North Coast La Merle (5/10)

North Coast Brewing Co.'s La Merle is a Saison or Belgian Style Farmhouse Ale brewed in California.

It's amber in color, with a thin white head that lingers a while.

The flavor has floral and spice elements to it, with a mild to moderate hoppiness or dryness to it.  It's also a bit peppery or tangy.  Not a favorite, but not bad.

Beer Advocate's visitors rate it an 88 out of 100, or "good".

Although I had this particular beer on draft at The Winking Lizard on Bethel Road, I don't believe it's available there now.  Although North Coast's products are fairly common on Columbus retailers' shelves, La Merle is a bit harder to locate.  I've only seen it at Kenny Road Market and Giant Eagle Market District in Kingsdale.
ABV: 7.9%
IBU: 26
My rating 5/10

Unibroue La Fin Du Monde (9/10)

Unibroue, a Canadian brewer, makes some truly excellent beers.  La Fin Du Monde is a Belgian Tripel style ale, and one of my personal favorites.

It pours a cloudy golden color, with a thick white head that dissipates fairly quickly. The aroma consists of yeast and fruit scents.

The flavor is all Belgian tripel, with clove-like spice notes, a bit of tanginess, some banana, plenty of malt, and a well-balanced hops bitterness that doesn't overwhelm it.  It's an excellent example of the Belgian Tripel style.

And you don't have to take my word for it.  Beer Advocate's editors rate it 100 out of 100, or world-class, and the site's visitors rate it 96 out of 100 (also world-class).

This beer is very widely available in the Columbus shops I've visited.  I've seen it for sale at Ale Wine & Spirits of Powell, The Andersons General Store, Cost Plus World Market at Tuttle Crossing, Giant Eagle Market District at Kingsdale, Grandview Carry Out, Kenny Road Market, Palmer's Beverage Center, Weiland's Gourmet Market, Whole Foods Market in Dublin, and Whole Foods Market in Upper Arlington.

ABV: 9%
IBU: 19
My rating: 9/10

Palmer's Beverage Center

Palmer's Beverage Center is a business I'd heard about for a while before I'd been to it.  I'd seen different people on forums online claiming that one shop was better than another, had a bigger selection, etc.  Palmer's was often mentioned as a shop with a good selection of beers that you wouldn't find elsewhere.  That's been my experience with them.

Palmer's is a little out of my way, but always worth the time when I can drop by.  Their beer selection always contains several things I've not seen at other area retailers, so I inevitably leave with something unusual and cool.

Palmer's has very little inside for sale other than beer, wine, and other alcoholic products.  For example, you won't find rows of potato chips and snacks inside, or an ice cream freezer like you do at Kenny Road Market.  You won't find gourmet foods like you do at nearby Weiland's.  But if you take the time to look around, I think you will find a number of beers that you're not going to see at most other shops in town.  Their selection of Belgian and Belgian-style beers is particularly good.  They also have quite a selection of glassware bearing the names of various breweries.

It would be easy to dismiss Palmer's at first glance.  The shop isn't huge, and you'll see a lot of familiar names on the shelves that you see at most other craft beer retailers, such as Stone, Rogue, Sixpoint, Great Lakes, Bell's, Columbus Brewing Company, and Sierra Nevada.  But if you take the time to actually look around, there are always some good surprises.

During a visit today, I saw some beers that I haven't seen elsewhere, such as Baltika 9 in cans (lots of places carry the bottles), Fort Collins Brewery's The Incredible Hop, Hoppin' Frog Turbo Shandy, New Holland Blue Sunday Sour, Marston's Oyster Stout, Renaissance Brewing's 8 Wired Saison Sauvin, Bellegem's Bruin, Cuvee des Trolls LambickX, Cuvee des Jacobins Rouge (a world-class Belgian beer, according to Beer Advocate), Scheldebrouwerij Hop Ruiter (a Belgian strong ale), a couple of 1.5-liter bottles of Gulden Draak, St. Feuillien Grand Cru, Mikkeller It's Alive and Texas Ranger Barrel Aged Chipotle Porter, Leelanau Good Harbor Golden Ale, Magic Hat's Humdinger Series: Over the Pils, Eel River Triple Exultation, and many others.  I'm reasonably certain I haven't seen any of these at any of the other shops I've visited in the last couple of months.  (As I've done with my other retailer articles, I'll list the breweries whose products I saw on the shelves during my visit to give you some idea what you might find during your own visit.)

