New Beer Sunday (week 523)

Happy New Beer Sunday! Today I'm going with an off-the-shelf choice, one of Ninkasi's seasonal releases: Expo 58 Belgian pale ale.

I am really liking this beer. Both the aroma and the flavor follow the same path: there's a grainy, almost astringent character right at the beginning which mellows into a sweeter, fruitier note. It makes every sip a bit of an adventure. Add to that a nice creamy texture, and I'm sold on this stuff. A sixer of this would be great at poker.

Overall rating 3.76, or +8.7%. I could quaff this pretty regularly.

 

New Irish Dry Stout Sunday!

Pretty nice day here in Northern Utah, did a short hike, about 40, sunny/cloudy. Saw this one a few days ago at the grocery store, pretty tasty.

http://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/28908/155791/?ba=Wasatch

Cheers!

 

Whats up NBS!? Alex here reporting in from rainy Orange County with a brand new stout...

City of the Dead by Modern Times


This pours a fairy dark black with a nice head to it. Not very much lacing on this one and the head fades away pretty quickly. The nose on this baby is awesome! Huge roasted coffee aromas along with chocolate and bourbon and maybe some hickory wood smell also. Unfortunately, the taste is much more mild than the smell to me. The dominant flavor is roasted chocolate and vanilla bitterness, a hint of molasses, cocoa powder, and burnt coffee. This has the feel of a lighter stout; it is pretty carbonated and isn't too thick or creamy and is spicy but not hot. Overall a very solid beer but I find myself comparing it to Xocoveza for some reason and it is definitely underwhelming in comparison. Still a solid stout without a doubt though!

4.36/5 rDev +6.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

¡Salud!

 

New American Barleywine Sunday
​

Greetings NBS faithful! Weather in Central OH is crazy snow-like and perfect for sipping a barleywine! This one had some rough spots but you can't complain when the fire is roaring and the beer is pouring.

Peace, love, and malty-ness,

Matt


http://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/24300/78159/?ba=mattcrill

3.99/5 rDev +6.1%
look: 2.75 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Appearance: Dark, opaque, and amber pour with a low off white head. Head retention is fair. Danger: floatie alert. Not appealing.

Aroma: Caramel malt notes up front. Moderate dark fruit esters like plum, fig, and raisins that billow out of the glass.

Flavor: More caramel flavors up front with a firm and earthy American bitterness that quickly follows. Balance is to the hoppy firm bitterness. The finish is bitter and dry. The aftertaste lingers with peppery alcohol flavors.

Mouthfeel: Medium bodied with medium-high carbonation. Definite alcohol warming. No creaminess or astringency noted.

Overall impression: A big and boozy American Barleywine. I could have used some filtering or lagering to get rid of the floaties. Also, some age could have relieved some of the ETOH "hotness". I decent shot but for the price, I'll stick to the American standards (i.e. Bigfoot).

 

Back with my first new beer truly consumed today, and a new beer to BA: Red Rover - a Flanders Red from Ramblin' Road brewed with Brett and Lacto. I did have a tiny sample at the bar there, but didn't drink the "grunt" I had filled (not a euphimism, but boy does it sound like one...and yes, I know I spelled that wrong) until now. Unfortunately, I've come to believe the design of this grunt is flawed, when it comes to keeping beer fresh, so take my review with a grain of salt:
http://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/30831/160565/?ba=woemad
I still think the essentials come through - I think the most obvious degradation was the appearance. I thought the beer was pretty good, and am thrilled this style of beer is available from a local brewery. I'm a little vague on Brett and pretty much clueless on Lacto, so bear that in mind (FWIW, it didn't seem very "bretty" to me, more in the background than anything).

Back with Iron Goat's Goatmeal later on - which should be appearing in bottles for the first time in a month or so.

 

New Pale Ale with a Dinosaur on it Sunday


http://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/23222/72170/?ba=WesMantooth
4.08/5 rDev -11.1%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

22 oz bottle poured into a Sam Adams perfect pint glass. No bottle date

A very pale orange, 100% -can't see through cloudy, with a big frothy white head that settles into a film like layer on top. Mine also had a bunch of sediment floating around, and settled in the bottom of the glass. Not sure if that is normal for this beer.

Smells very citrusy. Orange, melon, lemon, and mango in nature. Faint sweet bready malt.

Taste is all citrus with very little malt considering the appearance. Strong mango and melon flavor. Maybe a little peach too. The hops have a little bite, but not too much bitterness. I get a little bit of a grassy "green" taste too even though it is supposed to be single citra hopped.

The body is fairly creamy. Average carbonation.

