by Rajan | January 25th, 2010
Despite my previous pledge to try and expand my tastes, I have to say that I’ve been finding myself sticking to IPAs when I’m out at bars. The other night I was at Rattle N Hum where they still had beers from the King of Kings County event they had (where they declared Sixpoint the winner). I regretted not tasting the Brooklyn Blast when I was there, part of the Brooklyn Brewery’s Brewmaster Reserve series, so I ended up trying it. I have to say that while it was a solid IPA, I was a little disappointed. I suppose I was expecting more from something labeled as Brewmaster’s Reserve, especially from the renowned Garrett Oliver. It was crips, hoppy and full-bodied, but there wasn’t anything there to distinguish it from others of the type.
Later in the evening I met up with some friends at Three of Cups in the East Village and I had a Sixpoint Bengali Tiger there. The Sixpoint is a classic example of the style, and despite it being a little less powerful than the Blast, it had a bit more character. Thinner in body, it was plenty hoppy and with a floral quality that was somehow lost in the Blast. I’ve always enjoyed Bengali Tiger, but it’s been a while since I have had it. It was nice to be reminded how good it was. I tend to the Righteous Rye when given a choice of the standard Sixpoint output. I think that’s about to change.