What beer are you drinking now? #1953

Good to see people up and at it early (for us on this side of the ocean).

Just as well, because what do you know, BeerAdvocates... another theme day!!

Sick of them yet? <<ignores response>> Me, neither

Tell you what, join in the theme, join with a beer you are drinking now, or join in the fun, but join in! We like participation, and we like goals, so... 20??


Ok, back to the theme. They've all been done before, but not together. The beer-related theme asks you to go find (if you failed to do your homework) a beer you used to drink, or used to like, or used to hate, and try it again. Seriously, was your opinion two years ago definitive? Maybe so, but why not verify or alter your review if not and let us know in this thread how it came out.

The fun side of this event is music-related. Beer and music. A nice combination. The part of this theme honors those who stuck with (or got back into) vinyl. Pull out the record player and thin black disks the size of a dinner plate (or snack plate, if you have 45s) and throw down that needle. Bask in the glory, and follow where the grooves lead you.

You aren't doing these in order necessarily, are you? Because I forgot to mention, before pour that beer and crank up the stereo you should find some glorious vessel (preferably an actual glass or mug) in which to show off that beer. Don't worry if you jumped the gin before reading this entire tome, you had more than one beer to revisit today, right? Throw that next one in a sexy glass, throw on some Barry White or Marvin Gaye, and let's get it on!!

(Just kicking things off... my beers are slated for a little later today, their still a little groggy)

 

Good morning, BA's! A theme day without orange juice is like... well, it's like something. I'm in full retro mode today. I've got my vintage Orange Blossom Special orange crate, my vintage vinyl, my vintage 8-track (is there any other kind?), and my lamentably vintage Sidecar Orange Pale Ale, served in (L) what I think might be a vintage iittala bubble-stem sherry glass from Finland and (R) a dainty vintage long-stemmed thistle. I first sampled Sidecar a year ago almost to the day. I remember it having a lot of orange character, with its orange peel, citrusy hops including Mandarina Bavaria, and zesty bitterness. I'm not getting that on this one, quite possibly due to the fact that it was bottled in October 2017. There is a citrusy hop note, but it is quite muted and the orange character has all but faded. Kicking it up a bit with an orange wheel and a twist is not only pretty, but functional as well. It gives a nice hint of orange aroma that enhances and complements the flavor profile. Lovely beer, the fresher the better.





Rise and shine!

 

Good morning BA, have a great Saturday! Not much going on here for me today. Supposed to be a nice milder day today once again with no rain.

6 year revisit review. Excellent stuff! Aromas and flavors of big tart/juicy cherries, fruit skin, raspberry, peach, plum, pear, red/green apple, red grape/wine, almond, hay, straw, grass, and oak; with moderate caramel, brown sugar, bready malts; and lighter notes of oaken vanilla, pepper, leathery/musty funk, and yeast earthiness. Light fruity/lactic tartness, fruit tang, and yeast/oak spiciness on the finish. Medium-high carbonation, medium body, and fairly crisp finishing. Creamy/grainy malts; some lactic acid, fruit tang, and oak tannins in the mouthfeel. Increasing tart/tangy/carbonated dryness, with no puckering sourness. Refreshingly drinkable, 6%. Was expecting this to be a lot more sour than it was, but it was still delicious. More of a sweeter kriek style. Huge amounts of authentic cherry flavors; with balanced yeast, oak, and sweet malt complexities. Not much funk. 4


2016 batch is tasting fantastic! Just passed 2 years old. Flavors of big caramel, brown sugar, toffee, peat smoke, brown bread, nuttiness, toasted oak, vanilla, maple syrup, raisin, plum, fig, date, juniper berry, leather, tobacco, herbal, pepper, clove, and yeast earthiness. Light-moderate herbal bitterness and spicy yeast finish; with an awesome balance of malt sweetness and yeast/oak character. Medium-full bodied creamy, silky mouthfeel; a touch slick, syrupy, sticky, and tannic. Light spicy yeast/tannic oak dryness, never cloying. I hope they release this again next year. Still some on the shelf now. I keep grabbing more singles occasionally to keep the 4 pack in my cellar filled up lol. Aging gracefully!


