Revealing a mystery beer

I have two apologies. The first is for the lack of blogging this weekend. I was in the land of milk and Honey Weiss, and that tends to not be conducive to blogging. This particular weekend I spent some time setting up a new computer for the Mother Jib. Secondly, I apologize for teasing the Leinie's drinkers out there with the new 'mystery beer'. I was informed that I was being selfish by writing about the new Leinie's but withholding my information. I agree. Now that I've had a pint, I'll fill you all in.

The mystery Leinie's beer is called Leinenkugel's "Big Eddy" Imperial IPA. As I understand it, this beer was brewed in Milwaukee and it was limited to less than 150 barrels. It also can only be found in the Madison and Milwaukee markets. I tried it this afternoon with a friend at The Great Dane in the Hilldale area of Madison. I understand it can be found at The Angelic, Genna's, Wonder's Pub, The Echo Tap, The Ivory Room, Concourse Hotel, The Edgewater, Paul's Club, and Romans' Club. I'm sure there are other locations, but those are the ones I've seen mentioned.

The beer itself is unlike any Leinenkugel product you are going to drink. I had mine at the Great Dane, and it was fun just to watch it served. They used a pump style tapper to serve it, and the bartender held it behind the bar for several minutes while the head subsided. The 9.5% alcohol content "Big Eddy" is bitter on the front end and very strong with hops. It is a quite flavorful beer and my companion and I both enjoyed it, although we both admitted that it wasn't a beer we'd be drinking in great quantities. It is a little heavier that most Leinenkugel brews, and the alcohol content is quite a kick if you haven't eaten first.

Now that I've had it, I encouraged everyone else to give it a try. It won't be a favorite for a lot of beer drinkers, but for others it will be a welcome change to such beers as Apple Spice and Summer Shandy.