144. Bison Organic Honey Basil

After enjoying Sullivan's for restaurant week, I was slated to go another restaurant the following day.  Didn't happen.  Ended up staying home and ordering some Chinese food (Crispy honey chicken).  I had the honey basil in the fridge and I figured it would pair well with my food.  

The beer poured a dark amber color with a finger and a half of white head into a pilsner glass.  Light retention, no lacing.  Not attractive so far.  I detected aromas of malt, biscuit, and basil.  The basil is really faint with this one.  

The taste was comparable to the aroma, but came off a little sweeter, probably because of the honey.  The basil was easier to taste, but I'm not quite sure if I liked it.  I like basil, but in my beer?  I know there are breweries that are being even more experimental with flavors, so I don't want to write it off.  It does provide this refreshing feel to it, similar to mint or cucumber in water.  The beer was light bodied with average carbonation.  I do think that this could be better balanced.  I had it before in the past, and now that I've had it again, I'm not all that interested in having it again.  Too many other beers to drink.  Agree or disagree?  Let me know!

Grade: C-

Price Paid: $2.40 (12 oz bottle)

116. Bison Organic Gingerbread Ale

If you couldn't tell, Bison Gingerbread is a holiday/Christmas beer, that I'm finally getting around to drinking here in early April.  No special occasion, just wanted to have a beer with my dinner.

The beer poured a very dark brown into a pilsner glass.  Cappuccino colored head, about a finger worth.  Light retention, decent lacing.  Aromas of gingerbread stand out the most, per the name, which is a good thing.  I could also discern some coffee and cinnamon notes.  

The taste is mostly roasted malts, with some spice characteristics added in.  It's a little disappointing that it's not as complex.  No bitter finish.  Light bodied, maybe even a little watery.  Moderate to high carbonation which was actually offputting for this type of beer.  This might qualify as a decent holiday brew, but I've certainly had better.  I wonder if it has anything to do with being organic.  Agree, disagree?  Let me know!

Grade: C-

Price Paid: $2.19 (12 oz bottle)

32. Bison Organic IPA

From my previous post, I mentioned that I was currently drinking the Bison Organic IPA.  By doing enough reading, I learned that IPAs should be consumed as soon as possible, as the hop taste is lost through time.  The folks from Berkeley, CA (http://www.bisonbrew.com) have worked to concoct organic beers that still taste good (those crazy Californians, what will they think of next?).  I actually had a Bison offering before, the Bison Honey Basil, but I'm not counting that because I can't remember what it tasted like, for the life of me.  No worries, I'll get it back in my system in due time.

Now onto the beer.  I popped the bottlecap and it started to heave over, so I quickly grabbed my pilsner glass and poured out the contents.  Nice light amber color with less than a finger of white head.  Solid lacing on the glass.  I could barely pick up on an aroma..maybe some grassy notes.  I thought I detected bread/biscuit from the malt as well.  It tastes pretty good.  Not overpowering which is probably good for an IPA newbie like me.  Citrus/grapefruit taste all the way down, with that grapefruit coming back in the bitter aftertaste.  Beer didn't feel heavy, at 6% ABV it shouldn't be.  Would make for a solid beer while watching the game.  I know there's too many IPAs out there, so I won't settle on this one, but if I had to choose between domestics and this, I know where I'm going (and it's not domestic).

Grade: B

Price Paid: $2.29 (12 oz bottle)