New Beer Sunday (week 566)

This is easier to drink, but I like how much bigger and thicker BCBS is.

 

I typed out a lot. I have little Internet access here so here goes... California is pretty cool!

Coachella Valley Brewing Co. - Black Widow




look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.25

Poured from the bottle into a Spiegelau stout glass.

Deep classic simple black walnut body, totally opaque and a bit oily coming out. Little head creation barely a thin mocha colored Puck, but a simple collar makes due.

Good solid aroma. Sticky molasses note, very strong, faint dark chocolate notes hidden just as well. Not much sensing barrel character, but thicker and full bodied in malt aromas.

Surprising palate. Thick and rich velvety body,not syrupy either. Mid palate though kicks with lots of molasses and thick malt. Toned down sweetness but also noticeable, and a bit filled with thick cocoa and tangy chocolate to some extent. Aftertaste brings fruit chocolate tangy qualities, swallows rich and coating with an almost sourdough pumpernickel quality.

This is a real good solid stout, big and rich, but it seems to not give me any sense that this came from a barrel somehow. It is though a tinge sweeter than I like, but very impressive.

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Gotta run! Enjoy the rest of the holidays!

 

Dieu du Ciel Peche Mortel on NITRO at Doc Ponds. I've had a few different Peche Mortel variants, but this is right up there with BBA Peche Mortel.

 

Prairie Christmas Bomb!, pours thick, no head. Not much nose, but I don't have much of a sense of smell. Tastes a bit boozy, can pick out some chocolate and coffee, a bit of a bitter coffee finish. I much prefer the regular Bomb! as it I found it much more flavorful. The glass is one of four nonics I got for Christmas, two Stone, two Founders. I also picked up two Utopias glasses. A few weeks ago, my first NBS was using a coffee mug since I couldn't find any of the beer glasses I know I have somewhere - so now I'm set for glassware. Owl guarding my beer.

 

Could anybody else so seamlessly transition from all that big stout to an itty bitty kolsch? Others could try ...

One more new beer for me:

Alvinne Undressed

Meant to be a stripped down oud bruin, it's damn sure sour. Vinous, indeed. But the dark malt here is pronounced enough to toss in some chocolate flavors, albeit just hints. As it warms, there's also some woody notes, especially in the nose as it warms.

Yeah, that's chocolate ... and the way it's mixing with the really sour base is coming off like a super dry red wine -- is there such a thing? Maybe I mean I super earthy/meaty red wine. I don't know wines. But I do like this beer.

The review:
http://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/6288/86338/?ba=Premo88
3.89 (-1% rDev)

@cjgiant: It is an awesome feeling, ain't it, the no work tomorrow after NBS? My weekends are Sunday-Monday, so NBSunday is really kinda NBSaturday for me.

Cheers!

 

That was a beer sent to me by @Prager62 . I loved it. Didn't review it, I rated it 4.25, although it's one of those beers I remember higher than that. I recall being struck by the intensity of the rye flavor. Here's my photo.

@WesMantooth Go Blue

 

Agreed, the rye flavor and how it integrated fairly well with the base stout (even though it was more prominent) made me really enjoy it. The one thing in my review was: wish it had at least a little more carbonation for the feel. Guess maybe it does, normally .

 

Kent falls coffeemaker:


Picked this up along with a couple bottles of second nature peach (amazing stuff) last week at the farmers' market. Starts off citrusy/fruity and leads into a muddle of coffee and brett. It's enjoyable and quite unique but I kind of feel the brett IPA aspect is better than the beer as a whole. Kent falls is definitely still on a winning streak for me though.

 

Cigar City Brewing Jai Alai.

Pours a nice haze orange with a tint of yellow. Canned on 12/02/15. Gift from @jhartley

I'm getting mango and orange zest in the aroma. Nice malty backbone on this with the right amount of hops. Taste is pretty much as the nose picks up. I'm getting citrus notes and it is pleasantly bitter on the palate.

I would always keep this in the fridge if it was was available locally here in Maryland.

 

Next up is an Anchor Special/Christmas Ale 2015. Love lots of head. Nose is... fresh, can't quite place it. Not much taste to be honest, not bitter but dry. Does not stand out as a Christmas brew per se, but not totally unpleasant. Not really a stout or porter. Owl is still eyeing my beer, like it's never seen one before. I stared it down for a while, but it never blinked.

 

New DIPA has been a long time coming...

