Allagash Pastiche
Style: Imperial Amber
Abv: 8.5%
Size, Price: sm, $8
In literature, a “pastiche” is an original work done in the style of a previous work, artist, or period: as if you
decided to write an original symphony that reminded you intensely of something by Tchaikovsky. “Pastiche”
by Allagash is a barrel-aged blend of four different ales aged in twice as many barrels, much the way
Belgian Lambric producers barrel age and blend their fermentations to create their perfect house style. The
beers in this blend use various local malts and were created specifically for Pastiche by their team of senior
brewers. Barrels included in the aging process were: rye whiskey, vermouth, port, rum, bourbon, red wine,
gin, and brandy. After aging the beers between three and four months, the brewers got together and
blended them all into a single, unified whole called Pastiche. This complex amber beer contains notes of
caramel, dried fruit, spirits, and oak. Very limited production, we’re very lucky to have it.
DEVILS PURSE HANDLINE KOLSCH
Style: Kolsch
Abv: 5%
Size, Price: lg, $8
Devil’s Purse is based out of South Dennis, MA, down the Cape. Two home-brewing buddies turned their
passion into a business, and brewed their first commercially viable test batch in early 2015. They focus on
making tradition-inspired, approachable beer from the highest quality ingredients. Their interpretation of a
German-style kolsch, Handline is mildly hopped with Vanguard. This unfiltered rendition has pleasant
aromas akin to lemon zest and cut grass, with a dry finish and refreshing taste.
HALF ACRE PLANE WAVE
Style: IPA
Abv: 6%
Size, Price: Lg, $8
Half Acre, out of Chicago, made the Plane Wave as a mashup of two of their taproom-only beers,
highlighting the impact of English yeast and malts when combined with a more traditional American hop
profile. This is an incredibly limited release, they don’t even go to MA according to their website, so WTF,
Mike, how did we get this?? Don’t ask, just sell it and say thank you.
A plane wave is a complicated bit of theoretical math, wherein astrophysicists can use the infinitely uniform
amplitude of a signal to figure out a star’s distance from Earth or some shit. I dunno...I haven’t done math
besides counting change since high school. I’m not sure what the heck that has to do with this beer; I
assumed that they meant a Wave out of an airPlane window (hi mom!), as in you’re over the Atlantic and
sayin “hey girl hey” to both the English maltiness and the American hopiness of the IPA style...you decide
what to tell your guests.
EXHIBIT “A” LEITMOTIF OPUS 7
Style: Kettle Sour
Abv: 4%
Size, Price: Lg, $7.75
Another fancy-named beer, the Leitmotif series does what it’s name implies: it is a variation on a theme. All
of the beers are kettle sours made with minimal intervention, sharing some common threads, but they all
make you feel just a little different. This is the seventh brewing (hence “opus 7”) of this series. This
particular version was brewed with blackberries, pink guava, and pineapple in the kettle. It has a light sour
flavor with tropical fruit notes and a crisp, refreshing finish.
CITIZEN DIRTY MAYOR
Style: Ginger Cider
Abv: 5.2%
Size Price: Lg $7.50
So the cats up at Citizen Cider in VT are some funny dudes. I think reading what they have to say about
their beer is one of my favorite things, and the Dirty Mayor doesn’t disappoint:
“We offer this cider to the honorable and fully infamous mayor of the only non-town in America, Fort Ethan
Allen, USA. The mayor likes his cider with a ginger nip, so in our current effort to ensure local harmony and
diplomacy we offer this cider up to the mayor and his fellow citizens.”
Fresh, zippy, and wicked crisp. The apples are grown and pressed in Middlebury, VT.
TROEGS, NUGGET NECTAR
Style: Imperial Amber
Abv: 7.5%
Size, Price: 16 oz., $8.00
This previously was a spring seasonal from Troegs. They add whole-flower Nugget hops to their hopback
vessel during the brewing of their imperial amber.
Nose and Flavor: Intensely hoppy, exploding with citrus, resin, and pine aromatics. A slightly sweet
undertone due to the amber malt, but definitely a beer for hopheads.
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