New Beer Sunday (week 514)

Cheers @cavedave and thanks for getting us started today even though your schedule was tight. Today I have Ithaca's newest beer. It's their anniversary 17. It is a wheat/IPA with brett. While I don't think I really deserve the honor of filling @jesskidden 's shoes I hope to drink as much beer as possible and to do that with you all.

Happy New Beer Sunday.

Be back later.

 

Congrats to utopiajane! I haven't been paying too much attention to the BA goings-on over the holidays, but that's an honour well deserved.

And now, from an hour or so ago—



—yum!

So delicious. Nice, flowery hops. Really assertive maltiness, but not coming out quite like the typical 'crusty bread' profile. A little touch of caramel in that nice amber hue. Really interesting. After a little while, there's also an intriguing, strange aroma that comes to dominate. Something savoury? My first thought is 'mac & cheese!' which is thoroughly confusing. Tastes great. Bits of citrus, flowers, strong supportive malt. Can't find anything to complain about at all. =]

 

Pic first:



Review second:

http://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/29377/103875/?ba=Bitterbill

Comments third:

Cheers to all the NBS faithful!!

My new beer for today didn't come from a BA, nor a RB, but a bloke, I think, posts exclusively on Untappd, but I could be wrong. My point being, there are great beer buddies waiting to be found on a number of different beer sites and no site should be looked down upon cuz at the end of the day, we all have one thing in common; we enjoy drinking beer and we like to share our experiences with "fellow" beer drinkers.

Sorry for standing on a soapbox and preaching, but this is a thing that's been bugging me a lot and gets inflamed when I read negative comments posted on 1 site aboot another.

Btw, I like the regular Duckpin a bit more.

 

Good Morning NBS, Thanks Dave for the start and Congrats to UtopiaJane, well earned.
Keeping the new stout Sunday theme, I received this as a four pack gift.
Otter Creeks RIS from 2012.A right and fine, big stout.
Hosting the wife's side later today then back to reality, working in VT.
Cheers

Otter Creek Russian Imperial Stout

Otter Creek Brewing / Wolaver's
Russian Imperial Stout / 10.00% ABV

3.8/5 rDev -5% | rAvg: 4
look: 3.75 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75

Poured from a bottle dated 123112, into a modified tulip glass.
A - No light gets though, dark and deep. Gentle parade of fine carbonation can be coaxed into a thin cap. Laced with the finest of threads is the only trace remaining.
S - Bakers chocolate, dried tobacco, plums, hint of charred wood, and mint. Leaves me a little intrigued.
T - Surprisingly smokey, that chocolate from the nose is buried way behind, dark fruits,
and an earthy roasted malt body. There is a piney bitterness that exits leaving that lonely bakers for dessert.
M - Round and smooth to begin, the fringes of the palate, take the heat at mid sip, Mouth is fully coated at the exit, leaving a strong earthy lingers. At this point the 10% ABV is quite present with that alcohol cooking off.
O - This Stout is well constructed, a little confounding. A limited offering that could
be touched up some. I am glad to have some left.

Cheers all

 

Good Morning across Beertopia,
Cheers and thanks to cavedave and congrats to utopiajane! Wow, Christmas came and went faster than ever, family craziness is complete for the moment, and 2015 looms large just out There> We had the woods back to ourselves this morning, so I guess visiting and extended families are filtering back home- the deep quiet returned and the dust settled.
Today, Hacker-Pschorr Sternweisse finds it's way into my sensory world. I always buy H-P beers, and when these specialties in the swing-tops appear I try them right away. This is a darker and earthier wheat beer with pure Bavarian pedigree. Not so yeasty and typical wheat beer banana-clove descriptors, but with an almost minerally woodsy character that I love. It almost has a tannic-like nose that is very interesting, complex, and delicious. A great first of the day beverage!
The first time I saw John Prine was in 1981 at Aycock Auditorium on the UNCG campus. I had borrowed a friends big red 1967 Plymouth Fury convertible for my first date with my wife. I've been in love with Martha and John Prine ever since! We have seen him twice since then- at the Auditorium at the Coliseum and at The Carolina Theatre here in Greensboro. If you have the chance please go see John Prine. Cheers all and happy NBS!

