New Beer Sunday (Week 634)

New to the market as of last month: Frost Hop Pilsner from August Schell.





Only available in a variety pack, but each of the brands in the 12-pack sampler features a single Bavarian hop (this one was Huell Melon) which was flash-frozen before shipment to the awaiting brewery.

Quite the experiment! And I would say that it turned out great, as each of the brands in turn was distinctive and packed with flavor, nuance, and drinkability, as well as being stylistically accommodating. I sure hope they do this again some time.

2017 is the year of the Pils!

 

That looks very tempting to be sure.

 

Gotcha man! I see more of my local distributor than of my wife and I've still not see High Westified. Of course, since Marty took over, the craft selection is up to 270 variaties at what was
mostly a BMC distributor.

 

Maybe no better time than today - to give us a supporting or contrasting opinion to digest

 

Love that beer, have a growler in fridge right now picked up Friday. Suarez is the best brewery in NYS right now.

 

Greetings and Happy Easter, NBS!

I enjoy the challenge of keeping my bottle opener away from beers that are capable of aging to see what happens with time - yesterday I bit the bullet and bought a four-pack of 120 Minute since it's available in Ohio now and says right on the front "ages well". Of course I had to try one fresh but the rest is now well hidden with the hopes of trying a bottle every two years.



That brings us to today's beer - one I haven't been quite as patient with given its high score but I made it a year... the 2016 version of Jackie O's Oro Negro. I haven't had this beer at all previously but I've seen some on the shelves recently and whether it's a new 2017 or still 2016 I'll be buying and aging more as this is fantastic and still tastes very young.

It pours a pitch black with a thin head that disappeared surprisingly fast. I hate writing notes that include descriptors I read on the label but in this case everything matches perfectly and there are no synonyms for anything: a base of their Oil of Aphrodite stout (brewed with walnuts) further infused with cacao nibs, vanilla beans, oak staves, habaneros and cinnamon sticks. Both the aromas and flavors match that. The only thing I don't particularly get is the cinnamon. The habanero is there in flavor only, no heat. Full-bodied but no alcohol head, nicely balanced. Many beers are so delicious they're quaffable but this is one that begs you to sit and sip it slowly to enjoy over as much time as possible. Overall when scoring it I went with a 4 appearance but 4.5 the rest of the stretch ending up with an overall 4.47 rDev +0.2%. If you can find this, definitely give it a try, hopefully with a little age.
Cheers!

 

Happy Easter and New Beer Sunday!

My new beer is actually a mistake...I got a bottle to go at the brewery yesterday, and didn't check to ensure I was given the correct one. I would not have tried, let alone purchased an ale with flavors I'm not partial to - ginger and honey...with that said, I'm pleasantly surprised:

Ardent Craft Ales, Richmond VA. Bourbon Barrel Aged Honey Ginger 11.5% Released 11/29/16



Bronze deep amber and somewhat opaque; quick off white cap, with clarity underneath; ring with a little lace. 4.0



Ginger and honey nose with bourbon notes. 4.25

Ginger and honey, neither overpowering; sweet but not cloying; ginger on the exhale; bourbon oak and lite vanilla in the finish. 4.25

Almost medium body, but the high carbonation gives this Ale a lite zippy easy drinking feel; some dryness but not wooden. 4.25

Overall, it's hard to believe that this high gravity beer is so lite and fun to drink; I don't generally like honey or ginger, but the balance, the barrel and the bourbon compliment rather than complete. I'm glad I had this happy beer. 4.25

Have a great Sunday, we are headed off to the parade! Cheers from Richmond!

 

At some point, I need an explanation as to what these edible Christ's ears thingies are.

 

Ya know, I was thinking the same thing. I do have one cold, and I'm about to walk to the fridge to make my first NBS beers selection for the day. Maybe I'll raise a little ruckus with this one.

 

Happy Easter to the NBS crew and a big thank you to @lordofthewiens for a very respectful opening today. I'm back after missing last week due to a mountain of things that needed to get done around here. The weather has been extremely wet and uncooperative which just compounds the workload by the week. I'm going to sneak one in as I smoke some pork tenderloins on the Primo this morning. Let's get on to the beer!

I'm kicking things off with this 500ml bottle of Hill Farmstead Earl coffee oatmeal stout that @jhavs sent a little while back. The abv. is 7.2% and the bottle date appears to read 12/8/16. I'm pouring this mystery in my 14oz. dailyware stout glass for the occasion.

Pours a medium thick dark brown leaving a mountainous three fingers of mocha colored foam after a conservative pour. It lingers around and eventually yields some thick lacing. The smell is coffee, dark roasted malt, chocolate and some mild char. Taste is coffee, bakers chocolate, molasses, dates, tobacco, leather and some char. The feel is oily and creamy with a mouth coating smoothness.



This is big bodied and flavorful with a very pleasant feel. It tastes bigger than the 7.2, but the creamy smoothness makes it quite easy to drink. A fine stout from a world class brewer that I'm ecstatic I got to try. My score is 4.23 / rDev-0.2%. Thanks Jon for sending this my way!

Time to check the meat that's been going for a couple of hours now.



Have a great Easter Sunday! Here's the official scorecard.....

https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/22511/61741/?ba=Prager62#review

 

Happy New Beer Sunday! Today I have a good one, Petit Ferme from Draai Laag


4.25/5 rDev +4.4%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

Look- murky amber liquid, huge Beige soapy head that finally settled to about 1 finger after 5 minutes of staggered pouring. This bottle opened with such a loud "pooffffttt" that I thought it was gonna gush.

