Downtown Dusty boasts a color true to the amber style, pouring a gorgeous amber or golden-red hue with a creamy white head. The aroma is subtly malty and bready, enticing you to take a deep breath and savor the moment. With the first sip, the maltiness smoothly envelops your palate, urging you to take larger sips than usual. Following the initial malty notes, you’ll notice a delightful interplay of bready and caramel flavors, complementing each other beautifully. On the finish, a faint floral note emerges, accompanied by a mild hop presence that refreshes your palate just enough.

Now, after geeking out over Downtown Dusty’s flavors, let me tell you why I believe it’s the perfect beer for spring and summer—especially in Houston, where they’re practically one and the same. At 5%, Downtown Dusty is crushable, allowing you to enjoy multiple without feeling weighed down, making it ideal for tackling those tasks you’ve been procrastinating, like yard work. Its crispness leaves your mouth dry enough to crave another sip.

And the convenience doesn’t stop there—Downtown Dusty is available in cans to-go and can be found at local grocery stores, making it accessible wherever you are. Plus, the can’s artwork by Kevin Dyer captures downtown Katy and its historic silos and rail line, adding a touch of local history to your beer experience. Be sure to swing by the taproom or check your local grocery store shelves for Downtown Dusty, and if you need assistance locating it, feel free to shoot me a message on IG.

Cheers!

The post Headed out West to meet Downtown Dusty first appeared on Houston Beer Guide.

The post Headed out West to meet Downtown Dusty appeared first on Houston Beer Guide.

Wicked was just unleashed upon us in Houston as the elusive haunted beer mascot from No Label Brewing, Murkey Myers has now broken out of his cage and is on the loose, causing havoc and chaos that we all know and love. Fresh off of winning a Global Crushie for best beer mascot – he has somehow gained more power and is out on the prowl looking for trouble.

October is now the month of Murkey, as Murkey has spread to Vallensons’, Elder Son, Galveston Bay, Project Halo, Megaton, and Senate Avenue – each doing their beer in the style of Murkey Myers. I’m excited to see how Murkey’s tour of chaos turns out and to see everyone’s unique twist on the style. With Murkey’s reach spreading, we must find a way to contain him and lock him back up in the Katy silos. But first, let’s have a little fun with him.

This year, No Label is inviting everyone to embark on a haunted hop quest. Visit all 7 breweries and stamp your Murkey Myers passport for a chance to conjure a special Limited-Edition Month of Murkey tin tacker designed by Anthony Gorrity. Beware: you’ll need to check with each brewery for cryptic clues and info.

Check out the details on the passport here from No Label’s Facebook post: Read More.

Murkey (short for Murkey Myers DIPA) lives true to its name, pours a murky pale gold color and has a very upfront aroma of grapefruit. Pay close attention and you will find a mild citrus and a pine note that lingers on the back end balancing out the nose. Upon the first sip, I immediately notice the grapefruit characteristic from the New Zealand Pacific Sunrise hops. There is also a mild fruit flavor that cuts through the hoppy bitterness that makes this beer very smooth to drink. When I say fruit, think of orange citrus or almost mango-like sweetness that balances out the hop bite and makes it an easy drinker despite the ABV sitting at 7.8%. Even though Murkey seems like a tough guy, his mouthfeel is very soft and smooth. For such a hoppy beer I expected there to be a bit of an overwhelming bite, nonetheless No Label managed to find a beautiful balance with the hop bite and fruit character. The fact that the body isn’t too heavy, and it doesn’t weigh you down or make you bloated making it easy to come back for more, which I struggle to find in a hazy double IPA.

I will be splitting up the visits between days to compare and contrast what differences each brewery will bring to the table with their versions.

Canned Murkey will be releasing on October 13th and can be found at the No Label taproom in Katy, HEB, Total Wine, and in select craft beer bars around town. However, if you visit the brewery beware that Murkey doesn’t catch you off guard and alone, rumor is he already took over GABF and Chicago. Stay safe out there and if you see me at any of these locations, come have a beer with me, and let’s discuss which version was your favorite.

Murkey Beer Release Dates to Know:

**ELDER SON BREWING** – 10/1: ELDER MURKEY

**SENATE AVENUE BREWING** – 10/6: MAYOR MURKEY

**MEGATON BREWERY** – 10/7: RADIOACTIVE MURKEY

**VALLENSON’S BREWING** – 10/12: IMMORTAL MURKEY

**NO LABEL BREWING** – 10/13: MURKEY MYERS

**PROJECT HALO BREWING** – 10/21: MURKEY MEOWERS

**GALVESTON BAY BREWING** – 10/31: WEEKEND AT MURKEY’S

The post Murkey Myers Hazy DIPA Haunts Houston – Passport Challenge from No Label Brewing first appeared on Houston Beer Guide.

The post Murkey Myers Hazy DIPA Haunts Houston – Passport Challenge from No Label Brewing appeared first on Houston Beer Guide.

El Carlito, NL’s award winning German style wheat ale/Weizenbock, has won several knockout awards in the last 3 years including 2021 in the US Open Beer Championship, 2022 Texas Craft Brewers Cup, and most recently – a 2023 New York International Beer Competition. Since then, No Label Brewing has been dominating the regional beer award circuits since the 2021 win. Tom Paynter, Marketing Director of No Label Brewing explains “El Carlito is our first beer in over 8 years to win an international medal, nabbing the US Open medal right after we won two crushies in Summer 2021. Those two things essentially kick-started this era of No Label.” Speaking of awards, No Label cleaned up in the recent Craft Beer Marketing Awards last month.

