Dogfish Head 120 min IPA is 18% of holy crap that's a lot of alcohol

I'm dragging David halfway across town after his long drive back from Carlsbad in an open air and doorless Jeep for good reason. At the Surly Goat, and several bars even further away from us, Dogfish Head has distributed an IPA that don't come around heeear very often.There is a single keg of Dogfish Head 120 min IPA on tap. We arrive to find Nick G already mixing it up with the owner of the Surly Goat, Alan.

David just saw the evil monkey from Family Guy behind the camera

 The bartender brings our pours out in Sherry glasses and I'm at first, a bit put off. Do you know who I am? A international, well known, vaguely familiar beer blogger and I deserve more...What's that? It's 18%?! Sweet Jesus Mary and Jebediah, I should've done my homework! I have only read about the mystery of this beer and for some reason didn't realize it's that strong. Touche bartender, touche.

I initially feel ridiculous holding a glass the size of a child's tea cup, but not after the first sip. If I hadn't known it was brewed by Dogfish Head, I would assume it's moonshine. David and I just had a discussion earlier this week about the perfect alcohol percent in beer, and we both agreed it was 8%. In our experience, anything over that and you begin tasting the alcohol. It's simply difficult to hide an element that intense. At 18%, how do you combat the sheer overwhelming power of alcohol? More hops of course.

A few sips in, I still feel like I'm drinking moonshine tea, but I'm extremely impressed with how well the signature Dogfish hops are hiding it. This is the strongest beer I've ever tasted (previous record, the 14.5% Bruery Cuir), but they have done an amazing job disguising it. Oh, be certain my face is turning red after a few sips, but wow, color me impressed. BAD BOYS rating. 

Coronado Mermaid's Red Ale doesn't lure me in with her siren song

I have a drinks at Surly Goat, which I haven't been too in a while and I'm stoked! Looking at the menu, the irony hits me...I've had most of these beers. At almost 330 beers, it was bound to happen somewhere. There are so many beers on the menu I want to drink for pleasure and not for the blog, such as the Stone IRS, Bruery Bierbauch, Deschutes Mirror Mirror Barleywine and especially the 12% Speedway Stout they have on freaking cask. Ain't something so hard to turn down when you know exactly what you're missing?! Just like turning away free chocolate chip cookies...

I'm gonna roll the dice with a San Diego brewery who's location and beer names I like, but who also has disappointed me fairly often with their output, although I do like myself a red ale. Tonight's choice is Coronado Brewing's 5.7% Mermaid's Red Ale.

This beer reminds me of...you know that old Dobie Gray song, "Drift Away?" What's that now? Walker, please play some of that soft and soulful rock...well if you insist:

I'm specificaly referring to the Dobie's chorus, drift away. The red ale is looking good, good as hell, but the flavor profile is off. The hops are in the forefront of the taste along with faint roasted flavors, but then everything fades to a bitter finish without giving me a beat to work with. It's an odd mix that overall, doesn't sit well with me. Yet, the Mermaid is drinkable because it's lacking robustness, so points for that I suppose. THE ISLAND rating

Bruery Cuir 3rd Anniversary Ale is 14.5% of barrel aged incredibleness

I can't believe it's on tap! The Surly Goat has again proven to be my favorite beer bar in Los Angeles. The Bruery's 3rd Anniversary Ale isn't even available by bottle (and will likely sell off quickly) but it's here on tap. I recently paid way too much (north $30) for a bottle of Coton, their 2nd anniversary beer, to be shipped from Florida because it's unequivocally out of stock her. Still worth it.

The Cuir is French for leather. Every year The Bruery brews the exact same beer — an Old Ale fermented with our Belgian yeast strain - and every year the malt goes up by a pound, and then they blend it with a portion from the previous year. The Coton is one of the most phenominal beers I've ever tasted. So this beer is the same recipe, but blended with the most amazing beer ever and then blended with their 1st anniversary beer (Papier) which is the same recipe but has aged for 3 years...if you're not drooling, then I'm pretty sure you're an emotionless robot and possibly a Terminator - only with better taste in maids, ZING.

