September is a great month; mainly because my birthday is at the end of the month. It is also when fall really starts to come into view and Cincinnati was lucky enough to have a handful of days when the temperature dropped. Nice weather and my birthday guaranteed that my list of the best craft beer would be great this month.
And it wasn’t just me celebrating a birthday – keep reading to see which breweries knocked it out of the park with their special release beers.
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.
Here’s the Best Craft Beer I had last month:
Birthday Bomb
Brewery: Prairie Artisan Ales
Style: Imperial Stout
ABV: 13% IBU: 65
Description
Imperial stout aged on coffee, cacao nibs, vanilla beans and chile peppers. Finished with caramel sauce.
Why it made the list?
Let’s be real; beer is even better when it fits perfectly into a memory. The evening of my birthday was spent with a few friends around a bon fire with this beer in my hands.
The weather was cool, the fire was hot, and the beer was the perfect sipping stout for that moment. The aroma was sweet chocolate and coffee. It is heavy and sweet initially then quickly followed by the noticeable 13% ABV and peppers.
While peppers can often be overwhelming, these were fleeting. By the time you noticed and enjoyed them, they faded. It wasn’t a burning sensation that increases over time but rather consistent and inviting.
Birthday Bash
Brewery: 450 North Brewing
Style: Triple IPA
ABV: 12% IBU: N/A
Description
Brewed for our 6th Anniversary, Birthday Bash is a Quadruple IPA hopped with Citra, Vic Secret and Amarillo at an absurd amount.
Why it made the list?
Are you sensing a theme?
It wasn’t just my birthday this month; it was also 450 North Brewing’s 6th Anniversary event. While I wasn’t able to attend, I was able to snag some of the amazing beers they released to celebrate.
It’s no secret that I’m a big fan of this brewery and their relentless stream of releases and this one is no different.
There’s a lot going on in this one. The aroma and flavor are both huge with pineapple and mango. The flavor lingers long after drinking it.
And the 12% is only noticeable for a second at the finish with a slight bite.
It drinks really smooth despite all that it offers. This is not a balanced beer but rather a flavor bomb of tropical fruit and I enjoyed every ounce of the 16oz can.
If you are reading this article the week it was released, there’s still time to get tickets to 450 North’s Corn Maze Beer Fest – click here to learn more!
Bagpipes Of Bardstown
Brewery: Grainworks Brewing
Style: Barrel-Aged Scotch Ale
ABV: 11.1% IBU: 30
Description
Aged in Willett Bourbon and Rye barrels, this smooth, but potent Scotch ale has notes of vanilla, oak, and spices and finishes with a pleasing warmth.
Why it made the list?
Let’s go 3 for 3 with birthday related beers . . . this one was brewed and barrel-aged as part of Grainworks Brewing’s 1st Anniversary event.
A year can go by really fast when the beer is as good as what Grainworks has been producing. They’ve quickly become the go-to place for craft beer in the Liberty Township area just North of Cincinnati.
And their 1st Anniversary event was a weekend full of amazing beer, food, and live music. The weather wasn’t too friendly to their plans but the place was still packed in support of this brewery’s first year.
And as expected, they had a handful of special release beers to enjoy. There wasn’t a bad beer on the list. The brewing team really pushed themselves as they released styles that were new to them for this event – including some sour beers and a milkshake IPA.
But you can’t deny the power of a barrel-aged beer to really help make an event feel special. And that’s exactly what Bagpipes Of Bardstown was for them. They’ve always had a Scotch Ale on their menu so they took it and put it in a Willett bourbon barrel. It added a boozy, sweetness that was remarkable.
Learn more about who this brewery here
Brass Monkey Peach & Mango Junkie
Brewery: Listermann Brewing
Style: New England IPA
ABV: 7.2% IBU: N/A
Description
Hazy unfiltered juice bomb with peach and mango.
Why it made the list?
Ok, I promise this is the last beer on my list that is tied to an anniversary event.
Listermann Brewing is a fan favorite among those that love craft beer in Cincinnati. They’ve been around a long time and their approach keeps them relevant. So the community was thrilled to see a huge 10th Anniversary event along with special release beers.
They were the first brewery in Cincinnati to start brewing and releasing New England IPAs and Brass Monkey was their first big can release almost 2 years ago. Since then, they release it periodically and love to do variants with different fruits.
This Peach and Mango version may be my favorite so far. These fruit flavors blend perfectly with the fruitiness of the hops. They also add additional sweetness.
I haven’t had the other beers they released as part of their 10th Anniversary event so there’s a good chance some of those might end up on a future Best Craft Beer list.
Moozie
Brewery: Brink Brewing
Style: Milk Stout
ABV: 6.2% IBU: 20
Description
In honor of Uncle Jack’s nickname for his niece, Molly, seemed fitting for this rich, milk stout. Like a chocolate milkshake without the straw, it features chocolate and coffee notes, and almost chewy thanks to the addition of lactose and flaked oats.
Why it made the list?
Did you check out the results from GABF? If not, then you probably missed out on some big news for Cincinnati craft beer.
Brink Brewing did very well for themselves as they secured multiple medals. They won Gold for Moozie in the Sweet or Cream Stout category and Silver for Hold The Reins for English-Style Mild Ale.
And on top of that Brink and their head brewer, Kelly Montgomery, won best very small brewery and brewer of the year. That’s an impressive list of awards for a brewery that’s only been open 18 months.
Moozie has been a staple in their taproom since their early days and is a beer that I always recommend. It’s great to see them get validated on the national stage. I often find myself in their taproom and enjoy the wide variety of styles that are all made with the highest quality.
Mayan Sacrifice
Brewery: Darkness Brewing
Style: Imperial Golden Stout
ABV: 10% IBU: N/A
Description
An Imperial version of the popular Mayan Latte, this smooth drinking golden coffee stout that contains ancho and pasilla chilis, cocoa nibs from Maverick Chocolate, coffee, and lactose.
Why it made the list?
Small breweries are often my favorite to visit. Their taprooms are simple and approachable. I always feel welcomed and I love to see what they are doing with beer.
Darkness Brewing is one of those small places that can get lost in the shuffle if you don’t live nearby but it’s worth checking out. They make more dark beers than anything else.
Mayan Sacrifice tastes like it would be a dark stout but instead it has a lighter, nearly amber color.
But don’t let the color fool you, this beer has all the aroma and flavor of a Mexican stout. There’s plenty of sweet coffee in the aroma. The flavor brings in mild pepper flavors and chocolate. Lactose is added to help increase the body and sweetness as well.
It’s a real treat that packs a 10% that’s impossible to perceive. I’m a huge fan of dark beers and this is one is a lot of fun.
If this beer sounds familiar, that’s because it’s the imperial version of their Mayan Latte which made my Best Craft Beer list back in June 2017. Check it out here.
And in case you missed it, Darkness Brewing just started to distribute into Cincinnati through Adena Distribution. So keep an eye open for their tap handles.
Final Thoughts
September was a fun month full of reasons to celebrate and beer always seems to be a great way to make the moment even more memorable.
A huge congratulations to all of the breweries hitting milestones; whether that’s one year or ten years. And especially to Brink for bringing lots of attention to the Cincinnati craft beer scene.
For those outside of Cincinnati, there’s not a lot on this list that you’ll be able to get your hands on but maybe these beers will help give you motivation to make the Queen City a destination in the near future.
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.