Reviewers enlist friend to rate brews from Gatlinburg Brewing Company

Welcome back to another week of the bane of the variety editors at The Record. This week is a tough one for these two beer reviewers. Chuck is having hip and shin problems while Jack is still getting over the plague he had this past weekend. Luckily we are joined this week by Chuck’s dear friend and the reason why he has any sense of music taste: Gunnar Laughlin. Since Chuck had some leftover brews from his spring break trip, he thought it perfect to try them now in hopes of turning the weather into something a little more bearable.

**Breakfast Juice: Gatlinburg Brewing Company**

Gunnar noticed the bold print of “The Juice is Loose” on the side next to a graphic of a white Ford Bronco (shoutout to Sydney Sweeney for all her car maintenance tips.) This libation was a cold-blooded killer, a nice hazy brew that was “absolutely 100% not guilty” of the crimes it may have caused us to take on the cookies Chuck baked. Bitter like prosecutor Marsha Clark with notes of citrus, lemon and hops. To quote Gunnar, “they put their whole Citrussy into this libation.” Unique and curious; it stands out like a white Ford Bronco followed by half the California Highway Patrol. We would fit this into our regular beer rotation like our left hand into a leather glove.

**GATTY Light: Gatlinburg Brewing Company**

The name didn’t get our hopes up, and they stuck through this brew. Very downable. Gatlinburg Brewing Company was really trying to get creative with this one but wanted to cater to their target audience: hillbillys on vacation. It smells like a Natty Light but tastes a bit better. Gunnar likens it to a repackaged McGolden. This beer reminds us of all the things we entrust to other people, but we know we can do it better ourselves. If a college student had a little bit of disposable income or their first paycheck from working a sub line shift at Sexton or McGlynn’s, this is the brew for them. Truly, it feels like something a first-year would call craft beer.

**East Nashville Beer Works: East Bank Citra IPA**

This brew was pretty uneventful for Chuck’s first tasting in Nashville, but he may have had big expectations for the Birthplace of Country Music. But like T-Swift’s hit, “Back to December,” sometimes we regret our first impressions. This libation was full frontal with a blast of bitter citra hops, but rides off into the sunset with the Allman Brothers Band playing in the background. Welp, if you made it this far into the review, we applaud you greatly. God gives his toughest tasks to his strongest soldiers. We were greatly surprised at the final result of this review, unlike the result of the Rudy Gobert trade (absolute bonehead move). No need to worry about Jack and his load management problems this week; he’ll be back in full force for next week’s review. We are happy to announce that with Mom Prom this weekend, we are thrilled to offer you a long-awaited review with both Martha Doyle and Suzy Ellis. Just a reminder that this ain’t no hobby. We’re starting to think this might not be as long of a season than anticipated.