I'm DYING to have this.I'm missing The Bruery's 3rd Anniversary weekend over Memorial Day, so I'm incredibly thankful to enjoy this at the Surly Goat, which is easily my favorite beer mecca in LA.

So I drag Tiff over to the Goat to watch the Bulls and Heat game while enjoying a tulip glass of this old ale with the alcohol content of a glass of wine. Only there's more than a glass of wine in these tulip glasses. Party

Glory be to Jebus!

I'm fortunate to have a certified Cicerone (beer sommelier) and BJCP judge (national beer competition judge) behind the bar pouring tonight. Playoff Basketball, Anniversary beer, Bruery, beer geek, strong alcohol...my head's going to explode.

The Cicerone said they opened up a bottle of Papier when they received this keg, and it's just now hitting it's prime (2 years later). The Cuir, he touts, is the most drinkable right off the bat of the three brews.

My first sip of the Cuir reveals the barrel aging of this batch and the blends, as there's a 2x4 of pine hits my tongue. Next comes a big sweet malt and dark fruit flavor profile. As the beer warms up, I'm tasting the complexity of the profile, including brown sugar and dark fruit. I love how it opens up. I will say, that it's more of a Belgian Quadruple than a Coton Old Ale. Age may prove otherwise, however.

Tiff says it's explosively sweet, as kills the last of it. She's a pint sized gal, and the 14.5% without dinner is rocking her world. She's yelling at the Bulls on TV like a banshee, even though she's from Hawaii and never watches basketball. Me thinks it's extraction time to the nearest taco joint, post haste.

In finality, it's just so...COMPLEX! What else can I say? It's something else. The Bruery Anniversary beers are like the Godfather's; you kiss their hands in their presence and even on the day of their daughter's wedding, you're sweating asking them a favor. You are not worthy. BAD BOYS rating.

Uinta Summer Solstice Kolsch precedes a rare bird sighting: 3 French Hens

I picked up the Kolsch because my latest homebrew, the Heisenberg's Honey Wheat, is made with a Kolsch yeast and it's getting raving reviews from people, so I'm on a quest to sample other beers with similar yeast profiles in order to compare. 

It says HooDoo on the Surly Goat menu but google says otherwise. Tonight's beer is the Summer Solstice Kolsch from Uinta Brewing in Utah and the evening is shaping up to be a good night for beer.

It's remarkably crisp and clean but there is nothing clean about it. It's an excellent summer patio beer, that you could drink a sixer of and not be overwhelmed by hops or flavor. It's only 4%, so you probably need to drink a sixer to get properly sauced, so don't forget about your friends Bloody Mary and Mr. Mai Tai. TRANSFORMERS rating.

But guess who Surly Goat decided to stock? Bruery Three French Hens. It's only 18 bucks! The bottle, which you can't find at a store anymore, probably costs at least $14 or $15. For this years The Bruery's limited run of the 12 Days of Christmas, this price is quite a steal. Here's my old write up: 3 French Hens. French Hens can be aged for up to 9 years, but Matt and I aren't going to let that happen. For America Dammit.

Dogfish Head Burton Baton Imperial IPA would impress Chuck Norris

Bringing food to the Surly Goat is a first for me, and sushi will hopefully prove to be a good choice, even though there are so many ways it could go wrong. I'm excited to try this Dogfish Head, it's an IPA with 10% alcohol! How could this go wrong? 

I subscribe to 7, 10 beer blogs and haven't seen this reviewed by anyone. It must be brand new. Again, props to the Goat for being on the front end of this distribution.

This beer has a big malt, a HUGE malt with a caramel body that leaves me salvitating. This is a big American malt base for a lethal dose of hops. This is Chuck Norris strength of imperial IPA's and deserves a BAD BOYS rating. Love drinking this.

Lindsey, my long lost Chicago friend sent me the coolest beer label today and it's personalized! F*cking A Lindz, I LOVE IT.

