Posted on

Armada Brewing: Bikini Island

Armada Brewing: Bikini Island

Hops: Mosaic

ABV: 10.0%

IBU: 100+

Availability: Rotating

@untappd says: 4.24/5

Is it summer yet? Cuz I’m getting my bikini on on the Windowsill today!

Connecticut’s gypsy brewery, Armada Brewing, makes its solo debut on the Windowsill Remember the Candy Castle collaboration with BAD SONS Beer Company?). Bikini Island is named after a real life place, the northeastern most island on the Bikini Atoll, which is a ring-shaped coral reef in the Pacific Ocean. The fun fact about this area? From 1946-1958, the United States tested 23 nuclear explosions all around it. The reef’s natives, who was promised they’d be able to return home in no time when they agreed to give up their home, are still out of luck. They ended up shuffled around to two other Atolls, and the area is unlivable to this day. Good job, U.S. Government!

Now that you know the history behind the name, let’s talk about how incredibly delicious this beer is. The Bikini Island is a triple IPA hopped only with one of my favorite hop varieties, Mosaic. This beer has three things I really like. It’s hopped to the gills with a high IBU, it’s bright and tropical and, at 10% ABV, it really packs a punch. It was really a great brew, and once I had it, I was pretty much set for the night. Can’t wait to try more from Armada Brewing!

Check this one out on Instagram. Make sure you like and follow!

Posted on

Nod Hill Brewery: Super Mantis

Nod Hill Brewery: Super Mantis

Hops: Citra, Galaxy

Grains: Pale, Munich, Flaked Oats

Yeast: Nod Hill’s House Ale yeast

ABV: 8.7%

IBU: N/A

Availability: Year-round

@untappd says: 3.86/5

Oh no! The Windowsill is under attack from a super delicious beer monster!

Nod Hill Brewery is named after the hill that rises behind their Ridgefield, CT building. The father-son team of Robert and Dave Kaye opened the 10-barrel brewery just before Halloween last year. Although the pair were avid home brewers before Nod Hill, they hired head brewer Kyle Acenowr to help them with the increased volume and precision to make beer for the masses. Like the campfire depicted in their logo, Nod Hill Brewery is a welcoming gathering place for friends to meet, relax, and enjoy fresh beer. Sounds pretty good!

The Super Mantis is a double IPA brewed with Pale and Munich malts and flaked oats, hopped with Citra and Galaxy hops and also fermented with Nod Hill’s house ale yeast. At 8.7% ABV, it definitely packs a punch, but that’s what you’d expect from a DIPA. In case you’re wondering, the beautiful labels on both cans are designed by Atlanta-based artist @briansteely, who also designed Nod Hill’s logo. Check out his Instagram page for more of his art!

Be sure to like the Super Mantis one on Instagram, and follow our page for more amazing local beer!

Posted on

Black Hog Brewing Company: Granola Brown Ale

Black Hog Brewing Company: Granola Brown Ale

Grains: 2-Row Pale, British Pale, Crystal 150, Brown Malt, Chocolate Malt, Flaked Oats, Malted Oats, Munich Malt, Special B

Hops: Chinook, East Kent Golding, Nugget

ABV: 5.7%

IBU: 18

Availability: Year-round

@untappd says: 3.71/5

Happy National Beer Day from my Windowsill to yours!

Last year, we covered what National Beer Day is all about. It’s the anniversary of Franklin Delano Roosevelt officially ending Prohibition back in 1933. Unfortunately, it took 76 years for someone to actually create this unofficial holiday. In 2009, friends Justin Smith and Mike Conolly decided to honor the anniversary of the end of Prohibition by starting a National Beer Day Facebook page. It caught on like crazy, and is now recognized by many people around the world. How are you celebrating National Beer Day?

On the Windowsill, we’re starting it off with another local Connecticut brew, Black Hog Brewing Company’s Granola Brown Ale. It’s an award-winning brown ale brewed with a “granola” mix of oatmeal, grains, hops and roasted malts. Now, I’m not a big brown ale fella, but when a beer takes home the Gold Award at the 2016 World Beer Olympics, it gets my attention. Plus, who doesn’t like granola?

Celebrate National Beer Day on our Instagram. Like and follow us for more great beer!

Posted on

Half Full Brewery: Emil (Without Rhyme or Reason Release #5)

Half Full Brewery: Emil (Without Rhyme or Reason Release #5)

Hops: Motueka (dry-hop), Simcoe (dry-hop), Citra lupulin powder

Grains: Canadian 2-Row, Wheat (raw and malted), Flaked Oats

ABV: 7.0%

IBU: N/A

Availability: Limited (in-house only)

@untappd says: 3.98/5

“I found a reason for me / to change who I used to be / A reason for all that I do / and the reason is Half Full on my Windowsill!” – Hoobastank… sort of.