 

Consider this an exclamation mark on a weird year, but a great Christmas. Things that happened:

1) I broke my ankle in February and missed 3 months of work.
2) We had twin girls in August.
3) I'm still alive from #1 and #2

Evil Twin Imperial Doughnut Break is a beautiful black-as-dirty-motor-oil brew with a sexy cap of mocha colored film. Lacing is minimal but in accordance with the beauty of the beer.

The nose is greeted with charred grains and doughnut glaze. Almost a doughy aroma drifting around as well.

The taste is burnt malts, bitter coffee, and doughnut glaze sweetness. Very much an imperial stout with added glaze. A bit smokey in the finish, but only just.

I'm not ready to start the new year, yet I am. Less beer, but better beer. We'll see how I manage. Happy New Year and thanks for the opportunity to share photos and thoughts about all things beer.

 

Happy NBS everyone... hope you have all had a wonderful Christmas!

Today I'm going to review one of the wonderful beers my even more wonderful wife got me for Crimbo but first the story behind this beer.

Okay so a few months back I was watching a documentary (Well reality TV show really) about a marketing guru who helps businesses get their branding and what not correct.
On the episode in question there was a small brewery in Devon England trying to branch out into the rest of the UK and even abroad.
Now being in advertising my self I was very interested in their logos etc, but also being a beer nerd I was glued and mentioned in passing if we were in Devon I would have to search these guys out and try some. Little did I know my wife was already hatching a plan...

So time passes and It is Christmas morning arrives and under the tree there is a big bag off beer with my name on it, now what should be in this bag but none other than the full range from the little brewery in Devon and a rather generous gift certificate for the Real Ale store...
Also a little note written by my wife from our 5 week old son.. family life is good!!

So Today I'm going with the Stout...



4.28/5rDev n/a
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Presentation - Comes in a 500ml brown glass bottle with a funky angry Jack Russel on the label. The beer is also bottle conditioned in Devon so it has a sediment that should not be poured!

Appearance - Dirty brown colour with slight ruby leanings. It has an initial foam head that unfortunately dies a little too quickly for my liking but is not entirely uncommon for English Stout as I have come across a number that do this also.

Smell - There are great notes of chocolate and toffee malts that lean towards the bitter and burn end of things. There are also some elements of a sweet creaminess to this that remind me very much of a milk Stout.

Taste - Bitter sweet and sour in equal measures this beer has a lot of depth and character to the flavour profile. Like the smell there are things in here that remind me of milk stout but there is also a faint sulphur element providing some sour kicks to the sweet toffee, bitter chocolate and toasty malts that make this beer a winner in my opinion.

MF - Slightly thin to be honest even for the style which is know to be thinner that milk or Irish stouts. However it gets away with it just by virtue of good linger and a great drying finish.

Overall - This beer is full of flavour depth and character and is one I will seek out again if I am able to find it at a reasonable price locally.

So I really liked this one and not just because it was a gift from the woman I love..



Now unfortunately this will be my last NBS post until February as January is Dry-athlon month, a full month without beer were we donated our beer budget to Cancer research for Testicular cancer and get sponsors. To anyone else taking part good luck my friends and may the force be with you!

Guid Forder

 

New Local Beer Sunday

Ithaca Beer Anniversary Seventeen

Ithaca beer's 17 smells like a breath of fresh sweet air. It has a fruity scent that is tempered by sweet wheat. It's got a lovely floral to the nose and a bit of delightful pepper. That yeast is delicate and dry. There's funk but it too is delicate. taste and it's like it is as light as air and and clear as water. The flavors are cool. Yellow golden flavor like it's color. The beer is hazy and beautiful topped with a white crown. Light fragrant wood is on the nose. The taste is surprisingly herbal. It's pungent with bitter herbal. It's also peppery. The bitter is a tad sharp. Light honey scents start to come forward as it warms. It's tart but not bone dry in the finish. That touch of honey finishes this beer and a peppery little edge.

