New Beer Sunday (week 550)

I don't normally post on NBS this early, but when I do ...


... I gush over my first Jolly Pumpkin experience!!!

Oro de Calabaza is damn near perfect. It’s classified as a biere de garde, but it has a lot of that farmhouse ale musty barn character (a la Jester King) along with a cool mix of tart/sour lemon flavors and some oak/cedar wood flavors as well as a pretty healthy does of balancing sweetness. In fact, there’s enough sweet flavor in the beer that I could see a hardcore sour fan finding it not sour at all. I’d argue that it’s pretty tart, but label it however, it’s damn good.

http://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/9897/18975/?ba=Premo88

4.83 (+17.2% rDev)

I’ve got another Jolly Pumpkin beer in the fridge keeping its heels nice and cool for later ... probably *much* later because it's bed time for me. We survived Texas A&M Game Day No. 1 a few hours ago, and I've been enjoying a good long session of brews while cooking up some turkey tacos after putting the sports section to bed:




Thanks to @utopiajane for starting us off! I expect all you good NBSers will make us all proud today. I'll see y'all again about noon-thirty ... or later

Cheers!

 

Odell Oktoberfest Marzen Style Lager 6.1% ABV

Short story -- I took a break from Beer Advocate while I went down to Cancun, Mexico. I also took a break from craft beer. It was needed, trust me. I'm back. I've also started reviewing again. I'm not any better at it after my break at #1,000. But I just missed it. I no longer have anything to chase, so now I can review without that carrot at the end of the stick dragging me along ... I'll probably review 1-2 beers a week instead of 5-6.

I'm trying a new beer today from Odell. This can't possibly go wrong.

Look: The body is a nice clear copper color with a cream colored head that recedes to just a patch of wisp in the center. Little or no lacing -- just a small collar around the edge.

Aroma: Toasty, roasty, and biscuity. Add in a prominent spiciness from the hops -- I'm getting a cinnamon kind of notion, and this smells delicious. There's a touch of soft caramel sweetness underneath it all.

Taste: Mimics the aroma with a lot of toasted grains and biscuits. But the real star is the spicy hop element that brings some balance. This is not a caramel malt bomb. It's has toasted grains, spicy hops, and caramel maltiness. All work well together for the greater cause.

Mouthfeel: Dry, but goes down easy. Kind of dangerous actually at 6% ... it adds up fast.

Overall: 4.2 rating for a +4.7 rDev. I'm really pleased with this, it's right up there with all of my favorite marzens. But like I said, it's Odell -- what could possibly go wrong?

It's good to be back. Cheers.

 

You'll laugh, I hope, but your absence actually came up when @MUTINY and I met up Wednesday. Nice to see your post!

 

With that beer "gushing" over it is the right review in my view. Good choice.

 

Welcome back. Glad you enjoyed your summer break!

 

Good morning NBSers. Sometimes, things are not as they appear...take Puba for instance, a Red Panda we saw at the zoo on Saturday:





Not related to the panda at all. Looks kinda like a fox, with a giant ringed tail.



My new beer is similarly mislabeled as a sweet "decadent dessert" - "iStout" from 8 Wired Brewing Co., Warkworth, NZ:



Pours black with copious tan foam:









Roasted malt and coffee bean nose and taste. Bittersweet chocolate, emphasis on roasted malt bitterness. As liquid continues to warm, some dark fruit flavors of prune and fig emerge; however the finish is overly bitter roast malt...some sweetness would have improved the flavor, and my rating of this otherwise tasty stout, which should average out just north of a 4. Fortunately, there is a little alcohol along with the bitterness in the linger, which I always like...cheers and have a great Sunday

 

Hey Mon! New Jackie O's Barrel Aged Coffee Stout Sunday.

I am planning to go check out Hoof Hearted brewinng today, so I am sharing a new beer that I started late last night, but in the spirit of the thread, finished off the last third in the wee hours of Sunday morning. I hope one day you get a chance to try this one. To me, it is a prime example of what barrel aging is (should be) about. Complimenting a solid beer with rich, authentic flavors.


4.62/5 rDev -1.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5

Poured from a 375 bottle into a Jackie O's snifter.

It is oil black in color, and somewhat in consistency. There is a decent amount of khaki colored head for a barrel aged beer. It also retains a nickel thick ring the entire time.

Smells mainly like a straight up Russian Imperial Stout. Deep roasted malts, chocolate, a hint of coffee. The bourbon is noticeable, but doesnt jump out of the glass. Vanilla like sweetness and wood.

It smelled excellent, but it tastes crazy good. Initial chocolate, vanilla, and caramel along with molasses/brown sugar all dance together in front of a backdrop of oak and expresso like coffee. The coffee really creeps in toward the end, and shines more and more as it warms. The coffee is very, very smooth and I wouldn't say subtle, but mellow (seems fitting given the theme).

I don't think I can overstate how well balanced the bourbon and coffee flavors are. They really allow the base beer to shine on it's own, only adding a complement. Just a touch of heat to let you know the alcohol is there. Aftertaste is reamrkable though. No bitterness at all. Which is crazy considering the lingering dark chocolate flavor with the roasted coffee beans.

It is not chewy thick like a Ten Fidy, but above average. I would take a little more body myself. Carbonation is moderate.

I gave this one a perfect score based on the perfect balance I believe they achieved. If you are at all hesitant about the coffee, or the bourbon barrel aspect, I strongly suggest giving it a try. Nothing is overpowering at any point. Just a hair behind Bourbon County Coffee, but ahead of Weyerbacher Sunday Morning and KBS for me. Those both have more in your face whisky and coffee respectively. If you are looking for something more along those lines, you might not enjoy this as much as I did though. I think this is one of Jackie O's top 3, and that is impressive on it's own.

