New Beer Sunday (week 454)

And a pleasant new Saison: http://beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/30024/89699/?ba=beertunes

 

flying dog brewery makes some great beers. when I saw they made a pumpkin imperial ale, I was a little reluctant,because I'm not a big fan of pumbkin ales. I have to say this beer is a great drink on a fall day. high abv,but not a heavy drink. Tons of spices as it hits your palate and then finshes with a nice pumpkin after taste.

 

New Smokey Sunday
Smoked Pigasus by 4 Hands (along with Pappy's Smokehouse providing some sort of something... advertising cache perhaps?)

Well, as usual, they're keeping us busy. After three tests last week, and 12 hours worth of clinicals yesterday, I'm studying for another test tomorrow. FUN TIMES! I just have to keep reminding myself: I'm doing this to myself. I am doing this on purpose. I am paying them for this. The weather here in the dead center is decent enough: clear, crisp, and cold. I love that type of weather, but I'm stuck inside studying for the aforementioned test (and being blamed for using the clothes drying rack improperly: I've literally never even touched said rack. Why do they always assume any time something isn't right that it's my fault? Grrrrrr).

Anyway, I figured I made it to the halfway point of this material, may as well celebrate with a beer I picked up last weekend when my sister was here and meant to crack open when we could both enjoy it. But we were busy drinking other delicious beers, so I'm left to myself on this one. I like 4 Hands, and adore the food at Pappy's, but am wary of tie ins and poorly done smoke beers, so I approached this one cautiously. It had some really enjoyable elements, but also had some shortcomings, including some that I am beginning to fear are endemic to 4 Hands' stuff as I've noted them in other offerings of theirs (enough pronouns there?). I'm glad I've tried it, but I probably won't reach for it again unless I'm with someone who wants to taste it.
Hope everyone is staying healthy as the weather seems to be decidedly Novemberish across the board, and cheers!

 

First up is Tallgrass Zombie Monkey

IMAG1267.jpg

Appearance- Pours black with a one finger tan head that recedes quickly but leaves pretty good lacing. Visible carbonation.

Smell- First scent of cola and coffee. Pick up some vanilla and bittersweet chocolate. Good smell but a bit subdued.

Taste- Good coffee and cocoa flavor. Get some more cola and vanilla flavor in the background. Slight bitterness from the roasted malts, picking up little hop presence.

Mouthfeel- Good body, very creamy. Carbonation is spot on.

Overall- Pretty good porter. nose and taste are a bit subdued but pleasant nonetheless, very good body.

 

New Red Ale that I think of as more of an IPA

It's another great, fall day in West MI. Clear skies with temps around 50.

My wife and I hosted last night, so we really enjoyed the extra hour this morning. Slept in, and had an awesome greasy breakfast before picking up our boys at my in-law's.

Today's new beer was a leftover from last night's soirée, however I'd pay to drink it again.

http://beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/140/98495/?ba=GRPunk

 

NEW AMERICAN DIPA SUNDAY

Greetings NBSers!

Beautiful early fall day in So. IL. After a brisk afternoon walk with my better half, I'm settled in for a late afternoon and evening of good beer and football.

This one was recommended at my local bottle shop, and it was a good recommendation.

http://beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/689/54087/?ba=FanofHefe



Cheers to all!

 

Next up Founders Harvest Ale.

Appearance- Pours a clear, pale gold with a two inch foamy head that lingers for a while and leaves nice lacing. Good visible carbonation.

Smell- As soon as you open the bottle, the hops become apparent. Strong but pleasant smell of pine, grapefruit and lemon zest. Also some fruitiness a bit of fresh cut grass.

Taste- A good balance of bitterness, grapefruit and again I get a bit of grass and mustiness. Pale malt flavors are present in the background.

Mouthfeel- body and carbonation are good for the style. Fairly dry on the finish.

Overall- Enjoyed everything except the taste. Not sure if it was a bad bottle but it had a good deal of mustiness that I didn't care for, everything else was good for the style

 

New American Double/Imperial Stout Sunday

Greetings from Southern, CT NBS-

Wow, it looks like as the weather continues to cool NBS is heating up with another packed day of NB tastings. Good to see.

Today was a fantastic chilly, autumn day here in CT. A great college friend came up to visit yesterday and hang with the fam and we had a few good brews after my daughter crashed for the night last night.

After some chores and family time outside today, I was really craving something big as I seek my few extra winter LBS. I found this great beer I had forgotten about in the cellar from 11/19/12:

http://beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/1549/47692/?ba=CHADMC3

Goose Island really seems to make some nice big boy stouts.

 

>>>>>> New American Pale Ale Sunday <<<<<<

Checking from the northern tier where it is definitely darker earlier today. To shrug off the standard time blues I am having a pale ale, and recalling the warmer and brighter times of recent months.

This is Klickitat Pale Ale from Alameda Brewing of Portland. A decent beer, not great, but it had a nice caramel flavor.

http://beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/2980/20036/?ba=RJLarse

It was good beer for the diminishing light of afternoon, while watching the Seahawks in OT. They sure are keeping it interesting against these bad teams.

