Wizard King - Pipeworks Brewing Company and 7venth Sun Brewery

    Legends tell of an ancient kingdom besieged by gigantic insects. These monstrosities ate the kingdom's food entire fields at a time. The bones of those peasants unlucky enough to be tending to their fields when the swarm hit would be found by others the next day. Desperate for help, the royalty of the land sent out for a hero to assist in the kingdom's plight. Many mercenaries, champions, and hunters tried their hands at defeating the swarm. Each time their well-equipped bones were found the following day - stripped bare of flesh and lying on the ground. One day, a mysterious wanderer arrived in the kingdom. The man was of smaller than average height, walked with a staff, and wore a long robe with a hood over his head. The man was clearly from a far-off land, as he spoke with a strange accent which seemed to stress the letter "s" in a way that sounded almost like a hissing sound. The stranger met with the royalty and explained that he would rid the kingdom of its flying menace, but that in return he must be made king of the land. Having seen the many previous "heroes" fall to the swarm, the royalty agreed to the man's terms - secure that this strange man who required a cane to even walk would simply become another pile of bones. The foreigner spent the entire next day waiting in a field of ripe barley. Soon enough, the horrible sound of gigantic, insect wings filled the air. Reports of what happened next are sparse and are likely unreliable as most humans in the area fled to safety and were under great duress. What has been heard, however, is that the strange man was engulfed by the swarm immediately. Some witnesses reported great gouts of fire spraying from the man's outreached hands - burning insects out of the sky. Others swear they saw what appeared to be a great tongue darting from under the man's hood, skewering insects and returning them to his waiting mouth. No matter how it happened, the man returned to the castle and left a field full of uneaten barley and torched insect corpses in his wake. The kingdom's royalty, having seen from a distance what this wizard was capable of, scrambled to ready the crown. As the symbol of kinghood was lowered toward his head, the strange man removed his hood. To the shock of all who were present, a green, scaly face with yellow eyes slowly emerged from the cloth. Before the royalty was able to stop it's descent, the crown landed on the creature's head. This wizard was no man. This wizard was a lizard, and now, he was Wizard King!

    Wizard King is a collaboration between Pipeworks Brewing Company in Chicago, Illinois and 7venth Sun Brewery in Dunedin, Florida. Wizard King is a fusion between the mosaic Pale Ale Lizard King from Pipeworks, and Electric Wizard, a strawberry citra IPA from 7venth Sun. As you might expect from it's parentage, the collaborative brew is a Double India Pale Ale which features cryo mosaic and citra hops alongside strawberries.

    Wizard King pours a slightly pinkish, hazy, golden orange color. I saw some huge bubbles on pouring which makes me worry about the beer having poor retention of carbonation. The beer sort of resembles peach soda when in the glass because of these bubbles. A foam of large bubbles makes up about a half-inch of head on the beer's surface, and what few big bubbles stick around leave some funky lacing down the inside of the glass.

A wizard lizard drinks precisely when he means to.

    The collaborative brew smells quite nice! Between the citra, mosaic, and strawberries there are tons of fruity and interesting scents in the beer's nose. I get everything from mango, lemon, grapefruit, apricot, pineapple, and obviously strawberry - to pine and some nice grassy and earthy notes. Clearly the hops are going to be the stars of the show here, though there is a slight malt sweetness in the nose.

    The DIPA has a medium body, though it feels almost full bodied. There is a slight stickiness to the beer which feels right for its fruit content. My glass started out being carbonated at around a medium level, but the gas definitely escaped this one faster than I would have expected. As the carbonation dwindled, the beer seemed to become thicker and a bit more syrupy. The Wizard King is a potent ruler with an alcohol content of 8.5% ABV.

    Flavor closely follows the scents in the brew, and I'm very glad for it! Tropical fruit flavors are probably the most prevalent of tastes in the brew. There are also the classic IPA pine and citrus notes, alongside mosaic's earthy hay or onion-like flavors as well. At first I was disappointed in the level of strawberry flavor in the ale. It seemed to me that since strawberry was called out as a main ingredient that it should be more pronounced in the beer's flavor. As I continued to drink the beer, I came to realize that the sweet and somewhat earthy flavors of the berries perfectly compliment those flavors from the mosaic and citra hops - which I really appreciate! The hoppy bitterness of an IPA is well balanced with the sweetness from the fruit and malts as it should be in a DIPA.