No Label Brewing Co.’s 2023 Craft Beer Marketing Awards include:

• Global Crushie for Best Can Design on a 32-ounce crowler for “Bottle Cap Crowler”  
• Global Crushie for Best Can Design on an 8 to 15 – ounce can for “Mind Your Own Business Sour IPA” 
• Global Crushie for Best Can Design on an 8 to 15 – ounce can for “Cali Boy West Coast IPA”
• Global Crushie for Best Tap/Tasting Room Experience/Creative Brewery Mural or Installation for “Rail Line Label Wall,” by artist Chris Hernandez
• Gold Crushie for Best Use of Retro Branding for “Old Katy ‘800,’” which honors the heritage of the MKT Rail Line in the historic Rice Silo Yard 
• Global Crushie for Best Brand Identity / Unique Logo Design for “Year 12 Logo” designed by Design Riot
• Global Crushie for Best Brand Identity / Use of Icon or Mascot in Logo or Branding Mascot, for “Murkey Myers DDH DHIPA,” a celebration of Michael Myers 
• Global Crushie for Best Brand Identity / Logo Typography for “Cali Boy Sales Sheet”
• Gold Crushie for Best Brand Identity / Beer Release Calendars
• Global Crushie for Best Merchandise Design / Most Creative Line for ‘Murkey Myers DDH DHIPA” 
• Gold Crushie for Best Ingredient Collaboration for their collaboration with Hound Song Brewing Co.

No Label has always had a special place in my heart. El Hefe, their widely known Hefeweizen was one of my first true loves of my craft beer journey. German style beers especially hefeweizens and any clove dominate beers were always my beer of choice.

When I was told El Carlito was close in taste to El Hefe, I had to get my hands on it. El Carlito is if El Hefe took steroids – and boy, that might an understatement. While enjoying, the first thing I notice is the fragrant aroma of banana and clove that pops out of the glass. Additionally, there is a nice balance of dark fruit esters (think plum or raisins) that lures you in for more. The aroma travels straight to the back of your nose, leaving with a slight fruity after taste. Visually appealing too, El Carlito pours a deep gold with a fluffy slightly off-white head. It provides a refreshing banana and dark fruit upfront that is followed by a mild wheat flavor as the taste lingers in your mouth. The wheat flavor really smooths out the initial sweetness of the fruit and it’s a beautiful example of what balance you want in your German ales. At a bold 8.3% abv, El Carlito drinks much easier than what the ABV suggests, and this could still be a summer crusher for many. Imagine getting all your housework and yard work done on the weekend and popping open a can as a reward – this is definitely THAT beer. One quality I love about El Carlito is its medium body and creamy tongue as it warms the palate but still light enough to enjoy without the feeling of being weighed down. 

In recent news, Houston breweries, especially No Label Brewing, have been really driving home what we’ve known for a while – our beer scene as a whole can compete with most distinguished beer cities out there. With great beers like El Carlito who displays his championship belt proudly on the face of the can, it really feels like a representation of what this beer (and No Label Brewing Co) has to bring to the table. Exciting stuff!

This beer was released just a few weeks ago on Cinco de Mayo and if you are lucky – you might be able to find six packs out in the market at various H-E-Bs and Total Wines. If all else fails, drive out to Katy and enjoy El Carlito on tap in the brewery. With so many fun weekend activities scheduled, No Label always makes the drive out west worth your time. Bringing a non-beer friend? They carry other options to enjoy like cider and sodas. Speaking of things to do, there is a playground to keep your kids entertained while you enjoy a beer. Things get a bit busy during the weekend so check their Facebook page to learn about upcoming events.

Until next time!

No Label Brewing Co. is located at 5351 1st St, Katy, TX 77493.

No Label Brewing Co. | Katy TX | Facebook

The post El Carlito – No Label’s International Champion first appeared on Houston Beer Guide.

The post El Carlito – No Label’s International Champion appeared first on Houston Beer Guide.

Category 25: Fruited American-Style Sour Ale – Total 163 Entries
Gold: Pink, Vallensons’ Brewing Co., Pearland, TX

Category 95: Imperial India Pale Ale – Total 174 Entries
Silver: Cali Boy, No Label Brewing Co., Katy, TX

Category 31: Wood- and Barrel-Aged Sour Beer – Total 82 Entries
Bronze: Sea of Waves, True Anomaly Brewing Co., Houston, TX

I asked Tom Paynter, with No Label Brewing how this concept got kicked off in the first place. He mentioned it was heavy on his mind during his trip back home from Minneapolis. After pitching the idea, the brew teams talked back and forth over a couple weeks to work it in the brew schedule and a beer style was decided among the group. No Label was the obvious choice for production given the capacity of the brewhouse. No Label and Vallensons’ had teamed up with before with the launch of Spa Day IPA back in June 2021 so the label was modified to include True Anomaly as well.

“It’s such a rarity to win a World Beer Cup and it just so happens that we’re all actually good friends – which made it easier to ask Vallensons’ and True Anomaly to join us on this crazy adventure,” said Tom Paynter, No Label’s Co-Owner and Marketing Director. “Collaborations are hard enough, but a three way collaboration – GET OUT OF TOWN!,” says Paynter. “I just hope these guys are still my friends after this week.

No way Tom, I am staying in town for this release. And you should too!

This collaboration beer is a 5% Hazy Pale Ale. According to Untappd (listed under No Label Brewery), it pours pale gold and extremely hazy. This beer features a combination of New Zealand and American hops and tasters can expect the dried apricot and grapefruit aroma with subtle hints of citrus and pine in the finish. The flavor is much like the aroma with grapefruit in the forefront and hints of stone fruit, citrus and pine in the finish. Creamy tongue mouthfeel on a medium body with low bitterness and a dry soft finish. Interesting profile! With shared imagery and similar profile, this beer sounds very much like the Spa Day IPA release.

