March was a packed beer month with a few days in Hendersonville and Asheville, NC and then a week in Greenville, SC—check out my Greenville beer and travel guide here. I tried 198 different beers in March, a lot of which were consumed while watching March Madness, at Altered States festival from The Eighth State Brewing Company (check out my recap here) and at bottle shares.
In no particular order here are the best beers I had in March:
JFK2LAX: SFO Layover collaboration brew from Monkish Brewing in Torrance, CA and Other Half Brewing in New York, NY
This is a Triple IPA with Citra, Simcoe and Motueka hops. I am a huge fan of the JFK2LAX series and this edition was a delight! I rated this a 4.75 on Untappd because it was so ridiculously good.
Damage: Batch 100 from Root and Branch Brewing in Copiague, NY
This is a multi-oat/wheat Triple IPA from one of the best IPA breweries in the country. Root + Branch crushed this brew and I am very happy to have one more can of it in my fridge. It is extremely smooth and flavorful.
The Morbid Comfort of a Welcome Regression from Burial Beer in Asheville, NC
The Morbid Comfort of a Welcome Regression is a Triple Dry Hopped Triple IPA with Simcoe, Vic Secret and Eclipse hops. Anytime Burial drops a new Triple IPA I am excited but this one was superb. It has that classic Burial hint of sweetness without being overly boozy.
Triple Vegan from Fidens Brewing in Colonie, NY
Triple Vegan is a Triple IPA with Citra, Galaxy and Nelson hops. As you may know, it is the triple version of their iconic brew The Vegan. Coincidentally I just had the original brew, The Vegan, yesterday and it pales in comparison to Triple Vegan. This is rich in flavor and incredibly easy to drink.
Hyperbolic from The Eighth State Brewing Company in Greenville, SC
Hyperbolic is an Apple Brandy Barrel Aged Imperial Stout aged 1 year and 11 months in a Laird's Apple Barrel with toasted coconut, cassia bark, and Madagascar vanilla. It was tough for me to choose just one Eighth State Stout to include on this month’s top beers list, but Hyperbolic soared above the rest. Apple Brandy Barrels are always my favorite! I enjoyed this at their Altered States festival.
Fostering Divine Culture collaboration brew from Resident Culture Brewing Company in Charlotte, NC and Divine Barrel Brewing in Charlotte, NC
Fostering Divine Culture is an Imperial Stout aged in Laird’s Applejack barrels for 22 months then conditioned on rum barrel chips, wild Thai banana, toasted coconut, and vanilla. This was brewed in celebration of Divine Barrel’s 5th Anniversary. I enjoyed it at Community Tap in Greenville and I snagged a bottle at Resident Culture’s taproom once it dropped!
One Thousand Years from The Veil Brewing Company in Richmond, VA
From The Veil: “One Thousand Years was the 1000th batch of beer ever brewed at The Veil back in early 2019. The recipe is an amped-up recipe inspired equally by Pallbearer, Circle of Wolves, Sleeping Forever, and one of our favorite Imperial Stout collaborations. It spent 12 months in Laird's Apple Brandy barrels and then another 12 months in Buffalo Trace bourbon barrels.” In my eyes this is basically a cuvee of The Veil’s best brews and it was absolutely phenomenal!
Sequence Collaboration Brew from Homage Brewing in Pomona, CA and Highland Park Brewery in Los Angeles, CA
Sequence is a barrel aged Saison with spent Matsumoto peaches, spent nectarines and Osmanthus flower. Eighth State was pouring this at one of their events before the festival. Sequence is refreshing, flavorful and unique.