Deschutes Mirror Mirror Barleywine is deliciously re-released back into the wild

Deschutes night at the Surly Goat and they brought their truck! Party

I'm here not just because I love their Mirror Pond, Hop Henge, Red Chair and Black Butte or because they've been the only brewery to officially comment on the blog, but because Deschutes pouring something special tonight.

As legend/the interweb has it, that the brewers found a 'lost' keg in their warehouse of a previously extinct barleywine. If one believes the lore, this brew is so delicious that rainbows will stream forth from the keg. Color me excited.

I smell strong dark chocolate and dark fruit notes that form an intoxicating combination. Barleywine smells appeal to me but this even more bold and rich than I can expect...The aroma is strong with this one. 

Mirror Mirror is 11% alcohol and it shows up to play, but there is a welcoming richness to the body. Having just tried a series of rochefort trappist beers, this reminds of that sweet, rich belgian flavor. I love, the richer edibles in life - the dark chocolate mousse cake, cookies made with half a stick of butter, cupcakes from Sprinkles - and this flavor profile fits my bill.

The alcohol sticks out like fart in an small movie theater, but the attendees don't care because of the rich, smooth nudity onscreen (it's a bad slasher flick, okay?). Basically this is delicious and a real treat to enjoy. It's gonna be hard to just have one of these. This 'lost' brew just found itself a BAD BOYS rating.

Avery Collaboration Not Litigation Ale is a double salvation

I love this bar called the Surly Goat. I'm very lucky to have a watering hole with this many rotating taps on hand for my beereveryday year. The people who work here are lovely and knowledgeable and there's Foosball and Shuffleboard, both of which I'm sucking at tonight. Well, even Pele had his days off...

Tiff raved about this beer last week but unfortunately she is out stick today with the stomach flu so in her honor, it's being drank...drunk...drinked...whatever.


It turns out, this beer is a collaboration between Avery and Russian River. It sprung from the fact that each brewery had a beer named 'Salvation.' One year they got together and blended to the two together. A cool story that shows the true spirit of the craft beer world and their brewers.


It's a Belgian Strong Dark Ale that clocks in at 8.72%. I'm tasting your standard chocolate and fruits but what's really capturing my attention is its sweetness. It reminds me of the Stone Belgo Barleywine, a burst of sweetness like bubble gum or cotton candy. But unlike the Belgo which explodes in your mouth like a supernova of sweetness, the Collaboration is humblely sweet. TRANSFORMERS rating.

Avery Maharaja Imperial IPA bites like Jaws

I couldn't pronounce this until I heard the bartender say it, so it seems worthy for my beer tonight (my standards are pretty shot this late in the week).

10.3% alcohol! Thank you doctor for that perscription. The alcohol is masked well thanks to a BIG fruit and piny hop bite. I didn't enjoy my first sip but it grew on me. Stu, a fellow I met who's in town from Pasadena for a concert on Sunset, loves it and he's a big hop head. I'm liking this a lot, it's just a really intense beer. It's like the Arrogant Bastard of IPA's. THE ROCK rating.

We had a big group tonight come out, including the regulars above - Rhiannon, Matt and Tiffany. Here's the whole group!

We all hit up Baby Blues afterwords. Nothing great than Foosball, Beer and BBQ. Party on

Lost Abbey Devotion inspires me to do exactly that - next time

I have 10 minutes to run into the Surly Goat before grinding my way through Hollywood traffic for a free screening of HOP (not a documentary on my favorite beer component, Hops, but rather that Easter Bunny movie starring Russell Brand). It's hard to say NO to anything with FREE in the subject line, even after college.

9 minutes and counting, the quarterback is going with a hot route and looking for some Devotion from the Featured Beer board.

I see many Lost Abbey beers but have never really tried them. The Devotion is a Belgian Pale Ale with 6.25% alcohol. 7 minutes and counting. It has a hefty belgian body and it's kinda how I expect the movie to go - mellow and relatively smooth, pleasing with your standard doughy notes.


