New Beer Weekend #196

I am unaware which is their flagship IPA but as part of my four beer sample board I did order Advance IPA. From the brewery’s website:

“Advance

IPA - American

7.2% ABV

75 IBU

West-Coast style IPA brewed with a Citra, Cascade, and Falconer's Flight hop combination”

I recall that the first sniff of that beer had lots of dank. I am typically not a fan of dank but on the sip, there was a more subdued dank to the flavor profile with other flavors (e.g., citrus, tropical fruits, etc.) rounding things out. For a while I said to myself, I should order a pint of this beer but the allure of the Czech Dark Lager won out (and I had a second pint as well).

A well brewed CDL is a beer of beauty. I had a batch of CDL bottle conditioning while I was away and it was finished carbonating while I was away. My homebrewed CDL is very, very similar to the Basic Ought. I can truly appreciate why Basic Ought won two Gold Medals at the 2022 and 2023 World Beer Cup competitions.

Cheers!

 

Unqualified as I may be, I must admit I made the proclamation of "flagship" for the brewer based on The Sixth Lord being canned and available in the grocery store and seeing other VA BAs drinking it. It has Citra and Falconer's Flight, according to the Untappd-based brewery menu; apparently they like (or bought a bunch of) Falconer's Flight given the Advance you had included it, too.

 

Sixth Lord was a choice (i.e., on tap) at the taproom:

“Sweeter and more aromatic than a traditional West Coast IPA, our IPA toes the line between a West and East Coast IPA to appeal to any hop lover

Character from Scottish Yeast & True American Hops (Citra and Falconers)”

I made the decision to go ‘more west’ with the Advance IPA.

The decision to brew with Falconers Flight is quite interesting in a couple of ways. I suspect that not too many people recognize that this is a hop blend:

“This hop blend includes the 7 American "C" hops: Cascade, Centennial, Chinook, Citra, Cluster, Columbus and Crystal in addition to other experimental varieties.”

A decade+ ago there was more demand for some popular hop varieties (e.g., Mosaic, etc.) than supply and this hop blend was intended to fill the gap. I homebrewed with Falconer’s Flight at that time and I enjoyed the resulting beers. I have not seen many contemporary breweries feature this blend so it is interesting that the brewers at Basic City are using it.

Cheers!

 

Good morning NBW. My beer right now is Lakefront Black Friday 2022:


Appearance: Viscous pour yields black beer with a small brown head.

Smell: Dark chocolate with a big molasses note.

Taste: Big beer, starts with a big chocolate note that shifts slightly into a mix of chocolate and dark fruits. Mid palate is more fruit with a little wood starting to come through. Medium-full body, finishes with dark chocolate and molasses.

Overall: Another big BA stout from @cheeseheadinMinneapolis , the barrel and beer play nice together in this one. Despite being 14%+ it doesn't whack you over the head with booze. Well integrated and tasty.

 

We are up in Oguinquit, ME for a few days away with our grandson. Annual walk of the Marginal Way, shopping, seafood, and a atp at Tully's. We were thinking about Dark Matter day at Barreled Soils but it's too much with the sprout.

New Beer and style yesterday Penny from Barrelled souls, an English pale mild. It was a nice beer. Orange amber pour with a decent beige head that only persisted for a bit. Sweet malt in the caramel vein, slightly fruity, cleansing mild bitter. Enjoyable brew, a bit thin on the mouthfeel. Around a 3.8 on the review. Back tonight with something else, sooner if we are lucky...

 

Notch Salem Lager Helles, 4.5% - what a phenomenal beer! Cheers!



-Look: Crystal clear shiny-gold color, fizzy white cap that drops fast.
-Smell: Baked bread, white wine, grassy hops.
-Taste: Delicious grassy hops spread on dry bread crust!
-Feel: Light and thin like a delicate Riesling, slippery and fast.
-Overall: Phenomenal Helles, so drinkable and delicious - what a beer!

*Unbeatable for $18.99 a 12-pack and 3-weeks old at TW!

 

Jack's Abby Porch Fest Festbier, 5.5% - I miss Monday-night porch parties! Cheers!



