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More than three years ago two other contributors and myself broke down our favorite brews and breweries with a top-5 list. Well...with so many new breweries and beers emerging in the past 37 months and with tastes ever evolving, I decided now would be a good time to reevaluate my old list.
And, although Norm and Carter no longer write for the site, I found a more than willing substitute - my friend Taylor who has already assisted me in four BrewFC fights and has an expansive beer resume herself.
Now let’s take a look at the categories we’ll be evaluating:
Saisons/Farmhouse ales, Amber/Red ales, Lagers, Pilsners, Witbiers, Hefeweizens, Porters, Stouts, Fruit beers, Blonde ales, Sour/Wild ales, Pale ales, New England/Milkshake IPAs, IPA/DIPAs, and then we’ll end with our top 5 overall beers and top 5 breweries.
So, without further ado, the Top 5 Beer List...
Up first, Farmhouse/Saisons
Saison
| BEER STYLE | Dave | Taylor |
|---|---|---|
| BEER STYLE | Dave | Taylor |
| Farmhouse/Saison | ||
| 1 | Dogfish Head/Stone/Victory – Saison du BUFF | Side Project – Provnce: Lapsang |
| 2 | Hill Farmstead – Flora Plum (Batch #3) | Tangled Roots – Ginger Saison |
| 3 | Moody Tongue – Steeped Emperor’s Lemon Saison | Side Project – Biere du Pays (Blend #6) |
| 4 | Epic – Sour Apple Saison | Hill Farmstead – Flora Plum (Batch #3) |
| 5 | Pipeworks – Fully Hopperational Battlestation | Off Color – Apex Predator |
Next up, Amber/Red ales
Ambers
| BEER STYLE | Dave | Taylor |
|---|---|---|
| BEER STYLE | Dave | Taylor |
| Amber/Red Ale | ||
| 1 | Pipeworks – Blood of the Unicorn | Pipeworks – Blood of the Unicorn |
| 2 | Noon Whistle – Hipsters vs Lumberjacks | Tangled Roots – Kip Kupfer |
| 3 | Maine Beer Co – Red Wheelbarrow | Two Brothers – Revelry |
| 4 | Half Acre – Ginger Twin | Revolution – Red Skull |
| 5 | Cloudwater – Amber Enigma | Solemn Oath - ultrahighfrequency |
Next we rank all the lagers we’ve had:
Lagers
| BEER STYLE | Dave | Taylor |
|---|---|---|
| BEER STYLE | Dave | Taylor |
| Lagers | ||
| 1 | Black Acre – Natural Liberty | Kirin Brewery – Ichiban |
| 2 | 3 Floyds – Jinx Proof | New Glarus – Yokel |
| 3 | Sierra Nevada – Beer Camp Across the World Ginger Lager (2017) | Baderbaräu – Naked Selfie |
| 4 | War Pigs – Salmon Pants | New Glarus – Totally Naked |
| 5 | Motor Row – New Phenix | Magic Hat – Dream Machine |
Up next, it’s time to rank the best pilsners:
Pilsners
| BEER STYLE | Dave | Taylor |
|---|---|---|
| BEER STYLE | Dave | Taylor |
| Pilsners | ||
| 1 | 4 Hands – City Museum Pilsner | 4 Hands – City Museum Pilsner |
| 2 | New Glarus - Mistral | New Glarus - Mistral |
| 3 | Maplewood – Pulaski Pils | Old Bakery – Yellow Beer |
| 4 | Fountain Square – Workingman’s Pils | Solemn Oath – Scareball |
| 5 | Flat 12 – Hinchtown Hammer Down | 5 Rabbit – Gringolandia Super Pils |
After pilsners, we’ll head back to ales and try to keep our wits about us...
