New Beer Sunday (week 591)

What do you think of when you hear the word “Vienna”?

Is it schnitzel? Is it drinking coffee at cafés? Is it…

Well for me the first thing that pops into my mind is Vienna Lager. What a surprise!?!

I am fortunate that I have in my possession two brands of Vienna Lager: Straub Vienna Lager and Von Trapp Vienna Lager so I will have double the pleasure today. Does that remind you of an old commercial?

Some folks might ask: So, what exactly is a Vienna Lager? I have a friend who is not a beer aficionado and I once gave him a simplistic description of: “A Vienna Lager is sort of a lighter ABV and lighter bodied Oktoberfest beer”. This short sentence does not capture everything but for a ‘sound bite’ I think it is pretty close.

Some description of the Straub Vienna Lager:

On the neck label it states: “Reminiscent of our old copper brew kettle, this is a traditional amber beer with malty sweetness and a refreshing crisp flavor.”

Some information from the box:

Color: Pale Amber

Malt: 2-row Pale, Vienna, Caramel 60 and Black Malt

Hops: Perle, Tettnang and Sterling

Yeast: North American Lager

IBU: 22

ABV: 5.4%

Below is some text from the Von Trapp website:

“Vienna Style Lager 5.2 ABV 33 IBU

Named after the city in which it originated, our Vienna style lager is brewed using a decoction boiling process. Munich, Pilsner and Vienna malts are used, which add depth to its amber color. Subtle hops, crisp, with residual sweetness.”

Well those descriptions have me salivating like Kang & Kodos (the aliens from the Simpsons show); time to drink!!

Served in my Spiegelau Lager Glasses:

Appearance:

Straub Vienna Lager: Amber colored with a fluffy off-white head.

Von Trapp Vienna Lager: same

Aroma:

Straub Vienna Lager: A prominent bready/malty aroma.

Von Trapp Vienna Lager: A more subdued malt aroma with a hint of floral sweetness.

Taste:

Straub Vienna Lager: Flavor is dominated by the malt (rich bready malt flavor) with low-moderate bitterness.

Von Trapp Vienna Lager: A pleasant sweetish malt backbone with low-moderate bitterness.

Mouthfeel

Straub Vienna Lager: Medium bodied, moderate mouthfeel with a dry finish.

Von Trapp Vienna Lager: same

Overall

Straub Vienna Lager: What I most appreciated about this beer is its substantial malt presence along with a dry finish. A very enjoyable Vienna Lager beer.

Von Trapp Vienna Lager: This is also an enjoyable Vienna Lager; I find it to be quaffable.

I am very thankful that I have two hands to enjoy both of these tasty beers!

Cheers!

@rotsaruch @RobH @KOP_Beer_OUtlet @cavedave

 

5% alcohol. Brewed in Greece.

3.75/5 rDev +5.9%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75

Volkan Santorini Blonde has a thick, white head, a murky, golden appearance, with fierce, tight bubble streams and lots of suspended tiny and not-so-tiny tan chunks. Aroma is of sweet, honey-topped, white wheat bread, sourdough, cracker, grass, and a bit of hard-stock paper. Taste is of those elements, with a shade of citrus fruit and a spice zing. Mouthfeel is medium, and Santorini Blonde finishes crisp and enjoyable.

RJT

 

I am lucky to have good, generous friends!!

And I forgot to mention in my post: Happy Father's Day everybody!!

Cheers!

 

Happy Fathers Day, NBS!

Sometimes being a dad means having to impart unpleasant truths, which brings me to my new beer for the day: Maggie's Peach Farmhouse Ale, by Terrapin. Poured from a 12 oz can, this beer looks nice enough, a cloudy orange with three fingers white head. But that's where the good part ends.

The nose is an offensive, artificial assault of a chemical peach smell. Almost astringent in the nostrils, like smelling an off koolaid powder in an envelope.

Taste is just awful. Artificial peach flavor mixed with some poorly chosen spices. Hard to tell what's underneath, supposedly a saison, but honestly it tastes nothing like a saison. Leaves a bad powdery flavor in the mouth that lingers. And lingers.

Thought I could trust folks from Georgia to make a good peach beer, but I did not enjoy this. Smells and tastes like a barrel of chemical powder poured into a vat of barely-conceived base beer, and stirred with a shovel.

Just one dad's opinion, though, so if you enjoyed this beer, son, more power to ya! Cheers!

