New Beer Sunday (week 630)

Well, thank you! I really enjoyed it, and I'm feeling extremely lucky to have even sipped any being as I'm on the west coast of Missouri, I just don't think it's "b00m - nothing else can ever please me again" level. This is the only street series IPA that I got exclusively in the double dry hopped version, so it's my only taste of it. I really enjoyed the Melcher Street. I have a few other street series awaiting me in the fridge (as well as some DDH ones) that I'm excited to dip into.

 

I'm glad you enjoyed that because all Grey Sail gets attention for is Captains Daughter. That beer plus Flying Jenny Pale Ale and their Flagship ale do not get the respect they deserve. If you can get your hands on Jenny its worth a try.

 

In my experience, it drops off a bit starting from week 3. I had a 6 week old Pliny that I drainpoured, because it was absolutely not the same beer.

 

Now onto watching Michigan State, my alma mater. Hated to see UM win (because I have to root against them) but they played a great game and are scary good if they get on a run. MSU is down by 6 at the half to the #3 team in the country? I'll take that. Counting on Izzo to motivate this young team.

My second NBS courtesy of @Wasatch is Upslope's Imperial IPA.


19.2 ounce can. Best by March 28, 2017.
Pours a dirty, deep orange with a nice 1+ finger head. Well carbonated and lacing on my tulip. Grapefruit, pine and oranges on the nose. The taste starts out sweet, then on to grapefruit pith, dankness, pine and honey. Well balanced. Can't believe how drinkable this is for a 10% DIPA. Dangerous!

 

A recent thread asked for beers that tasted like Girl Scout's Thin Mint cookies. This beer was brought up multiple times. While I found a 4 pack of it about a week ago, I passed, as $20 seems like a steep price to try something that may be terrible. The Blackwater series - at least for me - has been home run or strike out. No singles, doubles or triples, and thus not worthy of removing an Andrew Jackson from my wallet just to tick a small, electronic box on here. When I found my favorite bottle shop was selling individual bottles, I figured why the hell not. I like Thin Mints, and if it's terrible, I have some more proven beer to wash my palate off with. So, let's dig into it, and find out how the Girl Scouts *ahem* Southern Tier did.



Southern Tier's Thick Mint.

Pours black with a finger of khaki head foaming on the top. Modest retention with tight patches of lacing left behind. The aroma is boisterous with huge notes of mint, toffee, chocolate, bread, and cookies. Flavor profile is big as well, providing delightfully robust notes of mint, toffee, cookies, chocolate, bread, and cream. Mouth feel is thick with a filling, smooth, and creamy texture. Overall, this beer packs a presence, and that presence is tasty and dessert-like.

Score: 4 | 4.25 | 4.25 | 4.75 | 4.25 | BA Score: 4.29 | rDev: +4.1%

Personal notes: This beer is delightfully and resoundingly big, which is fitting per the name. It also hits the target, as long as that target is providing a drinkable version of Thin Mint cookies. While it is still a strong, dessert beer (and keep that closely in mind if you're trying to get drunk or drink this stuff socially), it's plenty flavorful and well rounded to provide a great experience.

 

I think we generally agree on this beer, though I had it after what I am guessing is 2 or so months. In my review I likened it to Old Ruffian a bit, but not as bitter. I also wonder what ST is thinking with this beer, as it's now been retired on this site twice (I think the one we reviewed was a tweak in recipe as I recall considering asking for a merge and didn't).

I thought you might like it a little better. I kept looking for things to take it higher for me, and debated going to 4 on taste, but the coffee-to-chocolate trade-off just hit me in too odd a way.

But I liked this beer better than you by a little, so maybe we're even . The one thing I agree with and I think easily made this my most favoritest IPA ever (to date) was this from your quoted post:
"Can an IPA get any creamier, and yet still finish semi-dry, begging you to take another sip?"

We both gave it a five on feel.

Cheers!!

 

I've been meaning to try that one. I saw it at the store on my last trip, and will make sure to pick some up on my next one when April rolls around. Thanks for the rec, cheers!

 

Another brew I received from @TeemuWPG and the glassware was also included!

Gigantic can poured in snifter.

Golden straw with a bubbly off white head. Slowly settles and caps the brew.

Lightly citrus and grassy aroma.
Flavor is smooth and easy going. Hint of grassy earth, toasty malt and citrus. A bit of tropical fruit lingers in the finish.

Moderate carb and light side of medium body.

Nice brew, could drink these all day. Can is huge!

 

G' evening NBS-ers and fellow BIF-ers!


Today is the reveal day, for some of us in the BIF#5, it will be next week for my target, I wonder if he knows it's me yet?
@SammyJaxxxx hit me up with this box of deliciousness yesterday!

