While there are many amazing beer events, it’s often hard to find the time to attend most of them. But in October that wasn’t the case as I got the opportunity to be involved in quite a few beer events. And as you may have guessed, these events helped ensure that I had lots of beer to choose from for my list of the best craft beer for October 2018.
Read all about my favorite beers below then check out my final thoughts to get a quick rundown of the beer related activities that I was able to participate in during October.
If you want to keep up with what I am drinking in real time, make sure that we connect on Untappd. Click that link or search for craftbeerjoe.
Don’t forget to take time to review your check-ins and think about what would make your list of the best craft beer. I’d love it if you sent me a message or chatted on social media about the best craft beer you had in August. Or better yet, tag/mention me on social media when you post about the beer you’re enjoying and we can chat about it there.
Here’s the Best Craft Beer I had last month:
Curmudgeon’s Better Half
Style: Barrel-Aged Old Ale
ABV: 12.7% IBU: 45
Description
Curmudgeon is an old ale brewed with molasses and aged on oak; it becomes Better Half after aging—for 254 days—in bourbon barrels that have more recently been aging Michigan maple syrup. As a result, Curmudgeon’s Better Half is a bit sweeter than her miserly counterpart.
Why it made the list?
In 2017, Founders Brewing started their new Barrel-Aged Series. This series provides fans with six different beers released throughout the year.
Some of these are familiar faces like KBS while others are new creations like Frootwood. Some have been huge hits while others were very polarizing.
I’ve been a fan of most of what this series has brought so I rarely hesitate picking up the latest bottle. And I’m glad that I grabbed some of Curmudgeon’s Better Half.
Old Ales are a really great style to begin with; they offer dark, rich, sweet notes which means they do very well when aged in a barrel. But Founders didn’t just put it in a normal barrel but rather a bourbon barrel that had previously been used to age maple syrup.
The result is a beer that is truly decadent with super sweet syrup flavor that is complimented by a touch of bourbon. It is viscous and heavy. While most will indulge in this as a dessert beer, Founders isn’t shy about suggesting that it should be enjoyed with a stack of pancakes.
Pirogue Belgian Black Tripel
Style: Barrel-Aged Belgian Black Tripel
ABV: 10% IBU: 24
Description
A Belgian Style Black Tripel brewed with Wood Burl Coffee aged in bourbon barrels. Each sip, a voyage through hints of baker’s chocolate, brown sugar, stone fruit and fig.
Why it made the list?
Every once in a while, I find a beer that is so good that I stash away my last can/bottle of it to enjoy later. That’s exactly the story behind this barrel-aged Pirogue.
And time treated this beer really well. While most of the coffee has faded, the rest of the beer is just about perfect.
The nose is boozy with fruity notes from the Belgian yeast. The flavor packs huge burst of bourbon and dark fruits. This combination doesn’t overwhelm you either. It is quite smooth for being a heavy, high ABV beer.
This is the kind of beer that pairs perfectly with a chilly fall evening and I truly wish I had a few more of these to enjoy. It is rare to find a beer that has so many different elements that all work in harmony.
S’mores Porter
Style: Porter
ABV: N/A IBU: N/A
Description
No description available but as you can imagine this is a porter with chocolate and marshmallow flavors added.
Why it made the list?
What I love the most about beer festivals is the ability to try beer from breweries I’ve never heard of and may never get the chance to try again.
So when I attended the 450 North Corn Maze Beer Fest, I was quick to try beer from unfamiliar breweries. Since it was in a different state, there were a ton to choose from. And while the line was really long, ZwanzigZ came highly recommended.
The first beer I had from them was good enough that I waited in the long line again to try more from them. Everything they were pouring had huge rich flavors which helped it standout against the other beers of the day.
My favorite from them was the S’mores Porter. It was rich, sweet and the presentation was amazing for a beer festival. They had roasted mini marshmallows on toothpicks that they were dropping into each pour of this beer. That’s quite impressive considering the number of people streaming to their booth.
The best part is they aren’t too far from 450 North Brewing so I intend to give them a visit when I visit that area in the future.
Beipiaosaurus
Style: Barrel-Aged Sour Ale
ABV: 7.2% IBU: 10
Description
A 100% spontaneously fermented sour ale with 5.5 lbs per gallon of Boysenberries. Soured with wild yeast and bacteria from around the brewery in the Ohio River Valley, this beer is the embodiment of Cincinnati terroir.
