New Beer Weekend #202

Double Habanero Double IPA

8.1% IPA by Masthead

Note: I'm a hot pepper fan, so use caution when trying this beer.

Poured from a pint can, the body is a lightly hazy gold with a nice white head. Good lacing throughout the tasting.

Taste follows nose but the pepper flavor is dampened a wee bit. The habanero flavor is good but not overly hot. Not much going on here, but it drinks easy and masks its considerable ABV.

Compare with another Masthead IPA Ice Melter which marries successfully habanero and grapefruit.

Mouthfeel is good: medium carbonation and soft mouthfeel. Finish has a minor hab burn, but it is short lived.

An okay IPA that is one dimensional.

 

I've been away from drinking for a few weeks. Got Covid and avoided the hospital, death, or, maybe just as bad, losing my sense of taste and smell. So it's time to celebrate! I'm sitting down with another Jack's Abby lager that I've been looking forward to: brewed with rye and ginger inspired by a 200-year-old recipe book from Framingham.

I've got a lot of NBW posts to catch up on and am hoping to contribute some extra ones of my own to make up for my lack of recent beer enjoyment. Looking forward to an afternoon in the virtual bar with y'all.

Jack's Abby Collective Journeys
6.0% pumpernickel lager



Pours a dark amber verging on brown with a three-finger off-white head that dissipates quickly.

I get aromas of black bread and steeped grains with some ginger piercing it's way through. I don't get a more than that, even as it warms.

The taste starts out with a big hit of black bread and just a hint of roasted grains. It quickly transitions into a blend of dark bread, dark brown sugar, and earthy hops. As it warms, carmalized sugar and an almost medicinal note comes out that reminds me of some bocks. There's also definitely an aspect of ginger beer that comes through periodically. The finish skews to earthy hop bitterness that lingers pleasantly on the palate and cleanses it of the preceding sweetness.

As always with JA, gentle and fine carb lead to a smooth feel. Their is a nice carb burst at the front of the sip that seems to dance around for a bit. The aftertaste leaves a somewhat sticky feeling.

Overall, this is a good lager. JA balanced the rye and ginger additions nicely with a big malt backbone. Tons of flavor, yet so easy to drink.

 

Glad to see you back @KP7 you have been missed. What a cool idea of a beer, thanks for bringing us on the journey.

 

Here is a nice follow-up to @KP7's excellent review. Pour Man's Brewing Braun. A German-style brown lager. Presumably brewed in recognition of Ryan Braun joining the Milwaukee Brewers' Walk of Fame on 7/28/24. Courtesy of @DIM. The look is copper, with a darker shade on top, and a lighter shade towards the bottom. There is a thick off-white atmosphere, which slowly fades. The smell is brown bread, warm pretzel, butter, toffee, and Smoked Gouda Triscuit. The taste is brown bread, caramel, leather, almond, and smoked cheese. A very nice combination. Perfect for this weather. The mouthfeel is vibrant, sticky, slightly bitter, and full, with medium carbonation. Overall this is a wonderful brown lager. Quite unique. Very tasty. Very refreshing. A liquid Ryan Braun home run against the Chicago Cubs. Thank you so much, @DIM!

 

Did I send you some Great Notion, too?

 

Drinking the Braupakt 2024.
Cliff's notes version of my review of this beer: "Taste's like Vitus Light" and that is meant to be a compliment to this beer. I posted previously, but I guess we can't post music along with these and thats why it got deleted?

 

Hello New Beer Weekend!!!

A quickie from Old Firehall Brewing in Starbuck, MN


Back Draft - American IPA - 6.4%

Tasty!
https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/65137/653173/

3.84/5 rDev 0%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
On tap at the brewery.
Clear golden color. A bit of carbonation rising in the glass. White fluffy head that has some great lacing on the glass.
Nose is very tropical smelling. Lots of mango on it with notes of grapefruit and pineapple.
Tons of mango in the flavor. Very tropical. Hints of pineapple and grapefruit add a hint of bitterness to this beer.
Body is decent. Clean feeling. Hop bitterness lingers in my throat.
Tasty hoppy IPA.

 

Thanks, Jon. I gotta say, Covid's no joke but I'm grateful I didn't catch it until now as our anti-viral arsenal is now formidable. Very glad to be on the mend and back to enjoying some pours with the NBW crew.

 

I'm going with a theme this stouturday, with Rocky Mountain barrel aged brews from Akron's Hoppin' Frog:

https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/14879/574333/?ba=bluejacket74#lists



https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/14879/408278/?ba=bluejacket74#lists



Should have a couple more brews posted in a bit. I typically I don't like the smaller cans as I want to drink more of a beer, but with these it works out pretty well. Cheers!

