New Beer Sunday (Week 530)

I'd say so. I think I rated at a 4.21. It's different but really nice. It's a clean saison flavor with just a tiny but of spice at the end. And you get a hint of safron. no flavor is overpowering, but they all work together really nicely. Not sure how long it'll be around but worth a try

 

Paw Paw Brewing, Black River Oatmeal Stout, picked up on a trip to Kalamazoo, MI. Paw Paw is a small town in western Mi, very small micro, with a good selection of beers. Check me out if you get the chance. this stout is very
dark with 1 finger thick head, chocolate is nice, smooth with 5.8 ABV, could easily have a few of these! Cheers

 

A new one for me but not for the other 1,604! (What took so long to try this??)



Wrote a review and a far better than it's current solid score of (89). An American interpretation of the style with a lot of zest, funk, and a bone dry finish. 8.5% ABV completely hidden, impressive all around, IMO.

 

New IPA Sunday

Good afternoon all.

Trying out a new brewery from the VA Beach area named Young Veterans Brewery.



Sorry, can't find a good picture nor can I get mine to upload.

Well this started out nice in appearance as it is a nice hazy brownish gold with a vibrant white head and some limited lacing. Nose is pine laden at first, followed by a biscuity malt time. Tastes similar to nose but the bitterness comes very well to start and lingers chalkily on the tongue. Finishes bitter with zero sweetness. My only real knock on this beer is it's incredible thinness. I mean water.

 

New American Porter Sunday!

Hey NBSers!

Got out to the track again today, mid 60s, and sunny. I was expecting more from this brew, well it is very nice, but the presentation lacked.

http://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/28908/157644/?ba=Wasatch

Cheers!

 

How 'bout it!

VALHALLA
2: a place of honor, glory, or happiness : heaven

 

Our grandsons are with us for the weekend, and we went to visit my mother. She wanted to see her great grandsons, figuring at age 90 she doesn't have that many years left to see them.
We went to a Mexican place called Pedro O'Hara's. I had a Guinness Blonde. The most charitable thing I can say is that it went well with my sweet potato/black bean burrito. Otherwise, there wasn't much to recommend it. It was a nice golden color without a head. A sweet aroma and a sweet taste. Not much else there. Good as a burrito accompaniment, not so good otherwise.

 

Not not sure whether to be rubbed the wrong way, or chuckle at the brewery's flippant joke. I'll air on the side of lqtm (laugh quietly to myself). Besides, matrimonial bliss is hard to achieve with one wife, let alone more than one (I imagine).

 

I normally like to use this thread to talk about a New England beer I tried for the first time. But today I'm drinking one from Utah. Not that I don't have any New England beer in the fridge - but I just happened to open this one first. Squatters Hop Rising DIPA. 8.5% ABV. Golden, heady pour. A little bread and dough character upon entry and then the earthy and resiny hops take over. I did get a hint of alcohol on this one though. Medium body. The hop bitterness is there but not as in-your-face as some DIPA's. In one sense I should take my hat off to it for not flooding my senses with hops. Yet, I kind of felt like I wanted it this time. Decent enough. I might not buy it again but I'd drink it again if someone passed one my way.



2008. Deadmau5 with Kaskade. Out of Canada. "I Remember" Great Sunday chill music

 

Looks like the bartender didn't give it any room to give it a chance to develop a head. I suppose that's from a notion that the customer wants as much beer in their glass as possible, but it really detracts from the experience.

 

After Sunday brunch with the family I put the keys down and parked myself on the couch to catch the end of the Angels' game, but looks like another loss.

Just picked up this imperial brown by Stone. I enjoy a good brown and they seem hard too find. Recently, had smuttynose durty which was meh, but I digress.

Pours out on the darker side for a brown. Can't see the the glass except around the rim.The nose is nutty sweetness, chocolate and some vanilla, also a touch of roast and caramel. Both surprised and happy that it's not a hopped up brown. The taste is a well balanced brown that I wouldn't think was an imperial because it drinks rather easy with no alcohol. The nuttiness comes though on the palate with a creamy texture. Also, get some chocolate and finished with some roast and bitterness that checks the sweet nutty flavor in check. A very good brown.

 

Welcome Back! Hope you come on a regular basis.

 

Good afternoon all fellow NBS followers from a wonderful spring day here in central NH. I am glad to say the last of the snow disappeared from the yard here on Thursday. You still see a few piles of snirt hanging out in shaded locations around the neighborhood but they shouldn't last much longer with the rain coming in this week.

