This week in brew reviews: Three Notch'd Blackberry Gose, Courthouse Creek Cider

Before I dig in to this week's reviews, I want to give a shout-out to my favorite bottle shop in the Richmond area, De Fles Winkle (aka, "The Wink"). Located next to the Food Lion off of Nuckols Road in Glen Allen (on the north side of 295), The Wink has quite an expansive variety of beers, ciders, mead, and wines, and they do a great job of rotating in new product. Everyone there is deeply knowledgeable about what they're selling and super helpful. I was just in there the other day and asked the owner if they'd be getting in other flavors of Coyote Hole Cider, and he got on the phone right away and ordered more! Now that's customer service!

Two more notes before we dig into this week's reviews. My wife Shelly will be joining this blog shortly, to bring some balance to my predilection for sweet, funky sours, ciders, and stouts/porters. She'll be contributing her enthusiasm for IPAs, which with few exceptions I don't particularly care for. Additionally, we'll be implementing a rating system ("pints" instead of stars) for each beer and cider we review, and we'll be going out to breweries and sharing pics/video of the experience. 

Ok, enough of that. On to the reviews!

This week features Three Notch'd Brewing's blackberry gose and two ciders from Courthouse Creek: "Gigi's Kiss" and "Easy Breezy".

Three Notch'd Blackberry Gose

• Actually tastes like real blackberries used rather than some artificial blackberry flavored syrup
• Slight tartness, not too sweet
• ABV: 5.1%

 Courthouse Creek Cider "Gigi's Kiss"

• Crisp, slight carbonation
• Slightly dry, subtle pineapple and blackberry notes in the background 
• ABV: 6.9%

Courthouse Creek Cider "Easy Breezy"

• Crisp, slight carbonation
• Dry with pronounced floral and hop notes; highly aromatic
• ABV: 7.5%

 Ratings:

 Three Notch'd Blackberry gose: 4/5 pints
Courthouse Creek "Gigi's Kiss": 4/5 pints
Courthouse Creek "Easy Breezy": 3.5/5 pints

Stay tuned for ratings and reviews of a few DIPAs from Commonwealth Brewing!