So this list is simply a list of my favorite beers poured
into my mouth in 2014
30. Prairie Pirate Bomb! – This beer is the epitome of the
peppered stouts and rum barrel adds subtle sweetness
29. Side Project Le Saisonnier – Just so juicy, dry hopped,
wine barrel is spot on. So good.
28. Side Project Black & Wild – Sour stouts are not an
easy style to pull off, more sweet than roasty, this one was perfect
27. Alpine Great – I will always be a sucker for
barleywines. This one was light on the
barrel, but had the thick molasses goodness I am looking for
26. 2nd Shift Blueprint LSD – This was the best
find at #GTMW this year. I love this
brewery, will always go back to them
25. Mikkeller BA Beer Geek Vanilla Shake – The regular
version of this beer is amazing, adding vanilla and barrel aging takes it up a
notch
24. Cigar City 5 Beers for 5 Years Gose – Margarita in a
bottle! I actually traded for a second because I loved the first so much
23. 3 Floyd’s Murda’d Out – Popped this beer we had
purchased from our Michigan Beercation and it definitely did not disappoint
22. De Garde Currant Gin Bu – Such jammy goodness. Gin was hidden. This brewery is fantastic
21. Midnight Sun Berserker – This is exactly what I am
looking for in a big stout. The
chocolately mouth goes on forever.
20. Side Project Peche du Fermier – This was my personal
favorite of the Fermier’s we tried. The peach was mellow, but carried through
the mouth the best
19. Girardin 1882 (Black Label) – My second favorite Gueuze
to date, great from front to back
18. Central Waters Sixteen – They completely hit it out of
the park with their most recent anniversary beer
17. Funk Factory Door Kriek – As close as any US brewer has
come to mimicking Belgian counterparts. My personal favorite Kriek
16. Bullfrog Le Roar Grrrz Druiven – What is a Druiven? Who
knows, but it makes a nice compliment to a great sour
15. Alpine Chez Monus – This funky peach brew even snuck in
some acetone notes, really well done
14. Firestone Walker Feral One – I am in love with the
Barrelworks series from FW and this was their first release from that series
12. Toppling Goliath King Sue – I am surprised a hoppy beer
made it on the list, especially in the top half. This beer is that good
11. Bullfrog Le Roar Grrrz – Another brewery that is reaching
levels of Belgian greatness. Really impressed
10. Goose Island Proprietors (2013) – Coconut in this base
beer makes the perfect compliment
9. Jester King Aurelian Lure – Got to try many of the fruited
Jester Kings and this one was the stand out
8. Tired Hands Emptiness is Eternal – This beer blew me
away. Well balanced sour/saison on
persimmons
7. Perennial Barrel Aged Sump Kyoto – The regular version of
this beer is amazing, the Kyoto adds more acidity which makes it even better
6. Side Project Pulling Nails #1 – The 4th beer from
SP and they aren’t even done! The blending of wine barrels is absolute
perfection
5. Crooked Stave Persica Blend 1 – Another stonefruit beer
on the list, the peaches go great with the CS yeast blend
4. SARA Westly – Double the apricots and time in barrels as
the original version helps this beer achieve full potential
3. Drie Fonteinen Hommage – One of the most anticipated
beers of the year, thanks Chad for hooking me up! Raspberries and cherries make
this beer almost perfect. Definitely band aide notes that are not bad, but interesting
2. Perennial Coffee Abraxas – First perfect 5 out of 5 beer
this year. These guys know base stouts on coffee and this blend was perfect
even without the barrel
1. Side Project Fuzzy – This beer had everything I loved in
wild caught yeast, the heavy spice that is complemented in perfect balance with
peach. Bravo!