 

Lol, Natty Greens in Greensboro made Lexington IPA, and IPA brewed with peaches. Sounds harmless enough, but,I took a sip made an awful face tried another and dumped the bottle. Quite easily the worst beer I've had in a long time, and absolutely the worst IPA on earth. We had a few cases left over from a work party, and I volunteered to hand out sixers to the homeless guys that stand on the side of the road. Outside that I would have popped the top on every single bottle and pour them out one at a time. Peaches and beer I guess doesn't work, or at least Natty Greens missed then mark.

 

That Von Trapp Vienna is the only one I haven't broken into in my variety pack. It's gonna have to be done today, I see ... Catch ya later.

 

Happy Father's Day to all the dads out there!
My father died thirty years ago at way too young an age. I'll just say he was a great dad who always found the time to do things with me.
Today's new beer is Cosmic Ristoretto from Green Flash. It is described as a Baltic porter with espresso.
It is black in color with a tiny tan head.
The aroma is coffee and more coffee, with a little chocolate.
The taste followed the nose. Dark roast coffee up front, followed by cocoa and bittersweet chocolate.
It was lighter-bodied than I anticipated, but still very nice.

 

Tree Shaker from Odell is a tasty IPA with peach. You ever tried that one?

 

Happy Father's Day to all the NBS dads. My daughter is far away in NYC but I just skyped with her and that made my day. Headed up to Santa Fe in a few to celebrate the day with my father. Got a fill of The Usual Imperial Session Ale from Bosque Brewing to give to my dad and I'll be enjoying that later. Any new beers will come later tonight if at all.

I'll live vicariously through y'alls new beers until I get to one.

 

Morning NBS! I was able to get a walk in today before it gets too warm. Now I get to settle in with a new beer on this Sunday. Happy Fathers Day to all you dads, especially mine (though he likely won't read this). Even though it's Dad's day, I'm letting a lady take the stage now (sorta);


Toppling Goliath PseudoSue:
At Extreme Beerfest a few years back, we got to try some TG beers. One was King Sue (which may have been more appropriate for today, but beggars/choosers). I don't think the other was this beer, but I don't recall anything about either, so it's new enough .

So this has a BA score of 100. Let's see...
The looks live up to the rating. Lovely golden, little to the pale side (lighter and more yellow than the photos indicate). The head almost overflowed the glass, and I gave a safety sip to make sure the vessel fully contained my pour.

On the sip, a got a waft of the aromas this beer is putting off. It's just over a month old, but the dank, lightly oniony note that comes off some well-regarded IIPAs was still strong. Closer inspection and they definitely dominate the nose. On strength, living up to the rating. On actual enjoyable aroma, for me - not as appealing. I appreciate that hop profile with a light vegetal funk as well as some grapefruit sneaking out, but it's not my favorite.

Taste follows the nose, with that onion grabbing a little more of my palate than the others. Grapefruit pith and pine classic notes do finish out the beer, mostly erasing the initial onion flavor. Feel is a big winner to me. Light but not too light. Soft on my tongue, but a nice, low level of carbonation to keep my palate from dozing off.

For a community that in general like the Enjoy By series, I can see why this is highly rated. It reminds me a bit of a softer version of that beer. Unfortunately, to me, I'm only a mild fan of both beers. I could drink this one more, for the lower ABV means the sharpness of the hop characteristic I don't overly enjoy is also lessened.

Very happy to try this, and I'll definitely grab it again, but it's not my cup of tea just enough to not need to seek it out.

 

Did you know this beer in the canned format you have is not brewed in Decorah? They brew it at Brewhub (I think that's the name) in Florida and ship it up to Iowa and elsehwere in Toppling Goliath's distribution footprint.

 

A (partial) repost from WBAYDT:

I have to say that I'm very impressed by the Greek craft beer scene so far (and I haven't even tried some of their most recommended offerings yet). This here is an absolutely amazing IPA. If it was available in the US it would be all the rage.
Its name is Voreia IPA. Made by the Siris microbrewery in the northern town of Serres (Voreia means "Northern"), this is a kickass IPA that ticks all the boxes. Lovely hazy copper color, a sweetish hoppy aroma and an amazing flavor and mouthfeel combo. This is my next go-to beer while in Greece. Love the label too.