3 minutes. Towards the end, I'm realizing how sweet it is and I'm picking up some great spice. The spice saves this beer and makes it different from other Belgian Pales. I'm glad I slowed down and was able to taste it. I like this brew, it's worth taking a glass on it. TRANSFORMERS rating.

(I was totally on time for the flick but wasn't a fan of it. Guess I finally grew up and I'm not a Toy-R-Us kid anymore)

Kern River Just Outstanding IPA is as advertised

I'm fairly weary of beer names that tout a purported some sort of self-descriptive (see my article on HopStoopid), but Kern River has a reason to thump their chest, they made a great session IPA.


I promised last week that I'd show you the Unhappy Goat, so without further ado--

This guy looks like a....Saul. Saul the Surly Goat. Sounds right.

Foosball game is in full swing. The IPA is right around my favorite alcohol level, 6.8%. Not too much, not too little. There's a pretty big hop bite but I like it! It's like a distinctive bourbon, like Bookers. It's not for everyone, but those who like a bite and hair on their chest, love it (like this guys). This is the perfect IPA for Hop Heads who like that bite. THE ROCK rating.

Also, this video inspires me in so many ways:

World's Greatest Beer Fetching Dog

New Belgium Le Terroir is a sour b-b-b-b-bomb

After funghi pizza dinner at Jones in Weho with an old friend JBo, I get a call from David who wants to have our beers out of the apartment tonight. Luckily I'm moments away from beer haven Surly Goat and I drag Jen there with me to catch the Lakers triple overtime game.

It's a Warhead on steroids; a supernova of exploding sourness. It's incredibly tart and mildly refreshing. Guess what? I really, really don't like tart beers. I like trying new things, however, there has been only one sour ale which I consumed exactly halfway through the year (Lips of Faith Erics Ale) that has ever successfully wooed me. I will keep drinking American Wild Ales for the experience, but not the pleasure. THE ISLAND rating.

Iron Fist Velvet Glove is pretty heavy metal - also is beer 225

Iron Fist Velvet Glove sounds like a Black Sabbath cover band. It also sounds dark, mysterious and a little sexy, right? Well so are Imperial Stouts that clock in at 9%. They're the new red-headed secretaries. You heard it here first.

Stay tuned because next week I'll reveal the face of the Surly Goat! Really wild stuff going on here at MilkisforBabies

I'm definitely starting to appreciate stouts more and more. When I first began the year, stouts were one of my least favorites but not anymore. Smelling a solid chocolate and roasted malt aroma. The alcohol presence is very strong and almost distracting. Still, it's smooth and delicious and an incredibly drinkable imperial stout. BAD BOYS rating.

In a feat of Herculean proportion, I nursed the Velvet Glove for over 2 hours! I'm holding strong to my 1 drink a night rule. Color me impressed (with myself). Thankfully, I had plenty of distractions to turn my attention toward. Props to Don who brought some excellent Foosball players who played the most competitive games I've had here. Lovin' it. And Lisa Z joined the fun at the end of the evening. Another great Friday night at the Goat!

P.S.
Today is a mildly significant milestone and I'm happy to celebrate it at my favorite weekly watering hole, the Surly Goat. The Velvet Glove was beer number 225. 225 days in a row of nourishing beer. That's kinda sumpthin. This is such a great year, so many great experiences with and because of beer. 141 to go...

Cismontane Double Rainbow IPA all the way across the sky...It's almost a triple rainbow. What does it mean?

At the Surly Goat for some beer drinking and Foosball playing, and I'm having a beer that Tiffany has proclaimed delicious. Clocking in at 8.7%, it's an Imperial IPA from Rancho Margarita California, the Double Rainbow.

There is a really unique hop aroma and flavor. It's a very rich floral and citrus profile, like grapefruit. Apparently the use Citra hops, which are very hard to get your hands on if you're a home brewer (to my knowledge). I'm jealous. The result is a smooth and creamy IPA. I highly recommend you try it if you find it, it's a fascinating IPA. Onto a Improv Comedy show with Glen in Hollywood and then The Woods for a birthday party.