Witbiers
| BEER STYLE | Dave | Taylor |
|---|---|---|
| BEER STYLE | Dave | Taylor |
| Witbiers | ||
| 1 | Mikkeller – Wit Fit | Lake Effect – Lake Effect Snow |
| 2 | Avery – Liliko’i Kepolo | Clown Shoes – Clementine |
| 3 | Brick by Brick – Running Dune | 4 Hands – Ripple White Ale |
| 4 | Noon Whistle – The Parker | Avery – White Rascal |
| 5 | Barrell Trolley – Belgian White | Bruery Terreux – Orchard Wit |
Hefe-n help us, we’ve had a lot of hefeweizens to choose from
Hefeweizens
| BEER STYLE | Dave | Taylor |
|---|---|---|
| BEER STYLE | Dave | Taylor |
| Hefeweizen | ||
| 1 | Garage Brewing – Mango Hefeweizen | New Glarus – Dancing Man |
| 2 | Forbidden Root – Strawberry Basil Hefeweizen | Garage Brewing – Mango Hefeweizen |
| 3 | Wasatch – Apricot Hefeweizen | Tangled Roots – Vermilion River Weiss |
| 4 | Harviestoun – The Mischief Wheat Beastie | Hopvine – Urban Tumbleweed |
| 5 | Cademon – Tropical Kingpin | Wasatch – Apricot Hefeweizen |
From one of the lightest styles we transition to one of the darkest...porters.
Porters
| BEER STYLE | Dave | Taylor |
|---|---|---|
| BEER STYLE | Dave | Taylor |
| Porters | ||
| 1 | Denver Beer Co – Graham Cracker Porter | Denver Beer Co – Graham Cracker Porter |
| 2 | Central Waters – Brewer’s Reserve Rum Barrel Coconut Potert | Denver Beer Co – Cocoa Cream Graham Cracker Porter |
| 3 | Einstök - Icelandic Toasted Porter | Two Brothers – Peppermint Bark Porter |
| 4 | Atwater – Vanilla Java Porter | Spiteful – God Damn Pidgeon Porter |
| 5 | More Brewing – Falling Colors | 3 Floyds – Alpha Klaus |
We’ll try to keep this category short and stout :)
Stouts
| BEER STYLE | Dave | Taylor |
|---|---|---|
| BEER STYLE | Dave | Taylor |
| Stouts | ||
| 1 | Goose Island - Bourbon County Midnight Orange (2018) | Mikerphone - Smells Like Bean Spirit series |
| 2 | Garage Brewing - Marshmallow Milk Stout | Mikerphone – Just Sip the Sizzurp |
| 3 | Hubbard’s Cave – French Toast | Stone – Xocoveza |
| 4 | Mikerphone - Smells Like Bean Spirit series | Sierra Nevada – Beer Camp Across America Double Latte |
| 5 | Bearded Iris - V. Latte: Gitwe | (obligatory) Goose Island – Bourbon County |
Fruit beers are next up
Fruit Beers
| BEER STYLE | Dave | Taylor |
|---|---|---|
| BEER STYLE | Dave | Taylor |
| Fruit Beers | ||
| 1 | Pollyanna – Summerly | New Glarus – Strawberry Rhubarb |
| 2 | Shiner – Prickly Pear | Engrained – Shanberry |
| 3 | Legacy Brewing – That Guava Beer | Lost Coast – Tangerine Wheat |
| 4 | More Brewing – Frooted series | 21st Amendment – Hell or High Watermelon |
| 5 | Golden Road – Mango Cart | Horny Goat – Watermelon Wheat |
Who doesn’t love a good blonde?
Blonde Ales
| BEER STYLE | Dave | Taylor |
|---|---|---|
| BEER STYLE | Dave | Taylor |
| Blonde Ales | ||
| 1 | Legacy Brewing – Strawberry Blonde | Obed and Isaac – Strawberry Blonde |
| 2 | Maplewood – Creepy Ginger | Lucette Brewing – The Farmer’s Daughter |
| 3 | The Bruery – Fourthmeal | Glenwood Canyon – Colorado Blonde Ale |
| 4 | Acoustic Ales – San Diego Strawberry Blonde | Sun King – Hop Up Offa That Brett |
| 5 | Obed and Isaac – Strawberry Blonde | Half Acre – With With |
Pucker up, it’s the best sour/wild ales we’ve had
Sour/Wild Ales
| BEER STYLE | Dave | Taylor |
|---|---|---|
| BEER STYLE | Dave | Taylor |
| Sour/Wild Ales | ||
| 1 | Omnipollo – Bianca | Side Project – Fuzzy (Blend #3) |
| 2 | Almanac – Tropical Platypus | Central State – Lazer Raptor |
| 3 | Penrose – That Hoppy Brett Beer | Two Brothers – In the Flesh (Prickly Pear) |
| 4 | Maplewood – Dem Guava Boys | Maplewood – Dem Guava Boys |
| 5 | Russian River - Supplication | Une Annee – No Regrets Mosaic |
Now we get into the hoppy categories...first up, pale ales.
