New Beer Sunday (Week 664)

That's an outstanding IPA. @FFFjunkie included one in his BIF #6 box for which I'm grateful!

 

New Amer. Barley Wine Sunday (Week 664)
Greetings again, NBSers, back with another beer and it is a bigggg one for sure. I have tried almost all avail. here from FW but this is my first time enjoying Helldorado. Why did I wait so long I now ask myself?

A clear amber and beautiful beer with a quick to flee finger of white foam. A swirl leaves oily legs of lace on the glass. Nice.

This is a caramel/toffee/honey bread dream of an aroma. Very full and extremely enticing.

Warming alcohol spice joins the simple mix of malty goodness advertised in the bouquet to create a deep taste that is perfectly balanced. Just the right hit of hoppy bitter keeps it from going off the rails.

Full bodied, highly viscous, low carb., and a long lingering finish that never cloys.

Really digging this beer, it is a clean wonder of sweet malty goodness that satisfies. Highly recommended.

Hope you also have a Great American Beer in your glass. Cheers!

 

Ian, your reviews are a constant for us regulars. Thank you for your dedication and skill at descriptive writing!

 

Hidey-ho!
I'm back for another beer. This is another one that I picked up from the monopoly man this morning. I am a bit wary of the date (BB: Summer 2019) since it is a hoppy beer but I'm anxious to try it either way. I adore hoppy Belgians when they're good!


Since I have never heard of it (which means nothing) and based on the label/logo (which might also mean nothing) I am guessing it is one of the bigger craft breweries. I could be wrong, though. @Shanex , do you know by chance?


This is a pretty nice beer. It reminds me of a slightly hoppier, less full/strong version of Duvel. Peppery yeast and herbal/citrusy hops and a generally pretty European hop presence. It is drinkable and very nice looking. None of it really pops and it feels a touch hollow flavor-wise. A nice beer that I'd have again, but it didn't really wow me, either.

Here is my review.

Also, I visited the brewery's site and it doesn't have tons of info, but does have a short clip of brewery and brewing ****.



Santé!

 

In an odd development, @jhavs has seen some Aslan stuff in Vermont. I asked the owners, and their answer was they have friends back there, and do some limited distro.

 

Swapping malts and coffee for hops and hops for round two of NBS.



Toppling Goliath's Pompeii.

Pours a cloudy, murky yellow-red with two fingers of white head. Head retention is good with lacing strewn about the glass after each sip. Aroma is dripping with tropical citrus notes - mango, orange, and papaya. Resin hop substantiates the aroma forming a more solid hop base. Flavor profile is orange, clementine, mango, melon, and papaya. Resin and herbal hops linger towards the back of the palate. Mouth feel is a touch thin, striking more of a medium-thin thickness. The thinness shows up with a sort of watery edge on the beer, killing the near crisp feel. Overall, an IPA that oozes tropical citrus that is both flavorful and smooth. No bitterness shows up, so a perfect brew for those seeking hop notes without a bitter bite. It's a straight forward citrus-centric IPA.

Score: 4 | 4.5 | 4.25 | 4 | 4.25 | BA Score: 4.29 | rDev: -1.2%

 

There may be someone(s) on the planet that likes mac 'n cheese as much as I do, but there is no one that likes it more. That pan in your pic is literally making me salivate.

 

Againsnt the Grain 70K Bourbon (?) Barrel Aged Imp Stout,tasted more like red wine casks. I liked it more than most, but would pass at over a buck an ounce if offered again


https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/26850/93510/?ba=russpowell#review

 

Vermont Beer Shepherd is the distributor that brings Aslan to Vermont.

http://vtbeershepherd.com/

I've met Will, one of the guys that works for VTBeerShepherd and other Vermonters know him also as a beertender at the Blackback in Waterbury.

And what I've had by Aslan, I have liked. Cheers to you for the fresh from the tap offerings.

 

Back at it here NBS players. In terms of cooking, I'm more of a grill/stove top guy. My fiance does more of the oven stuff but I have gotten better at it. I would say we have a pretty even split in terms of who does the cooking. We both have a number of dishes we like to make but it's mostly standard fare. If neither of us want to cook there's always pizza. Tonight we're having meatloaf.

My second new beer today is Overbite, black dipa, from Spider Biter brewing here on the island. The brew checks in at 11% abv, a 10/26/17 canning date, and it features simcoe and amarillo hops.

Slick black color, on the pour, with a frothy and lingering tan head. The nose is rather non-existent with subtle malt at best. A good mix of roasted chocolate malt, and bitter hops on the initial drinking. Slightly bitter on the flow and finish as well. The mouth feel is moderate with a rather crisp/refreshing feel to it. The abv goes by unnoticeable. The thing that sticks out here is the nice balance between the clashing hop/malt flavors. The hops add the bitter depth with pine and resin but any fruit notes are drowned out. The malts brings chocolate, smoke, vanilla, and roasted flavors while not being too heavy.

Overall, it's nothing game changing but I really enjoyed it. The clashing flavors are really straight forward and nice. The only downside is that 11% abv hides and can really sneak up on you. It's hitting me now as I finish it off. It use to be called Ale X when it was on tap so I'm not sure if I can even list it. Can you list the same beer, if it changes names? Somehow I never tried it on tap either. I'm in the 3.5/4 range at best here,

 

Thanks. It's only .2 L so I don't use it often. I don't know if it's a trend around the country, but the more craft that is distributed here, the less I see European classics. I have not seen Sinebrychoff here in several years. Cheers and hope you find some.

 

Rhinelander Good Ass Beer, 4.2% ABV. Pours the color of used beer, with a one finger white head. No perceptible nose, and taste follows - pretty watery and bland. Light carbonation, OK mouthfeel. Overall poor. The best that can be said is "inoffensive", and certainly not the worst tasting beer I've had. Ironically, Badass Beer is rated higher than Good Ass Beer. Rates only one "Dilly".

 

Happy New Belgian Strong Pale Ale Sunday!

Nice hazy day here on the Western Slope, 55 at the trailhead, had a few people on the trails today. Having a pretty tasty brew with some chicken tacos, and watching the falcons/cowboys game, Falcons just scored again.

https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/30450/100205/?ba=Wasatch#review

Cheers!

 

That trend is happening around here. You can still find plenty of great imports, especially Belgium abbey ales and German everything. But little by little they're dwindling, and the English pale ale family is first on the dwindling list.

 

Naw man, mine was the XIX last week as well; I just didn't think it was as horrible as you did. I am looking forward to cracking my XX soon. A store had the XIX sitting, and I was unaware of the issue. I have such big trust in North Coast not to check or worry about anything lol Cheers, glad to know it is up to par this year.

 

Lambic in mid November? Sure why not. I don't normally do this style this time of year, but since this is quite good and it is new to me:



The aroma plays with a fine blend of sweet peach flesh and a little bit of clean sour to tart skin. Light clean funk (somewhat grassy with a touch of lactic character).
The flavor brought the sweet peachy flesh forward toppling the funk to brighten some of the sour and tartness. Light sticky sour to tart peachy aftertaste.
The mouthfeel was about light to medium bodied with a fine sessionability about it. Carbonation felt good. ABV felt as projected. Finish was quite refined pulling the sour to the sweet side of the stickiness and playing with some acidic character that felt really nice.
Overall, very nicely done lambic with authentic peach character telling me that I would love to come back to this preferably in the Summer.

 

This beer is on my ISO list. Seriously. I bought a T-shirt, and it's the most awesome shirt. Cheap too.