Archive for the 'Sly Fox' category
Sly Fox Abby Xtra
During our trip up North, one of the breweries that kept appearing is Sly Fox. Fortunately, this same brewery turned out to continually impress. This Belgian Ale was found at the Essex Ale house, which was somewhere in the lower East Side of that big city of New York. Matt and I enjoyed this beer with Nikki and Mike, who are longtime friends of SevenPack (and we’re hoping that Mike will soon help out with some reviews, so keep your eyes peeled!).
The beer poured a hazy golden, and smelled of rock candi, cardboard, and confectioner’s sugar (I know this sounds weird, but it’s what is written on this napkin that I scribbled notes on, so it must be legit). In the mouth, there were hints of honey suckle and the requisite candi sugar. There was also a fair amount of alcohol evident, although not overpowering. The next odd flavor that I wrote down is “rubber cement” – not sure where that came from, but I ended my napkin review by stating that this was a very good beer, and one that would make a decent Belgian session beer (which is exactly what it ended up being last week, oddly enough).
Sly Fox Ichor Quadrupel Ale
I just got back to Lunz’s apartment after drinking for 5+ hours at the Publick House in Boston, MA (which was absolutely amazing), and although I certainly don’t need anymore alcohol in my system, I need to review a few beers because I can’t take them home on the airplane. I bought this little ditty in NYC at the New Beer Distributors (another wonderful place). We have been to quite a few beer-havens on our “Beer Tour 2007″ and this was one of the best. Look for a quick recap of our trip some time in the next few days, I think you will enjoy it very much…Anywho, according to the the label Ichor was the “blood” or “life force” that circulated throughout the body of the mythical gods, setting them apart from the humans. I like to think after drinking this I will distinguish myself from the majority of the beer lovers in the world by poisining my liver with this supernatural brew. Masses beware because I am now officially better than you, I challenge you to tell me I’m not…
This beer pours a deep brown color, almost like a coca-cola or a pepsi. There was little head with this particular pour thus making it look like a flat soda. The aroma has a warming effect and is fraught with dark fruits and raisin, with a hint of dark chocolate. It smells very juicy, if you can imagine that. My intial impression is that the taste is very smooth, so smooth infact that I am almost not noticing the flavors involved. This beer flows nicely over the first 1/4 of the tongue and then erupts with a spiciness over the very middle. It mellows over the last half and thickens creating a robust malt flavor that coats the throat. I had the Avery Quad for the umteenth time tonight and I am sad to say (because I love Avery) this is better. I’m getting some dark cherry and maybe a little licquorice but it isn’t doesn’t have a tremendously tangy bite. There is a mild hop burn that emerges during the aftertaste but that has almost no bearing on the overall taste. This is an interesting and complex brew that I am very happy I bought. We can’t get this product in NC just yet but I hope a distributor will bring it and others from the Slyfox family to us very soon.
