Max Lager's America Grill & Brewery Atlanta, GA

Demon D’or (Belgium IPA) 6.5%

Drank From: on-tap, poured into a goblet

This beer pours as expected for a Belgium style ale. The smell and taste was very herbal…possibly sage. I liked that it was not soapy or too yeasty. There was a nice bitter bite that made this Belgium beer much better than the usual crap this style has to offer. Props to this beer for not sucking. 

My Rating: B+/3.9

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Hopsplosion!!! (American IPA) 6.5%

Drank From: on-tap, poured into a pint glass

I had this after the Deamon D’or (a Belgium ale offering from the same micro brewery). It was a welcome change to a style that I like over Belgium ales. It was very good, maybe a little sweet and syrupy. There wasn’t anything spectacular about it, but I do remember enjoying it. It had a good balance of hops and malt, and must have been easy to drink because I had two. 

My Rating: B/3.63

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Founders: Double Trouble (American Double/Imperial IPA) 9.4%

Drank From: bottle, poured into a pint glass

This pours a hazy, pale orange and has decent head, retention and lacing. The smell is noticeably hoppy and specifically grapefruity. The taste is pretty powerful, but I really like how this beer is, very much so, on the bitter side of double IPAs. There is slight hint of malt and sweetness up front, but it is washed out by the delicious zest of hops. This is pretty heavy in the body, but who cares? Give me another!


My Rating: A+/4.65
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New Glarus: Fat Squirrel (English Brown Ale) 5.80%

Drank From: bottle, poured into a pint glass

This pours a nice caramel brown and has great foamy retention and layered lacing. This beer is what you would expect in a brown ale, a lot of sweet malt. I just don’t love this style of beer, but this beer does have a nice crispness that takes away from the syrupiness. This teeters on the edge of burned malt red ale type flavors. I detect some booziness. It has a decent medium body and is a good beer for the style. I just don’t love brown ale. 

My Rating: B-/3.3

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Two Brothers: Long Haul Session Ale (English Bitter) 4.2%

Drank From: bottle, poured into a pint glass

Pours darker brown than I expected with off white head; there is a little bit of lacing and good retention. The smell is pleasant malt but not too pungent. The body is medium but very smooth. The French oak aging has given this beer a nice tangy bite, but it isn’t near as noticeable as it is in the Resistence IPA. This is a great pale ale with a unique fruitiness and delicious malt finish, I could easily have a few of these. 

My Rating: B+/3.85

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Two Brothers: Resistance IPA (American IPA) 6.9%

Drank From: bottle, poured into a pint glass

This pours light orange and has a decent foamy head and good lacing. The smell is very hoppy and citrusy. The flavor was shockingly hoppy and grapefruity. I even taste pineapple. There is a nicely combined bitterness and sweetness. I feel like this beer is a breath of fresh air; it takes that craving that you seek in a really citrusy IPA and maximizes it. I hate to say it…it’s almost too fruity, making it hard to identify any malt. However, this is a great beer with a peculiar tanginess. I haven’t had a lot of Two Brothers, but from what I’ve tried so far, I’ve been blindsided by their approach to uniqueness. I am looking forward to the Long Haul Session Ale

My Rating: B+/3.78

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New Glarus: Snowshoe Red Ale (American Amber/Red Ale) 5.70%

Drank From: bottle, poured into a pint glass

This pours hazy brown with porous, off-white head and great lacing. the smell is metallic like a winter warmer. The toasty malt flavors are naturally evident, but unlike some read ales, this doesn't have that strong sourness to it. It has a very smooth medium body that is non offensive. There is just enough sweetness to balance the bitterness. I am not a huge red ale fan, and one of these is plenty for me, but it is a solid beer in its class. 

My Rating: B/3.63

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Negra Modelo: (Munich Dunkel Lager) 5.4%

Drank From: bottle, poured into a pint glass

Negra Modelo pours brown with minimal head. Like all Mexican beer, it’s refreshing and delicious when it’s super cold. There is a decent malt complexity and a little bit of bitterness to this. I like that it isn’t super sweet. This is a great beer for the style. 

My Rating: B-/3.4

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New Glarus: Moon Man (APA) 5.0%

Drank From: bottle, poured into a pint glass

This pours golden with active bubbles and nice foamy head. The smell is very potent...bitter and hoppy. The taste is most notably fresh, hoppy, and bitter. This almost gives you a sour candy sensation. The body is pretty light, but the crisp bite of this brew lingers and just adds to the refreshment that it provides. It has a strong, effervescent grapefruit flavor. This is the cold shower of beers, a welcome change to the usual over-syrup douchy IPAs that I usually drink. Seriously, this is a great beer with a fresh hop character that I have been craving, this hits the spot. 