This beer has a week long release schedule kicking off at No Label Brewing, where it was produced and labeled. The party then will moves to Vallensons’ for a Thursday evening release event. (Being this is one of two breweries in my hometown of Pearland, come say hey!) Finally, the celebrations will blast off north into Downtown Houston at True Anomaly Brewing for the final release event. Six packs of this beer will only be available at each brewery. Each brewery only received 2 halves and 20 cases so this beer is super limited. During the launch party at No Label this past Saturday, six-packs sold out within hours.

In addition to the taproom parties, Triple Brewery Tap Takeovers featuring beers from all three breweries, including Vallenson’s which has never distributed their beer outside of their taproom will be happening all across the city. There will be a total of 7 taps at each tap takeover with 5 happenings this weekend.

Celebration Schedule This Week:

Saturday, November 12th – Taproom Party, No Label Brewing, Katy, Texas
Tuesday, November 15th – Triple Brewery Tap Takeover, Thistle Draftshop, Spring, Texas
Wednesday, November, 16th – Triple Brewery Tap Takeover, Nobi Public House in Webster, Texas
Thursday, November 17th – Taproom Party, Vallensons’, Pearland, Texas
Friday, November 18th – Triple Brewery Tap Takeover, Growler Spot, Fulshear, Texas
Saturday, November 19th – Taproom Party, True Anomaly, Downtown Houston

So grab a pint of this beer (and 6-pack to go if you can) in your area and cheers to Houston beer friendships and out of this world brewing accomplishment taking place in our great city!

Cheers!

The post For All the H: A beer collaboration with/for friends first appeared on Houston Beer Guide.

The post For All the H: A beer collaboration with/for friends appeared first on Houston Beer Guide.

Kemah Suprema

American light lager – Saloon Door Brewing

While being known for their big boozy pastry styled stouts, Saloon Door Brewery in Webster Texas just released their first ‘light’ beer in the taproom. This beer features a light malt bread like character with subtle yeast fruitiness. Because it’s low on the bitterness scale and high carbonation, it leaves behind a clean refreshing finish. This beer can only be purchased in the taproom. For now….this could change real soon.

Gang Plank Gose

Gose – Back Pew Brewing

Coming in at 3.9%, this beer features a pleasant orange and lemon aroma with a slightly salty tart finish. Head brewer Bobby Harl likes to call this beer his “adult Gatorade beer”. This beer is perfect for someone who wants that extra bit of flavor without all the artificial additions. Definitely one of my top picks for summer shotgun beers. Batten down the hatches, down she ‘gose’!

Spa Day IPA

Hazy IPA – No Label Brewing Company and Vallensons’ Brewing Company Collaboration

Who doesn’t love a good spa day? Especially involving good friends. When Valle, Tom and Ryan got together to brew this hazy IPA, they created what I believe is No Label’s best IPA to date. BOOM. Spa Day IPA is a super crushable hazy ipa with a soft creamy mouthfeel that makes day drinking way too easy. What I enjoy most about this beer is the clean hop finish with no lingering after flavor. No hop bath bomb used here – just good clean water chemistry!

Got any other beers we should try this summer? Shoot us a message at cheers@houstonbeerguide.com!

Stay cool out there! Cheers!

The post Houston-area beers you should be drinking this Summer first appeared on Houston Beer Guide.

The post Houston-area beers you should be drinking this Summer appeared first on Houston Beer Guide.

SpindleTap Juiceton, a leading example of the NEIPA style in Houston. | Photo: Larry Koestler

It’s hard to believe it’s been a year since Houston Beer Guide was kind enough to publish “Who Will be Houston’s Tree House or Trillium?” It’s even harder to believe how much progress has been made since I wrote that essay.

My initial hope was that a newcomer to the Houston craft beer scene would come online sometime in 2017 with a near-exclusive focus on New England-Style India Pale Ales. It turns out we’re inching ever closer to the launch of a brewer that has indeed stated its desire to make the NEIPA a core focus, alongside huge Imperial Stouts, in the form of Humble’s Ingenious Brewing, whose long-anticipated doors will hopefully be flung open sometime during the first quarter of 2018.

What I didn’t expect was how many already-existing Houston breweries would not only embrace the style in 2017, but end up making some of the most memorable beers of the year, several of which could hold their own among the upper echelon of brewers of the style. And perhaps the most surprising sidebar of all surrounding Houston’s NEIPA craze of 2017 is that this is one of the few instances I can recall where Houston is not only ahead of Austin in a craft beer category, but absolutely smoking our rival to the west. Outside of Pinthouse Pizza, Austin’s breweries seem to be mostly reluctant to explore the style.

While we’re not quite at what I would consider the best-case scenario: fresh cans of NEIPA available seven days a week, something only Boston can currently claim, Houston has made impressive strides in a very short amount of time. For a period of time over the summer into the fall, Brookshire’s Baa Baa Brewhouse was canning a new NEIPA on a near-weekly basis. Conroe’s Copperhead removed some of the most annoying parts of NEIPA culture, the lines and FOMO, and implemented a wonderful online ticketing system. And SpindleTap began to ramp up its production of new iterations of the style while also helpfully adopting the online-ordering & pick-up-at-your-convenience route, delivering some of my favorite beers of the year in the process.

Progress in 2017

In light of all of the progress Houston has made, here’s a quick look at some of the breweries that have helped build a local world of NEIPA (even if some of them would rather not refer to the style under that nomenclature) that didn’t even exist a year ago:

– B-52, technically the very first in the greater Houston area to produce a hazy, juicy IPA back in November/December 2016, continued to delight palates in 2017, first by canning its popular Wheez the Juice, and following that with subsequent crowler and can releases throughout the year. The brewery has also added milkshake variants of many of its NEIPAs to its offerings.

– Whole Foods has been the city’s most steady producer of NEIPAs, along with accompanying milkshake versions of their beers, with new releases more or less weekly since early summer. Whole Foods and B-52 teamed up several months back to produce a hugely dry-hopped DIPA called Whole Payload, and rumor has it that both breweries will be teaming up again in the not-too-distant future, perhaps with some additional friends.

