The Microbrewed Beer of the Month Club is a subscription from monthlyclubs.com that includes 12-12oz. craft beers from two different U.S. microbreweries. Monthlyclubs.com also offers The International Wine, The Premium Cigar, The Gourmet Cheese, The Gourmet Chocolate, and The Fresh Cut Flowers monthly clubs.
Within The Microbrewed Beer of the Month Club, subscribers can also choose between 5 options: The U.S. Microbrewed Beer Club, The U.S. and International Variety Beer Club, The Hops-Head Beer Club, The International Beer Club, and the Rare Beer Club.
My Subscription Addiction paid for this box. (Check out our review process post to learn more about how we review boxes.)
This review is of The U.S. Microbrewed Beer of the Month Club, $27.95 a month, box.
The Subscription Box: The Microbrewed Beer of the Month Club
The Cost: $27.95 a month + $15 shipping and handling
ACTIVE DEAL: $10 off a 4 shipment order
CODE: SAVE10
The Products: Twelve 12 oz. hand-crafted beers (3 of each) from "two different lightly distributed U.S. microbreweries."
Ships to: U.S. only, excluding Alaska, Hawaii, and Utah
Good to know: Not only can you choose from one of the six monthlyclubs.com memberships, you can also “Design Your Own Club” by combining any or all clubs into one. This is a great idea for upcoming birthday gifts, Mother’s and/or Father’s Day, and the December holidays.
Check out all of our The Microbrewed Beer of the Month Club reviews and the Beer of the Month Club Subscription Box Directory!
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I love the newsletter that is provided each month since it goes into such great detail about the two breweries featured. It also provides snippets about each beer that you can read while you are taste testing! The first featured brewery is Spencer Brewing American Trappist from Spencer, MA. Fish Brewing Company is the second featured brewery from Olympia, WA.
According to the newsletter, "trappist" is the common term for the monasteries of the Cistercian Order of the Strict Observance, of which there are a total of twenty in the world. A monk from St. Joseph's Abbey in Spencer, MA took an interest in brewing, touring Belgium to learn the procedures of some of the greatest beers in the world! From there, many of the monks voted to open their own Trappist brewery, which is now the Spencer Brewery!
The Trappist Ale was the first beer I tasted and was my favorite since I love an authentic Belgian Pale Ale. According to the newsletter, this was inspired by the everyday drinking table beers known as patersbier (father's beer) common at brewing monasteries for consumption by the monks themselves. With 24.5 IBUs and 6.5% alcohol volume, this beer tasted perfect for a Fall clam bake! I initially was hit with scents of banana and spice which followed through when drinking. You really get an all spice and a touch of clove which is what I love about a great pale ale!
The second beer from Spencer is their Festive Lager and it packed so much flavor! You initially get a sweet caramel and floral flavor with a bit of spice and smokey undertones. This beautifully amber lager comes in at 7.5% alcohol volume with 36 IBUs. With the light caramel flavors and earthy spice, I think this is the perfect cold evening brew!
Our second featured brewery is Fish Brewing Company! It was founded in 1993 by Crayne & Mary Horton as a small brewpub on Jefferson Street in Olympia, WA. A few short years later they moved into the historic Skoog Building, which has allowed them to expand into the large brewing company that they are today!
The first beer from Fish Brewing is their Mudshark Porter coming in at a 5.2% alcohol volume and 36 IBUs. This porter was rich and smooth with a light woody scent, perfect for the upcoming winter season! Mudshark smells like a coffee and tastes smooth like an espresso. There is no bitter aftertaste with this making it a porter you can enjoy again and again!
The second beer from Fish Brewing is their Vicious Circle Amber Ale. This amber ale has a wonderful blend of malt and hops with a 5% alcohol volume and 40 IBUs. The malt provides a nice caramel undertone that makes this go down easily. The hops provide a light bitterness with a bold floral flavor. I am a huge fan of amber ale brew so this was a big hit for me!
Now that we are done tasting, here is a view of all the beers to see the difference in each! From left to right: Trappist Ale, Mudshark Porter, Vicious Circle Amber Ale, Festive Lager.
Verdict: This month's box of The Microbrewed Beer of the Month Club got me so excited for the fall season to start! Each beer was perfect for a cold crisp evening next to a fire. Like last month, the two featured breweries were new to me and I was able to learn so much about each and their techniques. We enjoyed The Microbrewed Beer of the Month Club so much last month that we decided to have a beer tasting gathering with my family for this month's box! So while this box is a higher price item at $42.95 a month, with 12 beers in each box you are able to have a really fun taste testing party with your friends or family each month!
What was your favorite brew from this month's The Microbrewed Beer of the Month Club?
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