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BC Review

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The Expert Panel

The Beer Connoisseur® review was conducted as a round table single blind review by our panel of expert judges. Four to six judges reviewed 8-14 beers per session and submitted their individual scores and notes. The scores were averaged into a single score and notes compiled and summarized for publishing in magazine issues 1-14. These reviews have been republished here in this online format.

The names and biographies of the contributing judges were publsihed with each magazine issue and are listed below.

Charlie Gow - Founding Beer Review Coordinator ​(1960 - 2014)
Tim Artz
Tom Cannon
Phil Farrell
Pete Garofalo
Rick Garvin
Lee Anthony Hitchins
Owen Ogletree

My reviews

Judges Rating:
94
Appearance:
6 / 6
Aroma:
23 / 24
Flavor:
38 / 40
Mouthfeel:
8 / 10
Overall Impression:
19 / 20

From its earliest days back in the fall of 1988, Cleveland-based Great Lakes Brewing Company has developed a rightfully deserved reputation as one of America’s top breweries. Certainly one of Great Lakes’ flagship beers, Edmund Fitzgerald Porter is the quintessential Robust Porter, tossing... Read More

Circus Boy

Judges Rating:
86
Appearance:
5 / 6
Aroma:
21 / 24
Flavor:
36 / 40
Mouthfeel:
8 / 10
Overall Impression:
16 / 20

A distinctly fruity example of the style, redolent with notes of lush tropical fruit and bright, tangy citrus, Circus Boy is a complex, intriguing brew. It presents as a pale golden, notably hazy beer, with a surprisingly low head for the style. The aroma, though a bit incongruous for an... Read More

Judges Rating:
91
Appearance:
5 / 6
Aroma:
22 / 24
Flavor:
35 / 40
Mouthfeel:
8 / 10
Overall Impression:
19 / 20

Home to some of the most idiosyncratic beers in the world, Franconia is rightfully known as the brewing world’s epicenter for rauchbiers, which are noted for the pungently smoky aromas and flavors. Aecht Schlenkerla Eiche, a rauch (smoked) doppelbock from Brauerei Heller-Trum in Bamberg,... Read More

Tricerahops Double IPA

Tricerahops Double IPA
Judges Rating:
90
Appearance:
5 / 6
Aroma:
24 / 24
Flavor:
36 / 40
Mouthfeel:
7 / 10
Overall Impression:
18 / 20

Due to extraordinarily tasty brews, Ninkasi Brewing has quickly earned the reputation as a heavy hitting up-and-comer. Tricerahops is a behemoth of a brew, boasting a whopping 100 IBU backed by almost 9% ABV. The aroma is a full-on hop assault, lashing the sense with wave upon wave of Seville... Read More

Torpedo

Torpedo Sierra Nevada Beer
Judges Rating:
89
Appearance:
6 / 6
Aroma:
18 / 24
Flavor:
39 / 40
Mouthfeel:
9 / 10
Overall Impression:
17 / 20

Unfortunately, it appears that samples of this popular brew suffered from heat and exposure in transit to the tasting site. However, all beers in the review are tasted blind, and the judges were compelled to evaluate the beer as received. Sierra Nevada is deservedly world-renowned as brewers of... Read More

Coney Island Lager

Judges Rating:
90
Appearance:
6 / 6
Aroma:
22 / 24
Flavor:
35 / 40
Mouthfeel:
9 / 10
Overall Impression:
18 / 20

Brewed with an eclectic blend of European and American hops and malts, Shmaltz Brewing’s Coney Island Lager is somewhat of an oddity, unashamedly intermarrying ingredients from the Old and New Worlds alike. Taking iconoclasm one step further, this lager is dry hopped with the quintessential... Read More

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