Let’s talk about Emil Christian Hansen! Why? Because he’s the inspiration behind the name of today’s beer, Half Full Brewery’s Emil. Hansen, a Danish mycologist and fermentation physiologist (that title has quite the mouthfeel, eh?), is best known as the first person to isolate a pure cell of yeast, which he did while working for Carlsberg in 1883. The yeast he created from this cell is the yeast from which all yeasts used in lager beers are derived. It was reading about Hansen that originally inspired McLain, Half Full’s head brewer, to enter the winemaking business and, ultimately, bring us this beer.

The Emil is, as you can see, the fifth can release in Half Full’s Without Rhyme or Reason series. It’s a double dry-hopped IPA brewed with Canadian 2-Row, wheat (raw and malted), flaked oats and a touch of lactose sugar. It’s then double dry-hopped with Simcoe and Motueka hops. The finishing touch is Citra lupulin powder. The end result is a hazy, citrusy and delicious IPA that I really loved having on the Windowsill.

Make sure to check us out on Instagram. Like and follow us for more great beers!

Posted on

Thomas Hooker Brewery: Super Duper Double Citra

Thomas Hooker Brewery: Super Duper Double Citra

Hops: Citra

ABV: 8.0%

IBU: N/A

Availability: Limited

@untappd says: 4.21/5

Are those rubber chickens in your hula hoop pants, or are you just happy to see today’s Windowsill beer?

In case you haven’t noticed, the label on this beer from Bloomfield, Connecticut’s Thomas Hooker Brewery is inspired by one of my favorite childhood gameshows—Double Dare. You remember the show, right? Host Marc Summers would ask one of the teams a question. They could dare the other team to answer it. The other team could double dare them back. The final option? Physical challenge, y’all!

Today’s physical challenge was drinking this incredibly delicious brew. You don’t have to dig through a nose full of slime to figure out where this beer gets its name. It’s a double IPA brewed exclusively with Citra hops. Despite the heavy ABV, it’s a silky smooth brew that goes down nice and easy. Let it warm up a bit to get those tropical flavors of grapefruit, melon, passion fruit and lychee from the Citra hops. Super tropical, super delicious, not overly bitter. So good, you’ll want to sit in a giant bowl of spaghetti and catch oversized, sauced up meatballs with my teeth just to drink a Super Duper Double Citra!

Make sure to like this amazing brew on Instagram, and follow us!

Posted on

Half Full Brewery: Albert (Without Rhyme or Reason Release #5.5)

Half Full Brewery: Albert (Without Rhyme or Reason Release #5.5)

Hops: Simcoe (dry-hop)

Grains: Canadian 2-Row, Wheat (raw and malted), Flaked Oats

Yeast: Hefeweizen

ABV: 7.0%

IBU: N/A

Availability: Extremely limited

@untappd says: Not enough ratings as of press time

Feel the reason! Feel the rhyme! Get on up, it’s Windowsill time!

Half Full Brewery is back on the Windowsill! Today, let’s talk about “Together We Can,” the brewery’s “Volunteer—Drink Beer” initiative. Once a month, they organize volunteer days where anybody can come together to volunteer at a local community organization. Afterwards, they take it back to the brewery to celebrate. Every beer that sells that day results in a $1 donation to the organization, and a portion of all sales for the whole month get donated as well. If you’re looking to support a business that gives back, Half Full’s a good place to start.

Now, the beer! If you’ve followed my Instagram, you’re familiar with the Without Rhyme or Reason series Half Full has been releasing over the last 5 months or so. The series is known for the special can releases, but the brewery also releases even more exclusive WROR beers that don’t even make it to cans. The Albert—named after Albert Einstein—is one of those. That’s why it’s the “5.5,” and not the 6. I wish they had canned this beer, because it was amazing. It’s a hazy and full-bodied IPA brewed with hefeweizen yeast and double dry-hopped with Simcoe. The Albert has some great notes of peach and banana, goes down super smooth and tastes great!

Make sure you follow us on Instagram, and give Half Full a follow, too!

Posted on

Black Hog Brewing Company: Easy Rye’Da

Black Hog Brewing Company: Easy Rye'Da

Hops: Bravo, Summit, 07270, Denali, Eureka

Malts: 2-Row Pale, Aromatic, British Pale, CaraHell, Rye Malt

ABV: 5.5%

IBU: 20

Availability: Year-round

@untappd says: 3.56/5

The Windowsill is revving up for a long hog ride today!