– Sigma Brewing made waves with its 4XDH Medina Sod, and recently released its most-hopped beer ever, The Apparatus.

– Great Heights became the first Houston brewery ever to launch with an NEIPA, Fruity Pellets, and recently released a more amped-up version, Fruitier Pellets.

– No Label threw its hat into the ring, releasing the successful Sittin’ Sidehaze over the summer, and delivering a second NEIPA at the end of he year, Phaze Two.

– Copperhead brought several big, juicy IPAs to the table while still staying true to the brewery’s DNA, with Feeding Frenzy, Citraddicted and Alpha Serpentus all whetting hophead whistles.

– Baa Baa Brewhouse, one of the the smallest breweries in the greater Houston area, went from brewing the first beer in Houston specifically referred to as a New England-Style India Pale Ale, to creating a small frenzy over the summer with its (very) limited canning runs of its small-batch NEIPAs. I know I’m not the only one hoping that the owners, who still run the brewery as a part-time endeavor, decide to go all-in, especially if they keep producing beers of the caliber they delivered in the second half of 2017. An increase in the hours they are open would certainly be welcome. Baa Baa is one of the most difficult breweries for me to pick up beers from, despite being the second closest brewery to my house. Their typical hours, Saturday from 5-8pm, fall right around dinnertime for those of us with young families. And they often underestimate the demand for their beer, leaving folks out of luck upon arrival, but they should be commended for taking advantage of online ticket sales when demand is expected to be exceptionally high. While I’m wary of stoking the hype fires too dramatically, the leveling up in beer quality and the discomfort caused by limited production that Baa Baa has been going through reminds me of the early days of Tree House in 2012. I suppose there are worse problems to have.

– SpindleTap was the first locally to really nail the hallmarks of what I look for in the NEIPA style with Houston Haze, and things only got better from there. After spending the first few months post-Haze focused on production of their new flagship, the brewery started branching out this past summer, and has since released some stellar examples of what the style can be, including the recently re-released Hops Drop, Draped Up, 5% Tint, and Operation Juice Drop and Juiceton, the latter two of which were my top two local beers of 2017. With the brewery set to release its most heavily-hopped beer ever at the end of January, Heavy Hands DIPA (plus another batch of Juiceton), 2018 is already off to a stellar start.

Raising the Bar in 2018

Now with all said, there’s still plenty of work to be done. For every successful local NEIPA, there’s been at least one that didn’t quite work out the way the brewers likely intended it to. That’s to be expected any time an entire city’s worth of producers begins trying its hand at something that no one had really taken a stab at before, but there’s also going to be less room for error going forward. While I’ve never been afraid to call it like I see it, I’ll also admit to occasionally going into cheerleading mode because I want the style to succeed locally.

Going forward, simply brewing a beer that may carry some of the characteristics of the style without the depth and flavor to back it up may not be good enough. There will be less room for forgiveness for stumbles as the beer drinking community gets increasingly exposed to top-tier examples of the style. With several very good NEIPAs having been brewed locally, not to mention geographical rival Parish elevating its game to what many would consider an elite level, Houston’s breweries will have to continue to iterate on and perfect their techniques while developing new and even more flavorful recipes to continue winning the hearts and minds of the city’s juice fiends.

The good news is, a very solid foundation has been laid, and (I still can’t believe I feel this way from where my head was at 365 days ago) I’m confident that Houston has the talent and passion to not only meet the needs of the city’s lovers of the style, but enter the national dialogue as a sought-after destination of juice bombs as well.

The post One Year Later: Houston Breweries Have Risen to the NEIPA Challenge first appeared on Houston Beer Guide.

The post One Year Later: Houston Breweries Have Risen to the NEIPA Challenge appeared first on Houston Beer Guide.

2017 was a transformative year for craft beer in Houston.

• We saw the rise of the NEIPA (thanks in large part to Larry’s “Who will be Houston’s Tree House or Trillium?” essay) with 8th Wonder, 11 Below, B-52, Baa Baa, Copperhead, No Label, Spindletap, Texian, Whole Foods Market, and others trying their hand at the style.
• Saint Arnold celebrated their 23rd anniversary and 5 local breweries made their own versions of classic Saint Arnold beers.
• We saw Texian and 160ft Beerworks close up shop. Texian plans to return.
• Baileson, Bearded Fox, Great Heights, Texas Leaguer, Vallensons’, and Wicked Boxer opened their doors to the public.
• Both Buffalo Bayou and Saint Arnold are (still) offering Free Beer For Life.
• Chris complained about the lack of on-demand craft beer delivery, and HopDrop delivered in response.
• And in the wake of Hurricane Harvey our city came together, reached out to one another, and got to work helping each other recover. Just about every brewery stepped up in a variety of ways. 8th Wonder used their high clearance vehicles for water rescues. Eureka Heights, Saloon Door, and countless others became donation centers. Saint Arnold spearheaded #ReliefBeers, and breweries from around the country donated $1 per beer sold to the Houston Food Bank, raising $35,000. Spindletap became a local distribution center, even attracting the superstar of Harvey relief – JJ Watt – into the tap room to sort and load supplies on to trucks. Hurricane Harvey will be a rallying point for our community for years to come.

Our Favorite Beers

We like to wrap the year up by sharing our the best local and non-local beer we had in the last year. It’s not an original idea, but it’s fun. We’d love to hear your picks as well!

Chris White

Eureka Heights ‘Mini Boss’ – To think, there was a time I didn’t think much of Eureka Heights’ beers. Dumb names, I said. Boring styles, I said. I was wrong, and Mini Boss represents everything I was wrong about. This beer explodes with citrus, finishes with a balanced bitterness and is enjoyable all the way through. Eureka took the megatrend of 2017 – hopping late with Mosaic and other big flavorful hops (in this case Citra) and hit it out of the park. It’s become a beer I seek whenever a new batch is released.

