A little taste of VT and others

 I'm over in Granville, NY with my wife and her family this week. I decided to rope my brother-in-law and wife into a tasting this week. Brad, my brother-in-law, jumped on the idea and wanted to do the tasting tonight. So, we went to Poultney, VT, maybe 10 minutes across the NY border, and picked up some brews to taste.

You can see what we tried tonight, in order of left to right. I encouraged my wife and her brother to pick stuff that was from VT or could not be found many other places. Brad picked the Arrogant Bastard Ale, which was fine by me even though you can find it all over the place, because I admit I've probably had the ale or the Stone's Smoked Porter before but did not remember what I thought of either. My wife chose a cider, which is technically not a beer, but I'm glad she did because it practically stole the show. I picked up the first two on the left, Best Brown Ale and Old Hob. I had no previous knowledge of either but the first is from Portland, ME, and the other is from VT and doubtfully reaches where we are from in Rochester.

Notes about these brews:

(1) Gritty McDuff's Best Brown Ale - a deep amber color, with a sour and sweet aroma. I don't like this one as much as Guinness's Extra Stout, which is a long shot comparison because the Guinness is a stout and this is a brown ale, but they were remarkably similar nonetheless. It was more hoppy than malty in balance and had a slightly light mouth feel. More from Great Brewers website here (they do not list the Best Brown Ale on their website even though it is supposedly available year round). 4.1% ABV

(2) Foley Brothers Old Hob - This all German ingredient Altbier had a grainy or alcoholic aroma with a smoky taste, slightly sour with a unique flavor. It was cloudy brown with a creamy head and bittering aftertaste. It also had a full mouthfeel start to finish. Foley Brothers brew beer in small batches so it is hard to find any more detailed information about this beer. 5% ABV 

(3) Stone's Arrogant Bastard Ale - I was really surprised by this one, even though I should have expected it to be as good as it is. I was especially impressed with how balanced this beer was, starting malty and ending perfectly hoppy. It was a reddish deep amber, with great head, warming at 7.2% ABV with a smooth to bitter taste. Notes of sugar, chocolate, toast, caramel and toffee throughout. More here.

(4) Citizen Cider The Dirty Mayor - Good things come out of Burlington, VT and this was no exception. This is perhaps the best cider I've had to date, a limited release cider with ginger and lemon peel. The aroma was all about the ginger and the taste was like sour apples with cane sugar or candied ginger with a bite or Lemonheads. It was slightly carbonated and of straw color. 6.9% ABV See more about Citizen Ciders here.

My favorite on the night: Stone Arrogant Bastard Ale. Hard to beat, though the cider was a close 2nd.