When you think Kansas, you might think… Boring? But Tallgrass Brewing Co. and their beer is anything but.
First of all, props to owner Jeff Gill for following his dreams. According to him, the brewery came to be when his wife asked him what he wanted to do with the rest of his life. His answer?
“I want to start a microbrewery!”
I guess dreams to come true. Inside this variety pack, there’s the classic 8-Bit Pale Ale, two takes on a Berliner Weisse, and a beer that’s half dessert have gose? Like I said, these beers buck the Kansas stereotype, showing that the good life in the prairie can be anything but boring.
Here’re my slurred word poems inspired by these heartland beers.
Blueberry Jam – 4.3% – Berliner Weisse
In a way, it reminds me of New Holland’s Lost Dune, with that same blueberry cereal type flavor. The blueberry pairs well with the biscuity malts, giving it a nice desert like quality. It’s a tart, sour, and refreshing beer. As someone who loves a good Berliner Weisse, I’m sold.
‘Blueberry
moon
sultry summers spent
croon-
-ing for you
in those peoria
storied
nights.’
Raspberry Jam – 4.3% – Berliner Weisse
I’m digging these. Like the blueberry, it’s refreshing and tart. It kind of, in a way, reminds me a Lipton raspberry ice tea.
‘Raspberry
sirens wail
cut the heavy night
hiding in back alleys
to out of sight
just some midwestern youth
out searching among campfires
for truth.’
8-Bit Pale Ale – 5.2% – APA
Tallgrass describes the 8-Bit as “notes of fruit and pine resin dominate the aroma with bright hops and vibrant tropical fruit flavors shining through in this medium-bodied American pale ale.”
The 8-Bit is a solid APA. It has both piney, citrus hops that give it a nice bitterness. That gets rounded out by the sweet, biscuit malt. Very well balanced.
‘You
n me both
pac
haunted by ghosts
chasing dead lines
down empty
roads.’
Key Lime Pie – 4.2% – Gose/Fruit beer?
I’m not gonna lie. I was hesitant about this beer. It seemed gimmicky. But, after three or four of them, they started to grow on me. It does come off as overly sweet at times, but I think the saving grace is that it somewhat resembles a gose. It has this tart, salty finish that makes it actually pretty refreshing. What’s still weird is how much it does taste like a key lime pie. It has notes of graham cracker from the sweet malts, and also subtle notes of vanilla. The beer itself has a creaminess to it. It’s an oddity. But hell, in the summer I’m sure it would make a perfect beach beer.
‘Promises
of pie
in the sky
let me find out
let me try
cause I want
mine.’