    I really didn't know what to think when I first opened up Wizard King. As I said, I was a concerned about the beer's carbonation level, and I do feel like I wish the bubbles had stuck around a bit longer. More carbonation might have kept the beer feeling lighter than it did toward the end of my glass. My biggest fear was that the beer would just taste like strawberry jam. Luckily, the balance between bitter and sweet ingredients is very well done - making the beer enjoyable even after it started to feel a little bit syrupy. I have had Lizard King before, and now I really want to try Electric Wizard!

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The Last of Us - Playstation 3

    After years of humanity imagining it's own end, it has finally come. Though many expected human extinction to come in the form of bombs, climate change, or some interstellar danger - it was Mother Nature herself that began wiping humans from her earth. Perhaps she finally took her revenge for the raping and wanton destruction of her planet, or perhaps it was just a freak mutation of a plant that was otherwise harmless to humans. Either way, the end of humanity comes in the form of a tiny, microscopic, fungal spore. Who knew something so small could be so destructive? At the beginning of the end, scientists reported that the small spores, once entering a human's body, would directly attack that person's brain. At that point, a parasitic fungus would begin to grow in the cranial cavity - slowly taking over control of the human's body. Once started, the fungal growth cannot be stopped and progresses until its human host no longer behaves or even physically appears the way he or she once did. With no way to stop the transmission of the fungal infection, what few humans are left gather in military-run quarantine areas to live out what few miserable days they might have left with the rest of the world in shambles. Yet, humanity struggles to continue, even in the face of their own extinction.

Galaxy-Hero - Revolution Brewing

    Blasting off from his secret base hidden deep within an asteroid, Galaxy Hero flies to the assistance of earth! Using his state of the art Hop Rocket and hopped-up ray gun, Galaxy hero fights to save us all from the evil genius, Dr. Badbeer! Who is this galactic warrior, and will he be able to defeat the maniacal minions of Dr. Badbeer to save the day? Tune in to next week's exciting conclusion to find out!

    Galaxy Hero is an India Pale Ale brewed by Revolution Brewing. Revolution created this entry in their "Hero" series for Chicago's annual Comic and Entertainment Expo (C2E2) which features comics, cosplayers, and all sorts of pop culture-y goodness. The beer is released every year right around the time that C2E2 takes place (March-April-May). It's kind of surprising that this is only the fourth Revolution beer that I've reviewed. As you may have read in the past, I live literally just down the road from the Revolution brewery here in Chicago, Illinois. My wife and I both drink a lot of Revolution beer, but for some reason I never think to review it!

    Galaxy Hero has a very clear, coppery-orange appearance with a sandy-colored head. I poured this beer the same way that I pour all non-nitro beers, but somehow ended up with a huge, two finger head on top of the beer. The head dissipated pretty quickly though, leaving just a few white bubbles that slightly laced the glass as I enjoyed the beverage.

Galaxy Hero piloting his Hop Rocket to the rescue!

    The IPA's aroma is heavy on the citrus, such as grapefruit and tangerine. There is also a slight bit of a resinous, piney smell, as well as tropical fruits. The beer's aroma is sort of musty-smelling, but in a good way if you can imagine that.

    Galaxy Hero is on the light side of medium bodied, with a medium level of carbonation. The brew finishes quite wet, leaving your mouth feeling somewhat oily and sticky. The beer has an alcohol content of 7% ABV.

    Galaxy Hero's flavor is extremely grapefruit-forward. There is both the citrusy tartness of grapefruit as well as a strong grapefruit peel bitterness to the beer. The pine, tangerine/orange, and tropical fruit notes from the beer's aroma are also present in it's flavor - though they are more subdued than I would have expected from their smell. The IPA's galaxy hops definitely lend a sort of musky, grassy, earthiness to the beer's flavor. There is only a small bit of pale, cracker-like malt sweetness to the beer. I feel like there is room for a bit more malt flavor to come through and knock back some of the beer's bitterness here.