My general impression is that this beer is either older, or may have some sort of issue because my experience isn't jiving with any of the other reviews I have read after typing most of this. It reminds me of a Zombie Dust that is 3 or 4 months old. Just kind of flat. Someone else even noted that it pours clear. Mine looks like a hefe. Far from a drain pour, but my gut feeling is something isn't right.

 

Good evening my NBS friends. Snowing again, up to 8 inches. Ugh. Something to look forward to next week though daylight savings time begins for all that don't work second or third shifts.
On to my post #6 on NBS. For this week:
Foley Brothers Brewing
Fair Maiden IIPA, Brandon Vermont
A- burnished gold in color with orangish tinge beautiful head. Plenty of lovely lacing left on the glass.
S- grapefruit, pine, citrus and mango with dried apricots. What you'd expect from a style from Vermont.....but there is something atypical here.
T- follows suit with citrus.Dried apricot and peach flavors. Perfectly bitter with just a touch of bready sweet malts but dry.
The flavor just lingers on and on. This is a delicious beer and a great balance of hops - not one stands out from the rest.
M- medium carb. Gets a tad creamy as it warms but finishes dry and refreshing.
O- this is a highly flavorful brew that takes its own road ; not trying to be a typical "Vermont" profile. Introducing a nice malt character to provide balance. Flavor developed as it warmed. Saw for15.95 didn't pull the trigger. Saw again for 10.95. Boom! Hope to get more. Kudos Foley Brothers.
Music. Could have taken the beaten path and just tagged some Phish tune. But since they didnt on this one I'll go with one of my Rebels/ American hero's Mr Johnny Cash. He was a folk artist a rock n roller a country man and a traditionalist. And mostly a rebel. We need more like him. Cheers and as always thanks for listening!

 

Happy Sunday NBSers!

Opened this in honor of some FIBsters. It's another well done beer put out by Goose Island. Great head that didn't last long but left great lacing. Pretty sweet flavor from the 'amplified' amount of black licorice. I don't think I'd seek it out again, and found it hard to believe they limited this stuff. Was it that limited? 3.5/5. #properglassware:

 

New Beer Geek Sunday

Afternoon, NBS'rs. Getting a late start today with this one, which really hit the spot after a lot of shoveling:



Mikkeller's Beer Geek Vanilla Shake

Just…wow. So much vanilla bean goodness here. The nose is exploding with vanilla beans, cocoa, sweet malts, and a sweet or rummy booziness. Vanilla dominates the flavor, and is accompanied by slightly caramelized sugar, chocolate malts, and a bit of booze. Mouthfeel is a shade on the lighter side of medium-bodied.

Overall, a really great beer. Rich and sweet vanilla flavor and aroma that's not even close to being cloying. I've had a few beers in the Beer Geek series and haven't really liked any of them, but this one is just great. If you're a vanilla nut (and even if you're not), you'll love this one.

Cheers!
Mike

 

I had to steal the picture since I was not at home when I tried my new beer...

Look: Great looking pale colored beer witht a slight orange hue.

Smell: Fantastic smell of hops. Very dank, with slight tropical fruit, and piney aroma. I think it might be the strong point of the beer

Feel: Great mouthfeel, very smooth, and slight creaminess. The head hung around for the entire experience. Light Lacing.

Taste: Smooth, with some citrus, pine, and some tropical fruit. Solid taste.

Overall: a very well made beer by SN. I enjoyed it and feel it is a steal at 15 bucks a 12 pack.


Happy NBS everyonee. Enjoy your brews.

 

New American Porter Sunday...

...here at The Jersey Shore, where the snow continues to fall. "Just a dusting, at most. No accumulation whatsoever.", I recall one forecaster announce yesterday. Urgh. Sometimes the weather can't slow things down. This past week has been one of the busiest in recent memory.

Here's the new beer (once I was done with it, I ran fast for an IPA):

http://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/130/101458/?ba=NiceTaps

It looked good:


The Mats are bringing their antics to Philly in May for the first time in about 25 years, so my ears are all over it this week. If I count down til show time in NBS days it'll be here in a flash. Here's a delightful number that'll bring out the angst:



Onward! All the best, everyone.

 

Where do you peoples find all these great-looking beers?!? My word ...

It's a NEW OATMEAL STOUT SUNDAY here in B-CS, Texas:



What a pour! OK, yes, I *did* give it a good push into the glass, but look at the percolation there on the bottom of the head. Am I right? I need to video one of those sometime.

Head shot:


Reminds me of something ...



It's not 1-to-1, but there's some similarities, no?

Rahr & Son's Snowmageddon has that fantastic pour and continues it's start with BIG bourbon notes in the aroma and the taste. Honestly, I checked the label to make sure it wasn't barrel-aged. Like drinking vanilla-coffee ice cream with a little Kentucky whiskey thrown in.

