Mikkeller: One Of The Most Glorious Beers Of All Time

Well, I'm not gonna lie, when it comes to my palate I'm certainly one for hyperbole. It's probably due to my status as "The Nice Guy." Everything is a new experience, so why not try and enjoy it. My wife is the critic and I'm just the guy that gets to steal her critical genius and write about it. I'll swirl my wine and offer a hesitant, "Raspberry? Eucalyptus? Oak?" Or in anticipation of tasting a dish, "So, what do you think?" She'll smile and then be spot on. "It's more black cherry," or "It's good, but it'd be better with a little less dill."

Of course over the years, I've learned to be a bit more discerning. But there's one thing that I've always been passionate about and not shy to offer my opinion on...the glorious malty beverage we call BEER. Perhaps it's because our palates diverge on the subject. She can't stand Sierra Nevada Pale Ale and, for me, it brings back happy memories of living in the mountains. She loves Smithwicks; I don't. She drinks sour beers, I'll drink them but would prefer not to. However every once in a while we find a beer in a happy middle ground that we can both agree is "A Good Beer." Such was the case the other night at Mirabelle Tavern.

Having nearly drank through their extensive beer list, I'm always up for trying something new. Pulling up a seat to the bar Terence, the tavern's resident beer manager, was literally gitty with excitement. "You've got to try this! I just got in the Mikkeller Tomahawk Single Hop IPA." Now, I LOVE IPAs and more-often-than-not so does my wife.

The initial result of a homebrew friendship between danish Mikkel Borg Bjergso and Kristian Keller, Mikkeller has now evolved into the genius brewing playground of Mikkel. With the breakthrough of his espresso-spiked stout, "Beer Geek Breakfast," Mikkel has collaborated with some of the world's most innovative breweries: Three Floyds, Chicago, de Struise, Belgium, Nogne O, Norway and Stone and Alesmith, San Diego. Among these experiments, they released their Single Hop Series, a series of american style IPAs brewed strictly with single hop strains.

Also known as Columbus, Tomahawk hops imbues an immediate citrusy and woodsy characteristic to beers. Mikkeller's IPA was the perfect example of its herbacious pine and slight grapefruit notes. It finished with a beautiful bitterness that I expect from all IPAs, but only few truly deliver.

After taking the first sip I looked at my wife: "Now, that's good beer." She tasted it and echoed the beer's brilliance. It's a beer any food adventurer MUST find and try. Lucky for those of us on the North Shore of Long Island, Mirabelle Tavern has the hookup with several Mikkeller beer in bottles and a keg waiting to be tapped. So stop by, introduce yourself to Terence, and order a Mikkeller...you won't be disappointed.