Why it made the list?
When it comes to barrel-aged sour ales, you never know quite what you will get. There are so many elements to a beer like this that can drastically alter the flavor – especially when fruit is added.
However, if you are talking about adding fruit to a beer, one of the breweries I trust the most is Urban Artifact. They’ve built quite the reputation for putting loads of real fruit into their beer.
And it isn’t every day that you find a boysenberry beer either.
Everything about this beer was enjoyable. It had a nice dark red color, the aroma was just as sour as it was fruity, and the flavor was intense. The sour notes were there but it didn’t last long as the boysenberry was there to create some balance.
This beer was at the King Of Ohio beer competition that I was invited to help judge. And while I only had a sample of this beer; I could easily seem myself enjoying the entire bottle over a few hours and letting the beer evolve glass after glass.
Labyrinth Nuggets
Style: Triple IPA
ABV: 10.5% IBU: 10
Description
Labyrinth Nuggets is a Triple IPA hopped with Citra and Denali.
Why it made the list?
Yes, 450 North makes it onto my list of the best craft beer once again. Labyrinth Nuggets is one of the many beers they released the weekend of their Corn Maze Beer Fest.
And with the huge event happening, I feel like some of the beer releases were quickly forgotten about. In fact, I didn’t see many people posting about this one.
What I loved about it is the intense peach and citrus flavors that it provided. It was almost all fruit flavors with just a slight bite in the finish. By far, one of the smoothest Triple IPAs they’ve made.
Otto
Style: Stout
ABV: 8.1% IBU: N/A
Description
Tiramisu Stout
Why it made the list?
I love the excitement that the Cincinnati beer scene has when a new brewery is about to open. Even though we have over 50 to choose from, every grand opening is almost as if it is the first brewery to open in our city.
Sonder Brewing has been one of the most anticipated in a while. Early marketing let everyone know that they meant business with a purpose-built building, great location, and the head brewer was brought in from New Glarus. Then a well-known local brewer joined the team. So there’s lots to love about this place right out of the gate.
I tried five of the seven beers they had on tap. And my favorite was their stout called Otto. They describe it as a Tiramisu stout.
My guess is they’ve added coffee, vanilla, and lactose to make this a sweet stout. As a stout lover, this really hit the spot. It wasn’t overly heavy at 8.1% but carried enough body to handle the intense flavors.
I’m really excited to see what this brewery can do as they develop a brand and identity. And I have a feeling they will make frequent appearances on my future lists of the best craft beer.
Nuttercup
Style: Porter
ABV: 6.5% IBU: 55
Description
If you are reading this then you probably are not a peanut. That’s because we drowned them all to make this well balanced, full bodied, and sweet chocolate peanut butter Porter.
Why it made the list?
Even though it was a very hot Fall day, I was quick to choose dark beers when I was at the 450 North Corn Maze Beer fest. After all, it was a Fall beer event and I was craving roasty, rich beers.
Brew Link is a brewery that I had heard of prior to the event so I was looking forward to seeing what they brought to the event. Then when I saw they were pouring Nuttercup, I knew I had to get a taste.
This is a beer that I’ve noticed posted on social media quite often so I couldn’t pass up my chance to try it.
As promised, this porter delivered huge peanut butter flavors along with some chocolate. The flavors were so strong that it is a beer that no longer tastes like a beer.
There’s a lot of beers similar to this out there but I’d easily say this is one of the better ones I’ve had recently.
Final Thoughts
Leading into October, I thought it was going to be a quiet month but life kept me busy including attending some great beer related events. And as my lists proves that these events had some amazing beer at them.
If you want more information on the 450 North Corn Maze Beer Fest, check out these articles.
The beer competition that I helped judge is called the King Of Ohio and you can read all about my experience as a beer judge here.
And I have to give a shout out to Sonder Brewing for their Grand Opening. Everything about their brewery has been really impressive so far and I look forward to seeing them grow.
But even with all of the events I was able to attend, there are still tons that I missed. And I’d imagine that these events would have provided me with even more options for my list of the best craft beer of October. Did you get to attend a great beer event this month? If so, let me know about it and why I should try to attend it next time.
Sound off in the comments below or send me a message to let me know what beer you’ve had recently that was great or to let me know what beer you are looking forward to this fall.