Great Lakes Rye of the Tiger

Great Lakes Brewery has added two IPA's to their seasonal releases this year: Alchemy Hour and Rye of the Tiger. And Lake Erie Monster comes out next month, which is my favorite Great Lakes brew. I'm sad that this seems to be replacing Holy Moses, which was a fantastic white ale, but I'm excited about the IPA's. We picked up a six-pack of this when we couldn't find KBS last night, so it's something of a consolation prize... but with the hype over it, I'm pretty sure I won't be too disappointed.

Add to that whenever I opened the fridge today, I had Survivor stuck in my head. Right now I'm at that epic buildup at the very end. I've even come up with alternate lyrics in an ode to this brew: It's the Rye of the Tiger/It's the thrill of the hop/Rising up to the challenge of our rhizomes... Somebody help me, I've finally gone over the edge. Hunter S. Thompson would be proud. Gonzo beer blogging. Right.

Let's move on to the beer, so that you can all end that scary ride inside my head. It pours a medium orange color with a smallish white head. The aroma is citrus and some spiciness from the rye, with just a hint of biscuity malts coming through. Let's take a sip. This is really good! It opens with the citrus notes, has a lovely bite from the rye, and finishes super dry. The mouthfeel is moderately carbonated and medium-bodied. If you're new to rye in your beer, especially in your IPA, it doesn't taste like rye bread (thank goodness; I have a strong aversion to caraway seeds). It has the bite of a rich pumpernickel bread that combines perfectly well with the hops.

Great Lakes has been impressing me lately with their new additions to their lineup. This certainly does not disappoint. Well done from our brewing brethren to the north.

4.75/5 caps

-Jennie

After a day of sheer insanity, I figured it was a brilliant idea to add to the insanity... Jennie's version of Survivor is the main reason I let her take the lead, that and I was eating dinner with some Ghost Chili sauce. Spicy awesomeness. Before I start reviewing, I must applaud Jennie on her photography skills, as this resembles, to me, the label. Take a moment and notice the pint glasses hiding behind the bottle, resembling the tiger hiding behind the leaves. Now that your mind has been opened, let me take you on a little journey, I like to call...

The Beer Review

 Medium orange pour, little amount of white head that sticks around. It's clear, but not crystal clear. Wow my feet have some funk from sweating in a warehouse, and the cat's in heat. Okay, back to focusing, which is hard to do at times as you unwind from a long, tedious day of scanning boxes and putting them on a skid, but I finally digress. The aroma is citrusy, biscuity, and spicy. Huh, C.B.S., almost like KBS, which I'm still bitter over missing the release of. Maybe I should quit my job in order to chase these rare beers, following them like a hippie followed the Grateful Dead, wandering aimlessly across country, seeking the ultimate prize- happiness. Happiness from a mind enchancing experience, which would happen with this rare brew chase. But this, apparently, is not a rare brew. So, more readily available, where Great Lakes is distributed, this is a good find thus far. But now onto my favorite part of the review...

...The taste. Note that this has warmed up by sitting while I was enjoying my dinner (and a Burger beer). The flavor is light citrus up front, the rye following heavy right behind, but fading quick to give way to the light citrus, finishing dry and slightly bitter. Medium carbonation, medium body, leaving a slight resiny feeling around the cheek and gum area. Not quite as good as the Alchemy Hour, but one of the best RIPA (Rye I.P.A) styles that I've had. The cat in heat is also a klutz.

4.7/5 caps

-Nathan