New Beer Sunday (week 595)

Well since I joined BA back in January I have been working second shift on Sundays which hampered my ability to join in on the New Beer Sunday fun, but I just recently celebrated moving onto a new job and now I don't have to work on Sunday. Some may have seen my posts in WBAYDN and know that I do love my IPA's and I'm getting close to having tried the "whales." While it's a fun game chasing down beers and going on mini vacations to get a hold of those brews or trading with some great BA's, my appreciation of beer is far more expansive than the hyped up IPA's. Whenever we go traveling my favorite beer of the trip usually ends up being an obscure beer I tried at an unknown brew pub or an awesome extra in a trade. I've got several new beers to try, so I picked out two, I'll be unconventional and start with the DIPA on a fresh palette, partly because it's going to be way too hot for DIPA's later, and save the sour until I decide on a good food pairing and try that with dinner later on. So without further ado... Fiddlehead Mastermind.



One thing I really do love about these new super hoppy IPA's is that moment when the can hisses and a wave of hop aromatics fills the room, it's like being transported to the brewery and getting a glimpse as they're tossing the hops into the whirlpool. The first thing I notice as I pour is the clarity of this beer, something I have began to appreciate because so many brewers are jumping on the bandwagon and making their beers hazy for the sake of the beer being hazy. It's a wonderful golden color with a foamy white head, lacing is fair with some alcohol legs, a nice looking beer. The immediate aroma burst is citrus fruits, mostly tangerine, but there is an underlying herbal aroma weaved throughout a sweet cider-like background. Sometimes when a beer has an aroma like this, the taste can catch you off guard, either being completely different from the aroma or by being incredibly delicate and subtle. So I never expect anything on the first sip; here the taste primarily follows suit, big sweet citrus, a little tart, whether that's actually there or a product of the power of suggestion from the intense citrus aroma I can't tell. As the citrus and biscuity sweetness fades, a light herbal bitterness develops and finishes the beer dry. It's almost tea like on the end, similar to cup of earl grey with that distinct bergamont flavor. The 8.1% alcohol is hidden well. The mouthfeel is much lighter than comparable DIPA's, almost certainly a product of the clarity. The sweetness is a little clingly, coating the mouth until giving way to the dryness of the finish. Carbonation is light and tingly.

Overall this beer is presents some welcome changes to status quo of DIPA's. The intense aroma and flavor of tangerines dominates, but the finish has some interesting complexities. The simple fact that there is some bitterness on the end places this a cut above many of the newer big DIPA's for me, when they are just sweet and hoppy with no bitterness what so ever it is a let down. Up here in IPA land this is beer worth seeking out, unless of course you have a vendetta against Citra hops.

Cheers!

Marc

 

"Bones!!! MOCHA? ...Double, ...Imperial, ...IPA?!"
"It's beer Jim...but not as we know it."



Yesterday I specifically ventured out into the great unknown for two beers that have been haunting me since their images began to appear daily on WBAYDN.

1. Troeg's Nimble Giant DIPA
2. Stone Mocha Double Imperial IPA

I became One, with a Nimble Giant yesterday and it blew up in my mouth.
So good!

These coffee IPA's have been working on me all year and I haven't been captivated by the thought of the combination. It is because of the recent vivid posts of Stone Mocha DIPA by @Greywulfken with his knowledgable commentary and supporting metal that I'm drinking one here on the record breaking 595th New Beer Sunday.



The taste: It's amazingly good! Good Lord. How and the hell did Stone put coffee, sweet cocoa, vanilla (?) citrusy resin and hops together and then balance it all perfectly? Plus, the noticeable alcohol presence is a positive component in this delicious beer. I don't buy six-packs much these days but I am damn glad there are five more of these awaiting my consumption!

"Are you out of your Vulcan mind?!"
"No doctor....no, ...I'm not."

Cheers!

 

Stop it! I love it too much!
'Specially Bones with the Stone! lol Awesome!

 

G' afternoon NBS-ers! Pops is visiting for the next couple of weeks and when I picked this one up....I knew I had to drink it with him!



Pours a beautiful deep dark brown body with a 1/2 fingers worth of head that dissipates to a thin cap of khaki bubbles.

Aromas?! Just insane how much this smells like it's namesake: French Toast! Maple syrup, cinnamon, nutmeg, vanilla...phew, cannot wait to taste this one!

