The Best Things We Drank: Bridging the January-February Gap

This week was full of fruit, tartness and stankiness...thankfully not all in one beer because as much as we love each of those things that might be weird to say the least. Then again there are highly inventive and talented brewers producing things that we wouldn't think would work. Until we find one of those, here are the beers that hit the highest notes for us last week.

Culmination Kriek Mythology - From the moment reading the label on this bottle at The BeerMongers, between the style and the brewery, it was nearly a sure bet this would be delicious. Drinking it confirmed that this Lambic-inspired sour red brewed with cherries was indeed solidly in our strike zone. A SweeTart-style of sour this complex beer finishes less tart than it starts, inviting one to have more...more...more.

Block 15 The Demon's Farm (2015) - On tap, also at The BeerMongers, this beer was a deeper, darker variation of the Culmination Kriek (although enjoyed on separate visits). This dark farmhouse ale also uses cherries and is a blend of beers aged in American oak bourbon barrels and French oak Pinot Noir barrels.

Burnside Morticia - It takes great crafting to produce a pale ale that hits enough hoppy notes for serious hop heads but Burnside succeeds here using Hull Melon, Vic Secret and Mosaic (a favorite!!) hops. The great, stanky aroma and sticky-stanky flavor belies its "crushable" 4.9% ABV.

pFriem Citrus IPA - Just as their Mosaic IPA spoke to the hoppy side of us, so too did this beer. The combination of grapefruit and tangelo zest and citrus-forward hops produce a beer that is full of stanky, citrus goodness.

Widmer Berry White - Did we surprise you with this last one? Well, it surprised us, too. Enjoyed at a private event this was a preview batch with full production coming and wide availability slated for June. We'll definitely be looking forward to this combination of berries and lime that avoids being gimmicky and packs considerable flavor into 4.1% ABV.

What's been tickling your taste buds recently?