Straight Outta Mashville Brown Ale by Matchless Brewing

4.6% ABV

Beer Advocate - 3.84/5
Untappd - 3.69/5

13B. British Brown Ale:
A malty, brown caramel-centric British ale without the roasted flavors of a Porter.

Found at the Market of Choice

I just love the label on this one. The ABV is nothing to write home about so something had to draw me to this particular brew. An electric cowboy riding an electric bull with a funny play on words for the name of the brew? It has to be a delicious, right? Right? On to the review!

Aroma: My detector noticed malt (good to have for brown's), a little hint of chocolate and some toasty biscuit. Got a little bit of coffee as well...  7.1

Appearance: It's definitely darker than a brown ale...more like a porter than anything else. Nice 1/2 inch head with good lacing.  7

Flavor: Biscuit and malt. Hints of chocolate, toffee and coffee. Now, I made be a little bit crazy in saying this, but seems more porter like in general.  7.2

Mouthfeel: Light bodied for sure. An easy drinking, sessionable beer.  7.1

Overall: I must say that this brew is not bad...quite solid actually. I am not quite sure I would categorize it as a brown ale though. Just seems to be more of a porter to me. It's darker than brown and has a few flavor characteristics of a porter. Maybe the "Mashville" is a mashup of the two styles?I think I am on to something here.  7.1


Matt's mark: 3.55/5

Dragons & Yum Yums by Dogfish Head Brewery

In collaboration with The Flaming Lips

25 IBU 6.5% ABV
Beer Advocate - 3.67/5
Untappd - 3.62/5

18B. American Pale Ale: A pale, refreshing and hoppy ale, yet with sufficient supporting malt to make the beer balanced and drinkable. The clean hop presence can reflect classic or modern American or New World hop varieties with a wide range of characteristics. An average-strength hop-forward pale American craft beer, generally balanced to be more accessible than modern American IPAs.

Found at the Market of Choice

For this brew, I wanted to find something fun. Then I had a flashback to my Meat Department days when I actually worked for the Market of Choice...Dogfish Head does wonderful and fun beers! I had the Midas Touch circa 2009 and it was beautifully delicious. So, I scoured the bottles with my eyes and found Dragons & Yum Yums. It definitely looks fun with dragons and rainbows and flaming lips and stuff. On to the review!

Aroma: A very fruit forward beer. So much so, I can't pick out anything in particular. All I can say is it starts off sweet and tails into a bit of tartness. Nothing fancy.   7

Appearance:  It's a beautiful looking brew. Almost Rosé like. Not quite as pink and a little darker but yeah, Rosé like. It has a bright white head that contrasts beautifully.   8.5

Flavor: Definitely fruity. Surprisingly, there is little sweetness and not as tart as I would like. My palate can't discern individual fruits...has too much going on. Drinkable though.  6.5

Mouthfeel: It is a light bodied brew, which is typical of a fruity beer. Not as smooth as I would like for a summer drinking companion.   6

Overall: Well, I thought the idea of the brew was fun. Turns out, even a venerable brewery like Dogfish Head can have non-kaplowy beers. It's totally drinkable, I just think it has too many flavors going on...which is bound to happen when you have 5 different fruits and vegetable (yes, black carrot juice) going in. I do applaud them for trying it though. You never know when you might stumble on something brilliant. This one was probably released to the masses cause of it's collaboration with The Flaming Lips to drive sales.  7


Matt's mark: 3.5/5

#MOREFRIENDS #MOREMEMORIES Sour by Breakside Brewery

Limited Edition Wood-Aged Sour w/ Raspberries

12 IBU's 6.6% ABV
Beer Advocate - 4.07/5
Untappd - 4.08/5

28B. Mixed-Fermentation Sour Beer

American Wild Ales are beers that are introduced to "wild" yeast or bacteria, such as Brettanomyces, Pediococcus, or Lactobacillus. This introduction may occur from oak barrels that have been previously inoculated, pitching into the beer, or gained from various "sour mash" techniques. Regardless of the method, these yeast and/or bacteria leave a mark that should be noticeable to strong, and often contribute a sour and/or funky, wild note. Mixed-fermentation examples will display a range of aromatics, rather than a single dominant character.

Purchased at Market of Choice

This was an impulse buy for Memorial weekend. I couldn't decide on which beer I wanted...so I didn't decide and took them both. The Breakside Sour is the second of the two. It just happened to coincide with a visit from our friend Bryant and I was able to share the sour goodness with her. She happily obliged to be a guest reviewer as well so the tasting notes will include her and we both will give scores. So, on to the review!

Aroma: Has a fresh raspberry (I would hope so) and wood aroma. Light and refreshing.
Bryant's score:  7
My score:  8.5

Appearance: It is a deep, beautiful ruby red. It's not a hazy brew but it's also not exactly clear. The head is about 1/2 inch and slightly pinkish hue which dissipates surprisingly slowly for a sour.
Bryant's score:  8.5
My score:  8.5

Flavor: Not overwhelmingly sour (the Missus even liked the level of sourness), fruity and evaporates quickly. The wood flavor comes in later as the brew coats the mouth and warms in the glass.
Bryant's score:  8
My score:  8.25

Mouthfeel: It's a refreshingly light bodied brew that is bright and sparkly. Almost like a Prosecco. Dry finish.  
Bryant's score:  8.5
My score:  9

Overall: Both Bryant and I agreed the #MOREFRIENDS #MOREMEMORIES is one of the best sours we have had. It's very sessionable for a sour, which is definitely not always the case with sours. Since it is light and refreshing, it is a nice summer drink if you can get your hands on a bottle of it.
Bryant's score:  8
My score:  8.5

Bryant's mark: 4/5

Matt's mark: 4.25/5