New Beer Sunday (Week 779)

Happy New American Strong Ale Sunday!

Really nice day on the Western Slope, been awhile since we've seen some sun around here. Sunny, around 41, with still some snow on the trail. Having a very tasty brew, might be back with another. Watching some The Munsters.

https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/2210/437074/?ba=Wasatch#review

Cheers!

 

3 Floyds Lord Rear Admiral ESB ale. 6.4% ABV, 3.94 overall

Pours an effervescent/hazed amber with a thumb+ sand colored head. Not a lot of head retention or lacing

S: Breadyness, fruittyness late

T: Dry biscuitty malt, leafy & woody hops up front. Woody bitterness, a little caramel, plus leafy hops as this warms, some pear notes on the edges that builds once this gets near room temperature. Finishes a little dry with fruittyness & some leafy hop bitterness

MF: Medium body, delicate carbonation, good balance

A good stab at the style, but lacks the malt depth of let's say a Fuller's ESB on cask

 

Well as suggested by the biggest fan of Kettlehead ( and I understand why) I will now crack this one courtesy of @SawDog505 ......
Double Secret Agent DIPA
Pours a very hazy orange gold with a 1/2" creamy off white head that leaves tons of world map lacing.
Huge aromas of ripe peach/apricot, tangerine, cantelope, overripe tropical fruit, and grapefruit.
Taste follows with lots of stonefruits, passionfruit, some pineapple, tangerine juice and pith, cantelope. A huge mouthful of flavor that is balanced with a tad of sweet and bitter. Delicious beer.
Feel is full bodied, light carbonation, perfectly bitter, fresh squeezed hops. Zero hint of 9%.
Holy crap Tim you are right this is an amazing beer! Full hop assault but balanced, so drinkable and downright delicious. I am now a Kettlehead superfan and cant wait to try the rest.
Thank You and Cheer brother!

 

Does it count as a new beer if I've only ever had 2017 BCBS and today I had a 2019? Eff it, I'm saying it counts. It wasn't noriceably different from the 2017 BCBS. There was strong bourbon/barrel. There was strong vanilla/chocolate in both the nose and the taste. Some raisin/dried fruit in the palate. The appearance was dark, impenetrable brown with a small, quickly fading head with no real lacing. As expected for the super high ABV. Feel was thick, coating. This is what every craft beer should be fighting to be.

 

New Black Sunday

Thanks to @cjgiant for this one. While it’s definitely far from a Leipzig Gose, it is an interesting take on the style.



3.68/5 rDev -3.7%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4.25

Another one of those beers that is going to be lower score-wise to style, but I try to split the difference a bit and always use the overall score to compensate. And this one is quite enjoyable.

A very fizzy, even audibly, pour. It is black with a tan head that disappeared pretty quickly.

It smells a lot like a Schwarzbier with some tangy lime.

It tastes like chocolate malts, lime juice, and salty with an intermittent pepperiness.
Definitely a lingering black pepper flavor along with a sourness.

Body is light, crisp, and bitting.

An interesting beer. I would describe it as a Schwarzbier-Margarita Gose. One that I would drink again.

 

Dude! Gormenghast is amazing. I can't imagine trying to read it as a youngster, but I discovered it about 10 years ago or so and wow! The first two novels are the weirdest, coolest ride. I haven't read the third yet but will soon. They're definitely literary fiction, like Dickens and Tolkien collaborating on a dystopian venture. Cool seeing another NBSer into it!

 

It's somber at our house with the news this afternoon - my brother knows (not well) a few of the helicopter crash victims and his community is shaken right now. Anyway, after hugging the kids, it's time to appreciate life and enjoy great beer. This beauty is courtesy of @azuelke and it's hitting the spot:


This is a 2018 Quad brewed with figs and molasses and aged in rye whiskey barrels. I liked everything about this description, and the beer delivered. The brew was a hazy medium brown on the pour and much darker in the glass. A standard pour produced a thick, fluffy tan head that lingered. The aroma was complex with a sweet blend of molasses, figs, caramel, cherries, and plums. Barrel presence was minimal on the nose. The taste followed with the above notes, but the rye barrel was there and it cut the sweet flavors quite well. The Quad base was there and not overshadowed by the adjuncts. There was a nice Belgian estery character underneath. Full bodied with lively carbonation. This was outstanding. Thanks again, Adam!

 

Certainly an interesting day today, with my Hoosiers losing a game they should have won vs Maryland and Kobe passing. The latter was a big enough event to prompt Mrs O to come into the basement and attempt to interrupt my cardio workout to ask, “DID YOU HEAR ABOUT KOBE???!!!???” and Little O to call and shout “DID YOU HEAR ABOUT KOBE???!!!???” about 10 minutes later.

Apparently, this was a big deal, which it always is when a generational talent passes too soon - and (for me) the WAAAAY too soon passing of his daughter. Truly a sad day for families and sports fans.

I have a couple of beers for my NBS friends to peruse today. The first is a conundrum for me, as IPA’s can be.





