New Beer Sunday (week 504)

Greetings NBS! I took the week off, since it was my birthday during the week, had a great time tasting some great beers all week. Spent a few days at my Mother In Law's cabin up in the mountains, doing a few maintenance and repair jobs, and generally having a good time. Unfortunately, the pics I took with my phone don't do the scenes justice.


Anyway, on to the new beer, not just a new beer for me, but a new style as well:

Dogfish Head Festina Peche

Poured a hazy yellow color with a nice thick fluffy white head. The head seemed to last quite a long time and left some very nice lacing to the end. The aroma has a lot of peach up front, with some tartness and wheat notes, and just a touch of yeasty funk. The taste was nice peachy tartness, with just a hint of sweetness in the finish. The mouthfeel was pretty light, but in a very nice way, as it combined with the carbonation to really set the flavors off. Overall, I really like this beer, very refreshing after a workout, and very sessionable. Nice job DFH.

 

Congrats on breaking its BeerAdvocate cherry!

 

For me it was sip of sunshine. Probably not quite up to the hype but damn close. I would have loved it accept for the fact that I have been drinking Crusher and Focal Banger.

 

Another new beer on this NBS


Quite acetic, but quite tasty!

 

Greetings All:

Trying to forget the Seahawks for a few hours, today we have Ninkasi Oktoberfest.
http://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/14400/137458/?ba=RJLarse

Not a bad brew, but I think there are better fall beers out there.

Glorious day here in the Columbia Basin, sunny and cleat with temps in the low 70's. If not for the calendar you would hardly know it's Fall.

Happy Trails!

 

Hi everyone! New Beer Sunday is looking good. I have been all over Boston, providence and today posrtsmouth new hampshire. Earth Eagle brewing was where we were headed.




I think that's a beautiful name for a brewery and I have never had the fruit style. I loved it. On my tour of jacks abby yesterday I loved the barrel room. The wood breathes and the beer inside smells sweet from them.

Anyway This is New Beer Style Sunday I thought it was herbal medicinal joyful beer. I liked the goes and thought it was one of the best I have had. That was Indian summer. Made with wood chips soaked in tequila. I am not crazy about tequila but the there was a sweet fruity something to this beer. alight malt, light soft salt that mineral fresh and dry and bright. Floral. Very different from the in your face sour gooses.



Then I had the liberate that was cloudy, peachy colored. Justl lovely. fresh minty spicy, light banana, herbal fruit punch. fragrant sweet light honey, perfect carbonation a tiny bit of stickiness. This is a belgian. Not strongly belgian yeast though. More fruity like a punch.
dry.



The wood booger had to be a favorite of mine. nutty,malty robust earthy cloudy brown. The fruit add herbal . dry fresh and has an exuberant malt. even a nice touch of earthy bitter on the tongue.


So this fellow here, this is alex. He's the brewer and he came out to talk to us. I asked him what defines his approach to brewing and he said , "I do it to be different. To be who we are."

Earth eagle brewing has so many more great offerings and I was happy to have been on a real beer trek this past week and met so many great people! WooHOO! and Happy new Beer Sunday =)




We even met up with @puboflyons there.

 

A local offering from Ironfire Brewing Company. This is their coffee stout aged in bourbon and rye whiskey barrels called Boot Hill Killer. Very drinkable, not getting any coffee, getting some bourbon, a slight spiciness from the rye. The bourbon is there on the aroma and flavor, followed by the rye, light bitter dry ending. At 7.5%, this is a nice session BA stout.

 

Greetings fellow NBSers! After a few morning clouds, it's shown to be a mostly clear, sunny, and certainly warm (70+ish) day here in the Fourth Corner. Despite a bit of scattered rain during the week, our annual "Rain Fest" hasn't got going yet, so I'm happy with that.

On Tuesday, I was at a local brewery, and my friend Eric walked in. We did the usual "how ya doings, what's up, hows life" chatter, then he happened to mention a place where they had bottles of Rodenbach Grand Cru for $2.98 a bottle. On Wednesday, I was a Big Sky brewers night, and mentioned this fact to my friend @okcomputer. Thursday, we found out Eric lied. The beer was $2.97/bottle. Lying bastard! We immediately started texting/calling/Emailing friends. He took a case, I took 1-1/2 cases, and we grabbed a bunch for other folks. 1 of those folks was a rep for a local distributor, and he was at an event with the regional rep for a large regional brewery. They wanted cases each, and, could we drop them off at this "VIP" event? Why, I suppose so. Got comped dinner and all the beer we could drink. So, if I were to add the cost of dinner and a bunch of beers into the per bottle price, it'd almost be like I got paid to buy beer!

