Backyard Beer of the Week!

You know how much I love featuring local beers as the Beer of the Week. It doesn't get more local than this one. Plus, the brewer himself stopped by the show!

Keegan Ales has to be seen as the foundation of modern craft brewing in the Hudson Valley. Tommy Keegan and his crew have been making incredible, delicious beer in Kingston for over a decade and led the way for so many great breweries that have popped up all over the area.

One of their cornerstones is this phenomenal IPA, Hurricane Kitty. As tasty and easy-drinking as American IPAs get, I'll let the esteemed and highly-respect beer savants over at Beer Advocate Magazine give their assessment:

Massive frothy head, it's not shy about sticking around either. Mildly hazed tawny color--a somewhat dark IPA we have here. Big wafts of toffee and orange zest, a lovely aroma. Creaminess on top of smoothness lends an unadulterated mouthfeel. Hops clamp down hard with a dragging bitterness; citric rind, wild herbs and tobacco notes within. Maltiness reaches high with caramel, toasted bread and an almost nutty, biscuity flavor. Bitterness holds strong but never jumps over the top to become super dominant. Bittersweet finish with a long, lingering, pleasant aftertaste.

A notch above the rest, surpassing the middle of the pack. A great example of what American craft beer is today.

 

So, as an amateur brewer myself... I had to try to replicate it at home. I brewed up a clone as best as I could and invited Tommy Keegan himself to give it a shot. Of course I was terrified that I had failed him and made an undrinkable version of his famous beer but...

Well, take a listen below!