Maryland Beer Reviews: Baltimore Washington Beer Works Tell Tale Heart IPA

Back with another video review. This time I'm talking Baltimore Washington Beer Works Tell Tale Heart IPA. Still working out my camera presence and all that, but this'll do for now. 

One thing I noticed was that as this beer warmed up was the astringency I experienced early on became less and less to the point that it became a very balanced beer and the cattiness become less prominent while the citrus balanced out and the malt began to pop it's head out more. 

This is something I've noticed with a lot of beers I drink. What I think about a beer initially can be totally different by the time I'm down at the bottom of the pint. I'm aware of how temperature can affect taste and I did let it warm up prior to filming, but still, this beer didn't really fully open up to me until the the second half of the drink. This made me realize that I don't think a quick sniff and taste is a fair way to review a beer, and so I'll be changing up my review format a bit to accommodate for my beerpoloar disorder from here on out. 

Beer: Baltimore Washington Beer Works Tell Tale Heart

Style: IPA

ABV: 7.3%

IBU: 50

Maryland Beer: Baltimore-Washington Beer Works Pendulum Pilsner

I try (and fail) not to get on my high horse when speaking of craft beer and tell drinkers that they need to drink more of XYZ style beer or that brewers should brew more of that style. But, with that said, lagers are a style that I wish received more attention from brewers and drinkers alike.

Up to now, it's my feeling that craft beer has been pushed forward with the attitude of more, more, more. Lagers aren't known for high alcohol, IBU's, or exotic flavors in general. What they are known for is being perfect snapshots of subtle perfection and attention to detail. It's that subtlety that gets lost in translation for the average drinker. It's also why I love them so much. Nothing jumps out at you and says "Hey, I'm a lager baby! Drink me and love me!" Well, some might, but that's Justin Timberlake talking, not the beer. Lagers stand on their own merit. If there's a flaw, you're going to know about it and no amount of dry hopping is going to overshadow the product you produced. Perhaps that's why so many brewers shy away from lagers.

One brewery that apparently  isn't afraid of lagers is Baltimore-Washington Beer Works . In fact, two out of the three beers they produce are lagers and for that they get a tip of the cap. They also get a review. Let's get into it.

Brewery Location: Baltimore, MD

Style: Pilsner

Serving Type: Bottle

ABV: 4.5%

IBU: 22

Appearance: My bottle of Pendulum Pilsner didn't pour with much head to speak of, but good lord was it crystal clear. The beer was one of the all time beauties to look at. Amber and visually flawless, I'm not ashamed to say I sat in my "man chair" for a good five minutes reveling about how good it looked while Deana sat across from me on the couch shaking her head and second guessing why she chose me.

Aroma:  I was a bit disappointed with the nose. I tried my best to sniff something out, but overall I wasn't getting much more than just a note of sweet malt here and there. When I wasn't gazing lovingly into my glass I was sniffing like a Basset Hound so it wasn't without effort that nothing special was detected aromatically.

Taste: Pendulum Pilsner drinks incredibly smooth, but that's about as far as I can go with the compliments. There was mellow malt taste with nothing on the back end to bring everything full circle. Personally, I would like to see the Saaz hops have a slightly bigger role. A crisp, snappy, dry finish would be the perfect way to balance out the sweet malty experience you being your sip with.

Final Verdict: As a huge fan of The Raven and an even bigger fan of Tale Tell Hearty Ale, I was ready to LOVE Pendulum Pilsner. We were going to be boys and spend many an evening together in perfect harmony. But, as it stands, we're probably going to settle for being acquaintances. Sure, he's cool and I don't have any real problem with him, but I don't see us having enough in common to spend extended hours together.

BBB Beer of the Week: Baltimore Washington Beer Works Tell Tale Hearty Ale

The second I heard the makers of The Raven were coming out with a new Edgar Allen Poe themed beer I was excited. Not only have I enjoyed hell out of The Raven in the past, but the literary dork in me was excited to partake in anything Poe. I picked up a bottle of Tell Tale Hearty Ale a few weeks ago and after reading nothing but good things, I decided I shouldn't wait any longer to taste the sweet nectar. 

Style: IPA
ABV: 7.25%
IBU: 50

Appearance: Tell Tale Hearty Ale is quite the looker. She pours a beautiful golden amber color mimicking the classic IPA appearance we've all come to know and love so much. I didn't get a massive head out of my pour, but there was at least a finger of the good stuff on top.

Nose: Grapefruit, tropical fruit, a little bit of resin and pine all make their way from the head to your nose. There is plenty of hop presence, but not in an intimidating way. A lot of times the first whiff of an IPA has me bracing for a bitter hop bomb, but with all the fruit in Tell Tale Hearty Ale, the aroma is very inviting.

Taste: Everything that the aroma hints at shows up in the flavor profile. You get the all the fruit flavors with just a little bitter smack. Happily, the hops never completely take over your palate and that's something I can definitely get behind.  At a little over 7% ABV this isn't a session beer, but Tell Tale Hearty Ale's easy drinking ways makes it very easy to keep going back in for another sip.  All of these delicious flavors are rounded out with a slightly dry finish.

Final Verdict: Tell Tale Hearty Ale is a beer to behold. It's an IPA with plenty of hops, but one in which you won't find yourself looking to the sidelines for coach to call a timeout and give you a breather. I can easily see myself downing pint after pint of this fruity Ale all summer long. If you life in Maryland, get out there and find you some! Maryland, there's a new king of IPA in town.