Just enough time before the night game to rack a home brewing project to the secondary fermented. A promising spiced porter that should be quite drinkable for the Christmas season.

Until next week,

Happy Trails!

 

Welcome to New Beer Sunday! With a snack plate like that you are gonna fit right in

 

New Imperial Porter Sunday
The Beer Formerly Known as Blackout by Evil Twin

Well, after that mini-heart attack induced by two goal line turnovers and a too close OT victory that required the largest comeback in franchise history to the winless Bucs...
Whatever, a W is a W.

I've literally had these lecture recordings just on loop all day, which I'm hoping helps since I can't find my notes (which I KNOW I took) for the last day of lecture. I blame my sister and her whirlwind visit (love ya buddy!).
I was reading a thread earlier about fruity stouts and porters, and this one certainly fits that bill. Overly sweet, though, and still pretty hot, I'd consider putting it in the ol' cellar (door), but honestly for 8 bucks or whatever it costs, I think I'll survive without. Watch me come back to regret that in a year or two as it ends up being one of the best aged beers EVAR! and was only brewed once (the previous scenario is not going to happen). I've liked pretty much all the other big dark brews I've had from Evil Twin, but this one is a miss for me.

Man, I love the label on that Klickitat, RJ. CLASSIC Northwest, warms the heart

 

Greetings my fellow NBS fanatics. Cooling down here in Louisiana, as I needed a sweatshirt on my walk outside this morning. Living in the northeast my whole life, this change of weather is quite nice. I have been working my way through a growler of NOLA Rumplestoutskin I bought on Friday (fabulous I must say) so I wasn't sure I'd get in a new entry. However, I decided to crack this local pale ale:

http://beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/969/32318/?ba=Mikecap

Not my favorite by any means, but certainly exceeded my expectations. Cheers to all, happy Sunday, and enjoy your week!

 

I'm back again with one more, and that is because this is going to put me to sleep! You can read all about this monster here: http://beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/10099/6533/?ba=offthelevel_bytheplumb.

Have a good week everybody!

 

Oh yeah, been a while since I Went Olde School. Good choice.

Nicely described in your review man, brought it sharply to mind, and made me want one right now.

Rats! I don't have one.

 

New Imperial Porter Sunday (cont'd)
Suede by Stone. And 10 Barrel. And Bluejacket.

Man, I was just reading in the forums about someone claiming that there was no such thing as an 'imperial porter.'
While I agree with their underlying contention that the line between porters and stouts is essentially non-existent, especially when one delves into modified (ie: imperial, smoked, oatmeal, etc) substyles (and really beer 'styles' in general can get kind of nebulous once you get into any sort of variation from the rigid baseline cookiecutter guidelines), I think my troika of imperial porters this afternoon/evening would send the OP (of that thread, not MattCrill... MattCrill is the man, or at least so it seems) spinning. Three Imperial Porters (on top of the three I used as counterexamples in his thread??) in one day? MADNESS!
As for the Suede...
It really just makes me think of my idealized image of the 70s. Haybales in barns and blondes with flower garlands and lazy summer afternoons and a bee flying by and some amber waves of grain in the background and maybe a hippie with a guitar. Nah, screw that, forget the hippie with the guitar.
But, yeah, the 70s may have been loooong over before I was ever born, but it also reminds me of my childhood, which involved being the child of a couple of good old hippies who came of age in the 70s. Working in the garden with my mom especiall. All that is just to say that I enjoy this beer on its own merits, but I LOVE it based on the memories and emotions it evokes. I think it's a good beer that I probably enjoy more than many will, just because the smells and flavours evoke such strong memories.
The honey is more prevalent than the two flowers used, but I definitely pick up on the calendula at a couple of points as well. I don't know much about jasmine, so I can't really speak to its presence, but the bottom line is I've fallen back to my verbose ways and should just stop talking now. Drink it. Try it. Enjoy it (and the sex-ay velour bedsheets it has), but above all, enjoy yourself and CHEERS!!

 

Well. New Black Tuesday Day Before Sunday...

Went to the BT release yesterday. Black Tuesday is always great, but the variants were a lot of fun.

Raspberry and Cacao, quite good, with raspberry upfront on the nose, as well as during and after. Fruity pulp laced the glass...Mmmmm fiber.

Boysenberry was a bit more subdued and complex...Liked this one a lot.

Gray Monday, stunning. The hazlenut came through more this time around.

Some Mo Black Tuesday...somewhat divided response from some.. I loved this one...toasted cocnut goodness. One of my favorite variants thus far.

 

New "Old Wheatwine" day!

Found a 2012 Harvest Dance sitting on a shelf, picked it up last Sunday and opened it tonight. Apparently this beer is past it's prime (best by date was June), but this is my first ever Wheatwine and I'm gonna pretend it will age as well as a Barleywine. Review will be up soon (and this post will be edited) after I get tired of smelling the beer and get around to actually drinking it. Might not still be Sunday by then.

 

Well it won't let me edit my post, but here is my review of the Wheatwine I just enjoyed: http://beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/423/53764/?ba=WTKeene