The Brett in this adds a musty quality as if to the wood. An old attic closet. It's light and feather like to the nose. This beer has so many gentle things going on and then there's this tremendous fruit. You can imagine that a bee would like the scent. It's a looker in the glass and the bitterness keeps you up from swooning. It 's like small flowers on tall stems. With sap and bitterness in them. The wheat is dry and sweet perfection. Soft and rolling. The carbonation is perfect. Perfect lightness form bubbles.

This beer is not timid though. It has sharpness and straight line edges to it. Wheat is crisp and well defined. It's a wafting sweetness to it.

Congratulations Ithaca on a lovely beer.





Cheers Beer Advocate and Happy New Beer Sunday!

 

Hey what's going on?!

man... leftovers that's what....

Enjoying the silence for today for what should be some calm now that the storm of food prep, relatives, and stress should be over with...

Settling down nice and easy with this, what is turning out this year I am dubbing for me the year of barrel aged wee heavies for me in 2015. Happy to grab another from one of the most under the radar breweries I can think of.

What's new for our hero??

-----------------------------------

Wood Aged Kilt Flasher - Devils Backbone Brewing Company


Devil's Backbone Brewing Company - Wood Aged Kilt Flasher by imbibehour, on Flickr

REview here or read below: http://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/18539/78210/?ba=smakawhat

Poured from the bottle into a wee heavy glass.

An absolute looking jewel in the glass. The perfect deep red and ruby toned, and nearly clear body color, some very fine and minimal carbonation on some closer inspection, rising like a slow cloud. Head is a little minimal though with classic tan color, and a creamy three finger retention. Not particularly large but just a gorgeous nearly perfect looking brew.

A very unexpected aroma, and one that doesn't seem it should come first. Lots of wood. Specifically wood that doesn't even seem "oaky". Huge notes of sawdust and teak and cedar aromas. Some real interesting clove phenol qualities almost somewhere between like Belgian raisin character and nutmeg. Some faint vanilla and cream shows up later with time. Doesn't come off so much like a Scotch ale but has just some real amazing character.

Palate sort of lends to a bit of disappointment, from such highs that come first. Pretty thin bodied noticeably, but flavors still manage to coat with a unique twist. Nutmeg and spice with a sandalwood and dusty character. Virtually no sweetness of classic caramel, but a real nice hinting wood spiced note, and some indistinguishable fruit (is this Rye barrels?). Lighter body makes for easy drinking as it doesn't come off as big and booming. That spicy wood character is all over on the palate, teak, cedar, sandalwood, everywhere.

It's a real unique beer, but sort of in the grand scheme of barrel aging is very different from other Scotch barrel ales I've had. Different angle, easily drinkable, but there's also some room for improvement.

look: 4.75 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4 | Final Score: 4.04

--------------------------------------------------------------------

 

Wow, this was started so early I didn't even realize it. The sun is finally shining in S. WI. Ever had 22 straight days of clouds, fog, and rain? Not much fun, but it did keep temps rather mild in December.

Today I am enjoying a hotly debated stout. One I was very hesitant to buy, but finally did after passing it up a dozen times at the store. I'm glad I did buy it!

Founders Big Lushious is everything I have wanted in a fruit stout. The aroma, oh that lovely aroma of decadent dark chocolate raspberry truffle. Sweet roasted malts, with chocolate fondue and fresh raspberries. The aroma is truly divine.

The flavor starts with big dark chocolate fondue and fresh raspberries. It really is like a dark chocolate covered raspberry dessert. Sweet roasted malts and a touch of bitterness round it out. It is very rich and creamy. So smooth with perfect carbonation.

This was probably the best fruit stout I have had; excellent. It is sweet, but I will have a glass now and one this evening.

Happy NBS and have a Happy New Year!

