There is no place on Earth quite like Las Vegas. Every legal vice is obtainable, and probably even some illegal ones too. Last week I got the opportunity to go to this dessert city. It was an awesome break from reality:

A little site seeing from the High Roller

Great Food!

And Plenty to Drink!

Now, I will be the first to admit that I had mojitos a plenty on this four day excursion. And that craft beer is about as common as water in the middle of the dessert. But I did manage to find some local favorites from the “Silver State”. So kick back and put another quarter in the slot machine, PROST!

Tenaya Creek Hauling Oats (Las Vegas, NV): This beer poured with a soft brown lingering head. It was pitch black, and had a nice soft earthy fruit aroma. Oats are defiantly noticeable in the first smell as well. The mouthfeel for this beer was soft and feather like. It was accompanied by a nice dark chocolate bitterness. It had a soft carbonation to it, and it was very session-able and easy drinking. As it warmed up in my glass the chocolate notes really came to the forefront.

Alpine Beer Company’s Nelson Golden Rye IPA (Alpine, CA): This hazy orange/gold beer poured with a sticky head with large soapy bubbles on top. It drank with a nice peppery punch, from the rye, followed by the bitter grapefruit that is quintessential to IPAs. I was picking up a note peach or apricot that lingered into the aftertaste. It had a very light mouthfeel, and very heavy on the carbonation. Fresh would be my “one-word-description” for this excellent beer!

Brasserie Saint Jame’s Red Headed Stranger (Reno, NV): This 2013 GABF Gold Medal winner is an awesome treat for anyone into (Red) Farmhouse Style Ales. It poured with a nice tan head. This beer had a hazy/muddy unfiltered red color to it. It had a nice bready aroma with raisin notes. The mouthfeel on this beer was nice and smooth. It had a mild bitterness, with nice warm bready notes with a hint of cinnamon. Read Headed Stranger was nice and earthy, and very well carbonated. After warming up, I detected a slight taste of orange peel in this one. A great beer for those who are into the Belgian types, and a great stepping stone for those learning more about those styles.

Over all I was much more impressed with the beer scene that was available on the strip. Maybe it was the excessive heat of my first visit, two years ago, at 120 degrees, but I found many more places serving Craft Beers. Nevada has a lot of great breweries to taste from, and I am very happy to see that they are becoming more accessible on the strip.

Until next time, PROST!