Taste is RIDICULOUS! Everything in the nose you taste! It's liquid French Toast in a glass! Funky Buddha just owns this style of beer.

A nice full mouth feel with a nice carbonation; lovely lingering maple syrup, cinnamon, and vanilla taste.

Overall, a beautiful sipper dessert beer that comes through on it's promises of what it is and what you expect. Not an every day drinker, of course but you don't want that with this one. Just sit back and savor it and as it warms you get more of that vanilla and cinnamon and maple syrup. Delicious!

Two thumbs up from Pops and me!

Cheers!

 

Figured it was time to unVeil this Hornswoggler Chocolate Milk Stout from, The Veil



Had to force pour to get this deep, copperish brown head. Otherwise it's a deep black, almost shiny beer.

Chocolate smell for certain. Outside of that, there was an earthy hop aroma that faded off after a few minutes.

Tastes as advertised, with chocolate being the star and an earthiness underneath. No heat whatsoever and just a touch of sweet yet bitter aftertaste, like dark chocolate.

I'd almost knock this for being wicked thin but it honestly makes this incredibly drinkable.

 

Time to dip into another tropical IPA for the day (2 of 3). This stuff is fresh out of Missouri's 4Hand's, with a best by date of 11/4/16. The can states it's an ale brewed with honey, pineapple, and zest. Let's dig into this delicious tropical IPA.

4Hand's Dakine.



Look: This beer is off to a fabulous start immediately after the pour. It pours a yellow-orange sunburst, with light around the edges of the snifter giving this beer a golden glow. Head formation is modest at 1 centimeter with a pour at a 45 degrees angle. Head retention is modest, with sporadic and thin lacing.

Aroma: The fragrance of this beer is amazing, with a triage of pineapple, orange, and lemon zest powering up the aroma. Hop and malt notes are subtle, and come in the form of dank and herbal and biscuit malts in the same order.

Taste: A sip of Dakine immediately drops the drinker's taste buds into a vat of pineapple, citrus, orange, and lemon zesty notes. Dank and herbal hops and biscuit malts help support the lightweight, tropical flavor profile. A zing of honey helps keep the zesty citrus flavor lively and balanced.

Feel: It's thin and a tad watery, but with an otherwise smooth and crisp texture. It's easy to drink at any rate of speed. While a little extra thickness would be desirable, the current feel and texture make this beer apt for drinking on a sweltering day, or at a rate of consumption rivaled only be college students on a Thursday night.

Overall: Dakine is a shear pleasure to drink. It's lightweight, flavorful, with a solid aroma. Well rounded and executed across the board. Get it fresh, as the lightweight notes and characteristics may not last long.

Score: 4 | 4.25 | 4.25 | 3.75 | 4 | BA Score: 4.14 | Avg Score: 3.92 | rDev: +5.6%

 

Greetings again friends,
My son gave me this yesterday, and I really haven't yet tried Sierra Nevada Summerfest, so here goes.
This lager is a gorgeous pale yellow/gold with aggressive carbonation throwing a billowing white cap in my nice little Rothaus stein. An herbal, grassy, peppery nose with a bready cracker-like underpinning finishing with a nice gripping hoppiness. Summerfest is a crisp, dry lager that is a born thirst slayer. At 5% this is a perfect beer to drink liberally.


Sticking with Les Paul today. This tune is from 1951, the year I was born!

 

Susan by Hill Farmstead. A solid IPA. Hazy yellow with nice citrus notes. Picked up from the brewery this weekend. Would recommend as it's like some hops and citrus met and made love in my mouth.

 

Yeahhhhh buddy

 

Your pics are shaky; you should learn how to hold your camera still.

 

Hey what's going on?!

Well my Portuguese amigo is thrilled that they won the Euro last week. Me I instead took in a baseball game last Friday which was great as well. As for captain obvious other news....

It is HAAWWWHT out there. Holy mergatroid... out there ripping creeping Ivy out of lawn, mowing, watering... Gotta keep those tomatoes going ya know.. It was brutal. Even after coming in for lunch, and briefly going back out to water I started sweating again.

That's it folks... I am done!

Time to stay indoors and cool off!! Hey! I know what helps!

Beer!

Particularly cold ones!! Yeah!