 

Good morning New BSers! Congratulations Maria - may you enjoy all the rights and privileges associated with the heady title of BAOTY! And thanks @cavedave for starting today's thread.

It's another lukewarm drizzly day here in NW PA - it got up to 55 yesterday and was sunny so I hauled the pottted hibiscus outside as well as the christmas cacti. It'll probably be the last sun they see until summer. Right now I've got some godawful movie on SyFy about cajuns turning into mutant alligators. At least the bar scenes have Andigator and other Abita signs on the wall.

Well, today's NBS offering is Wasser Weisse, a Berliner weisse from New Braunfels Brewing in Texas. It seems like they prefer to make wheat beers but this is the only one I've tried so far. It's pretty good overall - just a little too fizzy IMHO



http://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/34963/122647/?ba=Ozzylizard

Think I'll just drink Texas beer today - still have a couple cans of Freetail Soul Doubt, a couple cans of Karbach Hopadillo, and a mixed case + of Jester King stuff.

 

Greetings fellow NBSers! A cloudy and gray day here in the Fourth Corner, but the temps remain above average, and the daylight is lasting longer. So, suck it winter! I'm not sure if there'll be a new brew in my forecast today, but I wanted to drop by and say Hoppy New Year to all you NBS loyalists. If you're not part of the NBS BIF, I encourage you to go over to the Trading forum, and take a look at the NBS BIF #1 thread. Lots of fun hints being entered, and once you see how much fun we're having with it, maybe you'll be inspired to join in the next one. And, I strongly suspect that there will be a next one.

So, cheers everyone! And an RIP to Joe Cocker:

 

Great choice. I first saw Joe Cocker at Jubilee Weekend at UNC Chapel Hill in 1970 on their Mad Dogs and Englishmen Tour (at Kenan Stadium). Stunning performances and righteous memories!

 

3 Scrooges by Griffin Claw


Poured into an over-sized Sam Adams Perfect Pint glass.

Appearance: Hard pour gave two fingers of a light tan head that pretty quickly went to one. The beer is a slightly hazy brown/orange/red color. Not much lacing, but looks pretty good in the glass anyway. (3.75/5)

Smell: There's a lot going on here. I get a surprising amount of hoppiness when it's straight out of the fridge, with a laundry list of other aromas: cinnamon, honey, caramel, dark fruit... a really great smelling Christmas Ale. The aroma of hops is a bit strange to me in this style of beer, but it doesn't detract much from the other great aromas. (4.25/5)

Taste/feel: Loads of caramel and bready tasting malt with accents of cinnamon and honey. The feel is light-to-medium with a mild but prickly carbonation, making this a very, very easy drinking beer. Not too sweet, thanks to the hops -- they aren't super obvious in the flavor, but they seem to come out tasting like citrus. (3.75/5, 3.75/5)

This is a very drinkable winter ale that has a nice flavor. I'd be interested to see an imperial or maple bourbon barrel version of this beer or something... that could be good. Anyway, I really like the label on this beer, but I'm not liking the lack of a canning date -- get on it, Griffin Claw. I really dislike Griffin Claw for many reasons, but their beers have all been consistently good (at least the ones I've had).

(3.75/5)

3.85/5 (rDev +3.5%)

Cheers, BA, and... GO LIONS.

 

I have that beer waiting for me... will open it sometime soon.
There's just something about John Prine. As soon as he begins singing it's like a knockout blow to the heart.

 

was pleasantly shocked to find the in NY, very good stuff. the flavors are all present but well balanced. cheers all, i hope you're enjoying the holidays.

 

Sometimes an old dog can be better than a new trick! My wife and I are enjoying a Founder's 2012 Imperial Stout growler, compliments of Rozi's in Lakewood, OH, in our favorite holiday beer drinking glass.

From the gorgeous, creamy chocolate head to the tantalizing tickling of the nostrils to the sumptuous viscosity and mouthfeel, and delectable, flavorful taste that only a wonderful aged stout can provide, this is a beautiful start to a great day.