also really enjoys seltzers and she's a bourbon chick. So she has she's very open-minded of trying pretty much anything that like when I did the advent calendar from Beer on the Wall,
00:56:58
Speaker
I would pour mine and do a little taster for her. And she tried every single beer. Everything. There was some that she liked, some she didn't like. And it was pretty interesting to see the one that she liked. There was someone like, you're going love this. She's like, I do not like this. i'm like, you're not going like this. She's like,
00:57:12
Speaker
actually pretty good Hazes, the way that Hazes have, I feel, evolved now, it's kind of cool to go back to Hazes because they have gotten so much better that I think they get overlooked because Hazes blew up so big and it became like almost a when I say hot bomb of like that green in the back kind of burns your throat, like not great hazy type flavor.
00:57:43
Speaker
um So hearing you talk about that beer makes me very interested to try it because i too feel like hazies could possibly come back around for me this year.
00:57:56
Speaker
Yeah. i I think one of the big things that I forgot about and I've been seeing more the, I think the overall quality of hazies went up to a certain degree and you got a lot of just whoever you went to, you're like, yeah, that's pretty decent hazy.
00:58:15
Speaker
And I think there's a couple really delicate things that you can do out there. To make that next level tier. Yeah.
00:58:27
Speaker
And we went back to double dry hopping, which is a pain in my ass on the operation side of trying to actually get it done in a timely manner. um But the aromatics that come off of that just really add to everything.
00:58:42
Speaker
Yeah. And so have you ever eaten at perch? No. A, go there because their food is amazing. But Preston, I think it's a one-barrel system. um And that's where I was looking it up. It was a World Beer Cup Hazy. Sounds pretty good.
00:58:58
Speaker
um Yeah, I do think that Hazys might make their way back into my rotation. My final beer ah came from... This year's ah but Beer on the Wall advent Advent calendar, the first time I did it. It is Cigar City's Oatmeal Raisin Cookie Brown Ale. I love brown ales, and I've always wanted to do like an oatmeal raisin cookie brown ale using Special B. This tasted like an oatmeal ah raisin cookie, almost like a...
00:59:30
Speaker
a what is it, that the little ah oatmeal cream puffs kind of like that, but add raisins to it. that's It wasn't super sweet. with Like the little Debbie's? Yeah, it was like the the flavor of that without the sweetness. It was really good. It just tasted like a great oatmeal raisin cookie. And I was very excited to have a brown ale be my number one beer of this year so tony's a special b okay i am a special b uh well that's it for the maltese this year we'd like thank everybody for listening to the malting hour obviously things have been a little different this year not as many episodes we're working through all this stuff there's going to be more episodes next year just might be a little different but we do appreciate everybody who keeps listening thank you very much uh matthew thank you for joining us uh and joining the malting hour you're we're gonna say it here you're officially part of it thank you it's it's been a pleasure one of us one of us and i might actually update the end bumper do we still have it says clark and dan is still part of the show he be red i'm gonna just see me and brayden Matthew, love you. Love you. Brandon, Love you love me too, man I don't know I'm going to ever do that with Matthew again. and That felt weird.
01:00:41
Speaker
Just Brandon, i love you. Love you too. See you next time. Fuck. Bye.