Eza Hellenic Pilsener. Delicious. Who would have thought that Greeks can brew? Great balance and very refreshing on a hot summer day.



Another Greek gem (albeit with some Belgian help): Notias Saffron Blonde. A Belgian ale made with Greek saffron (Notias translates to "The Southerly Wind" in Greek). It has a very prominent saffron aroma and flavor, which take a few sips to get used to. A very unique beer.


Vios 5:An adjunct lager made with 5 different "grains" (including rice and maize) by the Athenian Brewery. Tastes (and looks) much better than any other adjunct I can think of.

 

Good morning NBS, thanks to @utopiajane for the start and the reminder of what sets NBS apart. To all you dads out there, cheers. This week was the first Western Mass Beer Week, to the team that put this together Great Job!
Over 50 events in 8 days, with all local breweries participating on collaborations, cask events, new beer rollouts, and today a grand opening of yet another new brewery. The venues, focused and energized, provided for large groups the best offerings from our 4 counties in the 413. They were creative with a wide variety of things to do.
Lets hope this event repeats
Today's my offering to you is from Hill Farmstead, Leaves of grass May 2, 2016. A dark dry hopped, oak aged, slightly tart treasure. It displays that signature tactile texture that is HFB, The flavors and feel are to be experienced.
Off to see my Dad and then help out the folks at Bright Ideas Brewing celebrate their grand opening.
Cheers all

Leaves Of Grass: May 2, 2016

Hill Farmstead Brewery
Saison / Farmhouse Ale

4.06/5 rDev -4% | Avg: 4.23
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Poured from a 375ml bottle into a large stem goblet, 52 degrees.
A - Worn saddle leather brown, opaque and mysterious. Steady streams of the tiniest spheres rise
and accumulate. A loose knit creamy froth of mocha color caps the offering.
S - Lightly toasted malts, cocoa powder, exotic floral element, a hint of claret wine, and balsamic reduction. The smells are tied bundled with a ribbon citrus. Quite delightful.
T - Grilled lemon slices over wood fire, a beautiful display of delicate roasted grain, mated with citrusy hop flavors, pineapple, guava, and mango.
F - Medium in body, the tart start sets of all the right reactions, paving the way for a sweet roll down the center of the tongue, the tart janitors clean that up with help from near perfect carbonation. The calling card is on the tongues edges, a tart tingle of the best kind.
O - As a series the Leaves of Grass allows the creative collective to work some magic. This offering is that effort on full display. A slightly roasty, tart, delight, complex and refreshing. I can only wish for this to be set as recurring offering.

 

New Beer and Comic Pairing Sunday



Half Acre Beer Hates Astronauts

When I moved back to Pennsylvania two years ago this summer, I experimented with two new hobbies. One of them was comic books.

I was reading Archer & Armstrong, Saga, Batman and a bunch of others. Problem was, I'd be paying around $4 for each comic, and if I really savored and stretched things out, it would take me 10 or 15 minutes to read one. If I wasn't paying attention, maybe 5 minutes. Buying ten or fifteen books a month started adding up, and yeah, I could buy used collections for a bit cheaper, but that would have eliminated a lot of fun of it being a regular hobby. Eventually, I started cutting back, and then just dropped the comic thing altogether.

My other hobby, even though it's even more expensive, I've stuck with: taking photos of beer and posting them on the Internet like some sort of idiot. Don't judge. For some reason, I really enjoy looking a pictures of beer daily, and even reading random folks' impressions of beers each Sunday.

Anyhow... One of the comics I read in my comics phase was called "God Hates Astronauts." It was a zany, nutty story with some great art. When I saw that the creator, Ryan Browne, had partnered with Half Acre to brew a beer called "Beer Hates Astronauts," I immediately wanted one just for the novelty. It was the first beer I put on my "wants" list. I thought, though, that it was a one-off creation, so had sort of given up on ever trying it.

Then, a couple weeks ago, I noticed GHA popping up on WBAYDN again, so I arranged my first ever trade to get it. The beer arrived on Thursday, but I've held off until now on popping it open to share the experience all with you. Happy Fathers Day.

GHA pours a vibrant, light yellow-orange color, slightly hazed, with a fat finger of sudsy white head. It lasts quite a while before leaving behind strong lacing.

It has a delicate and refined grapefruit aroma, with hints of papaya, orange and nectarine behind. Reminds me of some of Singlecut's recent offerings, but not as in your face. It's quite pleasant.