 

Prairie Artisan/American Solera collab Not Subtle BBA Imperial Stout, 14.4% ABV. Pours black with a ring of brown bubbles that left an oily sheen rather than lacing. Aroma is light caramel, dark fruit, and bourbon. Taste is dark fruit and bourbon, slightly sweet, faintly bitter, no notable bourbon burn. Excellent mouthfeel if a bit light on carbonation. Overall, an outstanding non-add-junk BBA Imperial Stout.

4.4/5 rDev +7.8%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5

 

Just what I need - another excuse for a road trip to Framingham! Damn you Jack's Abby and those beer hall exclusives ( not really...)

 

remember when you said your were happy to spend my money last weekend…old Rasputin…what goes around comes around

 

Suntory rich malt happoshu


2.73/5 rDev -6.2%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2.5

New brewery, new beer , new beer style for me courtesy of @snaotheus

Happoshu is a sparkling low-malt beverage produced by Japanese beer companies. To be classified as Happoshu, the malt ratio must be less than 67 percent, or include an ingredient other than malt, hops, rice, corn, sorghum, potato, starch, or sugar. In Japan, the tax for Happoshu is much less than the tax for beer due to its lower malt content, making it cheaper than beer.

Can receive courtesy of @snaotheus and his benevolent generosity , lured into a Monhegan brewing Company glass clear, gold liquid with occasional streams of carbonation ,three finger white foam cap reduces to a craggy mountainous white foam surface

Aroma is sweet adjuncts

Taste is light watery malts, sweet grains

Effervescent mouthfeel and light

Nice beer, suited for hot afternoons after cutting the grass, light and sweet

 

I thought maybe that, and one other.

 

Look's Beer Cow In The Headlights Milk Stout, 5.3% ABV. Pours black, with a one-finger medium-brown head that left no lacing. Aroma is lactose and malt. Taste follows, faintly sweet, slightly bitter. Decent mouthfeel, overall very good to excellent. Word to the wise, when you sniff your beer, note if it's pretty full so you don't snort beer.

3.98/5 rDev +9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4

 

I tried a unique offering, that I really enjoyed at Equal Parts Brewing this afternoon. Not sure what style to put this under? What say BA

Kaixo, 4.6% ABV. This is a Rice Lager base, but uses apples, to make an "apple beer" that is slightly reminisent of a Basque Cider. Also using koji mold, and brewed with Kanzi and Pink Lady apples. I'm thinking of putting this is the Fruit and Field style category, but since it uses their rice lager as kind of a starter, not sure...



Pours a bright pale yellow color. With a touch of haze. A white head forms to about two fingers, with good retention and lace.
The aroma is toasted malts and bread. Tart apples, light funk. Really enjoyable.
Taste wise, again, a very nice toasted malt and baked bread flavor up front. Apple skins, tart ripe apples. Just a touch of funk. Again, I'm really enjoying this.
A light body, with crisp carbonation at first. That smooths out, with a nice dry finish. I can drink a lot of this.

I haven't added it yet to the BA database, because I'm still deciding what style to put it under. Though it is an easy A- for me. A very interesting offering, and I got a bottle to take home. Well done.

 

Started off with the Hoppin' Frog Rocky Mountain Barrel Aged QORIS and TORIS, figured I'd finish with the DORIS and BORIS ones:

https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/14879/219850/?ba=bluejacket74#lists



https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/14879/219849/?ba=bluejacket74#lists



All were pretty good, but have to say the QORIS was a little better than the rest. Cheers everyone!

 

Happy Saturday denizens of NBW! Back home in Michigan, got part of the lawn mowed (in the rain) after replacing the front wheels with no-flat tires. Glad to never have to worry about that aspect any longer, but they are slick - almost useless for steering when the lawn is wet.
So inside for a beer:

This is one I picked up as a single in Colorado, I intended to drink it there and based on what I thought of it, go get more. Alas, fate had different ideas.
Poured stout black with a tall and proud light brown head. Interestingly, it left zero lacing.
The taste is dark chocolate all right; and if you know your chocolate, the darker ones are seldom sweet. Well, this isn't sweet either but I get the full chocolate flavor - how they did it without lactose is a mystery. No bitter taste or roast harsh edge and any coffee flavor is muted at best; this is all about liquid dark chocolate.
The feel is that of an imperial milk stout, that sort of soft viscous touch. But as they state there is no lactose in it, I'll just put it down to brewery magic.
OA, really wish I had gotten more of these! At 6.1 ABV, they are easy drinking and really quite good. If you like dark chocolate.

 

Another quickie, this time at 1000 Lakes Brewing in Parkers Prairie, MN


Tastes Like More - Vienna Lager - 5%

Tasty beer
https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/49464/523323/
3.71/5 rDev 0%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.75
On tap at the brewery.
Clear amber pouring beer with a bit of a white head.
Slightly roasted cereal aroma.
Taste the flavor is malty. Slight grain up front turns to a good cereal flavor on the back. Faint bitterness from the hops.
Light smooth body.
Tasty and refreshing.