407. 18th Street Brewery (Hammond, IN) - Crushed Marshmallow (#2)

“Berliner Weisse with Strawberry, Pineapple and Marshmallow.”

The previous iteration of Crushed Marshmallow that I tried was made with raspberries and blackberries, which complemented the natural sour flavor of the Berliner Weiss style. This version, with strawberries and pineapple, is sweeter—but not exactly sweet. It’s like a liquid version of strawberry Fruit Roll-Ups—and that ain’t a bad thing either.

406. 18th Street Brewery (Hammond, IN) - Shadow Dog

No description apart from “IPA with Tangerine,” but if I had not known it was an IPA going in, I might not have guessed. Not quite as rounded and smooth as a blonde ale, but close. The tangerine flavor comes from the zest or pith of the fruit rather than from the juice, so it’s not sweet; and that bright flavor lingers for a while. At 6.4%, it’s a relatively light IPA for 18th Street—but that ain’t a bad thing. I’m all for big, romantic beers, especially IPAs—which 18th Street does a ton of; but easy drinking and refreshing have their merits, too.

Deep Thoughts #263

I didn’t forget Puerto Rico; but it ain’t a state, and I keep to a character limit. Ask Paul Simon about DiMaggio’s name in “Mrs. Robinson.”

Deep Thoughts #262

Have Republicans ever wanted to federalize anything? Fifty states in the union form a…union. Republicans would do well to study the concept.

Deep Thoughts #261

The longer this pandemic shit goes on, the more I sound like a Republican. Please go get vaccinated—I don’t want to keep thinking like this!

Deep Thoughts #260

If people are coasting on the unemployment it’s because of panic-induced government-mandated lockdowns, which the government can pay to fix.

Deep Thoughts #259

People who are paid real salaries aren’t coasting on the unemployment. People who work at movie theatres and get paid shit might be, though.

Deep Thoughts #258

Why should Republicans say if they’re vaccinated or not? They only care about Right, not right. And you mental furballs still vote for them.

Deep Thoughts #257

Did you really say we should be talking more about freeing Britney than about being vaccinated? Republicans are dumb, but this is a new low.

405. Hop River Brewing Company (Fort Wayne, IN) - Lasers in the Jungle

“A modern India Pale Ale brewed with two new school American bred hops—Mosaic and Citra. Bitterness is overall low; while the aroma is complex and tropical.”

This is a very straighforward IPA that leans a little more toward Mosaic than Citra in the hop profile. It deepens a little as it warms up, but it’s not especially interesting in any way. The most noteworthy thing about this beer, for me, is that it represents a new Indiana city in this odyssey of mine. While there isn’t much else to remark about this ultra-conservative dead-end of a state, its craft beer scene is surprisingly vibrant—and not just in Indianapolis, a somewhat-reasoned outlier in a state that is otherwise what one of my buddies at the old juke joint refers to as, “the middle finger of the south.” Fort Wayne is the 21st Indiana city whose beer I have tried.

Deep Thoughts #256

No reasoned person needs to be told that Lindsey Graham is batshit-fucking-crazy, but really—go to war over shitty Jesus Chicken sandwiches?

404. Switchyard Brewing Company (Bloomington, IN) - Blackberry Wheat

“Brewed with over 200 lbs of Oregon Marionberries, chosen specifically for their bold, bright color, and fruity flavor, this semi-dry, unfiltered wheat ale is slightly tart with the flavor of berries from the vine.”

Both the berry flavor and the tartness are very light, and it has a smooth finish. It’s not as interesting as the Mango West Coast IPA, but it’s pretty good.

403. Switchyard Brewing Company (Bloomington, IN) - Mango West Coast IPA

“This spin on our classic West Coast IPA combines juicy mango and citrus-forward Cascade hops for a fun, balanced, tropical twist on our go-to IPA!”

Amy and I were fortunate enough to be able to take another of what I call our “three-day-weekends” and spend a couple of nights in Bloomington earlier this week, and after traipsing around campus for a while on Sunday, we stopped for a drink at Switchyard, where I wanted to pick up some carry-out for myself and one of my buddies at the old juke joint who also went to IU. On balance, I wish we had just stopped for the carry-out; between the screaming soccer assholes and the QR-code-menu shit, my patience wore thin pretty quick. Their carry-out prices are hard to beat, though ($9.99-$11.99 for a four-pack of tallboys, depending on style)—even if everything else about the place is unwelcoming AF. This mango version is not quite as in-your-face as the original West Coast IPA, mostly because the mild mango flavor balances some of the pine and spice. I wasn’t sure about the first one I tried a couple of days ago, but this third one is more interesting. The mango is more pronounced when it’s cold, and then a honey-like richness begins to develop as it warms up. With the fourth one, the mango sticks around a little bit longer, and they honey isn’t as big. I kinda wish I had more of these, but I don’t see myself going back to Switchyard anytime soon.

402. Firestone Walker Brewing Company (Paso Robles, CA) - Nectaron

“A continuation of our Propagator single hop hazy series, this time featuring Nectaron hops from New Zealand. Nectaron was just released for commercial brewers to use and we were lucky enough to work with this hop in previous years as an experimental hop known as Hort 4337. Nectaron was developed by breeder and good friend Ron Beaston and the hops we selected for this beer came from the Mac Farms owned and operated by the McGlashen family. The hop features punchy Southern Hemisphere tropical fruit characters including passion fruit notes but also has a familiar pacific [sic] Northwest Dankness that makes it complex and bold.”

Nice fruit flavors up front, and a smooth, dry finish. Very light and drinkable, but not especially interesting.

401. Urban Chestnut Brewing Company (St. Louis, MO) - STLIPA

“We pronounce it ‘sta-leep-ah”; you pronounce it how you like. STLIPA, which is the acronym for St. Louis India Pale Ale, is actually a DIPA (Double or Imperial IPA, double the stats of a traditional IPA). It showcases prominent grapefruit, pine, and floral hop aroma and a sufficient malt backbone to balance the hop bitterness. We hope it’s one you’ll include in your set of favorite DIPA’s from one of the best beer cities in the world St. Louis.”

It’s rich and sweet, like honey and pine sap, but the grapefruit doesn’t make itself known until it warms up a bit—at which point it makes its 8%-ness known as well. This beer is well executed, but it’s a little too heavy for me.

398. Crow Peak Brewing Co. (Spearfish, SD) - Pile O’Dirt

“Pile O’Dirt Porter falls into the robust porter category. This is a medium-bodied beer with moderate hop bitterness and negligible hop aroma and flavor. Pile O’Dirt Porter is brewed with the finest quality pale ale malt with Munich, Extra Special, Blackprinz and Chocolate malts added for color and flavor adjustment. Perle and Willamette hops are added to balance the sweet maltiness of this porter.”

Strong flavors of cocoa and dark chocolate, with a surprisingly smooth finish. We never made it up to Spearfish, and I never made it back to the gas station where I got this one to pick up either of the other Crow Peak beers they had. Wish I had, because this one was solid.

400. Black Acre Brewing Company (Indianapolis, IN) - Cherry Ol’ Fritz

“[Cherry] Ol’ Fritz is our seasonal tart wheat beer, in the style of a German Berliner Weisse, with cherry fruit.”

This version of Ol’ Fritz has a much deeper sour flavor than the original, and the big cherry flavor lingers very nicely. Black Acre is still one of the best breweries in Indianapolis, and this is one of the best beers they make.