It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Beer: Last Three Beers

During a weekend in which I saw Bob Seger in concert, drank a lot of beer, and watched some bowls, some college basketball, and the Bears clinching the NFC North, it's a wonder I even had time to drink more beer. But I did.  Here are the three beers from the advent calendar I had this weekend.

Beer #14 was an interesting one.  Due to the aforementioned Seger concert Friday night, I had to hold off until Saturday to drink it, but it was worth the wait.  It was Sketchbook's Ripe Now, which is described as a "Farmstand Porter with Cranberries."  I don't know what I "farmstand porter" is, but most importantly, it's a porter, so I was a fan.  The cranberries gave it some tartness, but it wasn't too sour.

Name:  Ripe Now
Brewery:  Sketchbook Brewing Co.

Location:  Evanston, IL

ABV:  6.6%

IBU:  25

Good for drinking if:  You don't even know you're going to see your alma mater hit a  last-second three to beat an in-state rival on national TV in like two hours.

Rating (out of five stars, by quarter star increments): 4

Beer #15 was from one of my favorite breweries, Chicago's own Pipeworks.  I know they have a ton of hoppy stuff, but they also do wonderful things with stouts and other non-hoppy beers.  Unfortunately, this beer -- Close Encounters -- falls into the former category and not the latter.  It's a black IPA.  To paraphrase Hawk Harrelson's "right size wrong shape," this is the right color, wrong IBU level.

Name:  Close Encounters
Brewery:  Pipeworks Brewing Company

Location:  Chicago, IL

ABV:  6.0%

IBU:  N/A

Good for drinking if:  You're trying to down a quick beer before heading to a holiday party to drink a ton of Christmas beers, and you want a beer that looks like it should be full of malts, but, in reality, is here to kill you.

Rating (out of five stars, by quarter star increments): 3

Beer #16 is one of Ballast Point's 831 varieties of their Scuplin IPA.  This one is the Spruce Tip Sculpin.  As you might expect, it is very piney and sprucey -- and way too hoppy.  I am a fan of a lot of Ballast Point's non-IPAs.  Their Victory at Sea porter is excellent, and this time of year, the Peppermint Victory at Sea is both festive and delicious.

Ballast Point opened up a tap room here in Chicago either last year or earlier this year.  I've been a few times, and I highly recommend it.  They have probably 60 Ballast Point beers on tap.  Definitely check it out if you're looking for some time to kill before a dinner reservation in the Fulton Market area.

Name:  Spruce Tip Sculpin IPA
Brewery:  Ballast Point Brewing Company

Location:  San Diego, CA

ABV:  7.0%

IBU:  70

Good for drinking if:  You really wanted to drink a Christmas tree.

Rating (out of five stars, by quarter star increments): 3