That's how it begins. All of the bourbon goodness falls off real fast, and this boozy 9% ABV oatmeal stout settles into a lot of lesser-but-still-good notes of darker dried fruits (raisins mostly) and toasted/roasted/burnt oak wood. The burnt flavor doesn't show up too often ... I think because there's enough sweetness off the malt to keep the burnt notes mostly in their cage. A hint of peat flavor shows up now and again, too, which I'm surprisingly liking, maybe because it's so understated (I got a lot to learn before getting in the Wee Heavy Fan Club, I know).

http://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/9969/66261/?ba=Premo88

3.99 score (+7.3% rDev)

Good brew. Pretty big for an oatmeal stout, but we're in no hurry here.


(more stick than lace, but I likee any of it)



Live long and prosper, y'all ...

... and cheers!

 

Good prevening BAs! Today's NB is a crossover from WBAYDN # 862 - Fantome Pissenlit. This is a saison - not my favorite style but not my least favorite either. This also the first beer I've purchased from Blackwells Wines (Thanks @Dweedlebug!)



http://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/738/5051/?ba=Ozzylizard

Perhaps this is too subtle for my olfactory and taste sensors, but it has a faint spicy odor and a weak herbal medicine taste that reminds me of a not particularly interesting herbal tea. Oh well, c'est la vie. Guess I'll shift to scotch for the rest of the evening - after I blow our most recent snowfall off the driveway.

 

Doubling Down on New Toppling Goliath Beers Sunday

Ok. Last one. I just had to try this one after the Sue though.
http://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/23222/60371/
4.1/5 rDev +7.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

22 oz bottle poured into a Sam Adams perfect pint shows off a partly cloudy/hazy deep orange brew with a foamy off-white head.

Smell is very strong malt. Like buscuits. Also oranges

The strong caramel malt base dominates the taste. Bready with a touch of citrus hops. Faint orange and grapefruit provide a touch of sourness. Smooth aftertaste.

On the heavier end body wise for a pale ale, but medium overall. Decent amount of carbonation.

Hop hunters are not going to be fighting for this one. Nothing elaborate, but just a very, very good, drinkable beer. Sometimes simplicity is a good thing. I would gladly take this over a SNPA personally.

 

Happy New Beer Snowy Sunday! Work is done, and it's time to relax.

I'm having my first Prairie experience right now-


Standard Hoppy Farmhouse Ale

Prairie Standard Farmhouse is aptly named- that is the image this beer seems to magically conjure up in my head. Most of the descriptors I'm reminded of seem to coincide with being out in an open field or in a farmhouse- hay, wildflowers, herbs (tarragon, mostly), apricot jam, biscuits- and that's just the aroma. The palate is much rounder and less complex than I'd figure, considering that nose. Mostly bready with a hint of fruits and spices. The finish could stand a bit more bitterness, too- it's kind of flabby at the end. Still, it's an interesting beer that provides an affable drinkability overall. B+ (3.75)

 

Just finished an Alewerks Bitter Valentine. I've wanted to try this for a year or two and I finally got one.

The bitterness is prevalent, but it is well-complemented by the malt. It reminds me a lot of a Carton 077XX (with a touch of Green Flash Palate Wrecker).

Very nice DIPA. And yeah, if you like bitter, you'd like it. Everything I've had from Alewerks has been very good.

 

Hello everyone at NBS!

My new beer for the day is Logsdon Oak Aged Bretta! My oh my, what a beer! This is an oak aged version of Logsdon's Seizoen Bretta, which I tried about a year ago and really liked, but the pleasure was muted by the fact that the bottle was a gusher and about half ended up on the floor.

I was more careful with this one. What to say? This is the finest saison I have ever tried, and just might be the best beer I've had to date. Everything is working and sparkling together in this one - the Brett, the spice, the oak, the tannins, a little fruitiness! (can you tell I like it?). And for the first time I distinctly smelled, and enjoyed, that fabled horse blanket aroma! This beer sparkles and gets serious at the same time.

Music selectionTalking Heads '77.

Cheers!

 

New hop Sunday? Here is a grainy iPhone 4 pic of Old Guardian Extra Hoppy Barley Wine Style Ale. Very nice looking amber color, very nice lacing, right off the nose, piney and caramel with some citrusy scents. Very hoppy indeed, but still maintains the expected Barley Wine toasty malt presence. Boozy for sure, but in a very pleasant way. Cheers!

 

A other Sunday another snow storm here in SE CT. Great !!! O well spent the day fixing my furnace so at least il stop leaking. A few beer suffered but nothing to speak of. Now that im done I'll start, rhis one sn he last nbs bif beer for awhile (the last 2 are cellared). Thanks @gopens44. Nothing spectacular goin on but a decent beer farly quench able for 6%. As for the music once you hear this one you'll be whistling for days