So of course today's entry is from that box...

Carton Boat Session Ale


Canned on 2/28/17! Poured, straight from the fridge, into a Snorkel glass.

Appearance: Cloudy yellow-green (but only a little) body with a 1/2 finger's worth of head that leaves some nice lacing in the glass.

Aroma: Juicy orange and citrus, piney hops.

Taste: Very clean tasting dry malts and a hint of hoppiness on the end to add a slight bitterness.

Mouthfeel: Crisp and dry. Super easy drinker here.

Overall: This one definitely lives up to it's description of "sessions ale". The perfect beer for a hot day. Crisp and refreshing with just enough hops to balance the dry malts.

Cheers!

 

It was a good beer, honestly boulevard is one of those breweries that doesn't really miss with me, definitely give it a try.

 

Good evening NBS, hope everyone is having a good Sunday! Excited to catch up on the thread and see everything for the BIF! I'm starting with the beer I'm most excited to try from my first box, Bell's Black Note Stout, have to give a huge thank you to @Blackop555 for finally letting me try this wonderful beer!

4.58/5 rDev +1.8%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.75

Big thanks to Blackop555 for this
12 oz bottle, 2016, poured into a tulip

A- Black with a two finger mocha head.

S- Roasted malts, some coffee, milk chocolate, some dark fruits, nice touch of bourbon, hints of caramel.

T- Milk chocolate/cocoa, some roasted coffee, caramel malts, some dark fruits, some toasted malts, bourbon, some vanilla.

M- Smooth, medium to full body.

O- This beer lingers on your tongue in the best way possible and is incredibly easy to drink for a bourbon barrel aged stout. As I'm drinking this it just keeps opening open and show the layers of this beer. Another great imperial stout from Bell's!

 

Finishing up with dinner and back with a new one from @cavedave's BIF box.

My first from Suarez Family Brewery - Summer Whoa. This is a farmhouse / saison aged on peaches.

Simply put, this is amazing! Perfect blend of sweet and tart. Excellent feel and refreshing. I had never heard of this brewery but will not forget them...





Poured from 500 ml bottle dated 10/2016. Huge thanks to @cavedave for sending it my way!

A: Slightly cloudy golden yellow with one finger white head that settles fairly quickly to a thin cap. Little to no lacing.

S: Fresh peaches, saison yeast, and hints of black pepper and spices. Lemon zest and cracker malts. Nothing overpowering but all of the components complementing each other.

T: Tons of peach with just the right balance between sweet and tart. Perfect blend of spicy notes and pepper.

M: Medium to light body with subtle but prickly carbonation. Very clean finish. Extremely refreshing.

O: No question this is a top 5 saison for me. So simple but yet so complex and well balanced. Recommended for sure!

 

She is lovely, we had a tri-colored male for years.
Great companions
Cheers

 

Sounds like a plan! I hope you feel better soon, and definitely let me know how that works out.

 

If you thought @Buck89 was done with that Pliny, you were mistaken. I mean, he was essentially at the source, so he grabbed a couple others, as well... one of which ended up in our possession.



Blind Pig by Russian River is also a pretty looking beer, to me. Like Pliny, however, it suffered from a light nose I had to search for an nuance in. I was getting husk and grass before digging in deep to get something similar to grapefruit rind.

The flavor also showed the malt as a grainy pseudo-tea, but that led to an citrus zest earthiness, with a bit of dried pine for bitterness. Light and smooth, perhaps due to a low carbonation level (maybe I scared all the bubbles out with that pour and searching for a nose).

This one paralleled my impressions of Pliny, but at a lower level. This seemed a little more balanced with different flavors, but the way they interacted seemed familiar after my afternoon beer. I will definitely update my review when I get another shot at either of these beers.

Thanks again, @Buck89!!

 

Evening NBS crew, as always thanks to Dave for gettin' it goin! Getting through the forum here, just got home from work and I'm gonna make some dinner and crack a couple new brews c/o @WesMantooth via NBS #5, WGNaBP! Be back soon!

Agree with you on the dreamyard, great beer but not NE.

Share your feelings on this too. Go into the east not thinking NE and it will be better, I hope!

 

4.47/5 rDev -3.5% | Avg: 4.63
look: 4.75 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5

Had to work this morning, then did a bike ride with friends, so late to the party.

This Creature Comforts/Modern Times collaboration was on sale at Creature Comforts the last time I visited Athens. On sale with a tour? Don't really understand their laws.

Hazy opaque straw yellow color. Strong hop aromas. Crazy drinkable.


Taste starts with strong citrus flavors, with some sweetness, and malt balance on the back end. Dry finish keeps me coming back for more. Couldn't stop after the first can. Awesome is a good description.