Dogfish Head Red and White is the best of both worlds

I saw the Dogfish Head Red & White ale was on tap at the Surly Goat yesterday and I knew that it'd be my beer of the day but I didn't get real excited because it's an experimental beer that's made with wine. I love it when I'm totally wrong (so yes, basically I'm love'n life all the time).


It's a big, Belgian Wit brewed with coriander and orange peel with Pinot Noir juice concentrate added with 11% aged in Pinot Noir barrels and 89% aged on oak barrel staves. Sam Caligione's expertise is incredible - how did he know it should be 11% opposed to 15 or 20%? Amazing.

What's also amazing is that the Surly Goat pours it not from a bottle but from on tap. Awesomeness prevails here.

I can smell the pinot strongly and the wine combines so well with the beer it's not even funny. It's a fantastically balanced beer. A synthesis of the wine and beer elements that is sweet with dark fruits and an easy finish. Did I mention it's 10% alcohol? Usually with beers this strong the alcohol makes it's presence known, but not here. BAD BOYS rating.

Now it's onward to Supper Club for Lisa's birthday! I'm ready to dance on some beds after this red and white.

Russian River Rejection makes it all better

I'm stoked - not only is it Friday, as in Surly Goat Friday, but also because exotic Russian River brews are still on tap! Matt, Ri, Tiff, Glen, Rachel and Ross (they were great on Friends) came out for some pints, Foosball and tomfoolery. My Russian River selection is the Rejection, a limited release which they distribute around Valentines Day and to their credit, they have successfully personified the dark side of that holiday.

On your leg

The style is a dark Belgian ale. The flavor profile is dark, roasted malts with a little chocolate and a very nutty taste that's bitter, like really dark chocolate (think 85% + Cacao). If anything, rejection is bitter...Very clever River Russians. This is only 6.1% though, and you'd think they'd make a 'rejection' beer one that would put you on your ass. Like a forget me now from Arrested Development. Where were you when I need you GOB! This isn't a fantastic beer, but it's certainly noteworthy for a seasonal. TRANSFORMERS rating.

I had an imperial red for my follow up beer, the Coronado Red Devil (10%), and it was fantastic, I'm really looking forward to featuring this beer on the website sometime soon.

Russian River Mortification dissolves my sobriety but not my foosball skills

Friday night at Surly Goat is in full swing with Matt and Ri but sanz Tiffany. I started out with a Red Velvet Ale from Eagle Rock on the happy hour menu and it's really, really good. I can't wait to have it as my beer of the day.

While waiting for others to arrive, I rope two guys in, Charlie and Cameron, to play foosball 1 vs. 2. Turns out Charlie played football at Rice for a year and we talked about Houston for a while. I also discovered that both these guys can destroy the $4 well drinks the Goat offers. If they had four hands, they'd have four drinks. Party on

Love the sign, but the Mortification sure as hell ain't Pabst

Matt and Ri arrive and we set up a seminar at the Foosball table. We set up a clinic and rage for, maybe close to two hours while 80's hair music jams continuously. It's a blur. Halfway through I go for my beer of the day and pick a Russian River because a couple days ago they had the breweries up for a pouring/tasting. I spy the Mortification on tap, a dank 10.5% cuadruple. This is my third or fourth cuadruple in as many weeks (I didn't even know they existed a month ago), and I jump to have it.

The Mortification is a great name for a cuadruple. There's a strong malt chocolate taste mixed with dark fruits. It's not very complex and the alcohol is very apparent, but it's good. I love rich foods - dark chocolate, sinfully chocolate cake - and so I love these dank ass cuadruples. They're bold and rich and help me forget my scruples, darn cuadruples. TRANSFORMERS rating.

Ri and Matt ordered Baby Blues BBQ for dinner and I got some cornbread, which was exactly what the doctor ordered after the 10.5%. I introduced Matt to Pliny the Elder and his mind exploded. Another convert! Notch up another great success at the Surly Goat.