My new beer for this Sunday is Cyr 66 a session IPA from the folks at Garrison City Beerworks in Dover, NH. If you are from the area and haven't found your way to Dover to try there beer yet you need to put in on your list.

Cyr 66 poured a very light orangey color with a slight haze to it. There was an ample white head when poured in my favorite tulip glass from the fresh Crowler picked up yesterday.

There was a lot more aroma from the glass than I have come to expect from a session IPA some strong citrus aroma in the nose with perhaps a hint of sweetness.

The taste is where this beer really surprised me expecting a lighter taste palate this beer have some strong citrus flavors in the front with a good strong bitterness in the back. I am sensing perhaps some Galaxy and perhaps Mosaic hops and some other that I'm not really sure of. All in all the flavor was a big surprise for a session IPA.

The mouthfeel was smooth and very easy to drink.

Once again this offering at 4.7 ABV is a great session IPA Lots of flavor to enjoy on this warm spring day. I guess my only complaint is the Crowler only packaging from them. This beer would be a killer beer for the summer in a 12 oz can.

I'm going to enjoy some chicken on the grill for dinner with a fennel and orange salad. I'm guess I may have to open a second crowler this afternoon while I'm wait for the charcoal to get ready.

Cheers to all, Hope you all have a great week.

 

Been working on some pressure washing today, and now time to cool off with something refreshing.

Today's new beer is Bearded Lady from Good People - their take on a pale wheat pale.

I thought this was my first time trying this one, but turns out I had a small sample as part of a flight a few months back.

Now that they are canning it, I thought I should give it a more thorough look. Although not a ton of complexity going on here, this is a crushable summertime ale that goes perfect after some yard work...





http://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/17282/83312/?ba=richj1970

 

Hello NBS folks! Reviewing Bells Saturn, a malt beverage aged in oak bourbon barrel casks. I picked this up on a recent Michigan beer run.

Pours a rather flat looking amber color with a slight ring of white foam. Very little carbonation present.

Aroma is predominantly caramel with bourbon and some alcohol.

Taste is sweet caramel, dark fruit, and bourbon, followed by some alcohol burn going down. This is a very interesting and complex beer that may take a couple sessions to truly pick everything out to appreciate.

Mouthfeel is slick and oily with some alcohol heat. You can feel the 11.50 abv.

I read the positive buzz about this beer and decided to make a run to Michigan to secure it. A wise decision as it's the best of the Planet Series thus far in my opinion. I'm glad I scored enough to cellar a few as I believe this could get even better with some age to smooth the heat a bit. All said, my rating was a 4.34 / rDev +1.6.

 

4 Craft on my first weekend in Australia from 4 breweries - Winner Four Pines

Oolong Cask - 4 Pines Brewing Company
3.95/5rDev n/a
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4
Loved this brewery.
While this tea-infused, tea-like brew is not my style. I really enjoyed it.
Unsure if it's a cream ale but that's how I'd characterize it.
A: A bit thin, but a beautiful color. Served from cask in stemmed tall glass.
S: Oolong tea and pear predominate over a cream malt base. Delish.
T: Follows smell - as a session or a final beer of the night is a good direction. Enjoyed it following a black and tan (they did not know what that is in Sydney) and a guiness at Steyne Hotel - Manly's oldest and best pub on the beach. Perfect finish to evening.
F: Appropriate weight for tea/pear pairing.
A must try brew pub with original, provocative styles.
"Just off the Manly Ferry (turn right). A must stop when in Sydney. Great atmosphere and beers. Order the flight. Crowded and good food, a happy place to which I would return. Great original craft in addition to their 5 standards."

Three Sheets - The Lord Nelson Brewery Hotel
3.68/5 rDev +8.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
In my trip to OZ one of the better brews. Shame that reviewers slammed this so hard, it's pretty good. Enjoyed at Fish on Rocks - a must seafood restaurant in town.
A -Good looking, hazy body, amber. One finger off white head head, but does not stay around or lace much
S Surprising fruit without being cloying, peach, mango, malt, bright inviting hops.
T follows smell and pairs well with seafood. Scallops in my case. Easy, pleasant with notable fruit on palate, and slight hop bitterness in the end game. Lots yeast as it's unfiltered.
F light and session ready. Could have had another.
Very good session beer.

