what's on tap podcast

We love a birthday and Neon Raptor is celebrating their 9th birthday. They released a trio of beers as part of the celebration. We got our hands on two of them. Ninth BIrthday Sour is a based on the Brititsh classic Victoria Sponge. This pastry sour is filled with strawberries, raspberries, vanilla and sponge cake. It wouldn't be a birthday without an imperial stout. Ninth Birthday Impy is an impe...

We had to take a break after last weeks high ABV bonanza. We needed to take things down a few notches. We're doing Dry January...for this episode at least. We've got the non-alcoholic beers from Omnipollo, Mikkeller and Sierra Nevada. The world of non-alcoholic beers has really changed. Gone are the days of lame flavorless pilsners and lagers. Breweries are really upping their game going for it. W...

We hope your hangover isn't too bad. It's 2026 and we are cracking open a couple of bottles to kick the year off right. We've featured Smedsbo Slott quite a lot recently but that doesn't mean we don't want to keep trying their beers. Elektra Sauer Kveik is one of their highest ABV beers. Clocking in at 22% ABV, this sour ale uses wild fermented Kveik and a Belgian Quad grain bill.  Omnipollo and T...

It's the last episode of the year. 2025 was a great year for trying beers. We hope you enjoyed the year as much as we did. We cap off the year with two really fun beers. 3 Fonteinen Oude Gueuze Season 17/18 Blend no 61 isn't just any old 3F Oude Gueuze. It's a special release that was basically only released in Sweden. There is a great story behind.  The Bruery Barrel-Aged Three's Cocompany is a b...

It's the last day of our Advent 2025 calendar. We really hope you enjoyed this years selection. We had a lot of fun drinking everything. Day 24 ends things on a real high note. Pohjala makes a return to the calendar with Faraway Friends (Cellar Series). This 13.4% ABV imperial stout is a collab with Lervig. It's uses a Colossal rey whisky barrel with vanilla pods and coconut sugar. It's an amazing...

We are almost done. After a couple of dusty oldies, we have something from a pretty new brewery. Day 23 gives us some eXcitement with X-Brewing. The Dutch brewery released an imperial coconut cereal pastry stout aged on Wild Turkey bourbon barrels. Project X #01 is a 12.7% ABV beer that somehow really works despite the weird concoction.  #beer #drinks #craftbeer #advent2025 #imperialstout

Day 22 is an old money beer from 2008. Djaevlebryg Old Mephisto Batch 1 is from 2008. This English barleywine clocks in at 10.5%. This really should have been toothpaste at this point. Somehow it's still holding in there. They really knew how to make beers last back in the day. #beer #craftbeer #drinks #advent2025 #barleywine

Day 21 brings another blast from the past...the very distant past. Many, many years ago there was an amazing brewery called Stronzo. They were a defunct brewery when we started 10 years ago. Even though Stronzo went away more than a decade ago, you can still find their beers around. Anniversary #2 celebrates their second anniversary. This bourbon barrel aged Russian imperial stout has past its pri...

Advent Day 20 closes out the last full week of Advent. Just four days left, I hope you're ready. P.i.g.s. Brew Co. Deadspace Opera is a collab with Emperor's Brewery. This 14% AVB imperial stout has peanut butter, toffee caramel and Madagascar vanilla. It's really a dessert in a can. #beer #craftbeer #drinks #advent2025 #imperialstout

A What's on Tap advent calendar wouldn't be complete without a To Ol beer. Day 19 gives us To Ol Mash Test Yummies BA. This 13.1% ABV imperial stout is made with hazelnuts, cocoa nibs and vanilla then aged for 12 months in a mix of bourbon, rum and wine barrrels. It's an awesome addition to the calendar. #beer #craftbeer #drinks #advent2025 #barrelaged #imperialstout

Advent 2025 Day 18 is full of fruity goodness. Arpus makes really great fruit smoothie beers. This one is Chili X Pineapple X Passionfruit X Apricot. The chili is nicely balanced against the rich fruit flavors. It's not too spicy but builds gradually while enjoying the beer.  #beer #craftbeer #drinks #advent2025 #pastrysour

Advent 2025 has a week to go but don't worry, we still have plenty of days left. Day 17 gives us anoterh beer from Pohjala. Rukkirääk is a 5.9% ABV rye beer which is the Finnish name for a Corn Crane that lives mostly in rye fields. It has eight different malts and hopped with Cascade and Chinook hops. #beer #craftbeer #drinks #ryebeer #advent2025

