The Duck-Rabbit Craft Brewery - The Duck-Rabbit Amber Ale

This medium brown brew is the lightest-colored beer in the Duck-Rabbit line up, and is quite dark for an amber ale. They live up to their motto as "The Dark Beer Specialists"—this is another dark, delicious brew. Expect a sweet nose with some brown sugar and very roasty notes. Look also for notes of fresh grist (brew-speak for grains) and a slight Belgian-candy like sweetness. This beer begins sweet on the palate, with some citrus notes quickly replaced by a firm bitterness that grabs at the back and sides of the tongue, ultimately transitioning to a roasty, peppery hop finish with subtle chocolate notes in the aftertaste. Notably "fresh-tasting", this highly complex beer is sweet & bitter, and is so malty it's close to being a Scotch Ale, but that's the Duck-Rabbit duality workin' on ya. Great with Braised lamb or a traditional Greek Gyro.

Farmville, North Carolina is home to one of the newer microbreweries in the country. Founded in 2004, the Duck-Rabbit Craft Brewery is the brainchild of founder Paul Philippon. Before becoming a professional brewer, he taught philosophy at the university level. One of his favorite philosophy texts, Philosophical Investigations by Ludwig Wittgenstein, contains a Gestalt-style image referred to as the Duck-Rabbit diagram. Depending on the viewer's perspective, the diagram looks like, you guessed it, a duck or a rabbit. Now, we're not really sure what it means if you see a duck or if you see a rabbit, but we do know that if you're looking at one of Paul's Duck-Rabbit beers, you're in luck—before you is a guaranteed small-batched brewed, extremely tasty beer. This is the 2nd time we've featured Duck-Rabbit brews, and we are consistently impressed—Paul is one hell of a brewer! We've surmised that the meaning behind the Duck-Rabbit duality is essentially that 'what one sees depends on your state of mind.' This idea can be applied to one of the brewery's unique features: they're one of very few microbreweries to exclusively brew "dark" beers. Sure, some might see this as a limiting factor for a new brewery, reducing their market potential, while others might be quick to highlight this valuable quality as a conduit for connecting with a niche market within the already niche market of microbrewed beer. Wow, we're getting all philosophical over here… but that's Paul for ya—always trying to make you think! A curse or an advantage? Another dichotomous duality similar to the whole Duck-Rabbit diagram philosophy. Oh man, get these freggin' ducks, no wait, rabbits, no wait, definitely ducks—whatever—out of our heads! (and into our pint glasses where they belong!) For more information about the brewery and scheduled tours, call (252) 753-7745 or check out their web site at www.duckrabbitbrewery.com.