Hello, again, everyone. I am back from a vacation to the western half of the country, where I got to have beers from Nevada and several other western states. So, there will be a few posts over the next week or so containing reviews of these beers. We start today with a trio from Great Basin Brewing Company.

We start with their Icky IPA ("Icky" being short for "Ichthyosaur", the official fossil of the state of Nevada), which pours a light gold and has a medium body. I detected citrusy and piney hops, but what really played through were orange notes throughout, with some mild hop bitterness early on in the sip. The bitterness lingered a while during the sip, but was gone before finishing. Fairly light for an IPA--not surprising, as Icky seems to be one of Great Basin's prime/flagship beers, and I'd expect they are going for something that can be enjoyed in the middle of a blazing hot day in the middle of the desert.

Next up is the Wild Horse. Listed as an amber ale brewed in the traditional German "Alt" style, which refers to differences in the fermentation process. The Wild Horse has a reddish-to-auburn hue. A very tasty ale overall, malty and sweet. Notes of dark fruit are quite prevalent.

Finally, Great Basin's multi-award-winning Milk Stout, called Outlaw. It pours nearly black, and has lots of sweet cocoa and caramel notes, along with some coffee, and maybe a little bit of roast from coffee or malts. The mouth-feel of this beer is exceptional. Having a decent amount of body, this beer is very smooth to drink, and is creamy and satiny on the mouth. A delicious beer with a great mouth-feel makes for a killer combination.