Beer Styles Best-of-Show Tasting Results

Owen Ogletree picked ten craft beers from around the Southeast - each representing a different BJCP style - and worked with craft beer enthusiasts Ashton Smith, Ian Meents, Thel Melton and The Beer Wench to conduct a totally blind "best of show" tasting and ranking.

Comments are based on how well each beer represented its BJCP style description.

Here are the results...

FIRST PLACE - Best of Show
Sunshine State Pils
Florida Beer Company
German-style Pils

- Sweet; smooth; nice pils malt; good hop flavor for style; clean, light bread crust note; slight cereal grain note in the finish; wonderful example of the style.

SECOND PLACE
Last Place Stout
Blue Tarp Brewing
Imperial Stout

- Port wine nose with raisins, rum and espresso hints; mild dark tan head; boozy; notes of dates, prunes and figs; rich malt sweetness and dark malt complexity; sweet cocoa and latte notes; spicy, cinnamon character with dark fruit complexity and roasted malt depth; burnt bread crust; ends moderately sweet and satisfying.

THIRD PLACE
Lyric Ale
Orpheus Brewing
Saison

- Dark gold; hazy; gorgeous white foam; cloves; sweet spice; slight pepper; fruit; nice hop note; pears and lemon juice hint; wheat cereal nuance; mild acidity; pleasant dry finish; light clove phenol touch with white pepper undertone.

HONORABLE MENTION
Gaelic Ale
Highland Brewing Company
Strong Bitter

- Light aroma of caramel malt; hints of toffee; pleasant fruity esters; biscuit note; melon hint; sweet malt nuance; good balance of malt and hops; hops are there for support to the malt; a delightful hop presence at the end.

Pale Ale
Eventide Brewing
American Pale Ale

- Deep gold with a nice, light hop aroma; good balance; slight tannin astringency in the finish; overall a tasty APA with elegant, mild hops and a lingering dry bitterness in the finish; hops seem piney, resiny and slightly citrus-like and floral.

Truck Stop Honey Brown Ale
Back Forty Beer Company
Specialty British-style Brown Ale with wildflower honey

- Mild honey, caramel and roasted nut aromas; like a slightly sweet UK mild ale; toasted bread; scone-like; honey comes through and dominates the brown ale character a bit; clean and light in flavor; light honey is the star of this show.

Emergency Drinking Beer
Wild Heaven Craft Beers
Specialty Gose with sea salt, citrus and additional hops

- Clear in appearance with light, bright, gold color; great carbonation; big stand of foam; aromas of minerals, citrus, slight spice and acid; only mildly sour with a subtle lactic note; there is a touch of sweet malt; refreshing, with just a hint of acid on the sides of the tongue; lemon, orange and tangerine hints; mild salt; slight spiciness from hops; an interesting ale.

Big Easy IPA
Abita Brewing Company
Specialty Session IPA with lemon peel

- Dark gold in color with clear, white foam; hoppy, lemon, fruity nose with flavors of tannin-like citrus zest; mouthfeel and body are light and good for style; more lemon presence than hops; dry finish; lightly fruity; well balanced with light malt; hops seem restrained; mild and clean; refreshing.

Reviver Red IPA
Starr Hill Brewery
Specialty IPA: Red IPA

- Dark red in hue; almost brown with tan foam; aromas of malt, browned biscuits, and sweet wort; herbal note; dark fruit; toffee note is apparent; light hop hint in the finish; moderately dry finish; might benefit from more aroma and flavoring hops.

Milk Stout
Duck-Rabbit Craft Brewery
Sweet Stout

- Beautiful jet-black color with light tan foam; sweet roasted malt aromas; espresso with rich cream; smells sweeter than it tastes; comes across like a slightly sweet dry stout; body may be a touch light for style; mild fruity esters are pleasant; ends with a hint of hazelnut and toffee on the palate.