New Beer Sunday (week 631)

NBS entry #3 today which might be a personal record. Thanks to @jhavs for providing me with another classic beer, which I had to share with my son:


look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Broke the rules and poured it into a glass . A golden-orange hazy color with a modest white head that settled into a firm cap. Serious floaties that entertained me. Aromas included berries, grapefruit, mango, and a touch of bready malt. Not a blast of aroma (unsure on the canning date) but very nice. I had big expectations going into the first sip, and this did live up to the hype. Nicely balanced juicy citrus, berries, resin, and faint crackery malt. Love the juxtaposition of the citrus/dank in the one - hard to imaging a better balance. Firmly bitter and clean on the finish with a slick feel. Just an amazing beer. Cheers!

 

My second new beer on this new beer Sunday is Trader IPA from Uinta Brewing. Great IPA look. Not a whole lot for the nose. Taste is more like a pale with a great dry finish. Feel is light and dry with not much hop character. Overall good but mislabeled, Everything about this beer says pale, not IPA. That being the case I really like it and for sure will have it again.

 

Cheers all and happy NBS! Thank you @cavedave and @utopiajane for hosting for so long. I'm a relative newcomer to this forum, but I have to say that it's the welcoming vibe of the two of you and others here that made me overcome my natural inclination to hang out on the sidelines and watch and start posting new beers and reviews!

Anyway, here's my new beer for today- Wicked Weed Lunatic Blonde, a Belgian-style blonde Ale and it was quite a treat!




Appearance- crystal clear deep golden color, 4 finger off white head recedes to about one.

Nose- bubble gum, a little strawberry and very light breadiness

Taste- starts with bubblegum, then the malt makes a a brief light bready appearance, ends dry with a little hop bitterness. As it warms some cardamom comes out too.

Feel- crisp and dry, refreshing moderate carbonation, medium light body

Overall this was an exceptional Beer and a delight to drink. The aroma, taste and feel combined wonderfully.

 

Okay, twist my arm, one more from @beertunes. This is Go East IPA from Kulshan Brewing.



I'm going to keep this short because I need to eat the Long John Silvers I just picked up. The beer pours and I'm like, "that ain't no IPA - maybe a hoppy red ale like Summit Horizon (before they changed the style to 'Red IPA'). And that's not a bad thing, because I really enjoy a hoppy red ale.

And that's what this is, IMHO. Nice piney hop profile, that plays nicely with the beefy malt profile. If you're looking for a hop bomb, go a different direction. If you're looking for a well-executed hoppy red ale, this will hit the spot.

 

if anybody out there knows their art, there is a painting in the louvre ive seen a few times "ship of fools", you all made sure, and will continue to make sure new beer sunday will NOT be that ship of fools! cheers all

 

I've had one of those days where I did nothing special, but it was a fantastic day. I went to church, played with my kids, hung out with my wife, and drank great beer. A big shout-out and thanks to our two hosts fit their commitment and dedication to this thread. I was very intimidated by this thread and reviewing beers when I joined. Now I look forward to it every week.

How can it be I've never had this beer? Well, @jzeilinger noticed and sent me a fresh one! So let's check it out.



Poured from a 12 ounce can provided by jzeilinger with a best buy date of July 10, 2017.

The beer pours a pretty, deep amber color with a thick, two-finger white head. There is nice lacing left behind.

The smell is nice, strong pine resin up front with deep floral under that. There is a little citrus in there also, but it doesn't dominate.

The taste is a strong pine resin up front with a big floral presence also. The citrus didn't come through much in the taste. There is also a big, sweet malt balance that comes through.

The mouthfeel is big, thick, and oily.

Overall this is a nice, pine-forward DIPA. The mouthfeel is really great. If you like piney, floral, malty DIPAs, then this is for you.

 

Bunker Brewing Co. Machine Czech Style Pilz.

I'm really liking this. Not as crisp and clear as the normal German Pilsner, easy drinking, and delicious.

 

I love Adnams. I've not had that one. Thanks for the review! I should be near there this Summer.

 

Late NBS post today, worked on the addition then took the Family to Maine Maple Sunday and then to dinner with the in-laws. Finally back home with the kids in bed enjoying a new brew courtesy of @mmorris15 . This beer and I got off on the wrong foot when I cut my finger popping the wax off the cap. But I'm willing to make amends, Gneiss and Orono Brewing Pyroclast, a barrel aged golden wild ale.



Pours a golden brown with a quickly dissipating one finger head, nice halo, some bubbles on the rise.