Listermann Brewing Company ‘Tricky’ (Cincinnati, OH) – I love all of Listermann’s series of NE-style IPAs with old school rap names, but I think Tricky has become the single example by which I have come to judge all comers in this style. Blending the aromatic elements of Mosaic with the pineapple/tropical flavors of Galaxy, it brings hop flavor and aroma from first pop of the 16 oz can and has very little perceptible bitterness – just a soft, clean, juicy finish. Listermann has a special place in my heart because 2017 was also the year I established a beer trading partner in the Cincinnati area (THANKS SAM), and so have been fortunate enough to get my hands on these delicious goodies.

Honorable mention: Galveston Island Brewing DIPA #7, MIA Brewing MEGA MIX Pale Ale, Urban Artifact Gaslight, Societe The Swindler, Odell Rupture Pale Ale, Grand Teton Brewing Teton Range IPA

Tim Spies

Saint Arnold Brewing ‘Icon Red Märzen’ – I am always excited to try a modern take on a classic style. And while there are many misses in the world of beer, Saint Arnold Brewing has proven more than capable in the handling of such styles. So as I expressed in my review of Icon Red Märzen, I was more than pleased with the results. A great representation of the style, and one that I hope will return with their regular fall lineup every year.

The Answer Brewpub ‘I Like Turtles’ (Richmond, VA) – Maybe it’s just me, but rarely do collaborations work out as well as I hope or expect. Two great breweries combining must always produce great outcomes, right? But sadly, seldom do such high expectations equal results. I Like Turtles is an extraordinary gem that greatly exceeds such desires. This collaboration between The Answer Brewpub and Bottle Logic Brewing is a delightful stout with caramel and southern pecan coffee and toasted coconut. This beer sets a deliciously high standard I hope more collaborations can meet.

Alice Hicks

Eureka Heights ‘Mini Boss’ – In short: liquid gold. I should not be surprised how good Mini Boss is given the strength of Eureka Heights’s output so far, but I was struck by its deliciousness at first sip. A grapefruit nose gave way to crisp, clean citrus and tropical flavors dancing on my tongue. At 6.8% ABV I am glad I don’t have to worry much about crushing too many of this double dry-hopped wonder, but it’s still dangerously drinkable.

Great Notion ‘Double Stack’ (Portland, OR) – I confess I had never heard of Great Notion Brewing before a friend mentioned it, which is actually a bit of a surprise since I visit Portland, Oregon and the surrounding area every other year. But with 70 breweries in Portland proper alone, it’s not hard to miss one. Now I know where I am going next time as soon as my plane hits the tarmac! Double Stack is a decadent treat. An imperial breakfast stout brewed with Portland’s Clutch coffee and Vermont maple syrup, Great Notion nails the flavor: the brew makes me feel as if I have been transported back to childhood and stuffed myself with stacks of syrup-doused pancakes.

Nathan Miller

B-52 ‘A Tart Frenchie – Peach & Apricot’ – Admittedly, I didn’t get to try as many new Houston beers this year as I’d like, but most of the ones I did try in my few trips back home or from boxes sent to me were very good. I think that my favorite was probably B-52’s “A Tart Frenchie – Peach & Apricot,” which was lightly tart, very well-balanced, and extremely refreshing, without hiding any of the delightful fruit flavor. It reminded me a little of some of the beers I’ve had from California’s Good Beer Co, which are absurdly delightful for many of the same reasons. It’s clear from this beer and others that I’ve now had from the growing Conroe brewery that B-52 is a force to be reckoned with, having already earned my vote for Houston’s second best brewery, rising with a bullet.

Cantillon ‘Nath’ (Brussels, Belgium) – December 1st, 2012, I was sitting at the Avenue Pub awaiting my taste of that year’s “Zwanze,” a special beer created by the Brussels brewery once a year. That year, it was a lambic with rhubarb added, and I recall not getting a lot of rhubarb flavor but still immensely enjoying it. Fast forward to August 26 of this year, and I’m sitting at Cantillon, trying my first bottle of Nath, the newest rhubarb lambic. This time, there’s a lot more rhubarb, with a fantastic balance, an incredible aroma, and an amazing lambic “canvas.” I was fortunate enough to try Nath one more time this year, on tap a month later (again at Avenue Pub for Zwanze day), and found the rhubarb slightly more muted, serving as a bridge to that memory from five years ago. And of course, it doesn’t hurt that it has such a great name…

Jose Luis Cubria

Eureka Heights ‘Mini-Boss’ – My favorite Houston IPA, and the beer that made me forget about Yellow Rose’s quality-control issues. It’s deliciously fruity, and the tropical/citrus notes hit you the moment you start pouring. It’s scary how quickly a crowler of this can disappear. (Honorable mention: the various barrel treatments of Saint Arnold DR17.)

Boon Geuze ‘Mariage Parfait’ (Halle, Belgium) – On the short-list for my desert-island beer, and an insta-buy every time I see it. The fact that this is now a Houston shelf beer blows my mind. For my tastes, it’s a perfect gueuze, and a perfect beer.

Kenneth Krampota

The post Our Favorite Beers of 2017 first appeared on Houston Beer Guide.

The post Our Favorite Beers of 2017 appeared first on Houston Beer Guide.

Photo: Larry Koestler

With the six-month anniversary of my challenge to local breweries to start brewing the hottest beer style in the country — the New England-Style IPA (NEIPA) — rapidly approaching, now seemed like as apt a time as any to check in and see where things stand, especially in light of the unexpectedly impressive amount of style-related activity we’ve seen during this timeframe.