Pale Ales
| BEER STYLE | Dave | Taylor |
|---|---|---|
| BEER STYLE | Dave | Taylor |
| Pale Ales | ||
| 1 | Brew By Numbers - 42|02 DDH Pale Ale Number Two | New Glarus – Moon Man |
| 2 | Maine Beer Co – Mo | Half Acre – Galactic Double Daisy Cutter |
| 3 | Maplewood – The Charlatan | Maplewood – The Charlatan |
| 4 | Maine Beer Co – Pepper | Toppling Goliath – Pseudo Sue |
| 5 | Marz – The Machine | Southern Tier – 3 Citrus Peel Out |
From there we head to one of the newest styles to emerge (and one of our favorites)...New England/Milkshake IPAs.
NE/Milkshake IPAs
| BEER STYLE | Dave | Taylor |
|---|---|---|
| BEER STYLE | Dave | Taylor |
| New England/Milkshake IPAs | ||
| 1 | Maplewood – Son of Juice/Juice Pants series | Marz – Crushed Velvet |
| 2 | Bearded Iris – Chasing Rainbows series | Maplewood – Son of Juice |
| 3 | Amplified Ale Works – Faraway Towns | Heretic – Juicier Than Thou |
| 4 | Southern Grist – DDH Mixed Greens series | Oddside Ales – Dirty Dank Juice |
| 5 | WeldWerks – Juicy Bits | WeldWerks – Juicy Bits |
Finally, the most popular beer styles in the world...IPAs (including double/triple)
IPA/DIPA
| BEER STYLE | Dave | Taylor |
|---|---|---|
| BEER STYLE | Dave | Taylor |
| IPA/DIPA | ||
| 1 | Maine Beer Co – Lunch | Mikerphone – Mikerphone Check 1, 2 |
| 2 | New England – Fuzzy Baby Ducks | Lawson’s – Sips of Sunshine |
| 3 | Denver Beer Co – Incredible Pedal | New England – Fuzzy Baby Ducks |
| 4 | Treehouse - Hurricane | The Alchemist – Heady Topper |
| 5 | Maine Beer Co - Dinner | Denver Beer Co – Incredible Pedal |
It’s now time for the five best beers we’ve ever had (so far)....
Best Beers
| BEER STYLE | Dave | Taylor |
|---|---|---|
| BEER STYLE | Dave | Taylor |
| Top 5 Overall Beers | ||
| 1 | Maine Beer Co – Lunch | Side Project – Fuzzy (Blend #3) |
| 2 | Maplewood – Son of Juice | Mikerphone – Mikerphone Check 1, 2 |
| 3 | Brew By Numbers - 42|02 DDH Pale Ale Number Two | Lawson’s – Sips of Sunshine |
| 4 | New England – Fuzzy Baby Ducks | New England – Fuzzy Baby Ducks |
| 5 | Bearded Iris – Chasing Rainbows #4 | The Alchemist – Heady Topper |
And last but not least...we come to the final category. The best overall breweries:
Best Breweries
| BEER STYLE | Dave | Taylor |
|---|---|---|
| BEER STYLE | Dave | Taylor |
| Top 5 Breweries | ||
| 1 | Maine Beer Company | Mikerphone |
| 2 | Maplewood | Side Project |
| 3 | Bearded Iris | Denver Beer Company |
| 4 | Mikerphone | Marz Brewing |
| 5 | Treehouse | New Glarus |
What do you think? Did we get it right? Have we missed out on some awesome beers/breweries? If so, let me know...I always love finding new beer!