    Galaxy Hero was the first of Revolution's "Hero" series that I ever had. I remember being really excited about the brewery showing off different hops against a similar malt profile. Revolution continues to create new Heroes for us to enjoy, and I am still excited to try each new one! Galaxy Hero is quite good, but I feel as though it could be balanced just slightly better. I was really kind of surprised at how much grapefruity bitterness was present in the beer. Overall, though, Galaxy Hero really showcases the musky, tropical, citrus, and earthy flavors that galaxy hops bring to the table in a delicious way!

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Folklore - Playstation 3

    It's been 17 years since your mother passed away. Or has it? Yesterday you received a letter, supposedly from your mother, asking you to meet her in a seaside village in Ireland. You are supposed to meet her on the Cliff of Sidhe near the village of Doolin. It is said that in the village of Doolin the living can meet with the dead. You have great trouble believing that the letter could be from your mother, but what if it is? You make the trip to the island hoping to be reunited with your mother, whom you thought you'd lost forever.

    Many miles away, the editor of an occult magazine's phone begins to ring. He answers it and hears a panicked female's voice on the other end. "Help! Help me! These faerys, they'll...they'll kill me.... The village Doolin....on the Cliff of Sidhe!.....Please!" Ugh, another prank call. Will these childish bullies never cease to leave him alone? Faerys, right, how foolish do they think he is? But what if it was real? What if someone needs his help? Uncovering faerys could make for one hell of an article. Against his better judgment, he to sets off for the village of Doolin.

Coffee End of Days - Pipeworks Brewing Company

    The end of days are upon us. First came the beginning of the End of Days with its cacao nibs, vanilla beans, cinnamon sticks, and ancho chilies. Many fell in the first few hours. Those who survived saw the End of Days transform into Imperial End of Days with even more of everything that made the End of Days so powerful. Now, there aren't many of us left. Very few of us even bother getting out of bed anymore, and those who do require a strong dose of morning coffee to get started trying to rebuild. Recent news tells of another coming of the End of Days, and this time it's turning our very reason for getting out of bed in the mornings against us. We are preparing - struggling to piece together supplies and weapons. Even with these preparations, I don't think we can survive the Coffee End of Days. Farewell.

    Coffee End of Days is a Milk Stout created by Pipeworks Brewing Company in Chicago, Illinois. This is the third rendition of their End of Days Milk Stout, and it builds on the previous release, Imperial End of Days, by adding coffee to the already delicious Mexican hot chocolate inspired brew.

    Coffee End of Days pours a deep onyx that is as black as the void from which it fell to earth. The beer's head quickly dissipates into a tan ring around the edge of the glass. The foam leaves little to no lacing.

People said they could smell it as soon as they woke up.
They knew that today might be their last.

    The Milk Stout smells nicely sweet, with an obvious scent of chilies punching you in the nose soon after. Coffee, chocolate, cinnamon, and vanilla scents follow the spicy assault of the chilies. Honestly, the scent seems kind of muddled though. While I can work to experience each of these notes in the beer's aroma, without concentrating they all kind of mix together. It's almost like a band in which every member plays their own instrument as loud as they possibly can to the point that it all just become noise without really working to hear each part.

    The beer is full bodied, with a much tinglier level of carbonation than I had expected. The carbonation almost propels the chili spice up into my nose and stings it. The beer finishes extremely smooth and warm. I'm not sure if it's completely the chilies giving the warmth or if the brew's 10.5% ABV alcohol content is helping that along.

    The flavor of Coffee End of Days is quite layered. At first, the beer tastes smooth and sweet with cocoa and vanilla. The flavor then transforms into a bitter and roasty coffee flavor with hints of cinnamon. Finally, you'll notice a slow burn in the back of your throat from the ancho chilies. Personally, I love a little chili heat, but I know that some people are more sensitive to it than others. I will say that the strength of the chilies in this brew surprised me. I actually thought it was pretty warm, which pleasantly surprised me, but I could see others really being burned by the beer. To me, the best part of the beer was building up that chili burn, then taking another smooth sweet sip to mellow the heat and then do it all over again.

    I thought Coffee End of Days was extremely tasty. I was a little disappointed by the coffee part of the beer though. With it being a part of the beer's name, I really expected it to be a bit more pronounced in the brew's flavor. As it is, the coffee was a nice partner to the other strong flavors in the beer, but it doesn't become the star of the show as I was thinking it might. I have a feeling that Pipeworks will bring the End of Days back around again, but for now, I'm just glad I've survived one more round!

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