Smell- super crisp and black peppery must transitions quickly and smoothly into orange fruitiness and tartness

Taste- follows the nose, starting with that crisp bretty funk blending into mild orange tartness. Ends lightly bitter

Feel- light to medium bodied with bone-dry finish owing to the high carbonation

Overall- not too complex but with very pleasant flavors that blend together quite nicely. The lighter flavors and crisp finish make this a very refreshing and enjoyable brew.

 

Garden Stretch a White IPA from Twin Elephant. This beer is brewed with 4 grains, Pilsner Malt, Wheat, Oats and Rye. 3 hops are used Waimea, Jarrylo and Hallertan Blanc. Orfange Zest is added in the kettle and American yeast is used. The brew looks pretty much like any other white IPA except it's a bit hazy. The aroma is not just of oranges but also pears and i hint of banana. The taste is just about the same but has traces of other fruits that i can't name. A very enjoyable beer on a warm and sunny afternoon.

 

The place I go is definately stocking a hell of a lot more locals. They're fresher, easier to control inventory and sometimes a bit less expensive. I can see a point here when Stone beers and the like will get a bit of age on them because of the locals push. But overall the over lap is significant, you can't easily sell 8-9 month old IPA or 15 month German imports.

 

Not sure how you have this knack to choose beers others are also having...

Looks like a fair amount of agreement on this one. Not like I'd avoid any HF beer I came across, but this one sounds like a choice one if I had to choose.

 

Good Afternoon all and Happy Easter!! Thanks to @lordofthewiens for the wonderful start to the day. Today I am trying a new beer that was sent to me by @Ozzylizard during NBS BIF#5 it is from Stoudts Brewing Scarlet Lady ESB I do not see a bottle date I also do not see an ABV level but according to BA it clocks in at 5%. This beer was very drinkable and had very balanced flavors, although the malts did stand out more than the other flavors. Thanks again sir!!

Appearance 4 - Pours deep copper color with thin quickly dissipating off white head. Spotty lacing all around the glass.

Aroma 3.75 - Light malt aroma mixed with some floral notes. Caramel finishes off the nose.

Taste 4 - Nice malty, slightly bitter nutty flavor. There are mild flavors of caramel and some floral flavors as well. All the flavors other than the malts are well balanced, the malts do not over power but are more prominent.

Feel 4 - Medium body soft carbonation, pretty dry finish, bitterness lingers a bit.

Overall 3.94 - A solid ESB, great flavors well balanced a very easy drinking beer.

 

Of all I miss about Minnesota, after Little O, Schell's tops the list. Just a wonderful brewery, IMHO.

 

Happy NBS and Easter from WI. A ridiculously nice weekend with upper 70's yesterday and 70 today with loads of sunshine. I also took Friday off and managed to fine a "new" 2014 Chevy Equinox, which I am very excited about. My old 2006 Saturn Vue was in need of some work, which I didn't feel was worth putting into it.

Anyway, enough with the boring stuff, and on to an amazing new beer. Every since Surly started distributing to WI about 2 years ago, I knew that I was going to be spoiled. I think their barrel aged program along with Central Waters is one of the best in the country.

Case in point, BA Darkness 2015. It pours a pitch black with a thin 1 finger deep tan head that quickly fades away and leaves no lacing behind. The aroma is simply marvelous with rich malts, fudge, rye whiskey, vanilla, sweet caramel, dark chocolate and marshmallow. There is an explosion of all those dessert flavors... Massive roasted malts, plenty of dark chocolate brownie fudge loaded with caramel. Vanilla and rye whiskey move in to to finish it off. Velvety smooth and rich full mouthfeel that is slightly sweet. I unintentionally let this sit for 1.5 years, but damn if it isn't a wonderful beer that rivals my favorites from Central Waters.



Cheers and I wish you all the best of days!

 

Surprise. I decided it was finally time to check out this brew. I've had it in my fridge for a little while. Just so many fresh hops I wanted to work my way through first. @Ozzylizard drank and reviewed the same beer earlier in post #9 in this thread, if you'd like to read a little more on it



Piney River's Raise a Ruckus.

Pours black with a finger of khaki-caramel colored foam. Head retention is fair with a few strings of lacing left behind. Aroma is roasted malts right up front with toasted malts, coffee, and vanilla bean sprinkled through the remainder of the aroma. Flavor profile is a stout first - with notes of roasted and toasted malts at about a 70/30 ratio. Vanilla beans and medium-roasted coffee swell up towards the finish of the flavor profile boosting the complexity and enjoyment of sipping on this beer. Coffee has a dark chocolate quality to it. Mouth feel is medium in thickness with a slight grain to what is otherwise a velvety, creamy texture. Overall, a fantastic imperial stout that focuses on straight forward quality stout notes with coffee and vanilla bean added to sweeten up the finish of this beer.

Score: 4 | 4.25 | 4.25 | 4.25 | 4.5 | BA Score: 4.24 | rDev: +5.7%

Personal notes: I love coffee. So much so that I tend to rate beers that focus on coffee over beer higher than others around these parts, but I found this beer extremely refreshing despite it not being completely dominated by coffee notes. It doesn't rely on a bold coffee note that smothers out the malts for flavor, and yet it still presents coffee notes extremely well. No charring, burning, or coffee bitter, not something I can say about too many imperial stouts with coffee either. It's a straight forward stout from the start of both the aroma and flavor profile with a delightful crescendo into coffee notes. Well played.

 

Schell's Lagers are really good when I compare them to New Glarus. Thanks for the review!