Tuesday, December 29, 2009

Beering in Maryland: 21st Amendment


Well we went to Corridor in Laurel and just went crazy stocking up with beer. We got variety packs from Weyerbacher and Erie brewing. Not to mention some random belgian beers imported by the Shelton Brothers and a case of random bombers. Many of these made the trip back, so those reviews are coming soon. I will say we went to town on the Weyerbachers a couple nights ago with the wife's family, but I was able to save one of each style to bring back to Houston.

So I go to my uncle-in-law's house and he and his girl say they try random beers all the time. I picked up some Watermelon Wheat and some IPA both from 21st Amendment. I was super fired up about the WW, not because I'm black, but because I'm a huge huge fan of The Brewing Network. I'm about 2.5 years behind schedule on their podcasts, but one of their sponsors is the Two-One-A, so it's almost like a big deal to try their beer though I've never set foot in California. Not to mention it's in a can, ensuring it's ultra fresh.

Beer Log: Christmas Eve

State: Hanging out with the wife's fam.


The WW had a huge amount of watermelon throughout, without much body from the wheat. This thing truly features watermelon, and sadly a little bit of water. I found it ok but kind of boring. In all reality, this beer would be good for introducing Bud-Miller-Coors drinkers to craft beer. In all reality, probably good to give this to women. Not so much that it's all that great, but it's a representation of what we can do with beer. High 2 Stars. Don't take that ranking to the bank as I didn't do a formal review, which would include my pouring it in a glass. We just drank it out of the can.


My uncle tells me that he and his girl actually make it a point to check out the local breweries when they travel, now that's a FAMU man for ya, and he prefers much hoppier beers. So we ditch the WW and pick up 21st's Brew Free or Die IPA. This is MUCH more like it. Right out of the can I got a very strong cascade hop flavor, great body, and just enough malt for balance. We both agree that this beer is fantastic and much more what we need from the west coast. Not an Imperial IPA, but very strong. 4 Stars. I got a couple of those beers with me back here in Houston.

No comments: