Magic Hat “No. 9” gets a second chance

I stopped in last week at Buffalo Wild Wings in Joplin for a quick brew before Avatar. Usually I would have settled for my regular Bud, but spotted a new tap handle on the rail. The tapper looked like a shepard’s crook with a metal number “9” in the center. Not one to shy away from trying a beer without any knowledge of it, I asked the bartender for a little info and ordered a pint. The new brew, Magic Hat No. 9, disappointed me that day. The beer seemed a bit flat and sour. Not a good first impression. The Magic Hat hails from the maple syrup state, Vermont.

 A couple of days later I was back in the BWW and decided to give No. 9 another chance. I’m glad I did. This time around the beer had a great head, the sour taste was gone and the pint was an enjoyable ride. I ordered another and mentioned to the barkeep my previous experience. He told me that sometimes the glasses don’t get rinsed enough and the residual agent left on the glass can cause the beer to loose its head and seem flat in the glass. According the bartender BWW is the only place the Magic Hat can be found in Joplin and it could be there for a limited time.

 The Magic Hat Brewing Co. is in Burlington, Vermont, a state known for good beer. The No. 9 product information on the Web site brands the brew as a “not quite pale ale.” The site info goes on: “An ale whose mysterious and unusual palate will swirl across your tongue and ask more questions than it answers. A sort of dry, crisp, refreshing, not-quite pale ale. #9 is really impossible to describe because there’s never been anything else quite like it.”

Magic Hat’s No. 9 gets its “not quite Pale character from Cascade and Apollo hops and Pale and Crystal malts. At 5.1 alcohol by volume (ABV) , its not a stiff drink.

I’m glad I gave No. 9 a second chance. The bartender couldn’t tell me how long the English style ale will stick around. He said the distributor was sampling it to see if it had any legs in this market. I say keep it around. I’ll tackle it again. $4 a pint. Check it out and let me know what you think.

Cheers!