‘Tis the season for big bold beers and plenty of of holiday spices and just about everything in between. One look in the fridge reveals a nice mixture of barleywines, imperial stouts and a few styles I’m not quite sure how to identify. The tough part is figuring out how to enjoy most of them…
As a malt lover – albeit with increasingly hop leaning tendencies – Missoula’s Bayern Brewing Company has long been right up my alley. From Killarney to Maibock, Oktoberfest to Doppelbock and even the new Dump Truck, an extra pale summer bock, Bayern consistently delivers great tasting, smooth, crisp, brews with plenty of rich malt flavors.…
I do love a good traditional turkey dinner. We always make sure to get a big enough turkey to have plenty of leftovers for turkey sandwiches. Yet, there’s only so many consecutive meals you have have with turkey before you’re craving something else. That point hit last night. Yes, I know that was only the…
Next up on the Thanksgiving-open-up-that-special-bottle of beer fun was Iron Horse Brewery’s Brass Ass Brown Ale. Iron Horse Brewery is over in Ellensburg, WA and I’d picked up a couple of 22 oz bombers at Bottles to try last time we made it over to Spokane. Iron Horse calls describes their Brass Ass Brown Ale…
Happy Thanksgiving! Growler Fills is thankful for great craft beer, friends, family, good fortune and a host of other things on this snowy Thanksgiving morning in Missoula, MT. I hope your Thanksgiving day is filled with good times and, of course, great beer. The holiday season is filled with opportunities to reach into the beer…
On a recent frigid, blustery day in Missoula, I felt the need to seek out a little variety in the beer world and stopped in at my favorite set of taps also known as The Rhino. What did I find? One excellent example of the fresh hop world along with a classic German doppelbock. As…
I recently drove over to Billings, MT to give a couple of presentations and had grand plans of taking the time to check out the local breweries. My last trip to Billings was several years ago and, by coincidence, was only a few days after Carter’s Brewery had opened its doors. I was looking forward…
Joining the Brothers’ Reserve Series this year from Portland, OR’s Widmer Brother’s Brewing Company is Barrel Aged Brrbon, considered a winter warmer style brew. To make it, Widmer took their annual Brrr seasonal winter warmer and aged it for four months in Kentucky bourbon barrels. The result is a smooth bourbon infused beer that packs…
Every once in a while you run across a funky new place that is serious about its beer, atmosphere and good food too. That’s one of the great things about a short excursion to a bigger city or even an out of the way town. The Flying Goat in Spokane fits the bill and we…
We stopped in at Kettlehouse Brewing Co.’s old school Myrtle Street location this Saturday to try their new pumpkin ale. The brew is good. Quite good, with flavors of pumpkin, nutmeg and ginger. But we also spotted a new pale ale on tap and decided to grab a sample before heading out the door to…