Day 16 is a cellar deep dive. Stefan found a website that has a good collection of old beers. He was super excited to bring this one back for a try. Danish brewery Amager released Linda The Axe Grinder back in 2016. How does a 9% ABV American Barleywine hold up after 9 years? Opinions may vary.  #beer #craftbeer #drinks #barleywine #advent2025

Day 15 is a real treat. Since Martin messed up on his theme he replaced a beer with a 3 Fonteinen Oude Geuze. Not just any oude geuze but a  Platinum Blend from the 18/19 release. No 82 is at a great point and ready to be consumed.  #beer #craftbeer #drinks #advent2025 #geuze

It feels like if we had to pick a country of the year for 2025. It would be Poland. We've highlighted a lot of beers from the country this year. Even this calendar we've already had two beers from Poland. Day 14 features another brewery. Stu Mostow collaborated with Wylams to create Newcastle Donut. It's a pastry sour with mango, pineapple and donuts. #beer #drinks #craftbeer #pastrysour #advent20...

We return to a familiar brewery on Day 13. The guys had both picked the same Smedsbo Slott beer. Stefan had to replace his so he got another Smedsbo Slott beer. Alfablot is a 16% ABV barleywine. Smedsbo Slott only knows how to make big beers and this one is huge. #beer #drinks #craftbeer #advent2025 #barleywine

Advent Day 12 is another strong beer. We're a little weary of quadruple IPAs. They usually overly sweet to mask the high alcohol flavor. Dutch brewers White Dog created Resting at the Bottom of the Ocean in collaboration with Brazilian Cervejaria Escafandrista. This 12% ABV bad boy goes down a little too smooth.  #beer #craftbeer #drinks #advent2025 #ipa #quadipa

Advent 2025 Day 11 is another dark beer. This time it's not a stout or barleywine. It's another type of dark beer, a black lager. Vinohradsky Black Panda is Tmave lager or dark Czech lager. A little hoppy, a little roasty and 100% drinkable. #beer #drinks #craftbeer #advent2025 #blacklager #tmave #lager

Advent 2025 Day 10 is from one of our favorite breweries. We've enjoyed quite a few beers from them this year. Funky Fluid Gelato XTREME: Berries and Cream doesn't disappoint. It continues their hits with a pastry sour of raspberries, blackcurrants and blueberries with an extra marshmallow and vanilla kick. #beer #craftbeer #drinks #advent2025 #funkyfluid #pastrysour

Sweden has a chocolate "treat" called choklaboll. It's a mixture of sugar, oats and butter. It's covered in chocolate and coconut. Day 09 gives us Brygglabbet Har Efterratten Chokladboll , a beer version.  #beer #craftbeer #drinks #advent2025 #chokladboll #imperialstout 

On the 8th day we dip our toes back into the deep end of the pool with a bourbon barrel-aged imperial stout. Puhaste Oathbinder Bourbon BA is an imperial stout with mayple syrup and vanilla. It's a dessert in a glass.  #beer #craftbeer #drinks #imperialstout #stout #advent2025

Advent Day 07 slows things down a bit. We're getting off the high ABV train for a moment to enjoy a little sour beer. Holy Goat Bramble Smasher mixed fermentation golden sour with Scottish blackberries. It's tart treat with lots of jammy goodness. #beer #craftbeer #drinks #sourale #blackberry #advent2025

Advent Day 06 asks only one question, are you ready to rock? You better be cause we have a triple IPA from Dutch brewers Rock City Brewing. Euro Tipa is a 9.5% ABV tipa made with hallertau blanc, callista and styrian dragon hops. It's a really good party. #beer #craftbeer #drinks #tipa #advent2025

Advent 2025 Day 05 has us up in Norway. Rygr Hugin Imperial Stout is another fun entry in the calendar. This 13% ABV stout doesn't hold back. It's a little sweet with a strong roasty finish. Of course the Norwegians know how to make a kick ass imperial stout. #beer #craftbeer #drinks #advent2025 #imperialstout

Advent 2025 Day 04 has us over in the Baltics with a Polish Baltic Porter from ReCraft. Mentor III is a classic porter with roasted almost smoked notes from the malts and hints of dark bread and chocolate.  #beer #craftbeer #drinks #balticporter #porter #advent2025