Today's beer review is a tale of good versus evil in which both turned out to be innately good. Earlier in the week a friend and I had picked up a growler of Great Lakes Holy Moses White Ale [4] and then last night, the day I typically drink my review beer, I grabbed a bottle of Avery Brewing White Rascal White Ale [5] out of the fridge. The devilish white figure on the label signaled to me that it was going to be a brew battle for my drinking soul.
I won't insult your intelligence by trying to suggest that either beer is very different from the other, given that they're both Belgian White Ales [6]. One of the main differences that I found right off the bat is availability -- White Rascal is available year round where as Holy Moses is around only from April through July of each year; so if you're looking to try one I'd suggest finding the Holy Moses now before Red Sea washes it away. Other than that, both have a nice spicy Belgian flavor from the coriander and orange peel and are quite refreshing, easy drinking, beers.
Beeradvocate.com [7] and Ratebeer.com [8] both seem to agree with my assessment of comparing the two as well. Ratebeer gives the White Rascal and Holy Moses scores of 74 [9] and 83 [10] respectively with Beeradvocate chiming in with a B [11] and a B+ [12] respectively. I don't really have a good answer other than subjective preference, but I tend to agree with both websites that the Holy Moses is only the slightest bit better (Holier??). It seemed to have just a little something "extra" that I can't really describe.
If you're looking for two well-made, craft Belgian Whites then I would recommend both. I found the Holy Moses on tap at The Wine Rack [13] on Frankfort Avenue and the White Rascal was a bottle from Old Town Wine & Spirits [14] on Bardstown Road.
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