Fat Yak Pale Ale - Matilda Bay Brewing Co.
3.62/5 rDev +4.6%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
Beats Squires, but underperforms 4 Pines. Good session ale. Best at cask temp.
On my Sydney trip.
A clear dark copper with streams of bubbles that maintain a lasting head with lots of spotty lace. Good looking.
S Pale ale, mellow, but adequate aroma. Most in direction of English Ales... citric hops, sweet malt, lots of caramel.
T Nicely done - follows the smell. Not strong. With a hint of herbal hops, metallic body, caramel malts and lots of grain. Classic English ale.
M Light to medium bodied, clean finish, a bit thin, good long feel on palate.
O Good but slightly bland for OZ. Oz bars tends to lighter, paler, lagers and ales, and to session ales because they watch a lot of rugby, sometimes starting in the afternoon. And they seem to stay lean, fit and outdoors until they drop. It's an amazing country.

James Squire Porter - Malt Shovel Brewery
3.4/5 rDev -4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.25
Much better at cash temp. James Squire (OZ original brewer) is kind of like their Sam Adams, at least as a brand legend character. But their beers are not as good and suffer from feeling a bit watery and mass. So far beers in Aus tend to be thinner and lighter and lower ABV than US.
A- Brown walnut color, not as dense as typical porters. Tan head full of large bubbles faded fast and did not lace much. (see thin, not sticky).
S- Roasted malt aroma with a slight metallic, iron ore note (rusty anchor stirred in cold coffee?) More coffee when it warms a bit.
T- Continues with the rust acid feel mixing with coffee roasted malt. Tartness to the finish of the malt which saves it. A goods light sipper. (but too thin)
M- Too thin mouthfeel with a watery texture.
D- It's thin for a porter, without robustness.

 

Narrangansett's second Lovecraft-themed ale, Innsmouth Olde Ale...

“Ph'nglui mglw'nafh Cthulhu R'lyeh wgah'nagl fhtagn"
(In his house at R'lyeh dead Cthulhu waits dreaming)


TL;DR ^

All you need to know?
Before Stephen King, Dean Koontz, or Anne Rice, and all the rest, there was H. P. Lovecraft...

“The most merciful thing in the world, I think, is the inability of the human mind to correlate all its contents. We live on a placid island of ignorance in the midst of black seas of the infinity, and it was not meant that we should voyage far.”
H.P. Lovecraft

A nice old ale with English stylings, mild and drinkable; somewhat akin to a Fuller's Vintage Ale in approach...

Today Cthulhu gave me an Islander win and scallop flesh (which got wrapped in bacon); however, he also pointed out that today was the day that David Koresh was killed, him being the leader of the Branch Davidians during the Waco Siege, where events unfolded that lead (in part) to the Oklahoma City Bombing, which occurred on this very day in 1995; and which was, prior to 9/11 (note today's WBAYDN: #911), the largest act of terrorism to take place on American soil...



So take it all with a grain of salt from the sea, from whence we all came, and to which we shall return...


"Ocean is more ancient than the mountains, and freighted with the memories and the dreams of time." Lovecraft

 

Greetings from Wetlanta, NBS friends. This Sunday's beer is Ommegang Joemmegang.

Classified on BA as an American String Ale and described by Ommegang simply as a "coffee ale brewed with cocoa nibs," this beer pours a clear amber red with a high frothy biege head that settles quickly to a collar of foam. A simply beautiful beer in the glass that practically sparkles.

Aroma is spicy at first, driven by Ommegang's house yeast. At the beer warms, toasted malts, fruity coffee, and hazelnuts come to the fore. Taste mostly follows the nose, with light, fruity coffee flavor in equal balance with toasted malt and yeast. Mouthfeel is watery with a lively carbonation.

In summary, a distinctly Belgian take on coffee beer. I'd be more inclined to describe Joemmegang as an American/Belgian Red Ale, especially considering its fruitiness. It definitely showcases a different side to coffee than your run-of-the-mill coffee stout/porter. Once it has warmed up in the glass a bit and the yeast profile steps back to allow the coffee to step forward, the beer becomes quite pleasant. A solid offering from Ommegang.

 

Where in Australia are you? That it's a continent is difficult for folks to realize. I loved Cooper's in Adelaide and it was so damned hot elsewhere. Victoria Bitter and others worked just fine. I was on a wine buying trip, but beer was paramount amongst beverages.