4.09/5 rDev +1%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4

Pours a nice, hazy - as in “old school IPA” hazy, not “NE-style IPA” hazy - yellow color with a sudsy white head. The nose is dank citrus notes and some berry aromas.

In other words, the typical Citra/Mosaic hopped old school IPA, with oranges, pineapple, guava, and berry flavors most prominent on the taste, and a really nice old school IPA bitterness.

The only shortcoming is the mouthfeel, which is a bit watery - which actually does fit the NE-style IPA, but every single thing other than that component is old school IPA, so I rated it as such.

I’m very conflicted. But I’d drink this beer again (and will, since I have a 6er to finish).

 

Good evening NBSers!
Back at it after 25 days and losing 21 pounds.
I have quite a few new-to-me offerings (and a couple concerts down in NJ) to contend with for the next nine days and then will try to shed another 40 pounds by May. First up is a stellar lager from Zero Gravity.

https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/9784/365737/



Canned 01/21/20.
5 days old.
Moderate pour yields a nearly two inch pure white head over a very bright, straw colored body with some lacing. Wonderful nose of hops with citrus, flowers, and herbs. Damn, wasn't expecting this at all! Nice floral flavors with some herbs, slight citrus, a bit of cracker and finishing very nicely with all of those and a bit of spice. Nice feel and overall, a great way to start drinking again after a 25 day abstinence.
Cheers to the ZG crew in Burlington, VT!!!

 

I am allowing myself only one low ABV beer today since I have had a few high ones over the last few days. And it's not my fault this one just happens to come in a pint can

Locust Lane Brewery, another local I have not been to yet. Kolsch canned on 12/18/19, 5.6% ABV. Looks just a touch darker than I am used to for a Kolsch but had just the right amount of carbonation and it was pretty enjoyable, very Lager-ish when cold but as it warmed the fruitiness really started to show itself, as you would expect with this style I suppose. A good beer that I would drink again and interested in trying some of their other stuff.

@JackHorzempa

 

#2, I’ve been sitting on this for a couple of months, today we dance.





4.46/5 rDev +3.7%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5

Tossing some plums into a BA Imperial Oatmeal Stout where the base beer is a favorite of mine, as is the brewery? Sign me up! Pours black with plenty of leakage to dark brown on the edges, and a sizzling tan head that dissipates pretty quickly as expected, give the ABV and the adjunct addition.

The plums announce their presence on the nose as soon as you pop the top on the can, and there’s also a significant aroma that can only be described as a molten chocolate cake in a big ol’ beer. WOW!!!

The taste is flooded with tangy plum flavors and rich milk chocolate flavors, and what is really interesting is how, as this warms, the plums get tangier and the milk chocolate gets richer.

Revolution’s barrel program is world-class, IMHO, and they’re really good at telling you, literally on the can, the beers you can age (this one) and the beers you should drink immediately (Cafe Deth), so I’m gonna sit on the couple of cans I have left of this and see how they develop, because this is traveshamockery good, IMHO.

 

Hmmm, cabbage? Never heard that applied to any beer.

 

Enjoying this one....

Smell - About as intense rum flavors as I can recall since Pirate Bomb! Some cinnamon is present as well
Taste - Reminds of of those cruise ship cocktails, but the good qualities! Flavors of light rum, cinnamon, and dairy creamer. Sweet malts compliment this beer.
Feel - Not heavy considering the ABV. Paired perfectly with homemade stuffed pork chops.
Overall - Highly recommended. I see there are variants to this and I'd seek them out.

 

When I was visiting the brewery a couple of years ago the bartender told me they added a tiny bit of dark malt (Munich Malt?) to the grain bill. I recall he told me why they did this but as I type this message I can't recall.

FWIW when I homebrew my annual batch of Kolsch I use 100% Weyermann Pilsner Malt.

There is more than one way to skin a rabbit?

Cheers!

 

Next up is a worthy offering from a little known brewery in Danville, VT.

https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/48412/276117/



Canned 01/14/20.
Moderate pour yields a 1/2 inch white head over a mahogany body with some sticky lacing. Nose of malt and a bit of bread and spice. Taste follows very closely with flavors of nutmeg, clove, and cinnamon coming through mid palate right through the finish. Nice feel and overall, a nice stab at an underutilized style and would definitely recommend to anyone looking for something different.
Cheers to the guys in Danville, VT!!!

 

I know I’m in the minority when scoring to style (see AALs) but even if it isn’t a textbook version, it doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy it.

 

StoneCloud Simconely Bigly, A Presidential Double American IPA, 8.0% ABV. 4.46 overall, easily one the best DIPAs I've had in a while, let alone from Oklahoma!


Pours a very hazed gold with a thumb+ of fluffy pearl colored head. Nice lacing & above average head retention

S: Bready & citrussy

T: Sweet orange, mango & pineapple, plus breadyness up front. A touch of grapefruit as this warms, a touch of lime mixes with the mango as well,a little Kiwifruit too. Finishes with sweet orange, limes, & a little bready dryness

MF: Medium body, creamy carbonation, lovely balance

A well put together DIPA, on the Juicy side, well done Stonecloud!