Alright campers, time to end our Summer Vacation beer specials with a trip to beer camp. In previous years Beer Camp was an interesting idea where a bunch of breweries collaborated to make a 12 pack of unique beers. This time the field has expanded to include 30+ breweries but for only 6 beers! A fact that may actually come back to haunt this sampler like the ghost stories of our youth.
Name: Moxee-Moron Imperial Session IPA
Review: I mean it’s not a particularly bad IPA, but it is another IPA that does little to make itself stand out.
Score: The Buffalo: 2.0 — DJ Lvl: 2.0 (We admit full bias here against IPA’s so take these scores as meaningless)
Collaboration of: Bale Breaker, Barley Brown’s Beer, Black Raven, Melvin Brewing, Odell Brewing Company
Instead Try: Maine Brewing Company Peeper, Hobo Steal this Can
Name: Pat-rye-ot Revolutionary Pale Ale
Review: Kind of a real lack of flavor here, but it has the right amount of bitter for a pale. We don’t get any of this ‘apple’ though.
Score: The Buffalo: 4.0 — DJ Lvl: 5.0
Collaboration of: Devil’s Backbone, Dogfish Head, Lawson’s Finest Liquids, Stoudts Brewing, Trillium Brewing
Instead Try: Berkshire Steel Rail, Tuckerman Pale Ale
Name: Sweet Sunny South Table Beer
Review: That is the best of the bunch, and a good table beer. It’s the kind of beer that makes you want to open a Tex-Mex place and just have this in a small ice bucket in the middle of the table ready to go.
Score: The Buffalo: 6.5 — DJ Lvl: 5.5
Collaboration of: Austin Beerworks, Bayou Teche Brewing, Creature Comforts Brewing Company, Funky Buddha Brewery, Wicked Weed Brewing
Instead Try: Allagash House Beer, Rapscallion
Name: West Latitude Session Rye
Review: This is actually okay because for a rye it is very drinkable. It lacks a depth or complexity and doesn’t fully use it’s rye, but a serviceable beer.
Score: The Buffalo: 5.0 — DJ Lvl: 4.5
Collaboration of: Bear Republic, Faction Brewing, Mad River, Magnolia Brewing, Maui Brewing
Instead Try: Stoneface Indian Rye, Avery Rye Saison
Name: Family Values Imperial Brown Ale
Review: It starts off as almost nothing, but then like the startup to an orchestra the instruments begin to play. However they are all drunk and off-key, and with each passing moment they get more and more awful. Like how ‘Family Values’ is used in politics it’s something that seems harmless at first, but is a cancer killing us all in the execution.
Score: The Buffalo: 1.0 — DJ Lvl: 1.0
Collaboration of: August Schell Brewing, Sun King Brewing, Dark Horse Brewing, Half Acre Brewing, Perennial Artisanal Ales
Instead Try: Newcastle (Because that’s at least 4 points better), Smuttynose Old Brown Dog, Pioneer Path of the Unknown
Name: ‘Stout of the Union’ Robust Stout
Review: It’s an overall well balanced stout, and it actually incorporates a bitter component which is rare in stouts, and can be desirable if you’re into that.
Score: The Buffalo: 5.5 — DJ Lvl: 5.5
Collaboration of: Bagby Beer Company, Beechwood Brewing, The Lost Abbey, Smog City, Societe Brewing
Instead Try: Bear Republic Big Bear Black Stout, Bar Harbor Cadillac Mountain Stout
