Top Beers of 2014

There are a lot of ‘Top Beers’ lists out there, but none of them are written by me.

Here are the beers that I discovered, Columbus-style, and loved in 2014.

Data via Untappd.

In no particular order…

Stone’s Coffee Milk Stout

Only 4.2% ABV, but super-tasty. A great 'session-stout' is hard to find. — Only 4.2% ABV, but super-tasty. A great ‘session-stout’ is hard to find.

I rated this beer higher than the avg Untappd user, but I’m smarter than average.

Great Lakes Blackout Stout

People have been going crazy for their Christmas Ale, but I think this is better.

Definitely NOT a session beer at 9.2% ABV.

If you can find this on tap, drink it!

Brouwerij St. Bernardus Christmas Ale

I had this over Thanksgiving, but it tasted just fine to me.

Any beer from this Brouwerij is probably going to be awesome.

Tasted just fine from the bottle, but I’d love to try this one from the source!

Terrapin’s So Fresh & So Green, Green (2014)

IPA’s are one of my favorite styles, and this one doesn’t disappoint!

This IPA won't get you into too much trouble at only 6.7% ABV — This IPA won’t get you into too much trouble at only 6.7% ABV

This may change as it’s an annual brew, and I reckon the recipe changes. But Terrapin is a very solid brewery.

Brasserie St-Feuillien Tripel

If I see a Belgian Tripel, I have to try it!

This one didn’t dissapoint, and it’s less than 9% ABV, so you can have an ‘extra’ one 🙂

Great Divide’s Fresh Hop (2014)

Everyone knows the Yeti's, but this is definitely worth a try too. — Everyone knows the Yeti’s, but this is definitely worth a try too.

Loved my time at their brewery this past February, and look forward to having this on-site again in February.

Stone’s Sublimely Self-Righteous Black IPA

Another awesome dark beer from the folks you probably know for their IPAs…

At 8.7%, be careful. This one goes down way too smooth.

Põhjala’s Virmalised

An American IPA from Estonia?

This was a surprise gift from an Oracle-Twitter friend who delivered it to me at Open World this fall. Thanks Illmar!

Drake’s Denogginizer

This beer was free, courtesy of Alex and the great folks at Pythian. Thanks for the great blogger party at Open World!

Straffe Hendrik Bruges Tripel Bier 9°

I’m still thinking about this beer, for two reasons. One, I paid $12 for it, and two, it was awesome.

World of Beer had this in Cary, NC - need to see if they still have it! — World of Beer had this in Cary, NC – need to see if they still have it!

Sound’s Humulo Nimbus

I had a hard, hard time finding a decent beer in Seattle. That epic quest ended when I ran into the Humulo.

This Double IPA is less than 9%, which is good if you want to have more than one... — This Double IPA is less than 9%, which is good if you want to have more than one…

Ballast Point’s Sculpin

This beer was my favorite find of 2014. I had 9 check-ins – all on tap. I’ve heard it’s disappointing in the bottle, but I wouldn’t know 🙂

It's not that strong at 7% ABV, but it goes to my head! — It’s not that strong at 7% ABV, but it goes to my head!

SMOKE WITHOUT FIRE!!!

Almost forgot about this beauty.

Found this great beer hall right before the OUGN Cruise/Conference.

Røyk Uten Ild (Smoke Without Fire) by HaandBryggeriet

If you came here looking for Oracle or SQL Developer stuff, does this make it any better?

My Untappd log in Oracle... — My Untappd log in Oracle…

Untappd offers an API, but not for free. So I had to manually’ish add this data in..

4 Comments

laurent 9 years ago Reply

Definitively a tasteful man !
“Santé ! ” from Belgium 😉
Dave 9 years ago Reply

Sadly, I have not tried any of these. However they are now on the beeradar.
Thanks Jeff
Meghan 9 years ago Reply

Good list, I will have to check some of these out, especially the IPAs. I noticed the Hell or High Watermelon in your Untappd list above…what did you think? For me, it was the second worst beer I’ve ever tasted, after Bell’s Oarsman.

If you get a chance, you should give some Minnesota craft brews a try 🙂
- thatjeffsmith Post Author 9 years ago
  
  I liked the idea of it. It wasn’t horrible, but it didn’t meet my expectations of a great summer beer.
  
  The only reason I had the Hell or High…on that screenshot was I was looking for beers of at least an ABV of 5% that were light and drinkable – had to drink 4 in quick succession for our Beer Mile challenge at the gym.