Anywhoo, after a long work day yesterday, and waking up a bit stiff this morning, I realized there was no juice or pop in the house I'm house-sitting this week. After being awake about 10 minutes, I said, "Fuck it!" and cracked a 16oz can of Whatcom Wheat for breakfast. It wasn't bad, so, I had 1 more for desert. Then I walked over to the local TJ's for some food and juice. Well, our TJs is right near Kulshan Brewery, and, they do not have TVs! I could have brews and avoid football! So, I did. They had a 16-month aged version of their RIS on tap (not bad for a brewery that's only 2-1/2 years old), and, it was very tasty indeed!

Anywhoo, again, I'm back nestled in, and my first NBS entry comes courtesy of @Kurmaraja, from our meetup at Fremont Brewing last week. A beer I already want more of, any Sconnie NBSers out there? http://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/590/136135/

Yesterday, The One,True, King of Rock and Roll turned 88 years old. Cheers Chuck!

 

From Portsmouthm New Hampshire (USA) I checked out Earth Eagle Brewings Liberte. A 9.2% ABV gruit brewed with honey and rosehips. That 9.2% ABV was invisible. There was also a kind of ginger like flavor and aroma going on but that might have been due to the rosehips, which I cannot specifically distinguish from other flavors.



I was joined by @utopiajane today and our mutual friend Nate. We recorded a little Smart Phone video about this. A three minute chat about Earth Eagle Brewings and this particular beer.

 

Put me in coach...first week I have been eligible in quite a while...

Went up to Jack's Abby yesterday to obtain samples of their Berliner lager barrel aged on cranberries. Purely in the interest of scientific research, you understand. The hardships engineers must endure... Anything fermented with or around cranberries or using cranberries in general gets my interest - notoriously difficult to ferment, often with hideous results.

The missus and I had a taster at the brewery - I could not decide about this beer, and for my wife it was a definite "nope". Two other people at work were interested in this beer, so three growlers came home, two for coworkers at the old cranberry salt mine... I am working through one today, and I have to say it has grown on me, but I had to get a little education about the style since my initial expectation was for something totally different - more along the lines of the Berliner Braun which I liked quite a bit. It isn't that, but it meets the Berliner Weisse description perfectly (IMHO), even though it is a lager...with fruit...in a barrel... Anyway...

Pours with no head. A hazy light red color reminding me of a dilute version of the raw pressed juice I have worked with for the past 34 years. Not too many bubbles, no head whatsoever. Hmmm...ok this doesn't look like beer, but remember what it is supposed to be (I had to say that a lot).

Aroma - well, cranberries don't really have a signature smell unless you cook the little buggers. The beer is vaguely fruity in quality, and has the tannin/phenolic kind of aroma going that I recognize as cranberry. Nothing else - it is fruity, no hop notes, no hint of malt. Hmmm...

Taste - totally 100% fruit forward and undeniably cranberry. I was pleasantly surprised that this beer has abundant good cranberry flavor without the undesirable results I've seen so often. Aging on the fruit seems to have worked well to draw out the flavors and mouthfeel I expect from cranberry. This is straight up, in your face cranberry flavor - no doubt. At 3.5% alcohol, easy drinking if you like the tartness. I wouldn't call it "sour" - it's tart like a Granny Smith apple - also quite characteristic of the cranberry. Tart and puckery, gives you that squeaky feeling in the teeth, but doesn't seem overly sour. Tannins and phenolics from the fruit are present but not overpowering.

The mouth feel - minimally carbonated, but just enough. Very light, not much body to speak of - almost watery. Some tingle from the phenolics, definite "bite" from the acidic fruit. Drying and astringent on the finish, and quite clean - that is NOT typical of cranberry juice. Nailed the flavor, but I wouldn't say it has the "green" characteristics of a fresh cranberry. Time in the barrel probaby calmed those green notes down. I believe they nailed the style.

Overall, this beer grew on me. Thanks to @JackHorzempa for taking me to school on the characteristics of the style. Normally I'm not a big style adherent, but in this case it provides the absolutely correct context for this here beverage. This beer, however you want to categorize it, meets the Berliner weisse style quite well - fruit forward, virtually no hop presence (I'd say none, honestly), and a very minimal contribution from malt. It's there, but just giving a hint of body without a large amount of flavor. I like it.

