New Beer Sunday (Week 673)

Hello New Beer Sunday!!!

Any new year's resolutions? Nope! I will continue to do my best to be my best, and do my best to enjoy life.

A cute gal would be nice for the new year, though.

Now, today was amazing. My nephew had his Eagle Scout Court of Honor today, and I was SO proud of him. I, along with everyone else there choked up when he gave his late grandpa, my dad, a pin (to my mom), to symbolize his support and guidance in achieving the Eagle. And, yes, I am choking up writing this part.

I am so proud of my nephew, and am so proud of the man he's become. I think I am the luckiest guy in the world to have him in my life.

The drive home, and back to work was total hell. White out conditions, slippery roads, traffic, numerous accidents. It took about an 45 minutes longer than normal to get back home. It was bad, and it took a while to stop shaking from the drive. But it was so worth it to to go to to the Court of Honor.

Well, now on to the beer.

On the way to the ceremony, I decided to stop at Wild Mind in south Minneapolis to pick up some new beers. Why, not, it really wasn't out of the way. I would have loved to have a pint there, but I just didn't have the time.

So, here's a beer I picked up, and my first new beer of the night.

Silla Vanilla Smoked Sour from Wild Mind. 5.4% ABV.

Smoked Sour???? What the hell???

Well, let me tell you, this is amazing! The flavors - smoke, vanilla, sour, funky, really work very well together in this package. Such an amazing beer.

4.42/5 rDev 0%

I'll be back later with one more. Might also be something I picked up today.
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

This beer pours a very light golden color, almost white. VERY murky. No head, but there's carbonation bubbles in the glass.
The nose is funky, sour, and a hint of smoke. Slight vanilla note also.
Taste - WOW! So many flavors! Funky. Sour. Smoke. Vanilla. These flavors would not seem to be able to work together, but they do!
Mouthfeel is moderate. There's a slight carbonation feel.
As I said before, you wouldn't think that the flavors described could work together, but they do, and they do amazingly. This beer isn't for everyone, but if you are at all a fan of what I described, get it if you can.

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I'll be back later for one more, and, maybe, another beer I picked up today.

 

Been spending some time catching up around the house today, and now time to relax a bit and enjoy a new beer while watching the end of the Saints / Vikings.

Full disclosure that I tried this one on draft a week or two back, but spending time today for the review.

Today’s new beer is Westbrook’s Seventh Anniversary - a stout with chocolate and sea salt. The chocolate comes out in spades. I don’t get much sea salt but it may be helping enhance the other flavors.

Highly recommended.



Poured from 22 oz bomber

A: Dark black with 1-2 finger dense mocha head. Lasting retention and moderate lacing.

S: Milk chocolate shake and rich fudge brownies. Hints of vanilla.

T: Bold chocolate flavors with a mash up of fudge brownies, Hersey’s syrup, and chocolate chip cookies. The sea salt is not readily apparent but maybe helping to enhance the chocolate flavors.

M: Full bodied with average carbonation. Finish is sweet and a little dry.

O: Excellent stout. Westbrook has been doing a nice job with their anniversary beers.

 

New Beer Sunday: A New Belgian-style Strong Dark Ale

Evenin’ NBSers with an alert to those who enjoy the BSDA style of beers.

The weather here today was mostly clear and cold as the temperatures have more or less finished their slide back to below freezing from a high in the low 60s on a rainy Friday. Finished the chores and errands and have even had a chance to watch most of the Vikings-Saints game, including those exciting, almost unbelievable last couple of minutes that included an obligatory but meaningless final kick that brought the game to an end.

This evening’s new beer is the Siren’s Song, a BSDA from Ommegang.

As usually my review, subject to change until I finish the beer, can be found here:

https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/42/255363/?ba=drtth#review


The aromas/flavors on this beer include some dark fruits and a toasted, almost burnt, dark caramel character. The beer definitely changes its aroma/flavor profile with warming and the fruity, caramel sweetness are both nicely balanced as they fade to a lightly spicy, lightly bitter, lightly dry ending.

Tonight’s original cast recording of an American Musical is Sweet Charity. The original cast included Helen Gallagher and Thelma Oliver.

Big Spender

Cheers, all!

 

#2, as a Vikings’ fan since 1970, I don’t even know what to say. I’m literally in tears. And the beer is pretty phenomenal, too - I was drinking it and writing the review below as the end of the game developed. I am a dedicated beer nerd.