Here is some great artwork I saw on the corkboard of Five Guys yesterday.

 

Good Morning New BSers! Another lovely morning here in the Texas hill country - warm and breezy before the sun fully rises. In keeping with my "Texas Beer for Breakfast" theme again today, what can be better than another beer from Spoetzl brewery in Shiner? I'm not a big fan of strawberry beers, but this one is heavily strawberryed in both aroma and flavor.



Undated bottle at 42 degrees into shaker
Aroma of strawberries, lasts
Head average (3.5 cm, aggressive pour), white, creamy, rapidly diminishing to two mm ring and no layer
Lacing poor – few very spotty islands
Body straw, clear
Flavor begins and ends strawberry; no hops, no malt, no alcohol, no diacetyl
Palate light, watery, soft carbonation

Appearance 3.75, Aroma 4.25, Flavor 4.25, Palate 4, Overall 4. Rating 4.15, rDev 0% (<10 reviews)
Did I like it? No. Why so high ratings? It is exactly what it claims to be, strawberry to the (not so)bitter end.

Cheers, ya all!

 

Good morning all. Last time I pick a DIPA this early on a Sunday!

Been looking forward to trying Anchor's Double Liberty IPA/8.20%

Look: Dark Golden, soapy head that lingered for a while. Nice color. Just by the look I could tell it was going to be a heavier IPA.

Aroma: A bit off-putting---sweet, malty. A bit "adjuncty". Smell bordered on the "IPA past it's prime" scent. Scent of honey perhaps?

Taste: Caramel, sweet with some astringency on the back end. After the first taste it was more balanced and enjoyable and grew on me. Wasn't optimistic after the first sip. Not a hop bomb by any means. Malt bomb? Close to it.

Mouthfeel: The bitterness fades well but wouldn't say it's a super clean finish. A bit peppery. Hides the alcohol well though.

Overall: 3.30 which deviates a bit from the average on this site.

I just don't care for malt forward IPA's and this DIPA was a bit heavy and syrupy for my liking. The aroma really skewed by rating on it as it wasn't good and knocked it down a few pegs for me. I'll give anything Anchor brews a shot. Wouldn't turn this down if I were given it but wouldn't buy it again.

Everyone enjoy their holiday weekend.

 

Good morning NBS. Had a lazy day of watching football yesterday; not sure what kind of lazy day I'll have today. Have to go out for my nephew's birthday this evening and I have no gift - so that may be on the schedule. He wouldn't like anything from the cellar, so this may take some thought...

To help, I grabbed a new beer for today. Kind of randomly walked into this one at the store-first I'd seen it around here (although we get lots of BP here):


Bottle dated late July:
Pours a stained-glass light orange, with head that mainly sticks to the edges, although wisps of bubbles swirling in the middle. The nose is almost spot on, as I get coffee with cream coming with decent strength to my olfactory senses. The coffee is definitely sweetened, sugary. I was afraid I should've had this as a dessert beer, but I had no new dark coffee options.

And then...

The taste comes as a little shock as it first reminds me that this is a beer - a light colored, low ABV beer, and not coffee. In fact, the coffee is almost lost. To me, there is a vegetal to woody nature to this beer throughout that mixes with the roasted bean notes in an unflattering way.

Up until the nose, this is what I was expecting. After that, not so much. Warmth, as it is wont to do, mellows and blends the flavors better, but not well enough. My GF said she liked it better than most coffee beers, so that helps confirm my thoughts, sort of . They can't all be winners.

 

Good morning NBS and thanks to Maria for the wonderful kick off today.
A training hike is completed here in WMass. The weather is stunning, and we are almost ready for
my favorite season. Today is new Dry Hopped Sour Sunday, with an offering from Crooked Stave that just wowed
me. I hope everyone has a spectacular day.
Cheers
Progenitor

Crooked Stave Brewery & Taproom
American Wild Ale / 6.20% ABV

4.16/5 rDev -0.5% | rAvg: 4.18
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Poured from a bottle dated June 2015 into a modified tulip glass.
A - Sun at 2 pm on a clear day, bright gold, colored. Busy trains of tiny carbonation relentlessly feed a thick snow white cap of endless froth.
S - Warm hay, lemongrass, biscuit, Brett edges, hints of pine, tons of tropical fruit. Orange Marmalade adds to the overwhelming parade of aromatics.
T - Stunning explosion of flavor, hop use without being oily, sour base provides the backbone supporting a smorgasbord of flavors, lemongrass, rosemary, orange peel, white tea, ash rime and that Brett.
M - Full palate coating, offers a quick retreat, flavors crash through, mix it up and run out the door. Surprising how quick the transitions are, big and bold then lightly sweet, then tart and then ashen dry with a slightly sour linger.
O - A stunning display of craft, sour without puckering, hoppy without palate wrecking. A delightfully delicate offering worth seeking out.

 

New APA (with a great name) Sunday

Greetings NBSer's,
A second wet start to a labor day weekend day. It is starting to feel like the start of autumn here, as the apples are ripening and the leaves are falling with this rain (see the early yellowing of leaves in the photo and the ones on the ground).
Many thanks to @larryi86 for today's entry. This is quickly moving the top of my list for great names for beers. Space Otter with a nicely designed can is a good solid everyday APA.
http://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/33326/169190/?ba=garymuchow

Hope to be back but one never knows.
So, Best to All

 

love the glass there! great DIPA glass

 

hello from Chicago, on this long new beer sunday is there another one tomorrow? anyways, I opened this stout up before some work on my house ( old 1929) and the pour is thick as expected and the taste is of luscious chocolate from Europe!, and some ginger snap as well, pretty full mouthfeel with a sweet linger on the tongue , I am enjoying this very much, and so should you, be back later with more yummy goodness! cheers!

 

indeed!