Did General Fighting Joe Hooker enjoy his beer? He might have. His men claimed he took his whiskey strong, and he liked to party. Born in Massachusetts in the early 19^th century, Hooker was an important leader in the Union Army and won an important victory at the Battle of Lookout Mountain in Chattanooga, Tennessee. That’s not so far from here actually, so maybe I’ll strike up the strains of General Joe’s Quickstep and march on over there.

General Joe’s Quickstep was a musical piece that his band liked to play. The confederates changed up the words a bit and came up with their own version. Most importantly (because I suspect you came here for a beer review and not a history lesson), General Joe’s Quickstep is now a beer, an American Sour Ale from the Burnt Hickory Brewery of Kennesaw, Georgia.

From the label:

With three corps in front of him, General Joe Hooker decided to set up camp and turn Stilesboro Road into his personal party zone. Bawdy and badass, this kettle soured is for sure to put a jump in your day and a bump in your night.

Burnt Hickory General Joe’s Quickstep has an alcohol content of 5.5% by volume and I paid $4.75 for an 11-ounce glass at Taco Mac.

My glass of Burnt Hickory General Joe's Quickstep American Sour Ale arrived a hazy yellow amber color with a light head formation and a tart zesty citrus nose. A sip reveals a crisp wheaty body, a puckering dry sourness, and a soft underlying yeast component. Mostly here I get the huge quenching sourness, with perhaps a suggestion of lime-like citrus and a decided refreshing quenching quality.

I like it! A few of these bad boys and I might be doing a quickstep myself. Maybe you will, too.



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