Beer of the Week

The beer: Long Jawns

The brewery: Yards Brewing Company, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Description (from the website): "When it's cold as a kegerator outside, you need a smooth and delicious winter lager to warm up your insides. So button up your trapdoor, and get ready to hibernate, because it's gonna be a Long Jawn winter."

Would I buy it again? Sometimes the winter lagers mix in a few too many spices, straying from the maltiness that mark a good lager. This is not one of those. There are certainly hints of those spices (ginger, cinnamon, etc.), but they're not overpowering. The lager remains at the forefront here, which is to the beer's benefit. I would definitely buy this again. 

Beer of the Week

The beer: Basic Bee

The brewery: Black Flag Brewing Company, Columbia, Maryland

Description (from Untappd): "Our pumpkin pie ale for all the Ugg-boot-wearing, PSL-loving souls out there. Brewed with real pumpkin, honey, cinnamon, nutmeg, and vanilla, it’s basically autumn in a glass. Smooth, slightly sweet, and perfectly spiced, this beer pairs well with flannel selfies, leaf piles, and pretending you’re at a pumpkin patch for the ’gram. Grab one before your yoga class—because we know you literally can’t even wait for fall."

Would I buy it again? Not exactly the time of year for pumpkin pie beer, but it was available and looked good, so why not? The maple syrup definitely intrigued me. Unfortunately, this beer didn't really do all that much for me. Not that it was bad; more that the flavor was muddled. I think they threw a few too many things into this particular pumpkin beer. When you have five different strong flavors all fighting for dominance, it ends up not tasting like anything other than sugar. I really didn't get any pumpkin, which is ridiculous considering what this beer is. So, I'd probably pass on this in the future.