Brewery: Clown Shoes
Beer: Reindeer Games
Style: American Double/Imperial IPA
ABV: 8%
Character: Brewed with American and German hops as well as Bavarian Red X winter malt.
Ratings at time of Review: BA: 87 | RB: 69
Metal Connection: RAZOR – The Game

Rating: 4.25/5

The holidays have come and past, and we have entered into a new year, but that doesn’t mean we are done with holiday beers. In this case, we are staring at a 22 oz. bomber bottle of Reindeer Games by none other than Clown Shoes. These guys seem to be spitting out beers left and right, and all displaying their wild and crazy colorful labels for us to gaze at. Here we have a super reindeer of sorts, sporting a big red cape and the signature clown shoes, participating in a hurdle race game, with other games going on in the background that includes a snow ball fight, and a rocket boosted sleigh on a ski jump, pulled by other reindeer. You have to love Clown Shoes for their creativity in the labels. Now, are their beers just as creative? This is a debatable subject, as you all know everyone’s opinion is different. Here are my thoughts on this Bavarian-Style IPA.

I poured this beer into the specifically designed IPA glass by Spiegelau. The beer appeared semi hazy with a reddish orange color. It was topped off with an eggshell colored foamy head that was a little more than a half inch thick. Good head retention, which reduced down to a thin layer atop the beer, leaving decent looking spotty lacing down the glass.

The nose of the beer was pretty unique. Upfront it was all hop for me with an earthy, floral, and wet grass scent. There was a nice sweet sugary rock candy aroma as well. Good notes of caramel malts and pale malts as a backbone here. Some bready notes as well peek on through. The unique part for me, is that the mixture of flavors here give this beer a smell like a cactus or plant greenery.

The taste is similar to the nose. Earthy, floral, wet grass hops hit the palate first, followed by a body of caramel, and pale malts with a very grainy taste. Lightly toasted biscuits, as well. There is an overall sweetness to this beer, similar to sugary rock candy. Again, just like the nose of this beer, there is this unique character that can best be described as plant greenery or cactus-like. I really enjoyed this element of Reindeer Games.

The body had a medium thickness, that was complimented by moderate carbonation and a smooth, but crisp mouthfeel. There wasn’t high bitterness in this beer, but it did finish dry and a tad bit zesty.

Overall, I really didn’t know what to think about this beer going into it, but was rather pleased by this beers aroma and flavor profile. The one main unique character that Reindeer Games possesses, for me, was a real treat. Clown Shoes releases a good amount of new and different beers throughout the year, and all displaying very colorful labels to show off the uniqueness of each beer they produce.

Metal Connection: Here we have the cult iconic Canadian Thrash Metal band, Razor. They were formed in 1983,and lasted until 1992. They band decided to reform in 1997. It was at this time that the band released their 8th studio full length album, which is named Decibels. The Metal Connection song, “The Game” comes from this very album. It is a perfectly fitting song for this beer. The beer label depicts a sporting event featuring reindeer and elves, and this Thrash Metal song is focused around the outcome of a washed up sports player, and the shitty life that they live after their careers are over. This song even features words spoken like that of a sports announcer. There is just all types of games going on here!