Aroma is earthy oak, a Brett like funk, green apple, caramel. Nice barrel presence, but overall simple aroma.

Tastes of oak, green apple, kiwi, tart cherry, some dark fruit, nice funk, caramel. A bit sweet and an oaky bitterness on the finish.

Medium bodied, smooth, lower carbonation, dry.

Overall it's a very subtle and soft beer, light tartness and funk, a balanced malt and barrel character. Would be a great introductory beer for sours.

Cheers!

 

Next new beer from paradise is from Sand Creek brewing in Black River Falls, Wisconsin. It is Oscar's Double Chocolate Milk Stout. This beer surprised me with the nose - it wasn't chocolate, but the taste was. Nice. Rich. Delicious.

Good choice.

I might finish up big with a Trappist Rochfort #6.

 

Ouch!

 

Finally beer:thirty, enjoyed another one from my BIF #5 box. Toppling Goliath Light Speed. Pours a hazy yellow, orange with a three finger head that lingers. Not a strong nose but very reminiscent of the orange smell coming from a holiday fruit basket. Taste follows, a little more pronounced than the nose, to me a very distinctly orange flavor not just the general "citrus" I get from lots of beers. There is some lemon lurking in the background. That head leaves a trail of lacing like I've never seen before. Very well carbonated but not overly so.

 

Happier New Porter, Stout & Old Ale New Beer Sunday (Week 631)!

I have been a busy beaver today, giving my full attention to the eradication of the insidious Bottle Backlog here at Chez Woody. I had hoped to open The Porch at Chez Woody as I did yesterday, but the weather was against me. I began with a really nice Baltic Porter & decided to continue the trend with other dark-colored styles.

My next entry was: https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/323/47581/?ba=woodychandler#review


followed by: https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/2210/45897/?ba=woodychandler#review


I was feeling my oats & her merkin, so I continued with: https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/30695/116394/?ba=woodychandler#review


I was still not satiated, so I turned my attention to: https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/1472/48476/?ba=woodychandler#review



I was approaching the finish line for the day, so I opened one last one: https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/2454/65412/?ba=woodychandler#review



Adios, until next Sunday, amigos!

 

Haven't gotten to a beer from @woemad yet today (had a few last night, but not today) because my parents came over and I always have a few things I want to share with my dad already on deck. I'll try to come back for another review if I get to that before the thread closes.

In the meantime, a beer from @Sonofalime, Jester King's Uberkind.

Appearance - Golden color, slightly cloudy. Very little head that dissipates quickly.
Aroma - Slightly fruity, can tell it'll be tart. Inviting
Mouthfeel - Smooth, almost creamy in the way that NE IPAs can be. A little effervescent but not terribly carbonated.
Taste - Wow. This is where this beer really shines. Starts upfront with a pleasant moderate tartness and some fruitiness. Finishes with a beautiful white wine-like (reminiscent of Sauvignon Blanc) flavor, this is absolutely delicious
Overall - Unassuming upon initial inspection, but as soon as it hits the lips it's clear this is excellent. Light tartness that I could drink this all day, and an awesome flavor that would make me want to. 4.75/5

 

Looks like I'm comin' in late tonight, but into a real killer brew from Jackie O's c/o @WesMantooth!



4.59/5 rDev +1.1%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

A: Ever-so-slightly less than black pour, with a quarter inch mocha head that receded so quick I didn't even have a chance to get a pic of the full head! Minimal lacing and a small ring of bubbles around the glass.
S: The nose is all chocolate and vanilla. A little cinnamon appears upon a deeper sniff. Wouldn't believe this was barreled based on aroma alone.
T: The front end is cacao and vanilla, some roasted malt flavor, nice bourbon taste appears midway through, then BAM, instantly after the swallow the habaneros appear. Almost breaks the cusp into the spicy territory on the finish, but the cinnamon is there to save the day and balance that heat with some sweet.
M: Medium-thick body, smooth finish.
O: This stands apart from all other spiced stouts I've ever had. Extremely complex and delicate for being such a mammoth of a beer!

I didn't read any other reviews before making this to avoid bias, but it's funny how much variance there is in the smell and taste amongst all the reviews. Really shows that with complex beers like this, it's very nice to taste the flavor profile and smell the aroma throughout the beer, from mildly cold to serving temp.

Anyways, this is a one and done for me, gotta get up early for class tomorrow. I'll leave with a song for @cavedave! Cheers!