It’s worth noting that there seems to be something of a dividing line among local breweries, with some fully embracing the NEIPA nomenclature — and it’s not going anywhere, with sites like BeerAdvocate and Untappd recognizing its ubiquity and distinctiveness from the classic West Coast-Style IPA and opting to finally categorize it as its own thing — while others seem reluctant to hop on what they presumably perceive as a regional bandwagon phenomenon, and instead have chosen to offer up their own interpretations that are generally described with non-location-based adjectives like “hazy.”

Regardless of what school of thought you subscribe to on the topic of “NEIPA” taxonomy, there have been a slew of beers released in the past six months that many would agree live up to the hallmarks of the NEIPA — aromatic, juicy, soft, creamy, hazy, massively citrus/tropical-forward, and relatively minimal bitterness. Also, while some consider “milkshake”-style beers to be a part of the NEIPA canon — which is totally fine by me! — I personally do not, as I find the flavor profiles of those beers to be different enough that I’m not quite convinced that they belong in the same category (though I could very well be persuaded otherwise! Admittedly I do not have anywhere near as much experience with milkshake IPAs), and so this list does not include those beers.

By my count — and, try as I might, it’s possible I may miss a few, as there really have been a lot of releases — the following should be a mostly comprehensive list of local beers that have been brewed in the style (this list only includes officially released beers, not pilot batches):

• 8th Wonder – S.L.A.B.
• B-52 – Wheez the Juice (16-oz. cans)
• Baa Baa Brewhouse – Cat and the Fiddle
• Baa Baa Brewhouse – Cow Jumped over the Moon (12-oz. cans)
• Baa Baa Brewhouse – Ennie (12-oz. cans)
• Baa Baa Brewhouse – The Little Dog Laughed
• Copperhead – Feeding Frenzy (12-oz. cans)
• Copperhead – Kangaroo Killer
• No Label – Sittin’ Sidehaze
• Sigma – 4X DH Medina Sod
• SpindleTap – Houston Haze (16-oz. cans)
• Whole Foods Market Brewing Co. – Detonate
• Whole Foods Market Brewing Co. – DL Double (hasn’t historically been one, but recent Untappd checkins would seem to indicate a revised recipe)
• Whole Foods Market Brewing Co. – Haze Phaze
• Whole Foods Market Brewing Co. – Hop Explorer X
• Whole Foods Market Brewing Co. – Hop Explorer XI
• Whole Foods Market Brewing Co. – NEAF
• Whole Foods Market Brewing Co. – Overcast
• Whole Foods Market Brewing Co. – Scattered Showers
• Whole Foods Market Brewing Co. – Spottie Oaty
• Whole Foods Market Brewing Co. – Steady Sippin’
• Whole Foods Market Brewing Co. – Tropical Storms

Which ones do I like best? Drop me a line on Twitter and I’d be happy to have a conversation about it.

The above doesn’t even include forthcoming Ingenious Brewing Co., which expects to open in Humble later this summer, and which I previewed back in February. The duo has had a busy spring, setting up free tastings across the greater Houston-area and further tweaking their already-delicious recipes while adding a slew of additional beers to their portfolio. Highlights include a revised Hop Delivery System, which is now a Double IPA, and Northeast Houston IPA, also retooled as a DIPA.

Photo: SpindleTap Brewery

And lastly, I’m excited to announce that I’m collaborating with SpindleTap and Boston homebrewer Rich Wein on a hazy, juicy double NEIPA called Juiceton, which should be out in cans in the first half of August. Juiceton will be a hazy, juicy AF DIPA clocking in at 8.0%, with the creamy, soft, pillowy mouthfeel you love, propping up heroic quantities of Citra, Mosaic, and Simcoe. Hit with multiple rounds of dry-hopping, this worthy successor to Houston Haze will deliver that massively tropical and fruit-forward hop flavor we all crave.

The post Houston Embraces the Haze Craze first appeared on Houston Beer Guide.

The post Houston Embraces the Haze Craze appeared first on Houston Beer Guide.

If you’d like to have your event included, send an email to info@houstonbeerguide.com with the subject line “July Event Calendar.” Please include the date & time, a brief description of the event, the location, and a Facebook event link if available.

Saturday, July 1st

City Acre’s 1st Anniversary Party | 11am-5pm| City Acre is turning one! To celebrate, they’ll have special beers on tap all day (some new, some past favorites), a German food buffet, and bottles to go of their Skull Creek Kolsch aged on City Acre grown blueberries, dewberries, and blackberries.
This is a ticketed event.
More details on Facebook | Ticket link

Fetching Lab is, well, open | 1pm-5pm | Fetching Lab is only open one or two weekends a month, and even then only depending on the weather. The brewery is on the same property as their house, which is sure to make any homebrewer envious. The brewery is dog friendly, kid friendly, and horse friendly, but bring your own chair.
More details on Facebook

Local Brews Local Grooves at House of Blues | 3pm-10pm | The beer list for this annual event is too long to list. If you like Houston beer, your favorite brewery will probably be pouring beer here. There are multiple ticket tiers, some of which include a Saint Arnold beer dinner before the event.
This is a ticketed event.
More details on Facebook | Ticket Link

Town in City’s First Of JuLuau Party | 6pm-11pm | Town in City is celebrating the beginning of July. They’ll have Blood Brothers BBQ serving Hawaiian food, Hot Rod Pops serving frozen popsicles, and Reggae band Dem will be providing the grooves. They’ll also have some special tropical themed beers available.
More details on Facebook

Bike Ride and Hot Dog Eating Contest at TBR | 12pm-6pm | Join Texas Beer Refinery for their Independence Day celebration. Join 1 mile the “bike parade” from the taproom to the brewery at 12:15, and head back for the hotdog eating competition. There will also be live music starting at 2 and they’ll have “Cloud Nein” a German IPA brewed in collaboration with Wurst Haus.
This is a ticketed event.
More details on Facebook | Ticket Link

Running Walker’s Official Grand Opening | 12pm-11pm | Running Walker is officially opening their outdoor beer garden this weekend. They’ll have food trucks and live music all day to celebrate.
More details on Facebook

Tuesday, July 4th

Fourth of July Celebration at No Label | 12pm-7pm | It’s a day of contests at No Label: hotdog eating, watermelon seed spitting, and dog costumes. They’ll have beer available by the pint, plus food trucks and music throughout the day.

