Bitter Rival

By Eric Cioffi


Also known as “Liquid Brutality”, this ale is fom The Tap Brewery in Haverhill, Massachusetts. Bitter Rival is billed as an East Coast IPA concocted for the Lupulin¹extremists with generous measures of Amarillo, Chinook, and Columbus hops.  Golden, unfiltered and unrelenting. If you don’t like em’ bitter and tongue-scrappingly hoppy,  stay away.

Bitter Rival, an homage, to the Boston Bruins age-old rivalry with the Montreal Canadiens. “The name Bitter Rival was literally a last minute idea conjured up on the day of release at the pub which was the day the NHL lockout ended.”

From the pour, this IPA screams hops–no floral or citrus notes, just boldfaced bitter. I just finished a Ballast Point Sculpin and the Bitter Rival is shocking in comparison. First sip was jagged compared to the Sculpin. This is not for the timid. Very bitter and strong. At 8.5% ABV it is a beer with a backbone. Very good.

American Imperial IPA | 8.5 % ABV
Rating: 78

¹Lupulin is the glandular powder separated from the strobiles of the Humulus lupulus (hops) plant. It has sedative effects on the body and mind and stimulates sleep. This powder is separated by beating or rubbing the strobiles of hops, and then sifting them. The sifting is necessary to remove the broken bracts and other vegetable parts. About 10 per cent of lupulin is thus obtained from the dried hops. The powder is bright brownish-yellow and become resinous. Lupulin is chemically related to THC.

Lagunitas Little Sumpin’ Sumpin’ Wheat Ale

By Eric Cioffi

Little Sumpin’ Sumpin’ Ale hails from Lagunitas Brewing Company in coastal Petaluma, CA about 45 minutes north of the Golden Gate. One of the largest brewhouses on the West Coast, Lagunitas is the second fastest growing brewery in the U.S.

Hold on to your taste buds because this ale will blow you away! It is brewed with the four Cs of hops: Cascade, Columbus, Chinook, and Centennial, which creates a wheat beer that rivals your favorite IPA for full-blown hoppy goodness. It pours a clear golden yellow with a dense, white head that dissipates slowly leaving a sheet of fine bubbled lacing. The aroma is big and bold with the usual tropical and citrus notes from a highly hopped beer. Grapefruit dominates. The beer is light to medium in body and has a crisp smooth finish. When you finally part the hop sea you get to the tangy wheat you would expect from an American Pale Wheat.I love this beer. This is not a session beer at 7.5% ABV. It is a fantastic beer to enjoy on the deck on a hot summer night.

Brewer’s Description
“From our earliest days of striving to make consistently good beer, and instead making beer that ranged from vile, to barely drinkable, to wonderful, to elegant, to questionable-at-best. From being castigated by our West Marin neighbors to finally suffering an ‘eviction’ by our West Marin septic system. From landing in the welcoming arms of Petaluma, and actually getting our beer into bottles, onto the streets, and into the hands of sympathetic beer geeks, to steadily losing less money each month. From all this and more, Lagunitas Brewing Company is emerging as a battle-tested brewery capable of making great beer out of goat’s milk, brambles, and asphalt on the surface of the Moon, if need be.  A Little Sumpin’ Sumpin’ is way smooth and silky with a nice wheaty-esque-ish-ness. Just the little sumpin’ sumpin’ we all need to kick Summer into full swing! Ingredients: Hops, Malt, Hops, Hops, Yeast, Hops, Water, and Hops. A truly unique style featuring a strong hop finish on a silky body. A filtered pale wheat ale that is great for both IPA and wheat beer fans.”

American Pale Wheat Ale |  7.5% ABV
Rating: 88