-Look: Mostly clear deep gold color, with a large-bubbled head that falls fast.
-Smell: Bread crust, bright lemony-hops with a touch of hay.
-Taste: Lemon and citrus hops leading a nice bread crust base.
-Feel: Medium bodied, low carbonation, smooth and slippery.
-Overall: Excellent Festbier with lemony bread-crust flavors - delicious!

 

Black Hog Cold Pizza Double Dry Hopped Italian Pilsner - mangia! Cin cin!



-Look: Cloudy deep gold and Winner of the 2024 Clumpy-Head Award!
-Smell: Subliminal suggestion of cold pizza crust, peeled off the greasy box - mmm.
-Taste: Potent pilsner hop notes over a classico pizza crust base.
-Feel: Light-medium bodied, smooth and slippery, silky.
-Overall: I had Koutská 12° Dvanáctka just before they closed - this is right there!

 

I hope this is a lively thread this weekend. New Beer Weekend (nee Sunday) #1,000. I'll be happy if I haven't kicked the bucket by #2,000!

First up for me this weekend is the 2,000 variant of Witch Meadow Black, from Fox Farm. It was aged in bourbon and rum barrels with smoked coconut.

4.24/5 rDev +1.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
Bottle # 354 of 1720. Pours a very dark, syrupy brown with a small amount of dark tan head. Aroma is very rich, with plenty of malts and milk chocolate notes.

Taste is more barrel forward than the nose, but what I'm really digging is the smokiness from the smoked coconut. Ironically, I'm not sure I'd pick up the coconut itself unprompted (although knowing that it's there I recognize it), but the smokiness is unmistakable. Together, the barrel and the smoky coconut dominate and leave this almost devoid of the sweetness I smelled. Very full mouthfeel.

 

Back for another round and this is thanks to @WunderLlama

Little Machine - Tree House Brewing - Pale Ale - 5.5% ABV

Damn flavorful beer. This is just tasty as heck. I am so thankful it was sent to me.

https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/28743/563312/

4.33/5 rDev +3.1%
look: 4.75 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.25
From a 16oz can dated 1-12-24

Murky hazy pouring beer. Somewhat lemon in color. The head is a fluffy and frothy looking at 3 fingers. The head has great retention, and some damn beautiful lacing.
The nose is tropical smelling. Lots of mango and pineapple aroma from the hops. Slight sweet aroma also shows up here.
Taste - Very tropical tasting. I do get mango and pineapple in the flavor. I also get a hit of melon that lingers in my throat.
Soft and juicy body. Creamy feeling. Full bodied for the style.
This is a tasty Little Machine. A pleasure to try.


Be back later for more. Cheers!

 

Good morning BAs. I bought this beer at the brewery as TBBW got underway this year…among the limited release/cellar clean out for Arkane Ale Works - BA Dessert Eagle:Turtle (2021):



Aged in Four Roses and Heaven Hill Barrels 13 & 21 months. Chocolate, caramel and roasted pecans added.

Bottled the Spring of 2021. Poured at 54°. Dark brown fizzy head with a few rocks; poor cap retention quickly reduced to a small island of micro dots; solid ring initially; some soapy/spotty lace with agitation; thick legs on swirl; black body with ruby edges. Strong chocolate nose, followed by caramel and toasted nuts; some bourbon on exhale. Sweet chocolate, caramel, pecan pie; very little bourbon, more as beer warmed; finish is sweet nutty chocolate. Thick heavy body; viscous chewy feel; light carbonation; no warmth from from 12% abv. Overall, beer tastes like “turtle” candy; I wish there had been more bourbon; otherwise, for what it is, an excellent pastry stout.

4.5 | 4.25 | 4.5 | 4.5 | 4.5
Score: 4.42 rDev: 0 Not enough reviews

I drank half the bomber then capped the bottle and put it in fridge for finishing later today. I admit I was caught up in the pastry stout craze 5+ years ago…now, I find them too sweet and not as enjoyable, and rarely drink them. Same goes for today’s beer.

Cheers and have a great weekend y’all!

 

Devil's Purse Handline Kölsch, 5.0% - delicious Riesling impostor! Prost!



-Look: Crystal-clear amber with a frothy white head that falls fast.
-Smell: Dry white wine, rye crackers, green fields of grass.
-Taste: Riesling sipped on a grassy hillside by the mineral creek - mmm.
-Feel: Pure silk, soft and slippery, last bit lingers - nice.
-Overall: Delicious - drink this from tiniest stange glass available!

