New Beer Sunday (Week 737)

My real bro gave me a set a few years ago. Found the link here. He also got me a couple of rocks glasses that I really like. Cheers!

 

Greetings, fellow NBSers on this New National Beer Day Sunday.

Pouring rain earlier today in the city that's still in mourning for their 'Zags falling short, though the social media shouts of the truly idiotic calling for Mark Few's head are subsiding. Right now it's 51° and overcast. Apparently our bubble of unseasonably warm temperatures has burst.

Starting off with one I technically had around 10 days ago, but didn't review. Today I rectified that oversight and christened a new dimpled mug from @ovaltine. Next week is the reveal day for the.most recent NBS BIF, and I suspect y'all will be shocked at the havoc he has wrought upon my porch, but.for now you can admire his glassware gift.

The pFriem pilsner isn't too shabby, either:
https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/29573/93481/?ba=woemad#review
I could drink this all day, but won't, as I need to clear up some space for more beer! Fortunately, I've got a residual goodie left over from @CanConPhilly and his ninja box of a few weeks ago, and I've even got one last survivor I'd overlooked from the NBS Secret Santa mini-bif shipment I received from @Victory_Sabre1973 to drink!

 

Good afternoon and happy New Bummer Sunday, BAs. Bummer for me as I sprained my ankle (twice) at the end of my shift yesterday. Bigger bummer is that my brother and wife are in town visiting for the week,and I'm now limited on my tour guiding capabilities. But, got it all checked out and the ok to get back to work tomorrow on light duty. Waa waa... All well. Good news is, I get to post up on the couch and enjoy some beers with a little less of expectations! Yeah right.

Anyhoo, it's Upright Brewings 10th anniversary and the celebrations are kicking up all around town this week. I'll celebrate right here at home with this:

Upright Brewing-
Saison Ellende





As with many of Uprights offerings, this is stunning. A gorgeous shimmering 24k golden color is embedded with rows of continuously rising bubbles supporting a champagne like cap, yet smooth not coarse. With each little movement, spots come and go from the ring of glass.

A harmony between barrel and tart aromas are quite intoxicating. The Pinot Noir presesnce is most notable, boasting a good amount of tart grape skins and virgin oak. Lemon juice and zest of lime. Touches of sweat and must. Wildly funky, yet refined smells.

A wonderful addition of peppercorns really boosts the classic peppery finish often found in saisons, wilds, and such. The spicy contributor cuts through the tart green apples, citrus, and wood at just the right moment, before the acidic finish comes full circle. Flavors of light syrup, salt, herbs, mint, grain, and a unique nuttiness come and go in a flash with each sip.

Everything is just right. Tart and sour, but not abrasive. Subtly sweet and salty. A light but lifting carbonation. And a tannic, oak influenced dry finish. Easy to sip, easy to savor.

Upright rarely, if ever, disappoints. Saison Ellende is no exception, and perhaps even one of the best I've had from these incredible brewers. Whatever they are doing, they're doing it right.

After my official review, I gave Saison Ellende a rating of 4.44 with an rDev of +0.7%. Cheers!

 

The NASCAR race is winding down, and I'm hoping that Ryan Blaney can pull this one out. Gonna be heading over to my friends in a bit for the Rasslemania, so probably my last NBS post, although there will be new beers consumed. Thanks to @CanConPhilly for this collab between Other Half and Barrier. Nice beer: https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/33510/401176/

 

Happy Mystery Beer Sunday, New Beer Sleuths and commentators. And congratulations to @cjgiant!The Cavs have been living on the edge lately, particularly last night and in the Purdue game but you cannot argue with the results! I'm an ACC fan so I'll be pulling for Virginia tomorrow night. At least it's not Duke.



Today's mystery beer comes to me from @woemad. His only clue was to use a chalice. Unfortunately, the only one I had broke awhile ago and I never replaced it so I'm using a snifter. The bottle is wrapped in a Taco Bell bag. It pours a deep cola brown with a huge, fluffy, light khaki-colored head and a thick sheen of creamy lacing. The aromatic nose features banana, plum, clove, coriander, and brown bread. I'm guessing German or Belgian? The taste is rich and fairly sweet; perhaps an Eisbock? Quadrupel? There is plum or fig and dark cherry but also tobacco and earthy char. It finishes quite bitter. It's really tasty! The mouth feel is rich and creamy with moderate carbonation. The ABV is elevated and there is a bit of an alcohol burn. I'm guessing it's well over 9%.



Drumroll. The reveal: It's a Quad! The Prophecies by Block 15 Brewing Company in Corvallis, Oregon. 10.25% This is really nicely done. The initial fruit sweetness is balanced by the tobacco and earthy char. Thanks, Fred. This is a treat!


I hope you're all enjoying your new beers today - especially any BIF mystery brews. I'll be back shortly with another offering from @woemad's terrific box.

 

Yea, memes seems right, but that's not what the moderator wrote. I also thought it might be some kind of copyright fear. Its a funny screen shot anyways.

 

Great beer, and good on you @woemad for spreading that Block 15 love!

 

What's up, BA. Got a lot done today to include playing with the kids and doing all their laundry. This beer was recommended to me by my favorite beer guy in Grand Rapids. I've held it about six months in the fridge and decided today was the day.



Pours a bright orange color with a very quick, fizzy head. No lacing, no retention.

The smell is lacto and maybe some cherry in there.

The taste is very sour with a nice that cherry finish and a hint of oak. The cherries linger and are very good.

The mouthfeel is thin and fizzy.

Overall this is very enjoyable. Glad I tried it.

 

Missing ya in the BIFs. In next round?

 

Hi everyone, and happy NBS! I'm just settling down indoors and about to start on dinner, but figured I had time enough for a quick one.

