New Beer Sunday (Week 761)

Beer #2 watching this hideous Eagles game.

Edmunds Oast County Lager from Charleston. Wow this is good, like really really good. Pours dark copper, but there no Caramel there at all, thank god I really don’t care for that. Just really a nice easy drinking lager, maybe this is what AB or Miller Coors wishes their beers tasted like. Imo the real deal here, a ton of flavor, nothing off, not sweet, no caramel, just a real beer meant to just drink and not analyze. I don’t ever feel the need to research this one, it’s immaterial.

 

Opening up a year old bottle of 2SP High Strangeness, a sour dry hopped sour session aged in white wine barrels. It was interesting a year ago on draft, I was hoping the the hops would have faded and work better but they are still out of place.

3.9/5 rDev 0%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.75

750 no bottle poured into a pint glass

A- A fairly clear golden amber with a small white head.

S- Sour, lemons, oak, white wine, mild funk.

T- Sour, lemons, earthy, funk, oak, touch of white wine.

M- Smooth, light body.

O- Interesting, about a year old and the hopping still is a little off putting with the sour parts of this.

Cheers NBS!

 

Reposting my pics.

 

This one comes to me by way of @bl00 from his ninja box earlier in the week. I was tricked a little by the name of this beer. It’s Grandmas famous oatmeal cookies by Little Log Cabin (an offshoot of Tired Hands I think)



It’s a murkshake appearance. Very bright golden yellow with billowing white head. Aroma is fantastic. Big grapefruit, melon, pineapple and it radiates from the glass. Taste follows, but is accompanied by A huge grassy hop bite. Mouthfeel is where i was expecting this to shine, with the addition of the cookies. I expected this to be similar to other half’s oaty mouthfeel, however I was very wrong. It’s very grainy, prickly, like I am swallowing actual parts of the cookies that I didn’t chew very well. The thickness is great, a little more than medium. Overall I’m in love with the aroma and the taste, but the mouthfeel detracts from the experience.

 

Since imgur doesnt work unless through app on my phone now theres three beers but this is for the treehouse specifically

Pours that beautiful hazy opaque orange you expect
Smells citrusy bitter rind
Drinks hot might be too fresh hop burn on first sip but sweet finish
3.89/4

 

Okay, maybe figured out my picture post issues. Basically, Google Photos changed and you have to do some extra tricks now.

On to NB#2 for this S. My common comment on Stony Creek Brewery is "Nice facility, mediocre beer". Actually a friend in the business told me last week that they had a big house cleaning (firings) including the head brewer, but I have not confirmed this. This is one of those beers I would normally not buy, but hey, its in my fridge, I'll try it.

Crum from Stony Creek Brewery. Read the can first (if you can see my pictures).

3.48/5 rDev +5.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Poured from a 12oz can dated to a Nonic.
Copper or deep amber body below a medium small bubble head that fades in about 3 minutes to a single-bubble layer. Some spotty lacing.
Aroma is a very faint cinnamon and sugar toast.
Taste really does mimic apple crisp as suggested on the can. I can understand the cinnamon and the nutmeg, but I'm not sure how there fooling me into thinking apple. Finish is a little more bitter than a real-life crisp though. Perhaps they were trying to simulate a burnt crust (JK).
There is a mouth coating to this (probably the oatmeal), however it would be better with a little less carbonation.
Overall, better than I thought it would be. Almost a treat for a one time drink.

 

If post #67 is your new method @woodchipper it didn't work - #63 did

 

Greetings, fellow NBSers, and thanks to @cjgiant for getting us underway.

Skipped last week's NBS due to over-indulging the day before.

During the past week, mostly on Friday night, I drank and purchased several new beers. Friday night saw my first standard version of Jai Alai, my first ever beer from Against The Grain (and the state of Kentucky), and my first fresh hop beers of the year (Ordnance's EOD Sabro and Breakside's FH Simcoe IPA). Haven't had an Oktoberfest yet, but there's one on deck.

Today, I'm kicking off with a new offering from Fremont's annual fresh hop series, Field To Ferment. This one was brewed with fresh Centennial and Simcoe hops:

https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/20680/439577/?ba=woemad#review
Nice blend of piney, citrusy and sweet melon-y and fruity hops.
I'll be back soon with something else I picked up on Friday.

 

I really wish I had a better place to take pictures, but I digress.

Brighter Than Starlight - Tree House Brewing Co.