Friday, July 7th

Bishop’s Gone Wild Bottle Release at B-52 | 3pm-? | B-52 will be releasing their Saint Arnold tribute beer, a sour amber ale with raspberries and blackberries, at the brewery at 3pm. Limits will be based on turnout.

Bishop’s Gone Wild Bottle | Photo: B-52 Brewing

Saturday, July 8th

Saint Arnold Pub Crawl Downtown | 2pm-6pm | It’s time for the annual downtown pub crawl. Stop at any one of the locations below between 2pm and 3pm to get a punch card. Your route and stops will vary depending on where you start. Meet everyone at Market Square Park at 6 to redeem your fully stamped card for your Pub Crawl pint glass. You don’t have to drink at every stop to earn the stamp. After the pub crawl, Ishi and The Waxaholics will be performing at Market Square Park.

Stops: El Big Bad, Springbok, Molly’s Pub, Flying Saucer, OKRA Charity Saloon, Christian’s Tailgate, Conservatory, Batanga, Boots ‘n Shoots, Bovine & Barley, Nightingale Room, Shay McElroy’s, Little Dipper, Market Square Park
More details on Facebook

Monday, July 10th

Houston Haze Release at SpindleTap | 3pm-Saturday, July 15th | The newest batch of Houston Haze will be released on Monday at 3pm. As long as supplies last, it will also be available Tuesday-Thursday from 9am-6pm, Friday from 9am-9pm, and Saturday from 12pm-pm.

Friday, July 15th

Cubano and Craft at SpindleTap | 12pm-6pm | Experience a day of Cuban culture, Cuban cuisine, and craft beer. They’ll also have a cigar rolling station.
More details on Facebook

Belgian Beer Week kicks off at Flying Saucer Downtown | July 15 – July 21st

Saturday – Saison Saturday – Discounted Saison Bottles + BYO Saison Flight: Funkwerks Brett Saison, Funkwerks Tropic King, BLVD Tank 7, BLVD Saison Brett, Saison Dupont, Southern Star Summer Saison and more.
Sunday – Belgian Bottle Bottle Release: Large Format and rare Belgians from the cellar.
Monday – $3 Belgian Drafts + Maredsous Chalice Release
Tuesday – Victory Trivia – $5 Victory Golden Monkey all day long + Victory Hoppy Quad at 6pm.
Wednesday – Belgian Flight – De Ranke Tripel, Da La Senne Zinnebir and more.
Thursday – Belgium comes to America – The Bruery Sans Pagaie at 6pm.
Friday – Belgian National Day – Build Your Own Belgian Flights + Cantillon Tapping at 7pm
More details on Facebook

Sunday, July 16th

Feast of Saint Arnold | 5pm-8:30pm | Feast of Saint Arnold is Saint Arnold’s annual fundraiser for Texas Children’s Hospital’s Inflammatory Bowel Disease Center. It’s a 4 course meal (plus hors d’oeuvres and dessert) served family style like a medieval feast. Plus beer, of course.
More details on their website: www.saintarnold.com/feast-of-saint-arnold/

Sunday, July 23rd

Screwed Up Sunday at 8th Wonder | 11am-6pm | 8th Wonder’s annual event paying tribute to DJ Screw is back. The event will include music (of course), an interactive live artshow with Donkeeboy, and a DJ Screw pint glass with 3 beer tokens.
More details on Facebook

Friday, July 28th

Sangria bottle release at B-52 Brewing | 3pm-? | B-52 is releasing their red & white wine barrel aged saison that has been re-fermented with wild yeast, pink guava, blood orange, blackberries & raspberries.

Saturday, July 29th

Xmas in July at Buffalo Bayou | 6pm-9pm | This year’s annual event features a commemorative glass, all you can (responsibly) drink beers, and an ugly sweater contest.
This is a ticketed event.
More details on Facebook | Ticket Link

Board Game Bonanza at Flying Saucer Downtown | 12pm-6pm | Tea & Victory is bringing their library of over 200 board games to the Flying Saucer in downtown Houston.
More details on Facebook

Flying Saucer Board Game Bonanza – July 29th

August Preview

Aug 3 – IPA Day at the Flying Saucer Downtown
Aug 6 – Root Beer Float Day Celebration at Saint Arnold
Aug 10 – Beer dinner & cooking demo at City Acre
Aug 19 – “Nuke the Whales” bourbon barrel imperial milk stout release at Eureka Heights
Aug 20 – Flying Saucer Downtown’s 17th Anniversary Party

Don’t see an event near you? Use our Brewery Map to find somewhere new to visit.

The post Houston Beer Events – July 2017 first appeared on Houston Beer Guide.

The post Houston Beer Events – July 2017 appeared first on Houston Beer Guide.

If you’d like your event included, send an email to info@houstonbeerguide.com with the subject line “June Event Calendar.” Please include the date & time, a brief description of the event, the location, and a Facebook event link if available.

Thursday, June 15th

Saint Arnold Tribute Beers at Hughie’s | 6pm-10pm | All 5 tribute beers will be on tap along with several Bishop’s Barrel Beers. (More info about the Saint Arnold Tribute beers here.)
More Details on Facebook

Ingenious Brewing Tasting at Craft Beer Cellar | 5pm | Ingenious will be doing a free tasting of their Vanilla Coffee Cream Ale and Pineapple FroYo IPA.
(More info about Ingenious Brewing here.)