I've been trying to cut back and lose some weight since February, and have had quite a bit of success in that endeavor, but now that I'm adding beers back into the routine I'd like to make sure that they're low enough in calories to stay within the daily budget, and I can stay on track- anything around 150-170ish should be doable. So I've been trying to stock up on sours, wild ales, "regular" gravity lagers, and the like. Today's beer falls happily within that range, or even lower- it's a dark mild sent to me by @Harrison8 :

Mamoot by Logboat Brewing

I've never heard of this one, but it seems that they'e using the same sort of play on words that Yards does with their Brawler. It's not exactly a mammoth of a beer, but as I continue to drink it, I'm wondering why it doesn't have a mammoth-sized reputation.

This beer is just flat out outstanding and exemplary. Plenty delicious, too. What a gorgeous tightly woven blend of dark caramel, rum, toffee, bruised apples, dried lavender, very slight roastiness and sweet spice, dried berries- the contributions from malt, hops and yeast so intricate that they come together into a cohesive whole, and you can't tell where one starts and the other one ends. The beginning of a sip is a touch sweet and brown sugary, but it then immediately dries out and hits you with a crisp finish on the back end. Nothing gets too heavy or out of hand, and each successive sip is a real pleasure.

Holy shit, and wow! I literally can't imagine a better take on this sort of ale, it's damn near perfect. Thanks a ton, Harrison, this one would have a regular place of honor in my fridge if I could get it. Definitely in the A+ range here (4.75).

 

Icarus Yacht Shake. An 8% ABV NE-DIPA with lactose and vanilla beans.



I'm skeptical of "milkshake" (D)IPAs, but I enjoy the base beer and Icarus generally. I had a few ounces of this yesterday, but this is my first full experience.

Canned 5 days ago. Pours hazy orange with wispy off-white lacing (4.25)

The nose is vanilla custard and mango (4.25)

The taste is orange, mango, lemon, and subtle vanilla. Medium sweetness with a hint of clean bitterness (4.25)

The mouthfeel is medium+ (4.25)

Overall, tasty. This isn't a ridiculous dessert beer. It's just a nice, expressive NE-DIPA with a touch of round vanilla (4.25) - 4.25

 

Trying this Tom Hardy 50th Anniv. Curious what a few years will do. A 4.15 for me. Cheers!

https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/53246/350867/?ba=StraightNoChaser#review

 

Glad you enjoyed it. I have to confess I haven't had that one, but Block 15 is a pretty outstanding brewery, so I gambled. It's a bit of a "gray market " brewery around my neck of the woods, with one or two small bottleshop proprietors bringing some of their beers in now and again.

 

Yeah, I keep saying I need to get in the next round. But I really mean it this time!

 

Three things:

1. They really screwed me at the Field Museum last summer because I got zero free beers with admission (on top of the fact that Sue herself wasn't on display since they're putting another monstrous specimen where she used to be).

2. What is the deal with their association with TG? I kind of wondered if the museum had a trademark on the name and they decided to find a middle ground, but I have not looked into it at all.

3. The field museum has to have one of the best craft beer selections of any museum cafeteria. It's not much, but it's damn nice to have Pseudo Sue in tap after a long afternoon there.

 

Very happy that Logboat is now on our shelves solely for this beer.

Thank you for your review!

 

Hey everybody!
I didn't think I'd make it this week but here I am for a quick new-to-me beer from done the way in Ontario. This one is an Altbier from Beau's, a brewery that I enjoy immensely and that seems to have a knack for producing solid versions of lagers, classic styles and some lesser known stuff. They do the "humble" stuff justice even if it isn't flashy.
If I am still motivated after this one, I may make like @JackHorzempa and try an Alt that I recently brewed (and have yet to taste). I doubt mine will compare as well to a commercial version as his usually do. I also kind of doubt it will resemble an Alt at all, but it will be a learning experience and that is my main reason behind starting to screw around with brewing in the first place so I can't lose I guess.

It pours a crystal clear ruddy copper with a finger of fluffy tan head that settles to a far film. The aroma is mostly caramely malts, toasted dark bread, pepper and a hint of herbal hops. The taste follows the nose with a hint of mineraley-ness and an herbal/lightly molassesy finish. It is fairly clean, crisp and smooth with active carbonation and just enough of a bite to balance out the caramelized character of the malt. Another nice, drinkable, simple beer from the folks at Beau's.

I hope you are all having a great Sunday so far and that your week follows suit.

Santé!

 

Evening NBS.
Today was one fine day. Warmer temps, trail run and now plenty of new beer courtesy of the amazing @WesMantooth. This is really going to hit the spot after working almost 24 hours between Friday and Saturday. Ive been wanting to try this beer for awhile.
Columbus Brewing Bodhi
Pours a an orange gold with a creamy white head that settles to a thin ring leaving plenty of lovely lacing. If looks are any indication Im in for a real treat.
Aroma is tropical in nature; pineapple, papaya and some dank initially but that quickly melds into a myriad of pine, grapefruit, orange, lime and floral/herbal notes. This beer is clearly not one dimensional.
Taste follows with a solid but not overpowering malt base, lots of resinous pine and hop, pithy citrus and grapefruit. This beer is bitter over sweet for sure but the complex flavors
are all tied together for a very superior balance. West Coast over East Coast for sure but Midwest fits the bill. Really enjoying this middle of the nation style.
Feel is crisp, clean with plenty of carbonation throughout with hop resins washed away by the dry finish. No alcohol presence at all.
Awesome brew! Thank You Corey.
And Thanks for sending two of this mighty fine brew.
Hope youre all enjoying your Sunday.
Cheers!