Incredible as usual this year. Flavors of big grapefruit, tangerine, pineapple, apricot, mango, lemon zest, orange peel, and pine hops; with moderate honey, bready, light caramel malt sweetness; and floral/grassy hop earthiness. Moderate pine, citrus rind, grassy, spicy bitterness on the finish. Medium-full bodied; with balanced creamy/slick malts and sticky/resinous/rindy hops in the mouthfeel. Light-moderate increasing resin/rind dryness, no hop astringency. Not overly sweet or bitter, extremely well balanced. Lightly boozy alcohol, but dangerously easy drinking. Never disappoints. Grabbed 2 packs this year as usual. There is still more out there too, we kept getting more shipments every week lately.


Wow, 2015 is tasting amazing! Think this was my last one. Flavors of huge caramel, brown sugar, toffee, molasses, vanilla, bourbon, toasted oak, coconut, brown bread, raisin, plum, fig, cherry, and date; with lighter notes of chocolate, leather, tobacco, smoke, and herbal hops. Light herbal bitterness and bourbon/oak spiciness against sweetness on the finish. Very creamy/silky/velvety medium-full body mouthfeel. Lightly slick, sticky, chalky, and tannic. Lightly increasing bitter/tannic dryness. Very smooth, minimal warming ABV, no barrel booze. Amazing barrel balance, perfect integration. I revisited my 5 year old review last year with a 2016. This is definitely a noticeable improvement with the extra year, especially on mouthfeel. Still have a lot of 2016 in stock; plus 2 packs of 2017. Really glad this is going year round, but I always love it more with age.


Cheers

 

Thank you, sir!

 

Drinking Founders Sumatra Mountain Brown



Listening to A Perfect Circle - Mer de Noms

 

I'll be breaking into the vinyl in a little while (after everyone else in the family finishes, you know, sleeping...), but I'll start my day with a long time favorite that I seriously can't remember the last time I had.

It's a beer that I used to buy a bomber or two of every time it came out. I wish I saved an empty of it for my wall of fame.

It's a beer that I used to call mother's milk.

It's one of the beers that made me get into craft beer by the brewery that has been my favorite since very early on in my craft experience.

It's the incomparable

Still tasting as great as I remember, especially when it's in the proper drinking vessel.

Enjoy the theme day, and thanks to our hosts, a very dedicated and creative bunch of drunks-I mean virtual bar brethren.

And their goat.

 

My throwback beer would’ve been Redhook’s Double Black Espresso Stout - my gateway beer into coffee beers and one of the reasons I wanted to move out to the PNW fifteen years ago. But they haven’t brewed that stuff in ages. So, I went with this...



Wander • Earlybird Bourbon Barrel Aged Imperial Breakfast Stout brewed with Dulce de Leche, Oatmeal and Coffee

 

A nice early start. I see things getting revved up...

Impressive... I have a similar/related throwback beer, but I can’t match the record collection or “glass” for sure.

 

Now THAT is a drinking vessel!

 

Happy Birthday!!

 

So as most of you know I will do my part in trying to get this thread to 20 pages. I will do a little reflection at times today. My first breakfast beer was a Smuttynose Imperial Stout, sadly I didn’t still have one kicking around my cellar. This is the glass I used in April of 2010 when I joined BA for that first morning stout, yes I have had a few since then. That is the beer that turned me to the dark side, toffee, caramel, chocolate, and coffee with this for me at the time massive chewy body. I was just blown away and a bomber was like $4.99 it was glorious. Thanks @jzeilinger for sending me this incredible stout to start this fun and themed WBAYDN. Will be back from Kettlehead later with Vann @Ocalafox and probably a picture of our ugly mugs. Cheers @cjgiant and all the others that worked to make today a special BA Day!

 

GOOD MORNING GANG !!

I think I’ll join you Tolar ... nice brew .. nice glass