Surly Brewing Company
Furious
95 / 100
Surly Brewing from Minnesota, have an absolutely delicious thing going. IPA is my favorite style of beer and this IPA is in the top 5 IPAs for me.
This wonderful nectar comes in a 4 pack of pint cans. The ones I had were so fresh, it seemed like it came right off the line. The glorious hops were well pronounced - fruit filled with grapefruit and lemon. The floral pine element is there too, rounding out the flavor of the hops. The chewy malt character tries to balance the hops - but this is an IPA, so it stands lil chance. It provides a welcome almost Scotch ale flavor.
With so many IPAs punishing with the hops in the West Coast style, this has its own character. It is its own animal. With Bell's Two Hearted, Minnesota Town Hall's Mama Masala and now this - the Midwest is proving to be a IPA location to reckon with. Shame none are available on the West Coast.
The label reads “Beer for a Glass, from a Can" and to drink this straight from the can would be an injustice.
Bender
89 / 100
Like Furious, Bender comes in a can. This is their nut brown ale. This pours a dark deep brown from the pint can leaving a 2 finger robust cappucino head. Aromas of coffee, roasted malts and even some hops breathe through. The malts dominate the taste too with a strong crisp hop bite finish. Almost seems to taste like a cross between a dunkel and a brown ale smothered in hops. Admittedly, American Browns are not my favorite. This is easily the best of the style that I've encountered.
Between this and Furious it's easy to see how Surly is becoming a force to reckon with in the Midwest. I find myself coming around to the cans too. Go on Surly!