4.27/5 rDev 0%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

Jet black pour, creamy tan head, just a gorgeous beer. The first note on the nose is a rich cocoa aroma, with a big whiff of the barrel, and some stone fruit.

The taste is a rich, luxurious cocoa with a velvety creamy feel. The barrel appears at the end of the taste, and there’s the slightest bit of stone fruit. Outstanding beer, IMHO.

 

Moving right along:

Excellent session IPA! Awesome lasting head retention and soapy lacing on the glass. Aromas and flavors of big grapefruit, tangerine, pineapple, peach, passionfruit, papaya, mango, melon, berry, lemon zest, orange peel, light pepper, and pine hops; with moderate honey, lightly toasted bread malts; and herbal, floral, grassy hop earthiness. Light-moderate pine, citrus peel, grassy, spicy bitterness on the finish. Medium carbonation/body, and moderately crisp finishing. Balanced bready/grainy malts and sticky hops in the mouthfeel. Light-moderate increasing bitter dryness, no hop astringency. Refreshingly drinkable, 5%. One of the best Session IPAs I have had. Really nice dank/vibrant hop complexity and a nice malt backbone for the low ABV. Never overly aggressive. Probably something like Simcoe/Mosaic/Columbus going on here, some nice Munich presence to boost the body. Would definitely buy again. 4.08


Awesome Red IPA. Fantastic lasting head retention and thick soapy lacing on the glass. Aromas and flavors of big tangerine, peach, apricot, pineapple, grapefruit, mango, melon, lemon zest, orange peel, light pepper, and pine hops; with balanced caramel, brown sugar, brown bread, toasted biscuit, and light nutty malts; and herbal, floral, grassy hop earthiness. Light-moderate pine, citrus peel, herbal, grassy, spicy bitterness on the finish. Medium carbonation and medium-plus body; balanced creamy/bready malt and sticky hops in the mouthfeel. Light resins/rinds, increasing bitter dryness, no hop astringency. Super smooth, 6.3%. Really juicy and lightly dank hop complexity; sizable dark/bready malt backbone, but never overly sweet/heavy. Adequate dryness. This just tastes like Simcoe/Centennial, Crystal/Vienna/Munich malts probably. Delicious. Will definitely keep seeking out more from this brewery when I go back to Ohio. Opened a year ago. Very impressed so far. 4.13


Mixed ferment saison. This was amazing! Aromas and flavors of big lightly tart lemon, lime, peach, pear, melon, pineapple, red/green apple, white grape, white wine, berries, hay, straw, grass, oak, and pepper; with moderate wheat, rye, white bready malts; and lighter notes of oaken vanilla, banana, clove, leathery/musty funk, and white wine vinegar. Light-moderate yeast/oak/rye spiciness and light lactic tartness on the finish. Medium carbonation/body; balanced creamy/grainy malt, lactic acid, and oak tannin in the mouthfeel. Light-moderate increasing lactic/spicy/tannic dryness, zero puckering/astringency. Super drinkable, 6%. Absolutely wonderful well rounded Brett/Lacto/Hefe/Saison yeast complexity; nice pale/rye malt backbone, and great oak presence too. This is top tier stuff! 4.35


Cheers, have a good night NBS.

 

The ending of that game was definitely one for the history books.

We'll see your guys next weekend in Philly.

 

Saranac Irish Red Ale

The recent Saranac thread inspired me to pick this up. Glad I did. The color is actually a lot lighter than it looks in the pic. Much more like copper than the brown/black seen above. Of course in beer terms, this somehow translates to "red." If red ales weren't called red ales, it's hard to imagine anyone actually describing many of them as being "red" in color... but that's not our beer-reality. It is what it is.

In the past, most Saranac beers that I had I would have put in the "OK" camp. This one really worked for me, but I also think that I "really needed a beer" when I opened it. Readers need to deduct 2 points from my imaginary no points review due to reviewer desire.

The crystal malt is really apparent. There's some caramel flavor, but it's miraculously not sweet. The finish is dry and the overall impression is one of light toast. I can imagine people not really digging this one, 'cause it's rather simple and more importantly, it's incredibly unassertive. This beer is relaxed. IBUs are 17 but thanks to the lack of big competing flavors, I get some really nice herbal hops balancing things out. I'd love to slip this one into a blind Oktoberfest tasting.