 

It's a beautiful Saturday, a perfect day for some yard work, which I'll get to as soon as I finish this beer.
My new beer for today is Graffiti Highway from Troegs.
Gold color, slight haze. One inch white head that dissipates quickly. Small amount of lace.
Aroma of tropical fruit, sweet malt.
Tropical fruit taste, sweet, light hops.
Light-to-medium bodied. Just a hint of bitterness.
A decent, nondescript IPA.

 

Stone Imperial Notorious P.O.G.



Moderate golden color with small white cap.

Aroma of sweet malt and sharp citrus notes.

Taste is sweet up front quickly turning sharply tart in the middle then sweetness returning in the finish. In short this beer tastes like sweet-tart candy.

Medium texture with balancing carbonation.

Overall this sour style beer tastes pretty good if you like the style.

 

Poured into a 16 oz Nordic pint, not sure when it was canned but with in the last 3 weeks I am guessing. Pours a milky yellow with a solid finger sticky white head that leaves thin streaks of lace with nice retention. 4.5

Aroma is peach, white grapes, mango, mandarin, passionfruit, and apricot. 4.25

Taste follows but more defined and better. Peach, buttery Chardonnay, mango, mandarin, passionfruit, and apricot well balanced and very tasty. 4.5

Mouthfeel is above average, soft gentle almost creamy carbonation, not sticky or dry, and at 8.5% big flavor but very easy drinking. 4.75

Overall a big time winner for me. Mosaic, Motueka, Citra, Galaxy, and Nelson Sauvin are the hops they used. Modestman is really good at using Nelson and that is not the easiest to brew with. Well done. 4.5 Cheers all.

 

This is Brouwerij Kees Barrel Project 19.10, a Barleywine aged in Heaven Hill Bourbon Barrels. 11.2% ABV with best before date of October ‘24.



Pours a murky mahogany brown with no head to speak of. Slight film around the glass edge.

Sweet fruit on the nose (fig, prune, raisin), Caramel. Boozy note as well, but not distinctly bourbon.

Taste follows closely. The boozy note hits hard up front, and is more bourbon-ey. The same fruits on the nose greet the tongue. Fig, plum, raisin, currant.

Lighter body with a fairly quick finish.

I liked this, but found the alcohol burn a little overpowering. I bet this would have been better without the barrel aging. Overall, very nice though.

Cheers!

 

Good afternoon NBW
I'll buy any new-to-me Fat Head's beer without hesitation, and I've never seen this one before, so here it is.


12oz canned 03/25/24 poured into a Spiegelau IPA glass at just above fridge temp 6.5% ABV 65 IBU. The beer pours bright medium amber with cream colored head. The head recedes to a rocky cap and leaves plenty of lacing. Aroma is moderate in strength featuring citrus rind, citrus fruit and berry. The taste is bittersweet caramel malt with resinous hop flavors of grapefruit, mixed berries and earth. Moderate bitterness. The mouthfeel is medium bodied with average carbonation and a mostly dry finish. Overall, excellent "dank" IPA from Fat Head's.

Cheers all!

 

I found a six pack of Alstradt Schwarzbier at 4.8% ABV, which I have never seen before, so of course I got some



Pours a dark brown, nearly black. Ruby highlights around the edges. A one finger light tan head forms with good retention and lace.
A nuanced and aromatic nose. Roast, light coffee, toffee. The roast becomes more toasted and baked bread, like waking into a bakery.
Taste wise, the roast is up front for sure. Some grainy quality, light coffee, toffee,baked bread. Not a lot of hop character, but as I can't find any indication of a date it might just be a bit faded. Though no worries, the malt character is very satisfying.
A light to medium body. Crisp carbonation that is super clean. There is some sweetness here, but finishes dry. Really easy to drink, and in big gulps at that.

Everything is subtle and nuanced, as any one thing here out of balance will make this overbearing. It walks that great malty tight rope really well. It is almost impossible to tell freshness with this brewery, so I'm just going off of what I can pensive. And it is really good, and holds up. Well done.

Overall score is 4.14, easy A- for me.

https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/49210/516471/?ba=champ103#lists

 

How International of you with the kickoff time! I love it.

 

Sounds like you found a winner with that one; is Alstadt known for their German styles?