Bottle at Chris_o Shindig. Black with beige head. Lovely fruit. Nice beer, good intense choc. I really like it.

December 2007 update: the third time’s the charm. Shorts finally shipped an uninfected barrel to a Lansing bar, this time Reno’s West. Previous samples at Crunchy’s in East Lansing and Brannigan Bros. in Lansing were drain pour butter bombs. This time, there was not a hint of butter or funk. Instead, the rather complex fruit component shined. Raspberries seemed most prominent. Mainly fruit and warming, slightly prickly alcohol. I find that fermented fruits leave residual sugars but little heft, the result sometimes feeling like an alcoholic seltzer with a discernible thinness of palate. This was the case here. I still liked this beer, and it was considerably better than the bad batches I previously sampled.

Old review:On tap at Crunchy’s, East Lansing. Hazy light orange body, medium off-white head. Aroma and flavor plagued by diacetyl, which overwhelmed any fruit flavors that were supposed to be present. Sweet, definitely, with a burnt caramel character. Too bad this passed QC. Rating: 5-3-5-2-9 (2.4).

RBSG07. From 75 cL bottle. Pours hazy yellow with a white head. Aroma of grapefruit floral hops. Flavour is malty mild sweet and very floral. Decent bitterness in the finish. Good bitter finish.

A $15 pilsner. It is good, even if ridiculously overpriced. Well carbonated. A bright, gold color and a tall white head. It has a nice pilsner bitterness with medium bodied malt and considerable hops.

750 mL bottle-tag says 4-20-06. Boy, if price and packaging is indicative, this should be out of this world. Comes in a big bottle, nice label, an attached tag with information and the like... fancy. The original price on this was $20, so they’re obviously pretty proud of it, too. I got a nice closeout deal on it... 5 bucks. Figured it might be worth trying at that price. Pour is pretty nice... golden color with some amber shades. Head on the first glass was about three fingers and it’s dying down as I type, leaving lots of nice lacing on the side of the glass. Aromas are interesting and somewhat unique... lemon peel, grass, floral hops and maybe a touch of grapefruit hiding in the background. It’s not an overpowering nose, but pleasant. First impression of the flavor is that the alcohol is a little out of balance and takes it in an astringent direction without enough of a malt body to support it well. It seems like as it sits and breathes a little it is becoming a little more managable. Flavors are still a little bitter, though. Lemon peels and summer grass are my best description, with that alcoholic unbalance pulling things away from purely enjoyable. Still, nice. I’d be willing to pay $5...

Sampled at the 2nd annual Michigan Winter Beer Festival, Lansing. Above average IPA. Hazy orange body, thin buff head. Big medicinal hops aroma- spicy and strong. Strong bitter piney hops body, bready. Bitter finish. Firm with nice bite.

On tap at Crunchy’s, East Lansing. Deep opaque brown-black body, thin-medium brown head. Aroma of charred roasted malts with a hint of spice. Roasted, charred malt body with interesting bready, sweet, fruity wheat malts and wet hay. Long, bitter, lingering finish. After about half a pint the complexity wanes and the charred malts dominate the palate. Just a tad thin. One of the better stouts I’ve sampled in quite some time.

On tap at Crunchy’s in East Lansing. Hazy orange body, thin off-white head. Unique candy-like body, with dark fruit notes punctuating the sweet biscuity malts. Interesting citrusy hops, a touch medicinal. A very nice take on the style.

Cloudy sediment-laden apricot body, thick puffy off-white head. Looks like apple cider mixed with tang. Bready aroma with light citrus and grassy, bitter hops. Sweet citrus body, bready, strongly yeasty, which adds a creaminess to the body. Bitter, grassy, somewhat citric hops at the finish in addition to tropical fruits. The hops give this an IPA character. I’m not buying this as a pilsener. Pretty good but not worth the $16 tag.

Deep dark stout with a thick moka head. Aroma of celery salts, chocolate, and light alcohol. In mouth, a rich bitter chocolate with molasses and warming alcohol. Rich bodied stout, with an off-putting aroma. Enjoyed with the Mtl Crew Sept. 9, 2006.