Best good beer made by mediocre brewery?

Saranac Imp stout. Better than you would think

 

Mentioning Boulevard brings up an interesting point. While not the topic of this thread, I find that Boulevard is the most polarizing brewery I have ever encountered. The main lineup is mediocre and mostly forgettable (but by no means bad), but the Smokestack series is incredible:

Tank 7
Brett Saison
Rye on Rye
BBQ
Sixth Glass
Dark Truth

Drool.

 

Pike XXX stout...Blew me away for the price, it was a 5 dollar bomber.

 

471 IPA and the Oatmeal Stout by Breckenridge.

 

This and their White IPA are better than most people would think.

 

Charleville- Box of Chocolates. Their IPA is not bad, but BOC is on another planet compared to everything else that they make.

 

It is odd not seeing any Flying Dog mentions in here so far. Even living in Frederick MD, i have to say FD is mediocre. Don't get me wrong, I like their beers, but they really don't give me that wow factor that other breweries do like Firestone Walker.

But the one beer that Flying Dog does right has to be their Gonzo Imperial Porter. Everybody should pick this up at least once and give it a try. Don't pass on it next time you see it if you haven't tried it yet. Most other brews by Flying Dog I can't say the same for...

 

I don't really care for much of Arbor Brewing, but Demetrius was pretty good.

 

This.

 

A store near me sells perrys revenge in bottles. Not sure why, but they're heavily discounted. Really tasty beer though.

My vote would go to Thomas hooker. The liberator doppelbock is world class in my opinion, even better than the germans. The rest of their lineup is just pretty average.

 

Id say maybe Great Divide Yeti. I dont really drink any other Great Divide beers, but Yeti is one of my favorites, along with most of its variations.

 

I might catch hell for these two, but . . .
Goose Island Sofie--the only beer I've had from GI that I'd buy again
Three Floyds Alpha King/Zombie Dust--their pale ales are amazingly good considering how mediocre most of their other beers are

Some less controversial ones:
Left Hand Fade to Black Vol. 3.
Highland Tasgall Ale
Carolina Brewing Pumpkin Ale
Avery . . . well, I've yet to have anything really good from Avery.

 

I'm surprised nobody has mentioned Noble Pils in 150+ responses.

 

Puddle Jumper Pale Ale by 3rd St Aleworks. The rest of their lineup is usually pretty average, but that beer is near perfect for me.

 

Kilty Pleasure and Shackamaximum by Philadelphia Brewing Co.

 

Have you actually had beers like Dreadnaught and Gumbalhead, and actually find them to be mediocre? Same for Bourbon County and Matilda (and their Sours if you can ever find them).

 

Have you had their Ale Mucho Hoppo? Really decent DIPA.

 

I've not had Gumballhead, but Dreadnaught is solid. It's also overpriced and undated, which keeps me from having further interest in it. I've had three of the BCB variants and found them all to be overly sweet and boozy. Matilda was alright, though nothing special. I've not had any of their sours, and since their sell-out I don't plan on seeking out their beers any more.

 

Damnit, I knew I forgot one. Yep, real nice DIPA.

 

Agree that the Smokestake series makes their other beers irrelevant. Two Jokers, which you omitted from your list, is the highlight of the Smokestack Series for me. Still pissed that I did not score a BBQ last year.