Palmer's is a family-owned and operated business, and has been in operation nearly 40 years as I understand it.  There is definitely a family feel to the place.  The owners bring in their two dogs, which periodically come out to greet customers.  Pinky the bulldog (pictured here) is usually napping, but did follow me around a bit on one visit to the store after I gave her an ear rub.  The staff is usually very friendly and helpful, and they know the products they sell (at least as well as I've ever needed them to).

While Palmer's does have a good selection of beers that you won't find at many other Columbus area retailers, it's important to note that the more unusual items tend to be stored on shelves rather than in the refrigerated cases.  In the refrigerated section you'll find Coors, Miller, Budweiser, and the usual mass-market beers.  You'll also find 4-packs and 6-packs of beers from Goose Island, The Brew Kettle, Troeg's, Founder's, Southern Tier, Green Flash, Portsmouth Brewing Company (of Portsmouth, Ohio), Bell's, Great Lakes, Left Hand, Columbus Brewing Company, Indigo Imp, Lagunitas, Sierra Nevada, and others.  What you generally won't find is many of the "bomber" sized bottles in this section. A refrigerator near the front door contains a selection of these larger bottles, but the majority of the selection is on the main shelves.  I mention this because you might be thinking of picking up several cold bottles on your way to a party.  If you're looking for some of the more unusual beers Palmer's carries, you'll need to keep in mind that what you want may or may not be cold.  (This is actually a good thing if you're planning to age your purchase or travel a long distance with it.)

You'll definitely want to check them out, especially if you're interested in Belgian beers and limited-edition beers that you don't often see.

Palmer's Beverage Center
3375 Indianola Ave.
Columbus, OH 43214

Phone: (614) 263-7444

During my visit on April 18, 2013, I saw beers for sale at Palmer's from the following breweries.  Please note that this is not a complete list of all beer available there, but is intended to give some idea of the selection to be found at Palmer's.

• 21st Amendment Brewery
• 5 Rabbit
• 8 Wired Brewing Co.
• Abita
• Achel
• AleSmith
• Anchorage Brewing Co.
• Anderson Valley
• Aventinus
• Avery
• Ayinger
• Baird Brewing Co.
• Ballast Point
• Baltika
• Bayerischer Bahnhof
• Bear Republic
• Beck's
• Bell's
• Bellegems
• Bitburger
• Bockor
• Boddington's
• Breckenridge Brewery
• The Brew Kettle
• Brouwerij de Molen
• Brouwerij Huyghe
• The Bruery
• Bruton
• Chimay
• Columbus Brewing Co.
• Coniston Brewing
• Coronado Brewing Co.
• Corsendonk
• Dark Horse
• De Proefbrouwerij
• Dieu du Ciel
• Dogfish Head
• Dupont
• Elevator Brewing Co.
• Epic Brewing
• Erdinger
• Evil Twin
• Fat Head's
• Flying Dog
• Fort Collins Brewery
• Foster's
• Founder's
• Fuller's
• Glutenator
• Goose Island
• Great Divide
• Great Lakes Brewing Co.
• Green Flash Brewing
• Grolsch
• Guffel
• Gulden Draak
• Heavy Seas
• Hinterland
• Hoegaarden
• Hofbrau
• Hoppin' Frog
• Indigo Imp Brewery
• Innis & Gunn
• J.W. Lees
• Kapuziner
• Kentucky Ale
• Kingfisher
• Kwak
• La Chouffe
• La Rossa
• Lagunitas
• Leelanau Brewing Co.
• Leffe
• Lindemans
• Mad River Brewing Co.
• Marston's
• Meantime
• Mendocino
• Mikkeller
• Modelo
• Moosbacher
• Moretti
• Morland
• Murphy's
• New Holland
• Newcastle
• Nogne
• Ommegang
• Oranjeboom
• Orval
• Oskar Blues
• Otter Creek
• Paulaner
• Peroni
• Petrus
• Pinkus
• The Porterhouse Brewing Co.
• Portsmouth Brewing Co.
• Reissdorf
• Revolution Brewing
• Rockmill Brewery
• Rogue
• Samuel Adams
• Samuel Smith
• Scaldis
• Scheldebrouwerij
• Schneider & Sohn
• Sierra Nevada
• Singha
• Sixpoint
• Smithwick's
• Southern Tier
• St. Feuillien
• St. Louis (Belgium)
• Steen Brugge
• Stillwater
• Stone
• Straub
• Thirsty Dog
• Trappistes Rochefort
• Troeg's
• Troubadour
• Two Brothers
• Uinta
• Unibroue
• Urthel
• Val Dieu
• Vanberg and DeWulf
• Victory
• Warsteiner
• Weihenstephaner
• Well's
• Westmalle
• Weyerbacher
• Wurzburger
• Wychwood
• Xingu
• Young's