That reminds me of the recent British/German related styles thread. There was some discussion about the history of British pale ale intersecting with the birth of Vienna lager. "Irish red ale" is related to bitter (if not actually synonymous depending on who you talk to)... and Vienna lager is related to the Oktoberfest Marzen... so then logically speaking, an "Irish red" could have some relationship to Oktoberfest Marzen (even if slight). Hmmm? I could still run out and buy the six pack of Sierra Nevada Oktoberfest that I saw today in the store and compare it to the Saranac Irish red. Nahhhh.

Cheers.

 

Mine got crushed when a glass shelf collasped, lost about 10 glasses...

 

Ok, second, and final new beer today. It is another I picked up at Wild Mind, and another new entry into the system.


Mirabelle: Blackberry.

It is a Barrel Aged American Wild Ale according to the bottle. So, what does the survey say?

Damn delicious.

It really doesn't drink like a 6.2% beer. It drinks like a light, refreshing juice. So easy drinking, though I am taking it slow, to enjoy it.

3.94/5 rDev 0%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

This beer pours a very dark red color. No head. Some carbonation bubbles in the glass.
The nose is slightly funky. Slight berry aroma. Really a juicy aroma.
Taste - very interesting It is very light flavor, but rich in flavor, if that makes sense. It has a nice blackberry flavor, but it is also mellow. There's a slight "wild" flavor to this beer, but the fruit is forward. It also has really no alcohol flavor to it. It tastes like juice.
Feel - Actually fairly full bodied. Sight carbonation feel.
This is a very interesting beer. It really just drinks like juice., but it is a damn good beer.

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This will be it for tonight. I will see you all next Sunday for the next New Beer Sunday!!!

 

Empyrean Winter Wisdom Hazelnut Brown Ale, 5.3% ABV, 18 IBU. Pours dark brown with a one finger off-white head. Aroma is malt and hazelnut, taste follows, with a hint of sweetness, and very little bitterness. Outstanding mouthfeel and excellent overall.

 

Omnipollo Noa

I'm gonna let loose a little. I suppose this can be considered a "pastry stout" since the commercial description of the beer is as follows: "When I was 12 I dreamed of becoming a pastry chef. Call this a creative outlet. Thick, rich and excessively decadent, this beer aims to bring back childhood memories. Brewed with aromas."

Not that the actual beer can really says anything... but in a way, it actually says more than most bottles/cans. The other side of the can states: "imperial stout with natural & artificial flavors & artificial caramel color added." I doubt such ingredients are exceptional, it's just that most packages don't list them." (I mentioned this beer in another thread on the topic of coloring.) If you go online, you'll see that this beer is also known as "Noa Pecan Mud (Cake)." Not sure what that means.

This beer turns the tables. Most beers would put "pecan" or whatever nonsense (marshmallow, maple, etc.) on the label and leave out the artificial flavors bit (as long as there aren't laws making them). This one is so backwards from the norm that it's really weird.

This beer packs a punch. There's a background metallic taste. It's burnt and ashy. Tastes of charred caramel and unsweetened chocolate. The aroma is very sweet (like a caramel topped fudge dessert) but the flavor of the beer isn't sweet. Only when you taste it do you realize that the pastry got burnt in the oven.

I love the packaging switcheroo. I can't help but think that folks in the future might look back on all this like we were crazy. Not that it's entirely bad being crazy though.

 

I wouldn't want to see the likely look on your face that day.

 

If your for a little side by side action (wait.. that might sound weird), bring one next month and I'll reserve some pFriems. Might be a tad old, but could still be fun!

Just as long as you drop it off. Not looking for company .

 

Was more stunned than anything...

 

Magnificent! And I bet they taste better than they look!

 

Trappistes #8. Pours a cloudy orange/brown. Heavy thick feel, decent amount of carbonation with a mild bite on the finish. Aroma is dark dried fruit, yeast, and some malt. . Taste follows aroma, a little sweet but not sickly sweet. Overall there's nothing to complain about with this beer. Really well done and something I would definitely revisit

 

I would rather have KBS and a handful of Prairie offerings. Had Prairie Noir last night and thought it had more flavors than the Ten Fidy. I wasn't disapointed in the beer just thought it was slightly one dimensional. Personally, I would rather have some sort of adjunct in a stout, and maybe that is part of my slight let down.

 

My wedding anniversary is June 22!
Good luck with accomplishing your other goal of 100 reviews as well!

 

Williams = Buckner?

 

I may not sleep between now and then.