Drake's Hop Salad distracts me from Foosball but not from awesome handshakes

It's Friday, and I know what time it is...Unhappy Rammed Sheep night! No but seriously, Tiffany actually found out tonight the origin for the bar's name. It came about  because the owners had a failed graphic t-shirt venture and had a large quantity of left over t-shirts available with 'Surly Goat.' So they named their bar after it. I feel like that would be like naming my first born child after my unpublished spec screenplay, the Untitled Dennis Dugan Comedy Project. I still believe they could use my help writing the Grown Ups sequel.

We have a huge group here with Tiffany, Matt, Maryelle and Glen, who brought several more excellent friends. We're having a fairly outrageously good time here and these wonderful peeps are inspiring me to break into Eddie Murphy's golden hit featuring Rick James:

After smelling and tasting this salad o' hops, it's safe to presume they named this beer because it's like a mixed fruit salad, but with hops. There's a complexity of hops here that results in a VERY intense pine aroma and taste. And apparently the Drake's brewers eat their mixed fruit salad with grain vodka, because this IPA clocks in a startling 9% alcohol.

The reviews online are overwhelmingly positive for this brew but I'm not a huge fan, it's not well balanced and is a little intense for me. ARMAGEDDON rating.


Of course I played Foosball tonight with Tiff, Maryelle and Glen. Maryelle and I created a handshake that's almost but not quite as cool as this one. Something to aspire too...

The Strand Atticus IPA leads my foosball players to victory

Met coworker Tiff and her high school friends Andrew and Matt at our weekly Surly Goat rendezvous and immediately proceeded with games and beer, which is the best way to finish a workweek.

The man, myth and legend, my Foosball partner, Andrew

I'm not-so-secretly hoping to aspire to be as nerdy as this guy one day: Jedi taught Foosball Skills

Doesn't that Speakeasy sign make the background above the beer look like the ghosts in Pac-Man?

Atticus is statistically one of the least favorite names for a boy (ranked 600th) but that didn't stop the Torrance located The Strand brewery from naming their pale ale's hoppier cousin Atticus.  The IBU is 65 for this IPA and is achieved by Summit, Cascade and Amarillo hops (I'm beginning to list the hops so that I can learn their different tastes and improve my home brewing recipes!).

There is no major aroma and the pale ale body isn't complex but it smooths the hop bite for a balanced mouthful. I like hop complexity and it sticks out from the rest of the IPA pack. It's a solid beer for this competitive gaming Friday night. TRANSFORMERS rating.

Eagle Rock Solidarity starts the party at Surly Goat happy hour

My coworker Tiffany and I started doing the Surly Goat Happy Hour every Friday after work and it's been a boon. They have four or so beers for $4 dollars till 8pm and a host of other unique beers for under $8. Their bartenders are both cool and knowledgeable. For a beer geek, the place is an oasis. More to the point, they also have Foosball. Today's beer was from the local Eagle Rock brewery:

The Solidarity is a black mild ale and pours a great head. She has nice toated malts with a hint of cocoa that goes down light and makes for a good happy hour starter. I could drink a couple of these but I instead branched out for a Firestone Pale Ale (nice hops) followed by the ever gracious, Pliny the Elder. Plus bartendress Amy encouraged me to sample a few beers. Can't beat that night.  Next stop is Korean BBQ and some Hite! TRANSFORMERS rating.

Bootleggers Palomino Pale Ale

After work, I headed to Surly Goat with my coworker Tiffany for some beer drinking and Foosball whooping. I had one of their kolsch happy hour beers, then made it a Russian River night by following up with a Pliny the Elder and then a Blind Pig IPA. Afterwords, I splurged on fast food and came home to find David excited to see me. Or maybe he was just scaring me with his smile. You be the judge.

The Palomino is an interesting pale ale, sweet and hoppy that has a piney flavor without any citrus and fruity notes. But it's crisp and different and I like it. I bought this at our Bootleggers Brewery trip before Christmas but you can now purchase four different Bootleggers beer at Whole Foods, or tag along on our next brewery trip! TRANSFORMERS rating.