Uh... but I want to drink this beer first...

hmm... I dunno... Very curious about this animal. I like that these guys are mixing up German styles in very different ways, many times the results have been great. Eisbock is though one of those glassware anomolies for me. Often as a lager I thrown him in a pils or a pokal... but this one seems different. It's bottle shape even tells me... go for the snifter son... you won't regret it... Hmm yeah! let's do it!

What's new for our hero today!?

TAP X Eisbock Barrique 2015 | Weisses Bräuhaus G. Schneider & Sohn


Weisses Bräuhaus G. Schneider & Sohn - TAP X Eisbock Barrique 2015 by imbibehour, on Flickr

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Poured from the bottle into a snifter glass.

Light orange caramel coming out of the bottle, a bit viscous and forming with no head whatsoever. Remnants of a very minor bubble collar are in places around the edges, sitting on a nice ruby brown colored body. Looks like a tawny port a bit, but it's also a bit different than your average Eisbock, but not sure what to think here with this very flat appearance. I am at least not rubbed the wrong way.

Aroma is pretty wild. Lots of fruited sour grape must notes, sour cherries, a bit of caramel chocolate tones and that classic Montagnes funky note that is so evident. Definitely a marriage of eisbock muted sweetness and wine barrel Montagnes, with the funk and wildness winning. Real interesting fruited bock in a way, quite aggressive too.

Palate is a bit more to wild character and low carbonation. Flattened quite a bit, but the flavors still manage to come through. Malt almost thick taffy feeling of soured fruited cherries and red berries. Muted caramel with a bit of thickness that coats real nicely. Finishes very clean, a light thickness, some floral tones with the esters really going almost into hibiscus and tea notes.

Wasn’t sure how this would turn out, but being a big fan of Montagnes and unaware they were the barrels used, this is a nice great take and marriage. Unfortunately a lot of the eisbock character is really buried here, but it's a decent tasting brew.

look: 3 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 4 | BA generated Score: 3.93

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And the b side wins again! On to the next beer and review as always!

Salud!

 

Actually, I noticed if I am going to do those "still life GIFs", I should find a way to steady my camera (re: phone).

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After watching amazing golf, I am watching the 2004 ALCS 30 for 30 - in theory on due to the fact that the Red Sox and Yankees are dueling on ESPN later tonight. Might have to pop over to WBAYDN later and harass @PatrickCT if the Sox get a lead . Right now it's at the point where A-Rod knocks the ball out of Arroyo's glove.

But that golf! I am curious how many feet of putts Henrik Stenson made. Feel bad for Phil with the solidly amazing golf he was playing as well, but Stenson was just dominant. Anyhow, summertime sports call for a classic summer beer style, a nice crisp lager (or so the can claims), Quinannan Falls, but Bell's Brewery out of Michigan.


Again, the swampy nature of the weather here destroys the photo's ability to catch the clarity of this beer (wipe, pick up phone, get focused, and... condensation ). This beer isn't perfectly clear, but it's damn near. Straw yellow, with a nice pile of fluffy white head atop it. I mean, look at that head:

(ok - this pick doesn't quite do it justice, but still)

This is a dry-hopped lager, so the fact that there is a grassy to herbal aspect to the nose is not a surprise. The hops are not very strong, but are the strongest thing I get.

The taste opens with a quick clean crackery malt actually a little peppery note that foreshadows the coming bitter hops. The hops are grassy to lightly piney. They are strong enough to be the main impression of this beer, and in a relative sense to the malt are like an average IPA's bitterness. If I let the beer sit on my tongue a little (the front, especially), there is a definitive malt sweetness there, like a sweet cracker (thinking Ritz, here).

After doing that, I notice the malt presence in each regular sip more often. Still peppery, and the bitterness is still grassy then piney, but there is a thread of sweeter malt and yeast that runs through the middle quite nicely.

I have seen a few people lauding this beer in other threads. I am in agreement with them. Compared to the other lager beer I have enjoyed this summer, Summit 30th Anniversary, I think this is a little sweeter. I think I probably like the Summit overall as well. However, since I cannot get that beer around me, I will definitely consider another 6-pack of this beer.

 

Greetings fellow NBSers! A beautiful sunny, summer Sunday here in The City of Subdued Excitement, in the Fourth Corner of Washington, which is the Fourth Corner of the continental U.S.A. The ongoing joke is that summer starts July 5th around these parts, but Mother Nature pushed that date back a couple weeks, but now it's here and glorious.

