Exhibit 'A' Brewing Company

I've had some cans of Hair Raiser from the last 2 batches and both have been fantastic, seems better than I remember it and I've had quite a bit since it came out. Drinking one now and it's so good!

 

I could drink a river of Demo Tape 11 w/ Barr Hill Honey. As good as it gets for summer drinking.

 

Had it on draft over the weekend and agree it seemed way better than before (and I already thought it was pretty good).

 

I don't want to rip another brewery, but which one if you don't mind me asking?

I've had one local Kolsch that I found to be a tad better than Goody Two Shoes, another that, while not bad, was FAR too hoppy, and a third that may have been on par with Exhibit A's, but unfortunately I only had one can of it.

Overall, Goody Two Shoes is a repeat purchase for me, and it appears there's some other good Kolsch's out there as well. I think this is awesome considering the Kolsch style was a virtual black hole in craft brewing for so long.

I always know it's a solid Kolsch when I get a hint of white wine from it...and well, a bad Kolsch is very easy to spot...because it tastes like crap.

 

My town's Brewery Stone Corral, does a Kolsch in a quart can. It's very nice and refreshing and goes well with a tubing trip down the Winooski.

 

I don't remember specifics about the flavors but I thought this was pretty "meh" as well.

Have either of you had Down the Road's kolsch? I've had mixed results with them - loved their porter and didn't like their DIPA.

And you're not the first person I've seen mention the white wine taste in Kolsch's. I'm going to have keep an eye (tastebud?) peeled for that next time around.

 

You must have had BBC Gold Spike at some point, right? Had a bottle for the first time in a long time recently and was pleasantly surprised. Usually it's the opposite experience when I go back to a sentimental favorite from my beer drinking infancy.

 

Yes, I have. I think I had one or two cans, the first one I did not like at all, and the second was frozen by accident, so I don't count that one. I had their Helles too, and the first can I thought was just ok, and the second tasted better to me. Long story short, I should probably try another single or two, or maybe draft to get a better idea.

Yes, I believe it's from the Kolsch yeast strain. Google "Kolsch white wine" and it should give you some more descriptions. It's a subtle sweetness/fruitiness and white wine characteristic. Just make sure it's not old, I've had some imports that I feel have a bit too much age on them, and taste overly sweet.

It's subtle, but so is Kolsch in general. It's like a Pilsner, only with even less of a hop presence. It's one of the least forgiving styles out there in my opinion, and it's been said to be right up there with the New England style IPA in terms of freshness being paramount.

Basically, if you have an old Kolsch or you fucked up brewing it...you're going to notice, because it's really really bad.

I have a handful of times over the years. I remember not particularly liking it, especially on draft. I can't recall if I've had it in the bottle and/or if I liked it.

I really dig their Czech Pils (Busker Pilsner now?), so I feel like I've given their Gold Spike a shot multiple times, really wanting to like it. So...maybe I'll have it one more time?

 

https://www.beeradvocate.com/community/threads/no-love-for-kolsch.313171/

If you have the time this 17 page thread over two years (yikes) has a lot of good talk/info about the style. I haven't read it all myself, but I have read portions of it.

 

Well, hell! No one told me this was going to be this good!

I try not to buy into hype, but whoever is driving this hype train, how many tickets can I buy to stay on the train?

 

Do you mean 12 or 13? I only got a single pour of 12 when it was available, but I got a 4 pack of 13, and damn if that isn't a delicious orange juice looking beer.

Also, anyone going to the one year anniversary party? My band's going to be playing if anyone wants to say hi...

 

Besides the obvious two, I'd honestly be hard pressed to name another brewery that is putting out better hoppy offerings in Mass than Exhibit A. Not to mention Sunday Paper and Briefcase Porter, which are excellent in their own categories as well.

All personal preference of course, but they've been killing it since opening.

 

It's definitely very impressive to see what he is doing with a style that he doesn't consider to be his strongest. So many breweries would kill to be able to put out what he is doing in regards to hoppy beers.