It's been an overcast and chilly day in West MI. Today was spent entertaining family and friends and prepping the house for upcoming NYE and football watching festivities (even though my bowl season wrapped up with a big WMU victory in the Bahamas on Christmas Eve. Row the boat!!!).

Today's beer is something I've waffled on for years. Over the past 8-10 years I've seen it on the shelf a few times and hemmed and hawed overhead it before eventually walking away. Under the guidance of the great folks at Copper Vine, my wife snagged a bottle as a Christmas present, making me a very happy hubby.

http://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/64/9086/?ba=GRPunk

Dogfish 120 Minute 12oz. Bottle (dated 07/22/15) from Mary for Christmas purchased at Copper Vine, poured into a Stone IRS snifter.

A - A normal pour creates 1-finger of dense, khaki head. The body is a very hazy, burnt orange, looking almost like a pulpy fruit juice. There are small bubbles consistently making their way toward the surface behind the cloudy body. The head sustains at 1/4 finger ring around the edges, and a thin, lacy film through the middle. There are really nice, lacy rings left on the glass.

S- I'm initially hit by a load of hops, mostly grapefruit, but there's a big, sweet, malt backbone behind it that comes off as caramel or English toffee. Another whiff and the aroma melds into a tobacco leaf and leathery goodness. Within the sweetness, the alcohol becomes apparent. Not harsh, but something of fruit brandy (like apricot or even a cherry cordial). Hops become more spicy too.

T- Whoa! There's a lot going on here. Very sweet up front, something like brown sugar and maple syrup. Then the hops kick in through the middle, bringing a leafy and spicy quality. The finish is a combination of the sweet and hoppy. More of the brown sugar, but with a juicy hop that combines grapefruit and spicy aspects. Things don't change too much with warmth, but become more pronounced. The spicy hops begin to hint at freshly cracked black pepper toward the end.

M- Very full bodied. High viscosity. The hops provide a spicy bite and combine with the extreme ABV that adds a smooth, warm heat. All in all, the finish becomes rather dry after the syrupy sweet mouthful.

O- I'm so glad my wife pulled the trigger for me. I've been tempted every time I see it on the shelf, but walked away due to the cost combined with an apprehension over the perceived flavor profile. This is definitely a one and done sipper for the evening, but I'd be more than tempted to pick up a few more, maybe one to drink fresh and one to lay down for some aging.

4.5 4.5 4.25 4.25 4.25

 

One more tonight.

Summit Old Blaggard - 10.1% ABV

Pours nicely. Dark amber colored. Not much nose.

Taste - interesting. Nice barleywine. Maybe I shouldn't be having this after the BCBS, but nice anyway.

4 out of 5

 

Good evening! After a long travel day we set up the RV in Aunt Mary's driveway this afternoon in Tennessee, and proceeded to continue the week end long saga of over eating. My wife's cousin had a selection of cold Guinness, and so we drank.

After a round of Lagunitas, I broke out my NBS bottle to share: Evil Twin's "Molotov Cocktail Heavy", brewed at Westbrook Brewing in Mt. Pleasant, SC, an IIPA at 17.2%





Auburn, almost brown cloudy pour with yeast floaties like a snow globe; no retention; spotty lace; a little clarity looking up under the cap.

Orange juice and sweet toffee nose; more like nail polish as it warms...

Boozy sweet juice and bitter hops; hot alcohol and pepper exhale; bitter hop and boozy citrus finish, as I continue to sip on this beer, I think it more barleywine than IPA.

Warming medium plus mouthfeel; sherry like tongue coating.

Overall, astringent, bitter, juicy linger - a hot mess or genius? Hopefully I can score another bottle on my return trip thru Charleston (I bought this yesterday downtown) next week and give it another go. Until then, I finish sipping on this big beer and wish all a good night - Cheers!

 

It's really nice to see your beer since I'm not opening one in my thread. I was tempted to include their "Old Ale," but I let a tiny degree of restraint get in the way.

I had to post a ton of beers in my thread today in order to catch up for New Beer Sunday.

Today I had Adam From The Stone from Hair of the Dog. Link below.



A Barley Wine for Every Day

 

I never thought I'd say this, but I've been kind of craving some piney IPAs lately after all the fruit bombs I've been running into lately. Then I ran into Christmas beer hell at a bottleshare the wednesday before Christmas. Probably have a couple trees growing in my stomach now :/