Fade to Black Ale (Volume 3 Pepper Porter)

Black but nice and bitter. Slightly sweet, and spicy, with great bitterness to balance it all. Was feeling a bit of heartburn, and only now saw the "pepper" designation on the label. Like this and recommend it for something unique, but with having to chase this with tums, I'll give it an ID.

12oz bottle

The Left Hand Brewing Company, LTD

Longmont, CO

purchased at Kenwood

Abita Jockamo IPA

A nice bitter ale with some botanical, but not really hop flavor. Soft mouth feel, and very drinkable. Not a bad IPA but with so many out there, this one just doesn't make the repurchase list. ID
12oz bottle, 6.5% ABV
Abita Brewing Company, LLC
Abita Springs, LA
purchased at Kenwood

Imperial Pumking

Wow, like a bite of pumpkin pie in a sip! Had, and even made, pumpkin ale before, but this one is full on! Perfect spices and all. A fall treat you should have. MB
22oz bottle, 8.6% ABV
Southern Tier Brewing Company
Lakewood, NY
purchased at Kenwood

Samuel Adams Tasman Red

A little bit grainy on the whiff. Nice grain flavor and texture on the taste with big hop bitterness achieving a great balance. This bottle exploded all over my bar, which obviously pissed me off, but I'm having a great night, and this may be a great beer. The label calls it a red IPA, so i'm in love with that concept. I love a red that can best bitterness over grain, and if you could add some hop flavor, ahhhhhh ... Anyway I think this still deserves a MB.
22oz custom bottle, 6.75% ABV
The Boston Beer Company
Boston, MA and other cities
purchased at Kenwood

Clown Shoes Hoppy Feet Black IPA

Wow, black and bitter, like my own twisted soul! Very bitter. Not much for hop flavor, but the bitterness and burnt grain flavor make for an intense little treat. Not a bad deal, and really pretty unique. Not for the timid, but if you've got hair on your tongue you're man enough for this one. No penguins were harmed in the writing of this review. ID
22oz bottle, 7% ABV, 80 IBU
Mercury Brewing Company
Ipswich, MA
purchased at Kenwood

Lagunitas Sucks Holiday Ale Brown Shugga' Substitute

Very hoppy nose and wow, tons of great hop flavor! Easily a holiday favorite for all hopheads. Smooth and silky, easy-to-drink light feel, and oh, those hops. This brewery is pissed at themselves for being at capacity and being unable to brew their traditional holiday Brown Shugga' ale. Never had that, but this is a worthy substitute. Limited release, so get it while you can. MB
12 oz bottle, 7.85 ABV, 63.21 IBU
The Lagunitas Brewing Company
Petaluma, CA
purchased at Kenwood

Wake Up Dead Imperial Stout

Saw this bottle and wondered if this was a Megadeth reference. Put it in the cart and saw a sixer of "Fade to Black" from the same brewer, so i gotta think they are old school metal heads. And this is the stable that makes my namesake "Jackman" ale. Anyway, this is a very soft dark ale at the proper temperature. Caresses you like death itself, so now the name makes sense! When you want a total dark grain experience, with only slight sweetness adequately balanced by bitterness, fucking Wake Up Dead! Love the tagline on the bottle, "Sometimes you're not in the mood for what everyone else is having." MB

22 oz bottle, that's all I know
Left Hand Brewing Company
Longmont, CO
purchased at Kenwood

Third Voyage Double IPA

Was surprised to see that this was a Sam Adams product. They're making a forage into the small beer market from whence they came, I guess. I never pass up a multiple IPA so had to give this a go. Great hop nose, even though I over chilled this. Good bitterness and even better citrusy hop flavor. Not even a tiny bit of sweetness! The bitterness punches through. A very nice product, much more than I expected. I'll go MB on bitterness alone. As this warmed, it got even better! A truly great beer from such a large brewery.

custom 22 oz bottle, 8% ABV (come on Sam give me an IBU)
The Boston Beer Company
Boston, MA and elsewhere
purchased at Kenwood

Sam Adams Light

Not my usual fare, but using this as a palate cleanse after having the Double Bastard which is flavor to the extreme. This is the best of light beers in my opinion, having the flavor of Sam but watery enough to be refreshing where regular Sam usually isn't. A girl I know described this as "tanned" while sitting next to her Coors Light. It does have microwbrew color, and goes down so much better than the MGD I was drinking while out to the Hawks game last night. And to make matters better, I scored one of those famous Kenwood deals where this was going for $10 a case as the expiration date was close. Only bought 2 cases and regretting that now as it is almost gone. When you're not looking for ale, but a light beer that won't make you a frat boy, MB this, even at regular price.

12 oz bottle, 119 calories!
The Boston Brewing Company
Boston, MA and a bunch of other cities
purchased with great value at Kenwood

Double Bastard Ale

Wow, this is a crazy Bastard. Bitter as all hell with some slight botanicals that remind me of a shot of Malort! A very roasted sweetness forms the aftertaste at the middle-back of the tongue. What was almost offensive at the first taste (this Bastard is still too much for the untravelled drinker) really mellows into a sublime bipolar drink. The sweetness comes through more pronounced, but that huge bitterness keeps it in check, where I like it. Gotta say I'd pick this Bastard up for a ride again sometime. MB

22 oz bottle, 10.5% ABV

The Stone Brewing Company

Escondido, San Diego County, CA

purchased at Kenwood

Oxfordshire Ales Marsh-Mellow

Hardly any head on this. Nice Carmel aroma of a European ale. And that's the taste. Carmel and bitter flavors pronounce right away, leading to a watery refreshing bit of sharpness on the throat. A solid drinking ale for any occasion. I'm drinking this fridge-cold, and I'm sure there are more flavors I'm missing by not having this ant English ale temperature. ID

500 mL bottle, 4.7% ABV

Oxfordshire Ales

Marsh Gibbon, Bicester, Oxfordshire, England

purchased at Kenwood