The Daily Growler–Upper Arlington

The Daily Growler is located in a strip mall at the intersection of Fishinger and Riverside. It features 60 taps, containing 59 craft beers and one (non-alcoholic) root beer.  Beer is sold by the 5-ounce sample (at prices in the $2-5 range), the pint ($5-9), or 64-ounce growler ($15 to $30 range).During the early evening hours (5-7pm) the shop is usually very busy.  You'll often find a line of people leading from the counter to the front door, all people waiting to fill their growlers. If you're looking for a place to sit and have a drink, The Daily Growler has you covered.  They have several tables in the front of the shop, and one or more rooms in the back.

The Daily Growler does not serve food. However, like World of Beer, they have several menus for nearby restaurants who will deliver food to patrons at The Daily Growler. You call the restaurant, place an order, and the restaurant delivers the food to your table. While you wait, you can continue to enjoy the many beers available.

As seems to be the case with many establishments, the beer list at The Daily Growler always feels very IPA-heavy and pale-ale-heavy to me.   The beer menu on the date this article was written contained 14 IPAs and 16 other pale ales out of the 59 beer taps.  Also represented are porters, stouts, wheat beers, saisons, lagers, and various other beer varieties.

In spite of the pale-ale bias, I'm usually able to find something interesting to try.  I often start with 5-ounce samples until I find something I'd like a pint or growler full of.  (The samples make it feel like I'm going to a mini beer festival when I visit.)

To help customers determine if any desired beers are on tap, The Daily Growler's beer list is placed online each day at BeerMenus.com.  Bookmarking that page is a great way to check up on what's available that day.

Owner John W. Blakely (pictured behind the cash register in the photo) and staff are always friendly and helpful.  If you decide to stick around for a pint or two when having your growler filled, they'll put the growler in the chiller for you while you enjoy your pint of beer.  The tables often have copies of beer-related magazines and event advertising on them as well, giving you something interesting and on-topic to read while you drink.

The Daily Growler
2812 Fishinger Rd.
Upper Arlington
614-656-BEER (2337)

Wells Banana Bread Beer (3/10)

Banana bread is one of my favorite foods.  Few things are better than a nice warm slice of the stuff.  When I saw Wells Banana Bread Beer on the list at my favorite local tavern, I had to give it a try.

It pours a slightly reddish brown with a coarse, foamy white head.

The aroma is overwhelmingly one of bananas, and very pleasant.

The flavor had little or no resemblance to bananas, but I did catch a hint of cloves.  It's somewhat bitter, which is inconsistent with the aroma.  I didn't think it was terrible, but it's not a beer I plan to order again.

Perhaps they served me a bad bottle, I don't know.  The reviews on Beer Advocate all mention the banana flavor, even going so far as to describe it as tasting like a piece of banana bread soaked in beer.  I definitely didn't get that from it at all.  Apart from the banana aroma and cloves in the flavor, I could have been convinced it was an ordinary ale.

Although I tried this particular beer at The Winking Lizard Tavern on Bethel Road, I've seen it for sale at Cost Plus World Market, Weiland's Gourmet Market, Giant Eagle Market District at Kingsdale, Kenny Road Market, and Whole Foods Market in Upper Arlington.

ABV: 5.2%
IBU: unknown
My rating: 3/10

Boulevard Carryout

Boulevard Carryout in Grandview doesn't look like much from the outside, but don't let that fool you.  There are a few gems inside.

The shop is located near the intersection of Northwest and Third, and I nearly missed it as I drove by.

Overall, I'd say the selection is smaller than what you'd find at Weiland's, Kenny Road Market, or Whole Foods in Dublin.  It's comparable in quantity to Palmer Beverage Center or maybe Whole Foods in Upper Arlington. I recognized products from around 100 breweries in all.  They seem to have an impressive wine selection for such a small shop, but not being a wine expert that's only a guess.

The selection of foreign beers, not necessarily craft beers (though some were) caught my attention.  I saw unfamiliar European and South American brews here, such as Carib (from Trinidad, St. Kitts, and Grenada), Kronenbourg from France, Quilmes from Argentina, various German beers, English beers like Tetley's and Boddington's, and a few others.

