Of the 40 beers I received for my birthday I’ve tracked thus far how each has rated against the unofficial Hop-Talk beer rating scale.

In this round I add one fantastic brew, Brooklyn’s Local 1. I’m not a big Belgian fan, but this really hit the spot for me. Two other very good stouts received a 3.5, Founder’s Breakfast Stout and Harviestoun’s Old Engine Oil Black Ale. (I think I liked the Engine Oil a bit more)

Left Hand’s JuJu Ginger was interesting with the first sips wonderful and full of ginger, but by the end I was spent on the taste and my tongue was over spiced. Wild Goose’s XPA was nothing to write home about.

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