Before I get to my first entry, I'm going to get a bit personal and do some venting, so if you're just about the beer, I understand, feel free to skip ahead a few paragraphs.

My friend Scott Greene was diagnosed with brain cancer a couple years ago, and they started treatment. About a year into it they discovered that the tumor had developed finger-like webs throughout his brain, and there was no way to surgically remove it. Scott made the decision to stop treatment, so as to have a better quality of life with the time he had left. A talented musician, Scott helped out on several recordings, played as many gigs as he could, continued to teach music, and got his last band, Nashville Northwest, through a tough recording session to get their debut album finished. At a benefit for Scott, one of his friends had T-shirts for sale that said: "Scott Greene is Not a Dick". Truer words are rarely spoken. Kind, gentle, caring, giving, the first to offer to play any benefit, come over to help you with a home project (Scott was a very talented carpenter by trade), go out and support all the other bands in town, and just generally be one of those awesome folks one only meets a handful of times in a lifetime.

Inevitably, we lost Scott a couple weeks ago, and the service was last Sunday. Well, on the Thursday leading up to that day, we got word that my friend and co-worker Jordan Slagle had passed away over night. Healthy 26 year old slept in a weird position and cut off his own air supply. Gone. Just like that. Well, needless to say, we closed down the restaurant that day, and our owners brought in grief counselors for the staff.We then proceeded to the bar where the taps flowed freely. But, we had a wedding rehearsal dinner scheduled that night that couldn't be canceled, so a handful of us put our shock and sadness aside, put on happy faces and showed those folks a great time.

Most of our staff is young, and for a lot of them this is the first sudden death they've had to cope with, so I spent a few days trying to make sure I spent at least a few minutes with every one, trying to help where and how I could. Then, Scott's service happened and opened those scabs up for me, so by the time Jordan's service was up on Wednesday, my emotions were just as raw as everyone elses. As @utopiajane can attest from my FB posts. But we got through it. Jordan's Dad gave one of the best eulogies I've ever heard. Where he had to go inside him self to come up with it, I have no idea. We then held a gathering in our beer garden, where many laughs and beers were shared.

Jordan's family, along with my work, has started a scholarship fund to help kids that are working their way through school at our brewery. If you would care to make a donation, the info is at the end of this obit: http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/bellinghamherald/obituary.aspx?n=jordan-slagle&pid=180638484

So that's my little sob story for the last couple weeks. I tried my best to be stable, stoic, and strong for my friends and coworkers, but I had to get this stuff out somewhere, and I chose to foist it upon you unsuspecting folks. Thank you very much for letting me release.

OK BEER TALK RESUMES HERE:

So, my first NBS entry for today comes from the LIF box I received a few weeks ago from @smanson56 , a very Bretty brew from Smuttlabs: https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/141/129703/ .

There's a couple other things left in that box, maybe I'll be get another one in before I go out for a walk and enjoy our too short summer. Cheers everyone!!!

 

Greetings, Fellow NBSers, and thanks to @utopiajane for leading us off by fine example, as always,

Been a fairly mild summer week by local standards. There’s been some sporadic rain here and there, but also a fair amount of sun, and temperatures haven’t gone above the low 80s – perfect for me. A far cry from last summer, when it seemed much of Eastern & Central Washington and Northern Idaho was on fire. That may still happen, of course, but so far, so good. Yesterday, I popped into the downtown library to return an item and decided to leech off their wifi for a couple hours of musical zen with Pandora. Things got off to a ridiculous start when Pandora thought the reason I was typing “Richard” was for Richard Marx rather than Richard Thompson. Sometimes that Pandora’s a real dumb girl. Shortly after this, someone suffering from mental illness, drugs or both had a full-on freak out that quickly came to involve both police and EMTS, so perhaps it wasn’t the greatest location to quietly listen to music.

As for new beers, on Monday, I had a Mosaic IPA that’s a newcomer to Iron Goat’s taps. I hope it becomes a regular bow in their quiver, as it was very drinkable stuff. Hopefully, it’s still on when I get paid on Wednesday, as I’d love to get a grunt for home consumption and a proper review:



https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/29334/240676/?ba=woemad#review

Today’s new beer (I had a roughly 3-4oz taste at Beerocracy about 6 weeks ago, but this is the first proper drink of it) is a “German Chocolate Cake Ale” from the Central Washington tourist town of Leavenworth. It would make a proper dessert beer, but it works well a couple hours after breakfast as well. And yes, it tastes like German Chocolate Cake, which is a longtime favorite of mine, which is perhaps why I was 6% more effusive than other reviewers:


https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/25393/88181/?ba=woemad#review

There’s a possibility a RIS will be consumed later today that comes from the wilds of Eastern Oregon. If not, have a great week, everyone!