American Imperial IPA 8.3%
https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/28743/440371/




Pours an opaque yellow-gold color with 2 fat fingers of fluffy off-white head. Exceptional retention with lots of lacing. Settles into a thin film. 4.75/5

The aroma is fruitier than Richard Simmons eating a banana. So much orange juice, grapefruit and tangerines, followed by tons of peach rings, freaking gummy bears (seriously), and fresh mangoes. There's a hint of oats and pine on the back end. Subtly doughy throughout. This smells like sex in Hawaii. 5/5

The Nelson hops finally come through in the flavor. Lots of pineapples and peaches, as well as candied orange and grapefruit pith. There's plenty of white wine grape notes here, with some pears and the foggiest idea of tart berries. Finishes very rindy and acidic. Not much malt to speak of. 4.5/5

The feel is typical Tree House: Medium-full bodied with lower carbonation. Creamy as all hell and has that notable dry, Nelson finish. The alcohol is nicely hidden. 4.75/5

Overall, another fantastic Tree House DIPA. It's sweet, with lots of candied fruit flavors and aromas, but it's never cloying. The white wine and grapefruit notes add more than enough balance to this juice grenade. 4.75/5

I'm an admitted Tree House fanboy but damn is this a good beer.

 

I don’t even know what to think. Not in the fortress of solitude? No Thomas Jefferson hour? Did I already miss that post??? Is something off in the universe?

 

New Beer Sunday and I got an awesome beer. Cheers to @cavedave We all hope you are doing well. Celebrating Mom and Pop today. They reached a milestone of 70 years of marriage today.
HAPPY ANNIVERSARY!! J. R. AND NORMA JEAN.

Now for that NEW BEER!

5/5 rDev +12.9%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

They don't get any prettier than the rich darkness that awaits me. Even had a tiny head for a minute. Smells like heaven with chocolate, coffee, brown sugar molasses and alcohol. As expected the molasses comes strong, but some chocolate is present with a hint of coffee. It is sweet but with bourbon it's a plus. Naturally the chili pepper heat is awesome. I cannot find anything disparaging in the taste. Mouthfeel is sweet velvety smoothness. Overall I feel like I should give Prairie Artisan another perfect score because I enjoyed this beer so much. Bottled 06/04/2019.

 

Look forward to the Sierra Nevada Oktoberfest collaboration every year. Everything they make is just spot on to style and quality.


My thoughts on this year’s collaboration with Bitburger.

Golden autumn orange in color with excellent clarity. Tiny, tight bubbles magically appear at the bottom of the glass and slowly rise to the creamy, off-white foam. Excellent retention. Lightly sweet malt with delicate toasty and bready notes. Light earthy hop notes. Medium bodied with medium light carbonation, a delicate smooth feel, and mellow pleasant warmth near the finish. Bready malt flavors up front with earthy, herbal hops. Medium hop bitterness. Bready and toasty notes on the back end as the hop bitterness slowly tapers. Finished cleanly, with malty and earthy hop flavors. A fantastic showcase of mal character that is well balanced by subtle hop flavors and bitterness. Delicate feel and just a touch of boozy warmth. Beautiful color and clarity with great retention. This was fabulous.

My rating (4.01) was a bit higher than the masses….but that’s pretty typical.

Love this brewery!

 

Good afternoon and happy New Baerlic Sunday, BAs. To hit on @cjgiant 's opening topic, it's no secret that I'm a huge fan of Oktöberfest. Stein Club Sundays anyone? The beers, the events, all of it. So much in fact that when my daughter was born on October 1st, one of my immediate thoughts (once I could gather thoughts, that is) was "I have an Oktöberfest baby!". We even theme her birthday party as such (at least until she gets sick of it and starts asking for My Little Pony's or some shit). Unfortunately, I have missed two fest events that I was very excited for this year, and have no plans of attending one in the immediate future. I sure do miss those Big Bear Lake Oktöberfest days...

All this talk about Oktöberfest is making me thirsty! Guess what? Sharp left.

Baerlic
Starlighter- Dark Gose



First of all, I've never had a "dark Gose", and it was difficult to wrap my head around the concept. Aside from your traditional patronage, the style is typically thrown through the fruit laden gauntlet and that's been about it, from my experiences.



Ramble complete, the beer is gorgeous. When I read the word "Dark" my first instinct was to expect burnt toast brown to black, but this guy is more of a red to chestnut brown with a drop of pomegranate juice. Not quite perfectly clear, but good enough that I can see my fingers through the glass. Above once held a thin lightly tanned foam, but as expected with the style, it vacated immediately and never leaves even a suggestion that it ever existed.

