Thirsty Thursday Eve - 6 Pack of the Week 2018-05-30

The Build Your Own 6 Pack area at Ingles (or your local grocer) is great because it allows curious drinkers to try several different styles and brews without committing to the price, storage, and obligation to drink a full 6 pack of each of them. Being a curious drinker myself, I love picking up some new things to try, and my nearest Ingles store cycles out the available beers quite regularly. To present my “research” for others, I figured I could write up a post with a few of the more noteworthy brews I’ve discovered. Expect a follow-up every few weeks, when I’ve had time to find some more good ones.

Name: Up the Creek Extreme Ale
Brewery: Thomas Creek Brewery, LLC
Style: Double IPA
ABV: 12.5%
Buy Again? Yes

I’ve long claimed that I hate IPAs, but this one somehow works. Maybe it’s because the absurdly high ABV gets me too drunk to taste it, but I really do like this ale. Ingles sometimes has it in the build-you-own-6-pack area, they sometimes have it in 4 pack, and frequently they don’t have it at all. When it is available, I definitely recommend picking some up.

Name: Vanilla Porter
Brewery: Breckenridge Brewery
Style: Porter
ABV: 5.4%
Buy Again? Yes

The Vanilla Porter from Breckenridge Brewery is surprisingly good. I expected sweet, and I don’t feel like sweet works well with a proper beer. It’s fine in “malt beverages” like Smirnoff Ice and others, but those are almost like sodas. Where the Vanilla Porter definitely has vanilla, it isn’t necessary very sweet. The flavor works well, especially with the warm malty flavor.

Name: Guinness Extra Stout
Brewery: Guinness
Style: Stout
ABV: 5.6%
Buy Again? Maybe

Not bad, but not as good as Guinness Draught. I really like the creaminess of Draught, and the Extra Stout loses that. The fact that this is a maybe buy again, and not a yes, is because I would be more likely to pick up Draught instead. I picked up specifically the Extra Stout to try a milkshake recipe. The milkshake was awful, but I’m pretty sure it would have been just as bad with any other beer. Note to self: combining ice cream, beer, and liquor is not a good idea.

Name: Milk Stout
Brewery: Duck-Rabbit
Style: Stout
ABV: 5.7%
Buy Again? Yes

I don’t know what a Milk Stout is, but it is delicious. Apparently, it’s brewed with lactose, which sounds terrible, but is fantastic in application. It has that typical stout maltiness, but with almost like a coffee flavor. I wouldn’t want to knock back a lot of these, but having one by itself is great.

Name: Smirnoff Ice Screwdriver
Brewery: Smirnoff
Style: Malt Beverage
ABV: 5.8%
Buy Again? Yes

Chick drink or not, the Smirnoff Ice Screwdriver is amazing. Tastes nearly identical to an actual screwdriver drink, which I particularly enjoy. Plus, it as a surprisingly high ABV for that style of drink. If you like a screwdriver, or even orange flavored drinks, you’ll love it.

Name: Not Your Father’s Mountain Ale
Brewery: Small Town Brewery
Style: Malt Beverage
ABV: 5.0%
Buy Again? Yes

Not technically part of a Build Your Own 6 Pack, but I had to rave about this stuff. Everything I’ve had in the “Not Your Father’s” line has been great, and I love Mountain Dew, so this was an obvious match made in heaven. It’s smooth, citrusy, and delicious. At roughly $11 for a 6 pack, it isn’t something I would drink a ton of in a sitting, but starting off the night with one sounds like a great idea to me. Unfortunately, we drank them all before I got a picture of a full one, so you’ll have to look for it yourself. Just go look for a beer pretending to be Mountain Dew, you can’t miss it.