Storybook Brewing May Visit

May 13, 2019 Jesse

Mike and I had been to Storybook in the past, prior to our deciding to start writing about our brewery visits, but we had a hard time recalling what we thought of the beer. I had some personal issues going on when we last visited, so I didn’t remember much more than not not liking it. So, with that in mind, we made the decision to make the return trip and give them another try.

It was really busy for a Thursday evening. In fact, based on how many cars were in the parking lot, I was mentally running through a list of other breweries nearby in case seating was an issue. However, Mike showed up a few minutes before I did and snagged a table. We opted to order half-pints of beer this evening. Personally, when I order a flight, I can’t quite get enough of the beer to get a solid opinion of it and if I have a full pint, I can only have two before I decide to cut myself off for the evening (not to mention, having a half-pint of a DIPA or a sour won’t blow out my palate for the evening).

Anyway, about the beer:

Iron Throne Belgian Dubbel – ABV 7.4% – Some of the local breweries decided to commemorate the last season of The Game of Thrones by brewing special beers for the occasion. Each brewery was assigned a “house” from the show and brewed a beer related to that house. Patrons could, I believe, obtain cards whereon they would track what beers in this theme they had at each brewery. (I’ll be honest, I am one of approximately four people in the country that does not watch GoT, so I didn’t pay too much attention to what was happening. But I did try a few of the beers!) This was Storybooks contribution.
I thought this was a good dubbel. Maybe a little lighter with a thinner head that I would have liked, but it was quite drinkable. True to style with that characteristic “belgian” flavor.

Java Dragon Porter (Nitro) – ABV 6.1% IBU 30 – It’s a good thing that the one drink I like as much as beer is coffee because they nailed it with the name. Java! This had a very heavy coffee flavor that might not be to everyone’s liking. It seemed to me that it checked all the boxes for a good porter, however. Definitely the star of the show, in my opinion. The neat thing is they offered Java Dragon on both nitro and CO2. Normally, I think any stout or porter would be better on nitro, but I think this one would be good on either. Very nice.

Whoa Blackberry Bam-a-lam Honey Wheat – ABV 7.6% IBU 21 – As I’ve mentioned before in other posts, I am a sucker for a cleverly named beer. Add to that my fondness of berries and I simply had to try this beer. I have to admit, I was more than a little disappointed by this beer. I was really geared up for it to have a strong, or at least noticeable, berry flavor and I found that it did not. In fact, not only did it not have a blackberry flavor, it had a very strong grapefruit flavor, which puzzled me. I would not have guessed this was meant to be a honey wheat if it hadn’t been written on the board. If it had been a blind taste-test, I would have guessed this was an IPA.
If a beer simply does not have a flavor profile advertised in the name, I assume I just don’t have a palate sophisticated enough to appreciate the beer, but this beer seemed to stray from the style totally. I’d give this one a hard pass in the future.

[Mike] I’m fairly late to the party on this one, Jesse really is carrying the load on this post. Not only did I take my sweet time updating it, but I didn’t even take any pictures of my beers! What a slacker. Nevertheless, here’s what I had.

Angel Feather – American Brown – 6.6% ABV 22 IBU – It was a fairly light bodied beer, which I don’t really mind in a brown, although it may have been a little less mouthfeel than I was expecting. It had a slight malt flavor, but there was a stronger flavor that reminded me of molasses or dark fruit. Dissipates as the beer warms, but then it seemed like it turned into a alcohol hotness.

The Winey Farmer – Saison – 6.5% ABV 17 IBU – A little weaker than I expected, seemed a little watery. Had a slight orange flavor to it, and was really under-carbonated.

Pinky the Raspberry Gose – 5.8% ABV 7 IBU. Slightly Tart, with a hard to notice saltiness. Lots of berry flavor, very refreshing and light. My favorite of the night.

Beers Reviewed at Storybook Brewing: