Suarez Family Brewing (2019)

While on the topic of cellar, and wet stone tasting notes, one might be able to draw upon on a vintage, cobwebbed/moth, cellar door element…Mature development at play with the given months

Earthy, floral, effervescence, and well alive with a bit of oaked-wood funk. Starts out with lemons, peppercorns, coriander, hay, and clove. The progression is entertaining given a mainstay of citrus and evolving fresh fruits of peaches, pears, and melons + a showcase of pears upon patience with some footings of arguably banana, orange, definitely cellar door, caramel, mint leaves via palate, and a faded vanilla accent

A gritty, prickly, refreshingly crisp take with a spiced/peppery, dry finish




…3+ hours in presents a layered softness with more apricot awareness

 

Reminds me from a scene of one of my favorite films

-Blazing Saddles

Joking aside, what a diverse vocabulary you have for flavor and aroma descriptors. In my ~14 years of drinking [good] beer, I never could come up with flavors like that when it comes to attributing it to beer (I actually have had overripe kumquats before and *maybe* might have, perhaps, licked a cellar door or twelve in my youth). How did you hone your craft? English major perhaps? Sensory deprivation tanks? Good stuff regardless; when it comes to descriptors I’m more like Taggart in the above quote lol

 

Kumquats, buddha's hand, Jicama, plaster, sheep skin, rabbit foot, wet mattress…not everyone’s going to relate to a given set of experiences. Life indulgences can present unique players based on profession, background, and whatnot (e.g. Culinary, Agricultural, Electrician…). So, boils down exhilarating life endeavors, and taking in/becoming entrenched with the senses: Aroma is a good one for the set category

…or just spend some time in a sensory deprivation tank

 

Oh boy. Definitely not trolling here. I’m just trying to push the dialog forward to try to expand the language used to describe beer…I wouldn’t be doing my job if I stopped at orange citrus, kiwi, rhubarb for our most recent beer. Surely, many fermented foods have waaaay more complexity than that.

As far as the character of rocks goes: Have you ever had a white wine made from grapes grown in soil rich in limestone? I would absolutely suggest seeking one out. Certain sites in Chablis, or Sancerre come to mind. Sancerre’s even got some grapefruit character to help you ease into it. Did you know that limestone is comprised of mostly calcium carbonate? Surprise, surprise: our water is rich in that very same mineral. Very cool stuff.

Another one of my favorite wine regions is Mosel in Germany. Many of the wine sites are pure slate (some don’t even have top soil)…I can assure you that you will know the character of slate after tasting through these wines. I would suggest checking them out, as they are some of my favorite liquids out there to imbibe.

Also—Have you ever had pickled watermelon rind? If you’ve never heard of it, it’s pretty common down south. Next time you buy a watermelon, I would suggest saving the rinds and whipping up a batch…goes great with some fried chicken or pulled pork or other meaty stuff.

We are lucky enough to be able to devote our entire life to creating flavors, aromas, and textures (we are not saving the world). Brewers who aren’t in touch with their senses and aren’t fascinated by the process aren’t in the right profession imo.

I’m going to argue that if you’ve smelled something, you’ve also tasted it (and vice versa). The common term “grassy” used to describe beer comes to mind. Obviously nobody is out there eating fistfuls of grass, yet I’m sure you know the character from the aromas of a freshly mowed lawn. I love this character in beer (in measured amounts—sometimes it can be overboard). On the flipside, surely you’ve had a bad sour beer that tastes like nail polish remover. You know it tastes like nail polish remover because you’ve smelled it before. Throwing flavor/aroma memories such as these in the descriptor bank (whether they are positive or negative) help me be better at my job, I think.

I also think it’s super fun—and many other people who enjoy tasting with a free mind do to!

 

Holy shit the man himself - this just made my night. Don’t be a stranger!

 

I just got star struck from a post.

 

I appreciate the response and the points you made were eye-opening. I am admittedly a novice in the beer world but, your suggestions encourage me to expand my horizons and be willing to try things I normally wouldn't.
I certainly respect your efforts to expand the vocabulary of beer descriptions as well. I can only read "juicy and tropical" so many times before my eyes glaze over. I'm glad you're challenging convention.
Looking forward to trying more of your beers!

 

state pils from the source + fresh Palatine = @BoardwalkBock hit the lotto/jackpot

 

Traunstein Zwickl is a beautiful beer... but I wonder what the responses would be if a bar posted on Instagram that it had it.

 

I had a pour and it was outstanding! My girlfriend and her cousin who don’t care much for beer also had 2 pours.

Also tried the Small Talk and Dark Mild which were both great.

Got a growler of the west coast pale which I’m about to indulge.

 

Null

Cheers, and that west coast opens up nicely…if its anything like the last go around

 

Yea this beer has opened up so nicely. Very floral, earthy and what I call “fruity pebble” (definitely simcoe in this). Fantastic.

 

Their pale ales REALLY open up as they warm, it’s awesome. As much as I want them to can those beers, I love the experience of drinking an entire growler over the course of the night - they change so much when you let them go from 38 - 65.

 

Don’t normally go crazy for a tee, but the conscious thought process here along with the new trademark is noteworthy

 

How much is that?

 

Sounds awesome

 

...Seeing the Helles back in action, and currently flowing in BK, is always gratifying

 

Hoping there are still some cans of pils left for this weekend. Finally making my second trip up there on Friday, hopefully (last visit was September-ish?). Making a little camping side trip on our way back home to MA to see family.

We'll have the dog this time though, which is a bummer because that means no taproom for us.

She's only a 5lb pomeranian though, maybe I'll just stuff her in my sweatshirt or something