On the note of pomegranate, this has a sour dark fruitiness to the aroma. Kind of a mixed berry thing with a briney base and a touch of toasted cereal grains for good measure.

The flavor isn't far off from that. A touch more grainy than expected, especially in the linger, but this is mostly salt and berries. Kind of reminds me of grape juice too. The Welch's concentrate kind, like when were kids.

Pretty thin, even watery, but the salinity tricks the mind as it nearly perceives carbonation, where this is actually kind of flat. Nice balance of sweet and salty, tart and grainy.

Dark Gose is a style that should be explored more. This is good. Was good I mean, as I drank this thing dry before I even got to finish this review.

After my official review, I gave Starlighter a rating of 3.98 with an rDev of +0.8%. Cheers!

 

4 4.2+ New beers this month
Context 1 Carton
4.41/5 rDev +16.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
2d review. OK, I'm a Carton fan boy but gotta stretch on Context 1, they are so on to something great with their wilds, and this is best yet.
a) Firm amber body topped by rich lasting and lacing head.
s) Blueberries, berries, fall fruit, orchard all in bountiful presence with wild yeast.
t) Follow smell and added wine like fall notes.
f) tickle and tease as a great beer should be, kissy, and fervent, and wild.
o) The consummation of years of experimentation, bring this one in a cellarable format please.
GRIST:
Bohemian Pilsner, White Wheat, Acidulated
HOPS:
Super Galena
PRIMARY:
Lactobacilus buchneri in stainless with blueberry added pre-fermentation
SECONDARY:
Brettanomyces bruxellensis in oak foeder

Toaster Pastry | 21st Amendment
4.23/5 rDev +7.1%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25
Red IPA or PA is little understood, but I surely appreciate it as my first love craft was made in Mendicino called Red Tale Ale. I'm further biased by having lived at Clocktower a block from this brewer which also pioneered SOMA, and is backed by a start up buddy.
a/ Mostly clear pretty amber body caps with a thick off-white head that laces and lasts my tulip.
s/ Toasty sweet as promised with caramel, and fruit essence of apple, lemon and pear.
t/ Boldly caramelized, adding hops, cinnamon, toast, bread crust. This abundance requires letting it come to cask temp. Even pine and sunlit coastal sage in the finale.
Cask is cash, Cask is king.
f/ Likewise the feel, teases the tongue with sweet without any cloy in a white like, dessert wine like weight. Finishes crisp. o/ sum is greater than the parts. I'd buy cases of this and drink at 55.

Delirium Noël | Brouwerij Huyghe
4.22/5 rDev +7.9%
look: 4.75 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
Pretty close to Tremens, its cousin, unusual fecund Belgian.
A: Strong ale-like pour with a massive blanket layer of head retention and oceans of lacing splash.
S: Smaller than its cousin with more medicine cabinet and spice, first followed by overripe oranges, banana, yeast, and grass.
T: Starts out strange, sweet and creamy, with that old-fashioned, medicine cabinet then ripe oranges, dried apricots and banana; then the peppery hops provide a bitter middle, which then blends with the sweet fertile yeasty flavors in the finale. A bit of wood cabinet, church and shellac.
F: Mid weight, and bubbly, much like pinot noir feel, with a wine-like acidic bite. Cleans up chalky.
O: meditation beer. savor and have some cheese or fruit.
Carton / Lawson's - When They Said Sit Down, We Stood Up
4.22/5 rDev -3.7%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.25
This Springsteen lyric is among his purest, earliest, most lyrical expressions of growing up on the Jersey Shore.
" I was open to pain and crossed by the rain and I walked on a crooked crutch
I strolled all alone through a fallout zone and come out with my soul untouched
I hid in the clouded wrath of the crowd, but when they said, "Sit down, " I stood up."
Authentic Underdog. That's a jerseyan.
This NE DIPA is billed as a NJ IPA - and no kidding.
Motueka in a crazy hazed body, topped by a fervent lacing head.
creamy feel, creamy wheaty core, topped by big hoppy attitude.
It's not in your face, just undefeatable.
t/ Medicinal, mineral, wheat, layered by lime, thyme, grass, jay and hay.
f / one of the best mouth feels on any Carton beer.
o / Almost too much, well done. So NJ.
Reminds me of The Substance from Maine.