A nice performance from the high-energy late 80's dead. Just about a year before Brent's passing I think?

 

This will be my first NBS entry, as a I'm all wrapped up the most recent BIF group, which I must say, has been a blast for me. This beer was shipped to me from California, by whom I least expected...

It's called Zulu Haze by Moonraker Brewing Company out of Auburn, CA. I had never heard of this brewery and I'd never heard of this beer, so I had no idea what to expect why I opened it.

I poured it into some #properglassware and to my surprise, it looked very similar to a NE style IPA. It had a nice creamy head that sat on top of the nice juicy looking beer itself.

After taking the first two test sips, I literally said, "Holy shit, this is delicious. I need to get a pic of this for NBS," It has a nice smooth creamy mouthfeel with delicious citrusy, melon like, guava flavors that were not overpowering. It didn't have the big hoppy bite like a lot the big NE IPAs have, but it did have a nice balance throughout it. I would definitely recommend it to someone and I'd definitely drink it again, if I had more.

Cheers to @Bum4ever

 

Good description on the heat. While the spiciness from the peppers has varied batch to batch, it always seems to come right up to that line, and maybe even straddle it, but the other flavors keep it in check. I am a hugegantic fan of Xocoveza, but this beer has many more levels to it. Glad you enjoyed it too.

 

Yep, xoco was amazing. I've grown to really love this type of beer, and you totally nailed it in sending this to me! After all, though I've had "better" beers, I still consider Abraxas to be my favorite of all time, and introduced to this whole world of spicy stouts!

 

The local Kroger has had a ton of beer at marked-down prices recently -- I'm assuming some that they might not be carrying anymore, going by the way that some of their spots had already been filled in with new stuff -- so I picked up a pack of something I'd looked at many times but never ended up trying until now.



...yep, it's Hoegaarden, which is apparently pronounced more like "who-garden" rather than "a garden of hoes." It's been a while since I've had a wheat beer of any sort, whether wit or hefeweizen or something else entirely, so when I saw a 12-pack marked down I figured "hey, why not?"

Appearance-wise the beer is yellow-golden and hazy -- the picture doesn't quite match what I'm seeing in-person, it's not quite as "orangey" in color. Upon pouring a good-sized layer of white foam developed, though now it's shrunk down to maybe a quarter or less of its original size. Shining a flashlight through makes the rising bubbles visible -- it's hazy enough that they're only barely visible around the edges without it. Smell is certainly different from the Blue Moon and Shock Top variety of witbier -- there's more of a yeastiness to it, specifically some banana-like yeasty funk going on that I don't remember ever noticing in either of those beers. That seems to be by far the most prominent smell; I thought I caught a slight whiff of citrus on the end when I first sniffed, but I'm not finding it now.

Taste is much lighter than the strong yeasty-banana smell would suggest. There's that almost-banana-like yeastiness present there too, along with a very slight dry wheaty maltiness and a teeny bit of tartness on the end that comes across as orange/lemon zest-like. The feel is pretty light and very bubbly, obviously highly carbonated but not "prickly" or harsh.

Interesting how different this actually-Belgian example of a witbier is from the most common American examples of the style. The only American witbier I've had before which had a prominent Belgian yeast was Dogfish Head's Namaste, but even that was pretty different from this one due to the spices involved. Both were definitely on the dry and yeasty side as opposed to coming across sweeter or fruitier, though, which is probably why it's the first one that comes to mind for a comparison. Toward the end of the glass I'm thinking that the coriander is becoming a bit more noticeable. It certainly is in the last few drops left in the bottom of the bottle.

A pretty decent beer, and it's neat to finally get to see the origins of the modern witbier style. Certainly a change from all the big dark beers I've been drinking lately (before I picked up this 12-pack, my fridge was all big dark 7%+ ABV beers aside from one last can of Evil Tiwn's Mission Gose that I need to get around to drinking and reviewing soon.) I suspect it would be a bit better if I'd started at a colder temperature, though -- this glass is pretty much room temperature by now since I bought these from an unrefrigerated discount beer cart and didn't leave them in the fridge for long before getting one out to drink.

 

Magic Hat Bob's First Ale

This beer is an "Irish red ale" and supposedly the first beer brewed at Magic Hat. It does a great job at making the drinker take swig after swig. It's an inviting rust color. Nothing is shouting for attention. Malt is subtle given the promise of the color, but it's nice. There's a slight grapefruity tang, but no American brashness. I could easily open another if I had one.