Black Hog Brewing Company was  opened in August 2014 by brothers Jason and Tom Sobocinski. The brothers grew up in a Polish/Italian family, so they grew up with a love of food and drink—specifically a nice, juicy, roasted pig. The pig of choice for all celebrations was the Berkshire Pig, which is known for its black color. See where I’m going with this? They hooked up with their old friend, brewer Tyler Jones, and Black Hog Brewing Company was born.

The Easy Rye’Da has a name name and can art inspired by the classic 1969 motorcycle movie Easy Rider. It’s a rye IPA brewed with Bravo, Summit, 07270, Denali and Eureka hops and yes, rye malt (along with other varieties, too). As they say on the official description, this is a session beer, so you can cruise on it all day long. This one was OK for me. The Easy Rye’Da didn’t quite get my motor runnin’, but it didn’t flood my engine either. Decent!

Get it in gear and head over to our Instagram, right now! Like and follow us for more great beers!

Posted on

Hanging Hills Brewing Company: Irregular Hartbeat

Hops: Galaxy

ABV: 8.4%

IBU: N/A

Availability: “Almost never”

@untappd says: 3.87/5

Is that a murmur in my chest, or am I just happy to have this beer on my Windowsill?

I love a brewery with a clear cut mission statement. Hanging Hills Brewing Company upholds the following values in order to make the best beer possible: purest ingredients, traditional techniques, attention to detail, creativity, community, commitment to environment, and gratitude. How do they make great beer? With “ingenuity and a dogged pursuit of quality. Like what you hear? Head up to Hartford today!

I’ve been looking for another good Hanging Hills brew for my Windowsill for a couple of weeks now, and man did I make a good choice! The Irregular Hartbeat (Hanging Hills is always showing the love for Hartford, CT) is a Galaxied up version of their other brew, named Hartbeat. While the Hartbeat is made with Mosaic and Citra, the Irregular Hartbeat is all Galaxy, all the time. It’s bright, juicy and hoppy. Made my heart skip a beat!

Check this one out on Instagram. Don’t forget to like and follow!

Posted on

Connecticut Valley Brewing Company: I’m in Love with the Simcoe

Connecticut Valley Brewing Company: I'm in Love with the Simcoe

Hops: Simcoe

ABV: 6.0%

IBU: N/A

Availability: Rotating

@untappd says: 3.9/5

I’m feeling in love on the Windowsill today!

Connecticut Valley Brewing Company was established in 2012 by the husband and wife team of Steve and Lori Palauskas. As I mentioned in my review of The New Frontier, they’re really into their home state’s massive aviation history (after all, Steve spent 25 years in the industry). Their logo features the F4U Corsair, which is the official plane of Connecticut and first flew during WWII. Head down to their South Windsor, CT taproom to check out more of their tasty brews!

While I might not call O.T. Genasis the songbird of our generation, his blazing hit “I’m In Love with the Coco” has been playing in my head since I took my first gander at the label of today’s Windowsill brew. As the name suggests, I’m in Love with the Simcoe is a single-hop NEIPA that features the talented and versatile Simcoe hop. The beer is light and lemony, but still has a lot of resin and citrus going on. Will you fall in love with the Simcoe? I did!

Fall in love with our Instagram, right now!

Posted on

Karmic Daaru Company: Citrus Suraj

Karmic Daaru Company: Citrus Suraj

Hops: Idaho-7, Calypso, Lemondrop

ABV: 8.0%

IBU: N/A

Availability: Rotating

@untappd says: 3.89/5

What better to see through the Windowsill than a nice citrusy sun?

Karmic Daaru Company was founded in 2016 by South Windsor Connecticut’s Akshar Patel, who started the company while he was still in school. The company has seen its fair share of success in its early going and Patel continues to plan its long-term strategy, as he expands to other states. I really hope he keeps Karmic Daaru running, because his beers are delicious, and I need them for my Windowsill!

The Citrus Suraj (meaning sun) is just the second beer Akshar has brewed and distributed under the Karmic Daaru banner. It’s a really solid dry-hopped Double IPA made with a blend of Idaho-7, Calypso and Lemondrop hops. Really bright, tropical and tasty. Karmic Daaru is 2-for-2 so far, as far as I’m concerned. Shout out to Doug Fortin for the Citrus Suraj label work. He also did the artwork for their first beer, the Space Komet Sitra. So good!

Check this post out on Instagram, now!