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| - I stopped by Birdsong Brewery on a visit to the in-laws, who live in Charlotte. I really liked the ambiance and atmosphere of the taproom. I'm told it's in a trendy developing part of town, but it was dark and I couldn't really tell anything about the area.
But on to what's important. The beers. As a group we tried four. The Jalapeno Pale has been talked about extensively. It's a decent for a novelty beer. It has a fair amount of heat to it, but it's not absurd to the point that it makes it undrinkable. An interesting beer to try, but it's not my particular cup of tea.. or beer, as it is.
The Dixie Porter is a new beer, I believe, and it's an average to better than average porter. It's smooth with a low hop character, and a bit of spice in the finish. Not earth-shattering by any means, but a solid beer.
The Up With the Sun Saison was the big disappointment of the evening. It was lacking the flavorful Belgian yeast esters that are oh so necessary to make a good saison. They used sorachi hops, which contributed a nice lemon citrusy flavor with a hint of dill. I enjoyed the hop aroma and flavor, but beyond that it was just a maltier than normal pale ale. I didn't really see it as a saison. And I also got a little annoyed that because it was a 7.5% beer they would only give you a short pour, but yet they charge you the same price. It just wasn't good enough to justify spending the same amount of money for less beer.
But moving from the big disappointment to the great salvation, the Lazy Bird Brown was one of the best brown ales I've ever tasted. It was an exquisitely balanced beer, with the perfect amounts of roastiness and hops. I almost didn't go back for another beer, but I'm so happy I did. This is a delicious brew, perfect for any beer snob (or connoisseur, as I call myself) passing through the neighborhood.
It's a relatively new brewery, and it definitely has room to grow. But if you're gonna stop by for just one, go for the Lazy Bird.
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