Smuttynose Brewing Company

Portsmouth, N.H.

Founded in 1994, Smuttynose is named after one of the Isles of Shoals, a small island cluster in the Atlantic Ocean bordering Maine and New Hampshire. Before the brewery put it on the map, the group of islands garnered fame due to an 1873 double axe murder. Luckily, its reputation has turned around. With several varieties of year-round seasonal beverages and its ‘Big Beer’ series, this brewery is quickly becoming a standout in the craft beer world.

 

Star Island Single

Style: Belgian Pale Ale

ABV: 5.8 percent

Rating: 4.5/5

Keeping everything local, Star Island Single is named after Star Island, located across from Smuttynose Island. The bottle features a mermaid on the bottle because Smuttynose visitors often claim to see mysterious creatures when peering over at Star Island. It smells mildly of burnt grains, and upon first taste, the citrus notes aren’t discernible. Sweet from toasty malts, this brew is mild enough to have a few and not feel full.

 

Winter Ale

Style: Belgian-style Dubbel

ABV: 5.1 percent

Rating: 4/5

In the traditional Belgian style of a dubbel, this brew smells and tastes strongly of dark fruit, particularly raisins and plum. It has a small amount of brown sugar and dark chocolate as well, creating a delicious combination of bitter and sweet. Despite its relatively low ABV, it contains a small amount of alcohol. Give it a try if you want to warm up during the next few freezing February weeks.

 

Big A IPA

Style: American Imperial IPA

ABV: 9.6 percent

Rating: 5/5

Big A is everything an Imperial IPA should be. Extremely bitter, extremely alcoholic and extremely flavorful. It smells strongly of grapefruit and pineapple but not of alcohol or piney hops, surprisingly. With the first sip, bitter hops and full alcohol smack you in the face. This is the hoppiest Thirsty Thursday beer this year by far, and its reputation precedes it. If you’re a fan of the national extreme beer movement, give this lip-puckering brew a try.

— Compiled by Lucas Sacks, staff writer, ldsacks@syr.edu

Published on February 10, 2011 at 12:00 pm