Brooklyn Pennant Ale

Baseball season has begun! Definitely my favorite time of the year. I have been saving this stuff in my fridge for when a game is on, being the sentimental guy that I am. It is a smooth, balanced beer with a little more malt and nutty than I was expecting. The malt goes a long way to counteract the other flavors but it doesnt end up making the beer taste like King Cobra or something ridiculous. Nothing extraordinary here but you cant expect every beer to blow your mind. I was expecting something a little crisper, more of a Summer brew but then I realized that pennants are won in the Fall. Stupid me, drinking this beer six months too early!

I wish Brooklyn Pennant Ale was served at ballparks rather than the swill you have to put up with. Good beer here, worth the top dollar most places ask for? Maybe not.

Brooklyn Local 1

'In Williamsburg, Brooklyn, we forge barley malt and hops from Germany, aromatic raw sugar from Mauritius and yeast from Belgium into our latest beer, Brooklyn Local 1. Behind the full golden color you'll find an alluring aroma, a dynamic complex of flavors. Belgian flair, Brooklyn fortitude and a dusting of our special yeast. To create this beer, we use the old technique of 100% bottle re-fermentation, a practice now rare even in Europe. It gives this beer a palate of unusual depth. Enjoy it locally or globally, as an aperitif or with your favorite dishes. It is particularly nice with spicy seafood and with fine cheeses.'

My buddy who really loves sweet beers (Leary) told me to check this out, which should have been a warning sign right there that this stuff would have a little sugar in it. I can tell it's really well made and it tastes good to me, it just feels wasted on someone with my palette. If you are very into Belgian style beers this stuff will make your week, hell it might make your month. To everyone else its 'one of those' beers, albeit an incredibly well crafted one.

At first I taste the acidic flavors when I drink this. Citrus is of course a major theme here but there is a nice aftertaste of cinnamon and cane sugar which adds a lot to this brew. I suck at this. Im going to level with you, this tastes like a lot of other beers of this ilk to me. It's not the beer's fault, believe me it tastes pretty good, I just can't pinpoint why. Most beers of this style make me feel like a kid finishing his vegetables, Local 1 does not make me feel like that whatsoever. Thats about the best I can do guys, sorry.

Please comment about how great this beer is, I wish I could bottle the rest of it up and give it to someone who could better appreciate it.

Brooklyn Brown Ale

'Richly mahogany in color, Brooklyn Brown Ale is richer and hoppier than its mild and malty English forebears. Chocolate and coffee flavors punctuate the roasty malt background. Brooklyn Brown is brewed with malted barley, hops, water and yeast, and will taste best before the freshness date...' You get the idea.

Brooklyn Brown Ale is very nutty in flavor, to a fault. I find that many ales that have a prefix before 'ale' overcompensate whatever flavor they are going for. That may in fact be selling Brooklyn Brown Ale short because of a recent observation but they definitely are the perfect example of this. So yeah, take a bunch of nuts and coffee beans and add water and alcohol. There you go- Brooklyn Brown Ale. I found it a chore to drink two of these beers. Someone once told me this was the American NewCastle, I hope they were not taking a shot at America itself. Not recommended!