Fisherman’s IPA by Cape Ann Brewery arrived this month thanks to our friends and beer donors over at The Microbrewed Beer of the Month Club.  Fisherman’s IPA pours a rich, golden amber with a thin-to-medium head that leaves light lacing as it recedes.  To the nose, this pale ale has the earthy, hoppy scent you’d expect from the style, albeit a bit on the lighter side.  Fisherman’s IPA has the slightly bitter approach of a classic IPA, rounded out with citrus, caramel and a smooth hoppy finish.  It’s going to be a nice weekend, so we suggest ordering up a six pack of this stuff, calling over a few friends and grilling up some fresh Salmon with lemon, butter and dill.  It’ll match this (or any other good IPA) bottle like destiny.  StyleCrave Rating: B-

After a short break, our next package from the Microbrewed Beer of the Month Club arrived last week.  In it were four surprise beers (three each), including two from Grand Teton Brewing Company.  The brewery’s Teton Ale is our stand-out favorite, so we thought we’d start off with a bang.  The Teton Ale poured a dark, reddish amber with nice head, giving off aromas of floral malts, citrus hops with hints of caramel.  To the tongue, this amber ale starts with that light caramel sweetness and rounds off with a soft, slightly bitter finish.  It’s medium bodied, so if you’re in the mood to have more than one this one will accommodate.  Finding a bottle might be a bit difficult, but your local beer boutique should be able to track down a pack for you without a problem.  Thanks to BeerMonthClub for sending us a case for review, it won’t last out the weekend!  Check out more of StyleCrave’s beer reviews for more suggestions on what you should be drinking this weekend.

We’ve got a soft spot for white ales, and cherish every chance we get to taste a new one.  When Colomba Witbier arrived this month in our package from the Microbrewed Beer of the Month Club, we were intrigued.  One of two Corsican beers in the package, Colomba is marked as a “white ale brewed with spices” on its otherwise unappealing label.  Colomba pours a cloudy, pale color with a thick head that recedes quickly.  Its scent is both spicy and sweet, with prevalent notes of wheat.  To the tongue, Colomba White Ale starts spicy, with malt and citrus flavors ending with an herbal finish.  In comparison with other white ales we love, this one didn’t leave a solid impression, as the taste was a bit medicinal and underwhelming.  I can’t say that you should rush out and grab a bottle of Colomba’s white ale, but I do suggest you should try one if offered.  Beyond the three that arrived in my package from BeerMonthClub, I’m not sure if I’ll be picking up any more of these…

Harpoon Irish Red Ale was the most recent arrival from our friends at the Microbrewed Beer of the Month Club.  It has been a while since we’ve had a good Irish red, so this one was certainly a welcome surprise.  “Harpoon’s Hibernian Irish Style Red Ale” pours a clear amber color with a slight head.  To the nose and the tongue, flavors of caramel and sweet malt are present, with a friendly finish leaving room for another bottle.  Harpoon is an approachable Irish Red, but its missing a bit of the character you’d expect from an Irish product, especially microbrewed.  If you’re new to the style, this makes for an easy introduction and will provide an overall pleasant experience.  StyleCrave Rating: 3/5

Angler’s Pale Ale is yet another surprise discovery from our friends over at BeerMonthClub.com.  When we opened our latest arrival from the club last week, we tried this one first– call us suckers for the classic label.  Angler’s pale poured a light amber color with an aroma of floral citrus and subtle, sweet malt.  To the tongue, this beer is sweet to start with a friendly bitter finish, while the citrus and malt scents translate to the flavor quite well.  It’s a medium-bodied pale, which is quite drinkable on a warm spring Saturday afternoon.  While pale’s are not normally our first choice at the pub (we usually reach for something dark, white or basic), Angler’s Pale Ale is a welcome addition to our refrigerator– and this column.  Thanks to the Microbrewed Beer of the Month Club for sending us a complimentary pack to try.  You can get your own each month starting at $21.99.

Ever heard of a Corsican beer called Pietra Biera Corsa?  Neither had we, until it arrived in our package from The Microbrewed Beer of the Month Club early this week.  Pietra is a European dark lager style beer infused with chestnut and brewed in Corsica, France.  Its color is a cloudless, light amber with off-white head and sweet scents of toffee but surprisingly none of the chestnut suggested on the bottle.  The flavor is malty and bittersweet with a medium body and a clean, dry finish.  In comparison to everything we’ve tasted from BeerMonthClub.com yet, this wasn’t a solid win.  We may not grab a bottle of this one every time we hit our local beer boutique, but we’re still glad we had the chance to give this one a healthy taste.  [check out more of StyleCrave's weekly beer review column!]

Continuing our Beer of the Week column, thanks to our friends and sponsors at The Microbrewed Beer of the Month Club, I had a chance to enjoy a few bottles of Lakefront Brewery’s Belgian-Style White Beer this week.  Long time readers of the old column on GearCrave will remember how much I love white ales, and this one is no exception.  Lakefront’s White Beer pours a hazy, pale yellow with thick, white head that retains itself quite well.  The aroma is par for the course of your standard whites, plenty of zesty citrus and hints of wheat.  To the tongue, the citrus scent translates quite well to Lakefront White’s flavor, as tastes of fruity orange and robust spice round this one out quite well.  BeerMonthClub knew what they were doing when they included this one in their most recent package– this is the perfect beer for an unusually warm early Spring day, several of which have passed recently…

Have you tried the LakeFront Brewing Belgian Style White Beer?  Let us know in the comments.  If you like the idea of being surprised each month with a collection of hand-selected microbrew beers, check out the packages available from The Microbrewed Beer of the Month Club – which start at $20.95/month.

Our friends and sponsors at The Microbrewed Beer of the Month Club sent us another beer to check out this week, Jamaica Stout by Desnoes & Geddes Limited.  “Proudly Brewed in Jamaica”, this one is a surprising departure from the common perception of Jamaican beer.  Most casual beer drinkers are familiar with Red Stripe, a beer more popular for its bottle and branding than its below-average quality and taste.  While some beer snobs may scoff at a stout from such an unlikely location, we’ve found this one to be a nice little discovery.  Continue reading after the jump for the dirty details on Jamaican Stout– and if you like the idea of getting a surprise batch of new, interesting beers each month– head over to BeerMonthClub.com and subscribe, starting at just $20.95/month.

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It’s back, StyleCravers.  Beginners, snobs, sommeliers and casual drinkers rejoice, because StyleCrave’s Beer of the Week column has officially returned.  Last year, we brought you one fine, microbrewed beer each week with an unbiased review, providing some new taste adventures for your weekends.  We’re back, and we’re not alone this time…

We are joined by the good people at The Microbrewed Beer of the Month Club, a subscription service that sends you a case of four different beers each month (in a pack of twelve) starting at $20.95 per shipment.  They are sponsoring this column and have provided the beer, but have given us carte blanche to say whatever we want about each beer– good or bad.  Do yourself a favor (and us, too!) and head over to BeerMonthClub.com to take a look at their offers and let us know what you think.  We absolutely love receiving this package each month, it is an absolute gem when it arrives.  We have a feeling you’ll enjoy it too!

We review our first beer from BeerMonthClub.com after the jump, so check out what we think of Atwater Block’s Vanilla Java Porter…

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