Brooklyn Brewery in Brooklyn, New York

This review here is going to be a little different. I’m going to talk about the Blast Pale Ale, though unfortunately for most of our readers, it is not bottle and only sold to a few bars in the New York area (primarily the one next to the Brooklyn Brewery). But I also want to talk about the Brooklyn Brewery a little bit and some of the cool things that were going on.

This picture on the right is of the tap area at the brewery, which sort of has a cool way of purchasing beers, although it seems a little odd at first. It works a lot like a festival where there is a booth when you walk in that sells merchandise as well as tokens. Said tokens are necessary for a good time as they are how you pay for your beer. Six tokens for $20. Not really a bad price, especially since there was also some free fine meats and cheeses going on. I know, I know, you are all thinking “why not just pay for my beers at the counter? What if I don’t know how many beers I’m going to have?” Valid questions, but heres the deal, if you don’t use all your tokens, bring them back next time!

The place was also packed! I mean jam packed, but with three or four people just pouring beer and taking tokens, it is amazing how much faster the whole process is. True, marking cards doesn’t take a long time, but when the guy in front of you wants to pay for his beers, one beer from each of his two buddies, and pick up a growler that can definitely hold up the line and bit. Even with the huge line like the picture in the left, it never took more than maybe ten or fifteen minutes to get a beer, and if you are a smart shopper, you are getting two at once since they were only 12 ouncers. Overall the place had some great character to it. All the tables are basically set up community style, forcing you to sit next to a bunch of people you don’t necessarily know, and with the worlds best social lubricant (I’m talking about beer here) flowing about, you meet some awesome people you might just stare at otherwise. I loved the place, and would certainly be a regular if I lived near by. Anyway, back to the meat and potatoes of the post: the Brooklyn Blast Pale Ale!

The Blast was my favorite beer I had while I was there, and I had quite the sample of what they had to offer. They call it a pale ale, though I thought it was a little closer to an Imperial IPA. Weighing in at about 8.5%, it had quite the kick to it, but also was fairly light and sessionable. The crystal clear faded amber brew had almost no head, but left great webbed lacings down the glass, which was sort of impressive as it was just a plastic cup! The smell was great, like trolloping through a pine forest with a basket of fresh grapefruit, orange, and pineapple. The flavor profile followed the nose, with big pineapple and orange up front which transitioned into a piney bitter grapefruit finish. The lingering flavor of citrus rind preps the palate for more of the fruity start. Truly a great/dangerous beverage, and something that will quickly put you on your ass, hence me trying a number of their different beers.

My highest regards to the Brooklyn Blast Pale Ale and the Brooklyn Brewery. I was impressed by both. Even after all the talking up of the Blast that my friends did, it still took me by surprise and was one of the better IPAs I’ve had lately. On a side note, nothing out here seems to be unfiltered, which is quite the change from what I am used to, and I wonder what these brews would be if they were still in their pure state. Hope everyone is enjoying a few pints for Craft Beer Week, I certainly know I am.