 

My next entry is another UP beer. Upper Hand Brewing UPA.


Another sold beer, and I've got 5 more. Sweet!


4.1/5 rDev +6.5%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25

This beer pours a beautiful amber color. The head was frothy, but did dissipate fairly quickly. The nose has a lucious hop aroma to it. The taste is a nice citrusy flavor. The feel of this beer is good. It has a slight bite to it.

★ 231 characters

 

I'm stoked to finally get to try this one, and on New Beer Sunday too! When it was announced, it was stated it wouldn't be distributed in my state, but would be in the next state over, which I work 40 feet from. I was a little upset, especially since I don't know of any good bottle shops on that side of the state line. Fortunately for me, I found a bottle of what I was looking for, and on our side of the state line too (ut-oh!). Let's dive into the last of my tropical IPA tour.

Stone's Enjoy By Tangerine.



Look: Pours a clear pale orange, with a thick (~2cm) off-white head. The head bubbles up nicely, and retains well. Lacing is strung around the glass sporadically.

Aroma: Quality tangerine citrus notes dominate a fruity, well-balanced aroma. Hop notes are dank and resin, with biscuit malt notes as well.

Taste: Tangerine notes meld into orange and citrus notes which leans Tangerine Enjoy By more towards the orange and citrus route. Malty notes are great, with a solid biscuit and bread malt foundation. Dank, herbal, and resin hop notes stick on the palette as the taste of citrus wanes.

Feel: Mouth feel is crisp with a bubbly, aggressive texture. It has a medium-thin consistency. Mouth feel is a bit harsh and abrasive, but otherwise good.

Overall: It's a fantastic brew. Despite its feel and high ABV, the beer is fun to drink, examine, and otherwise enjoy.

Score: 4.25 | 4.25 | 4.25 | 3.75 | 4 | BA Score: 4.15 | Avg Score: 4.17 | rDev: -0.5%

 

Today i have a wonderful 32oz growler fill of Grimm Lumen (IPA w/ citra, mosaic, el dorado). I missed out on the can release in my area so i was very pleased to see a local shop have this on tap today.

It pours that typical NE style haze. Deep golden yellow color with a super fluffy and creamy white head. The head lacing on these style of beers is just a sight to behold.

Aroma offers just a boatload of citrus. Mostly orange but you get some grapefruit, tangerine, and a bit of lemon too. Juicy tropical fruits with a little zestiness dancing around in the background.

Taste comes through with wave after wave of fruits. Oranges, grapefruit, white peach, tangerine, pineapple, mango, papaya. Orange creamsicle, creamy fruit smoothie. On the finish there is a great balancing zestiness, herbaceous, citrus peel bitterness.

Just another hit on an IPA for Grimm. The mouthfeel on their beers is so perfect, just this refined softness....but boy are the flavors not soft. Juice in your face the whole time. Wouldnt life be great if you didnt have to work so hard to get their beers. Imagine just walking into a beer store and being able to pick up a 12 pack of cans of this? Maybe someday....

 

Dear NBS Friends, here is almanac beer farm to barrel hobby sour Azzaca. It is a 7% Wild blonde ale aged in wine barrels and dry hopped with Azzaca hops.
I had saved this beer for the hot hot hot day like today. Pouring it into the bottle I can't help but notice a nice slightly oranges yellow color with a beautiful 1 inch head that disappears like sun in Seattle.
Inhaling in the aromas, remind me of some tropical fruit like pineapple, citrus and unmistakable funk of Brett.
Sipping into this beauty is one treat my friends. It actually tastes like a funky Lambic. Layers of limes, pineapple, citrus, tart like flavors and some tannic aftertaste reminding of the time spent in the wine barrels. This is a well done wild sour ale from Alamanac although I don't get a lot of Azzaca.
Very crisp, tart and fresh on the palette, making you appreciate a super warm weather. Cheers.

 

Great first NBS post!

Totally jealous my city doesn't have a place called The Funkatorium.