Now that the seventh annual Buffalo Beer Week has (sadly) come and gone, all we are left with are all of the memories and all of the beers. And boy, were we treated to a lot of good beers over those 10 days.
Since there were so many memorable beverages to hang our collective hats on (the Buffalo-Niagara beer-community that is), we decided it would be a good idea to shine the spotlight on some of those beer. Now, we know there was a lot of beer to be had during Beer Week, so this is a heady task. But hell, we’re going to attempt to tackle it anyway.
And now, in no particular order, our picks for the top beers from Buffalo Beer Week 2016:
42 North Brewing 20A Red Rye IPA: Wet-hopped with 55 pounds of freshly picked Cascade hops from neighboring Hunter Valley Hops, this RIPA bursts with flavor right from the jump, featuring a nice dose of lemony citrus and grass, backed by rye spice and bready malts.
Thin Man Brewery No Pressure / Thin Man Brewery Bliss: No Pressure is a New England-style IPA with melon, pineapple and bright tropical fruit, while the Bliss Double IPA is big, bold and dank, with flavors of ripe mango, melon, & citrus.
Four Mile Brewing / Old First Ward Brewing Fourward Double IPA: Brewed with wet hops picked fresh at Crooked Creek Hop Farm in Addison, N.Y., Fourward is piney and bitter, or as one drinker told us, it’s ‘freaking amazing.’
Resurgence Brewing / Lockhouse Spirits Fitzbeerald: A 9% kettle sour brewed with botanicals from Lockhouse, Fitzbeerald was made to emulate the Fitzgerald cocktail. It’s grassy and all things herbal with a big bite and major wallop. This was both strange and wonderful.
Buffalo Breweries Wise PA: This was brewed as a collaboration between the entire Buffalo beer community, who donated malts and hops to brew this IPA. Wise Pa celebrates the life of Kevin Wise: local beer enthusiast, writer, scientist, teacher and friend, who would have loved this IPA. It features juicy flavors of orange, passion fruit, melon and mango. We even heard people call this the best Buffalo beer they’ve ever tasted.
Rusty Nickel Wet Hop English Pale Ale: This wet-hopped ale features a big hop bitterness that is both spicy and herbal, supported by a nice malt backbone.
Community Beer Works / Brimstone Brewing Across the Border Porter / Community Beer Works / Swiftwater Brewing The Other Dunkel Roggen: The Across the Border Porter was brewed with fresh Canadian maple syrup and plumwood smoked malt from New York Craft Malt, making for a rich complexity and syrupy sweetness. The Other Dunkel Roggen was rife with rye and clove, subtle smoke, roasted coffee and chocolate as well.
Honorable Mention:
Brasserie Cantillon Zwanze 2016: Pours a deep ruby, nose is funky raspberry, burnt toffee and vanilla, while taste is tart raspberry with blueberry and vanilla.
If you think we got this list wrong, or forgot a beer that you feel should have been mentioned, feel free to email us (listed below), and we will be sure to mention it.
Brian Campbell is a co-founder/Brand Manager of the BNBA’s enthusiast arm, Buffalo Beer League, and writes the weekly Buffalo Beer Buzz column for The Public. He can be reached at buffalobeerleague@aol.com.