Bison - India Pale Ale

Dead Soldier

Where to Dig Up More About This Beer
India Pale Ale
Bison Brewing
2030 Fifth Street 
Berkeley, CA USA
Est. 1989
www.bisonbrew.com

Brain Damage Quotient = 6.0 % ABV
Fluid Oz. = 22.0

Postmortem Brew Review
Light amber/orange color with very slight haze.
Grapefruit and some pine in the aromas. Bit of malt comes through.
One-finger tan head that leaves minimal lacing.
Light pine/grapefruit hops along with a slight drying coffee taste.
Modest amount of carbonation.
Light to medium mouth feel.

Grim Reaper's Eulogy
Organic brewing does not mean any compromise in taste or quality. It may cost a bit more to produce, but knowing that the ingredients are of the highest standard makes it all worthwhile.

This is a west coast IPA, but it is modest in its IBU punch. It is surely a worthy IPA by any standard. The best part is it won't over stimulate your taste buds or burn out your tongue with traditional west coast hopping. It may also be due to the single hopping style employed in this brew. Bison states on the side label that they play around with single hop formulations and the type is displayed on the neck label. This bottling used the Willamette hop, descended from the Fuggles variety. It has woody and grassy characteristics that leaves a soft hops play on the palate.

All that being said, it drinks a lot more like an east coast IPA. Regardless, I found this to be a great brew, a great value and a delicious IPA indeed.

Bison - Chocolate Stout

Dead Soldier

Where to Dig Up More About This Beer
Chocolate Stout
Bison Brewing
2030 Fifth Street 
Berkeley, CA USA
Est. 1989
www.bisonbrew.com

Brain Damage Quotient = 5.0 % ABV
Fluid Oz. = 12.0

Postmortem Brew Review
Dark, solid brown body color.
Cocoa and roasted malt aromas.
One-finger tan head that leaves minimal lacing.
Cocoa taste with roast malt, all similar to smell.
Light amount of carbonation.
Medium mouth feel, nice bittersweet finish.

Grim Reaper's Eulogy
Organic brews are everywhere. I see these brewers taking good things from the good earth, and it does speak to the Reaper's soul. Muahaahaa! Bison Brewing is another in a recent string of organic brews I have recently come across.

Bison has won a couple of awards for this particular organic chocolate stout, namely:

• BEST OF SHOW - 2009 National Organic Beer Challenge
• SILVER - 2005 Great American Beer Festival (Foreign Style Stout)

Not too shabby. After having the good fortune to visit a USDA Organic certified brewery myself, I'm becoming more impressed with the stewardship these organic breweries come to represent.  Not only for their brewing methods, but also for the partnering with local organic farms.  This cooperative spirit keeps the earth in a better condition, and makes us all notice how we can do our part to reduce our own carbon footprint. And, yes, they can make really fresh and flavorful beer. A bit more expensive to brew it this way, but in the end you are rewarded with unadulterated bliss in a glass!

Kudos to the crew at Bison for being passionate to make this a reality for all of us.  Their efforts will certainly be noticed in your next glass of Bison beer.