I know from experience that accidental cranberry fermentation does not produce desirable results. Putting the beer on the fruit has resulted in something that carries 100% cranberry taste with no ill effects - it's quite tasty, pretty refreshing, and I think overall a success. If I went with my first impulses, I would have missed out on enjoying this beer - I had set up some "self-hype" that was way off base.

Cheers!

 

As promised, one more for NBS. Founders Mosaic Promise bottled 08/16/2014.

Pours a pale hazy yellow with a bubbly white head that settles into a frothy ring around the glass.

Aroma is all hops. A very pleasing tropical mix of passion fruit, lemon zest, and grapefruit.

Flavor is a meld of blood orange, passion fruit, and some lemon zest. A bit of malt sweetness on the back, followed by a dry finish that leaves you craving more. Thankfully it's only 5.5 abv. Reminds me of a more complex version of Founders All Day IPA.

In all, a very tasty and easy drinking beer with great tropical fruit flavors. Would love to have tried this fresh, but time and circumstance didn't permit that to happen. It still held up well as the store had it refrigerated. Not disappointed in the least and giving it a 4.0.

 

No time like the present to try one of your most anticipated beers ever, cheers BA, enjoy the rest of the weekend.

 

Had a great day today and enjoyed a delicious beer from a very generous BA @Roguer !

MBC King Titus and some homemade cheesy potato soup with Frank's Red Hot and smoke smoked cheddar.
Beautiful brown with ruby red tints in the body and a thick and fluffy tan colored head.
Just a great roasty flavor with some chocolate in the taste and full mouthfeel this was fabulous!
Awesome beer that lasted through dinner and served as a perfect dessert at the end!
Cheers NBS-ers!

 

New Pilsener Sunday

Hello all! It's been a nice, clear cool day here in the Milwaukee area!

Today's brew was from Green Bay Brewing (Hinterland). A pleasant, easy-drinking brew - Packerland Pilsner. I'm not a Packers fan, but good beer is good beer - You don't have to be a Packer's fan to enjoy it!

http://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/4426/10179/

Cheers!

 

New Evil Twin Variant from another Variant Jesus Sunday!

I know another Evil Twin beer for me within the same weekend. Hey, sue me! This brew isn't no Peche Mortel, but it holds it's own. That brew is this!



There's a lot of roasted malt/coffee complexity in the aroma. Flavor isn't as entertaining, but its satisfying. This is sweet yet balanced so its not cloying nor a chore to drink. I will just let my review do the talking, I'm tired. (Review, Click Here)

Grade: This gets an A.

Musical Narration:

 

Dang! @utopiajane killing NBS today! You go girlfriend!

Another from the overly generous drop from Kurmaraja last week, a very, very good beer, from a brewery I'd never heard of. A bit too coffe-ish at the finish for me, but otherwise outstanding. A must try if you see it: http://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/24412/64896/

Speaking of Girlfriends that Go!, This clip is the goingest girlfriend ever! Y'all need to check out the movie Hail! Hail! RocknRoll, if you haven't seen it. Yup, Chuck Berry is a major hard-on, but, honestly, what he didn't invent, he refined. The way he drove Keith Richards insane in this movie is priceless:



BTW, Eric Clapton is right where he should be, a backup player! It amuses me that he's the worst player on stage throughout the movie.

 

OK, let's try this again...

Two new beers today. First up, Port Wipeout IPA, on tap at West End Tap in Santa Cruz. Just a bit too astringent for my taste (combination of hops and carbonation), at least at first. Got better as it warmed up. I'd order it again, but I prefer others.



But you have to admit, that's some beautiful lacing!



Then a stop at Sante Adairius in Capitola for one of their 831 IPAs. Very nice beer; I'd have it again, but there are others I want to try there first. Just a little on the harsh side at the beginning, but very nicely done.



I would recommend a stop at either place!

 

Here's a song I almost forgot. I never saw Jefferson Airplane, but I saw these guys several times. It was always an amazing show. My son and I just finished off his dry-hopped pale ale. I've got lupulitis!

 

NEW BARLEYWINE SUNDAY

Hello NBS, hope you all are well today!. 'Twas a perfect fall day in SEPA, so we went for a hike in a lovely nature preserve not to far from us. Thankfully, the little guy loves to hike. I made pizza for dinner with smoked sausage and smoked mozz, good stuff!

Today's beer is a barleywine from another brewery in PA that I never heard of. I just can't keep up anymore! As much as I wanted to like this b-wine aged on oak and maple, I just couldn't.

http://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/26528/119183/?ba=DIM

A gentle pour at cellar temperature yielded,



Gotta go kill this bomber, cheers!