On the shelves here, I found a few less-common beers like Stone Vertical Epic, a limited edition Harvest Ale from 2011, Harviestoun Ola Dubh, along with Christmas Ales from Abita, Bell's, Southern Tier, and Thirsty Dog (this is in April 2013, BTW).  I also saw a wide selection from Samuel Smith and Founder's.  This is also the only place in town I remember seeing Schmaltz (a New York brewery) Coney Island Lager.

I ended up taking home a 6-pack of Kulmbacher EKU 28, some Weyerbacher Quad, Sierra Nevada Ovila, and a Brew Kettle Dark Helmet to review later.

If you're in the vicinity of the shop, or live in the neighborhood, you may want to drop by to check it out.

Boulevard Carryout
1290 West 3rd Avenue
Columbus, OH
Phone: 614-488-3232

Grandview Carry Out

Columbus Alive recently surveyed readers to identify the best places in Columbus to buy beer.  The winner was Weiland's Gourmet Market.  The runners up were Grandview Carry Out and The Bottle & Barrel.  Having been to Weiland's and written about it, I decided it was time to check out the runners up.  First up is Grandview Carry Out.

Located near the intersection of Grandview Avenue and 3rd Avenue, this shop shares a wall and a parking lot with Cowtown Pizza.

Craft beer is mostly located in a refrigerated section on the opposite wall from the front door.  Additional craft beer is found on shelves at the end of the refrigerated section, and near the cash register.

The store is easy to get in and out of, and is well lit inside.

Pricing for most items was in line with what I've seen at other local retailers, with a few items being perhaps a dollar or so cheaper, and others being a dollar or so more expensive.

I saw a few beers here that I've either not seen at other local retailers, or haven't seen at many of them.  Specifically, I saw beers from Black Hawk, Ithaca Beer Co., Tenaya Creek, and The Brew Kettle.  These were accompanied by many others.  I'll provide the full list at the end of the article to give you some idea of the selection you may find there.  I would estimate that the beer selection here is smaller than that at Weiland's or Kenny Road Market, but better than some other shops.  I did find Dogfish Head Chateau Jiahu for sale here, which is a beer I've only found in Columbus on one other occasion in the past year.

If you live in the Grandview area, or you're visiting that area for any reason, you may want to take a moment to drop by and peruse the selection.

Grandview Carry Out
1355 Grandview Avenue
Columbus, OH 43212
Phone: (614) 487-0305

Smuttynose Star Island Single (8/10)

Smuttynose Brewing Company, located in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, produces Star Island Single.  Star Island Single is a Belgian-style pale ale, intended to be very sessionable.  It's named for an island near the brewery.

It pours a pale amber color, with a thin, coarse white head.  The flavor is mild, with virtually no hops bitterness, and contains a touch of smokiness or roasted grain.  Some element of the flavor reminds me of Dogfish Head's Ta Henket, though I can't quite pin that down.

The bottom line is that it's a good beer, and one you should definitely check out.  The Beer Advocate crowd describes it as "good" (80/100 rating) but didn't like it as much as I did.

ABV: 4.7%
IBU: 17.2
My rating: 8/10

San Diego Beer Shootout at Ale Wine & Spirits of Powell

This week, Ale Wine & Spirits of Powell is having a "San Diego Shootout" during their weekly beer tasting.

They'll be comparing Stone Brewing's products to those of a Mission Brewing, both of San Diego.

They plan to compare Stone's Pale Ale to Mission's Blonde Ale, Stone's IPA to Mission IPA, Stone's Ruination to Mission's Shipwrecked Double IPA.

On Thursday, they'll have Miles from Cavalier Distributing there to answer questions about the breweries and beers.

Next Thursday, April 11, 2013, they will be having a tasting of Founder's Kentucky Breakfast Stout (KBS).  After the tasting, they'll be raffling off the chance to buy the remaining bottles.  The raffle takes place at 7pm, so you'll need to get there beforehand to get your name in the pool.  You do have to be present to win.

They've also gotten in some new beers:

• Southern Tier Iniquity – a black IPA
• Epic Santa Cruz – a hoppy brown ale
• Epic Pfefferhorn Lager – a nice American craft lager
• Hoppin' Frog Turbo Shandy – an intense shandy
• Flying Dog Snake Dog in cans

For more information contact:
Ale Wine & Spirits
7560 Guardwell St.
Powell, OH 43065
(740) 881-0318