It's light-to-medium bodied, just slightly syrupy, with a nice carbonated prickliness upon swallowing.

The taste has less grapefruit and topical fruit, although there are ghosts of each still there, and a bit more pine, along with a strong dose of citrus rind that mixes with a lingering hop bitterness and a little burst of caramel malt sweetness. The taste isn't as delicate as the aroma, but it's still on the light side.

Overall, a pretty great IPA. I'm glad to have finally tried it.

Shout outs to King Tiger Eating a Cheesburger and Gnarled Winslow. Enjoy your day, BAs.

 

No, I did not, although it is on the can which I skimmed. Reminds me of the Grimm I had that was brewed 10 miles from me in VA.

Did you know that I finally got my SD tick 2 seconds ago? At least I think, since I can't tell which 42 I had before; so I'm thinking 7 more states to go.


l will admit, wasn't expecting much - with no real reasoning. I did ask the GF what she thought, and she felt better if it than I. Since the can had no date, I couldn't tell if it might be an issue. There definitely were some signs it could be, but I've also had poorly made beers before (I've even made a couple ).

Pours an almost copper color, with only the lightest haze early. Head is light, but actually holds a medium ring and sparse surface coverage. Unfortunately by mid-glass, it looks like tea.

Nose has a light metallic note to it, which could be a sign of age. I also get an ESB like malt/bitter note, though the bitterness is more pungent than I expect from the referenced style.

Taste starts with a lightly sweet tea like maltiness (matching that later look). But there is also a piney to grassy bitterness. The problem blend is the two. It'd be nice if they played together, balancing each other out a little. But they don't seem to meld well together. Feel has a light heft to it; carbonation, though lacking to the eye, isn't actually gone from the feel.

All in all, I feel I'm drinking two things together: a hoppy session IPA and the last running a off some wort. I think this thing needs to go with much paler malts or find a better tuned hop profile for this one. If I knew this wasn't old, I'd have no problem forgetting it forever. I may grab it in a sampler at the brewery, however- just to see.

 

Good afternoon and happy father's day to all those dad's out there enjoying a few well deserved pints, snifters or whatnot.

My first beer today is the Lemon Bullringue from Bull Snort Brewing courtesy of @st9647v3



Murky yet bright pale yellow, nearly identical to lemonade with about a 1/2" foamy white head.

Massive lemon straight away that finally allows a little dandelion and a creamy pleasant hand soap thing towards the back of a nice deep inhale.

Tart right away with less lemon than what the nose communicated but still there until a very pleasant dandelion bitterness creeps in. A flowery finish keeps this light tasting beer feathery against a determined bitter finish. Not a lot of aftertaste or bitterness left behind. Overall, this light bodied beer is mighty complex and quite refreshing. Yay!

 

Well, I thought I wouldn't have a new beer until way later, but I decided to sneak one in. Hair of the dog. Definitely woke up a bit hungover.

Here's the new beer, Odell's Drumroll:



3.62/5 rDev -2.4%
look: 5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.5

12 ounce can poured into a tulip glass. Odell does best by and as far as I can tell this was canned in late May.

Really like the appearance. Bright golden color that suggests a light-drinking beer. There's a slight trickle of carbonation and a fluffy, sudsy pale white head. As it recedes, a crown of lace pegs to the glass. 5

Not a big aroma, unfortunately. Faint sweet white bread, lemony hops and a touch of grapefruit are all I can perceive. Some underripe mango is there but very faint. What I am smelling I like but I want much more. 3.5

This is all bitter citrus in flavor. Its taste reminds me of lemon and grapefruit peel. There's a distant prickly pineapple flavor and orange juice-like hint on the finish. The malt shows with a delicate sweetness and touches of breadiness. I'm not enamored by this beer's flavor, but it does grow on me. 3.5

Hefty bitterness on the palate here. Prickly carbonation and accompanying zest. Lighter than medium-bodied but it doesn't come off as watery. It's fairly refreshing but not quite enough for me to crave multiple. 3.75

I may have had overly heightened expectations for this brew. It's good, but it doesn't quite hit in the flavor and feel in the way I would want.

 

I swear by this stuff: http://www.coca-colacompany.com/content/dam/journey/us/en/private/2010/01/vwrevive-bfffdd91.jpg

And a breakfast burrito or sandwich.