May 4, 2008

Bada Boomz Downtown - Samplers

What: Bada Boomz Sampler
Vessel: Sampler Glasses
Price: $9.00
Where: Bada Boomz Downtown
When: April 25, 2008
Comments: Here's a continuation from the guy's night I had with Brewer McDuff. After dinner at Rock Bottom, we hit Bada Boomz for some good craft beer. We had a great time, with an entertaining bartender (Christopher). There was also a group of folks who stopped in on their way from Atlanta to DarkLord day (it was the next day). For an update on Bada Boomz, check out DIG-B. These are my comments.

Founder's Dry Hopped Pale Ale:

This was an OK beer. Didn't love it, didn't hate it. It had a bit of a smoky flavor, compared to some of the others we sampled. I also gave it another shot at Hot Shotz on 5/3 during lunch. My opinion hasn't changed.

Rating = 4

Mad Anthony IPA:

This seemed more like a pale ale than an IPA. Having said that, it was nice and hoppy. I'd order it again (and again).

Rating = 3

Bell's Hopslam:

Yeah, I really like this beer. The hand pull adds another dimension to it.

Rating = 1

Dogfish Head 60 Minute IPA:

It seemed to have a smoky aftertaste, similar to the Founder's. It also seemed to have a nutty flavor. I was enjoying it until the aftertaste kicked in. I really didn't like how it finished.

Rating = 4

Stone IPA:

I enjoyed this one quite a bit. It was smooth and hoppy. It really seemed to smooth out at the end also. A very nice finish.

Bell's Oberon:

As the bartender, Chris, said - this is just like Blue Moon, but everyone loves it just because it's Bells. I wasn't crazy about this year's offering. There just wasn't too much to it. It tasted a bit like a lager to me. (For the record we sampled all the IPAs after all the non-IPAs).

Rating = 5

Red Hook CopperHook:

The mouth feel on this was a bit slimy, but not necessarily in a bad way. It seems a bit like Budweiser, but more "funky" (in a weird way). I don't think I'd get this again.

Rating = 5

Abita Turbo Dog:

I didn't write down too many notes 0n this one. I might need to give it another chance. My notes say "nutty, watery, but smooth".

Rating = 4 (with a 3 scratched out)

Brugge's Triple De Riple:

I really like this beer. It was pretty solid, but not as good as I remembered it being. Having said that, it was still one of the best of the night.

Rating = 2

3 Floyd's Gumball Head:

This had a nice floral hop profile for a wheat beer. It also had a nice hoppy flavor. Pretty good.

Rating = 3

Founder's Devil Dancer Triple IPA:

Christopher, the bartender, was nice enough to let us sample this one. He was raving about it. It was pretty good. It's an extremely complex beer. It had a nice hop profile, but it was also scotchy, warm and buttery. Evidently the only places this is on tap is at Founder's and at Bada Boomz (although they were almost out of it at Bada Boomz).

Rating = 3

3 comments:

Jim said...

We had the Tripel de Ripple at Badaboomz a few weeks ago. It really is outstanding stuff. Can't wait until it comes out in bottles.

CorrND said...

Interesting note about 60 Minute IPA: apparently there are going to be supply issues with it in the coming months. The bartender I talked to about it at BadaBoomz said the reason isn't clear yet. The obvious answer is hops supply issues, but it seems unlikely that a brewery as big as DFH would be having problems. Who knows.

The good news? Their 60 Minute IPA tap will be replaced with Two Hearted! I'm kinda 'eh' about the 60 Minute and I LOVE Two Hearted, so this is awesome for me.

Fred said...

Jim - agreed about the bottles - it will be interesting to see how it translates at home vs. a bar environment on tap.

CorrND - I heard the same about the supply issues. Just saw, and plan to post later today or tomorrow a blog entry from DFH on the progress of the hops they're growing at their brew pub. Surely they're not that low (and I wouldn't think they could totally replace their supply).

Also, the two hearted is pretty strong (as in, strong work, I like it)!