Houston Ladies of Craft Beer Monthly Meet-up at Heights Bier Garten | 6pm-9pm | Are you a lady that likes craft beer? This is a great chance to meet like-minded ladies.
More details on Facebook

Friday, June 16th

Sittin Sidehaze Release at No Label Brewing Co. | 3pm | No Label is releasing their new NEIPA, Sittin Sidehaze (a reference to Paul Wall’s Sittin’ Sidewayz for those not in the know).
As a reminder, No Label cannot offer beer to-go.

Saturday, June 17th

B-52 Brewing’s 3rd Anniversary Party | 12pm-7pm | 31 beers available including over a dozen fruited sours, several “smoothie” beers, and bottles of a blend of 3 barreled saisons available to-go.
This is a ticketed event.
More details on Facebook | Ticket Link

B52 Brewing | 3 Year Anniversary Blend Wild Ale

Galveston Island Brewing’s 3rd Anniversary Party | 12pm-9pm | The brewery will be releasing special batches throughout the day. This looks to be a pretty kid-friendly event with facepainting and balloon art (in addition to their on-site playground).
More details on Facebook

Holler Loudly Double IPA release at Liberty Station | 5pm-10pm | Holler Brewing will be releasing their new 9.7% Double IPA, hopped with Galaxy and Nelson Sauvin. They’ll also have 3 variations on tap.
More details on Facebook

Ingenious Brewing Tasting at Hop Scholar Ale House | 2pm | Ingenious will be doing a free tasting of their ust Juicy Mango IPA and Blueberry Crumble Stout.
(More info about Ingenious Brewing here.)

Monday, June 19th

Saint Arnold Tribute Beers at Down The Street | 5pm-10pm | Down the Street will have the tribute beers from Brash, B-52, Eureka Heights, and Southern Star as part of their “Steak & Flights Night” event. Beers, steak, potatoes, and salad for $16.
More details on Facebook

Thursday, June 22nd

4th Tap Brewing Houston Launch Party at Conservatory | 7pm | 4th Tap out of Austin is celebrating their launch in Houston with a party at Conservatory.
More details on Facebook

Sunday, June 25th

Whiskey, Beer, and Tacos with Saint Arnold BB18 at Eight Row Flint | 12pm-3pm | Eight Row Flint is hosting a tasting of 3 WhistlePig Rye Whiskey variations along with Saint Arnold’s BB18, which was aged in WhistlePig Rye Whiskey barrels. Plus, tacos!
This is a ticketed event.
More details on Facebook

Cherry Medusa release at Copperhead | 4pm-8pm | Copperhead has added cherry puree to their popular Belgian style Quad, Medusa. A $40 ticket gets you a Copperhead goblet, a pour of the beer, and two 4-packs to take home.
This is a ticketed event.
Ticket link

Thursday, June 29th

Liquid Lunch live broadcast at Tapped Drafthouse | 11am-2pm | Texas’ best live midday craft beer show will be broadcasting from Tapped. Head there and grab a beer, or tune in to their broadcast at your desk and imagine you’re anywhere but at work.
More details on Facebook

Premium Draught | Saint Arnold Tribute Night

Saint Arnold Growler Tribute at Premium Draught | 11AM thru July 2nd | Try all 5 of the Saint Arnold tribute beers and take growlers home. Premium Draught will have all 5 on tap, plus the Saint Arnold and Sierra Nevada Beer Camp beer until they run out.
(More details about the Saint Arnold tribute beers.) (More details about the Saint Arnold and Sierra Nevada Beer Camp collaboration beer.)
More details on Facebook

Bonus: Saturday, July 1st

City Acre’s 1st Anniversary Party | 11am-5pm| City Acre is turning one! To celebrate, they’ll have special beers on tap all day (some new, some past favorites), a German food buffet, and bottles to go of their Skull Creek Kolsch aged on City Acre grown blueberries, dewberries, and blackberries.
This is a ticketed event.
More details on Facebook | Ticket link

Fetching Lab is, well, open | 1pm-5pm | Fetching Lab is only open one or two weekends a month, and even then only depending on the weather. They’re dog friendly, kid friendly, and horse friendly.
More details on Facebook

Local Brews Local Grooves at House of Blues | 3pm-10pm | The beer list for this annual event is too long to list. If you like Houston beer, your favorite brewery will probably be pouring beer here. There are multiple ticket tiers, some of which include a Saint Arnold beer dinner before the event.
This is a ticketed event.
More details on Facebook | Ticket Link

Town in City’s First Of JuLuau Party | 6pm-11pm | Town in City is celebrating the beginning of July. They’ll have Blood Brothers BBQ serving Hawaiian food, Hot Rod Pops serving frozen popsicles, and Reggae band Dem will be providing the grooves. They’ll also have some special tropical themed beers available.

Bike Ride and Hot Dog Eating Contest | 12pm-6pm | Join Texas Beer Refinery for their Independence Day celebration. Join 1 mile the “bike parade” from the taproom to the brewery at 12:15, and head back for the hotdog eating competition. There will also be live music starting at 2 and they’ll have “Cloud Nein” a German IPA brewed in collaboration with Wurst Haus.
This is a ticketed event.
More details on Facebook | Ticket Link

Running Walker’s Official Grand Opening | 12pm-11pm | Running Walker is officially opening their outdoor beer garden this weekend. They’ll have food trucks and live music all day to celebrate.
More details on Facebook

Don’t see an event near you? Use our Brewery Map to find somewhere new.

The post Houston Beer Events – June 2017 first appeared on Houston Beer Guide.

The post Houston Beer Events – June 2017 appeared first on Houston Beer Guide.