My Rating: A/4.38

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Great Lakes: Dortmunder Gold (Dortmunder/Export Lager) 5.8%

Drank From: bottle, poured into a pint glass

It is no secret that I don’t like lagers, but I do love Great Lakes. I do have a bias, but I feel like they are incapable of disappointing. This beer pours a beautiful golden orange, with a lot of chunky head, great lacing, and great retention. The smell is sweet and malty. This beer definitely gives you that thin bodied bitter feel that makes lagers suck, but adds a nice hint of maple…or honey? The malt complexity is nice, and gives a little bit of a bready taste…but it doesn’t come on as strong as some other German styles. There is a crisp bitterness, but I wouldn’t say that the hops are over-done. This is a Great beer, I will come back to this one. 

My Rating: A-/4.05

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Avery: white Rascal (Witbier) 5.6%

Drank From: bottle, poured into a pint glass

This pours banana colored, with light fizzy head. The smells is the expected yeast and citrus. I really like how crisp and tart this brew is. It reminds me of Hoegaarden but much better. It has a medium to light body that is zesty and refreshing. This is a great beer for the style because it lacks the over-soapiness that Belgium beers often have.

My Rating: B/3.73

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Two Brothers: The Bitter End (APA) 5.2%

Drank From: bottle, poured into a pint glass

This pours a nice dark, hazy orange with a chunky head. There is decent lacing and retention as well. The smell is more potent than I was expecting for a pale ale. The citrus and hops are obvious, as well as the malts and sweetness. This has a very well rounded hop/malt complexity. Before it dawned on me what the name meant, I was thinking to myself that just about when you expect this beer to bring that sweet malt flavor through in the aftertaste, it truly does finish bitter. 

My Rating: A/4.45

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Oskar Blue's: Old Chub (Scotch Ale/Wee Heavy) 8.0%

Drank From: can, poured into a pint glass

This pours very dark brown with heavy tan head and little lacing/retention. I smell a lot of malt, sugar and booze. The taste is toasty and sweet, but not overpowering. I am impressed with the mouthfeel. I was expecting more chew-spit, but this is actually rather medium and drinkable. This has a mild bitter, hoppy aftertaste that adds to the complexity. This isn’t a style that I love, but this beer is a solid representation for sure. 

My Rating: B+/3.95

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Oskar Blue's: Dale's Pale Ale (APA) 6.5%

Drank From: can, poured into a pint glass

This pours hazy pale orange and has big chunky head and good retention. The smell is very sweet and malty, with some hops as well. This taste is well rounded bitter and sweet with a high malt presence. There is a nice bitter bite to this as well. This is a solid pale ale with a medium body. Very good. I have also rated this beer from draft, and I thought it was a little more hoppy...probably better overall from the draft. 

My Rating: B+/4.0

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Oskar Blue's: Mama's Little Yella Pils (Czech Pilsener) 5.3%

Drank From: can, poured into a pint glass

This pours golden and has nice chunky head for a pilsner. There is also a good amount of lacing. Because it is a pilsner, it reminds me of a BMC, but much more crafted. I can smell and taste more hops and malt, and this has some refreshing qualities. Overall I don’t love this beer based on the style. I got it on sale, and it beats any other canned pilsner. 

My Rating: B/3.63

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Schlafly: Kolsch 4.5%

Drank From: bottle poured into a pint glass

This pours hazy, pale yellow with a sudsy white head. There is very little retention or lacy, but I wasn’t expecting any from this style. It’s very clean and refreshing. I hate to say it, but the smell is like a BMC, It kinda has that dirty/sweet pilsner taste, but this is still a craft beer quality beverage. I can taste malt and hops, and this is overall refreshing. I would prefer a little more bitter and a little less sweet, but I’m not going to split hairs, this is easy to drink and pretty good. 

My Rating: B/3.75

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Schlafly: Dry-Hopped Pale Ale (APA) 5.9%

Drank From: bottle, poured into a pint glass

This pours golden brown with nice chunky white head and some good lacing. The smell is pretty pungent even as you pour this beer. There is a lot of grassy/hops smells, but there is a fresh bready element too. The taste is much more herbal and hoppy than the Schafly Pale Ale, but the bready malts flavors come out even more in this beer. I even get a little green pepper vibe that I will attribute to the crisp, clean bite. There is great complexity in the balance here, and I am thrilled that I’m not suffering through a sweet, heavy bodied, syrupy beer. This is a solidly crafted beer where the flavors sits on the tongue and invokes the next sip, without leaving a mucky gross taste that you find yourself wanting to wash down. This is medium bodied, but definitely something I could have a few of. 

My Rating: A-/4.25

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Schlafly: Pale Ale (English Pale Ale) 4.4%

Drank From: bottle, poured into a pint glass

This pours a really nice copper color with two fingers of medium white head. I already see a lot of lacing and retention so I am enjoying the appearance a lot. The smell is pretty mild, but it smells like a beer. The taste is pretty crisp and bitter. I have been on a long stretch of strong ales and IPAs, so the lack of sweetness is shocking, yet refreshing. I could almost say that there is no sweetness at all. I’m not getting any sour backtalk from the malt either. This is just a very non-offensive, well rounded, refreshing beer. I particularly enjoy the clean malt aftertaste that is balanced perfectly with a fair amount of hops…exceeding expectations. This is fairly light bodied, and something that you would want to cookout with, take to the beach, etc. 

My Rating: A-/4.2

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