Beer'd Hashtags of the Rich and Famous IPA and Sugar Apricot Cookies

The best and worst part about the blossoming CT craft beer scene is that there is always so much good stuff around, it can really be challenging to make it to all the breweries you want. You can try to keep up with our weekend round up posts, where we list new beer releases we are excited about each week.

The multitude of choice out on the beer trail is why when meeting up with some old friends took me to the south-eastern corner of CT, I could not pass up a chance to go to Beer’d - fine purveyors of oodles of hops.

The Beer: A friend of mine described it in an interesting way “maybe they call it Hashtags of the Rich and Famous because it tastes like a really expensive beer.” I will let you draw what conclusions you may around that, but even Beer’d describes it as ‘taking opulence to the next level’. It has lactose added, a rising feature of IPAs, which allow the hops to really shine and making the whole thing smooth and crushable. The hop character is big, bold, and juicy in this DDH brew and I love it.

The Cookie: You may know Sugar bakery in East Haven more for their cupcakes than anything else. I am a regular and loyal customer when the cupcake truck stops by my office, which is probably more frequently than most medical professionals would advise! I recently took my first trip to their bakery (Bakery visit post coming soon!) and it was like I stepped into wonderland. I’ll leave the gushing for another post, but I was drawn to their cookie case, and these little apricot delights inside. The cookie itself is like an italian cookie with hints of almond, with a sticky apricot jelly folded inside and dusted with powdered sugar. It is a very satisfying treat and my only wish is for more of the apricot filling to even out the balance.

The Pairing: File this one under “Win” and additional evidence that extra sugar never hurts an IPA pairing. The sweetness combined well with that of the maltose and the creamy beer merged seemlessly with the buttery cookie. Apricot plus hop citrus is a great combination and the powdered sugar was the cherry on top. Get either of these, or both, and never look back!