I was excited to see this new collaboration pack at our local beer store. This pack features the classic Fat Tire as well as collaborations between New Belgium and five other breweries.

We have been long-time fans of Allagash, Firestone Walker, and Avery, and we were excited to try Hopworks and Rhinegeist, which were new to us. The packaging and beer labels are bright, fun, and clever with the different bicycle variations on each bottle. Here’s the breakdown:

• Avery: Fat Wild Ale
  • One of the stand-outs of the bunch! Hoppy yet sippable with some fruity/sweet elements that don’t overpower. Nice summer beer!
• Allagash: Fat Funk Ale
  • An extra scoop of yeast is what gives this beer its Funk. Taste is somewhat earthy with notes of banana and caramel. Not bad.
• Firestone Walker: Fat Hoppy Ale
  • The winner of the group! We are big Firestone Walker fans, so we were especially excited for this one. Really unique blend of hops provides a good bite that is still immensely drinkable. Has some citrus and sweet notes, but incredibly refreshing. This one just begs for a hammock on a summer day.
• Hopworks: Fat Sour Apple Ale
  • Blegh. We are really trying to get on the sour beer bandwagon, but it just hasn’t worked. You definitely get the sour hit with an apple/grape taste. It felt like drinking beer mixed with white grape juice. This was our least favorite of the bunch.
• Rhinegeist: Fat Pale Ale
  • This beer felt like it was missing something. We are big fans of pale ales, but this felt a bit too light-bodied and not quite hoppy enough for our ideal pale ale profile. However, if you are new to hoppy beers, this one would be a good transitional beer due to the light hoppiness.
• New Belgium: Fat Tire
  • Fat Tire has a cult following and recently arrived in Pennsylvania from the west coast. Mike has gotten to taste it out west on tap, which he claims is far better than the bottled variety we get here. It is smooth and easy-drinking and a step above your basic lagers, though it isn’t much to write home about.

All in all, this was a fun sampler pack! I’d recommend grabbing one to try them out yourself. The Fat Hoppy Ale was a big favorite out of the pack – would be great to see more of that in the future!

Cheers!

Bethany and Mike