New Beer Sunday (Week 679)

Good Morning NBS, hope everyone enjoys the end of yet another weekend. Thanks to @cjgiant for getting us started off this morning. To answer your question I listen to music pretty much all the time. It keeps my sanity in check, I wouldn't even be able to work in an office without it. All prog metal for me. I like the complicated stuff.

Looking to be another nice milder weather day today, but windy. Will be doing my normal errands for the day: bottle returns, laundry, and a grocery run. Maybe some catch up work for tomorrow, I have a report due tomorrow and need to double check my data. Going to be another busy week. Got another big morning review today:

This was fantastic! Minimal head retention and lacing as expected. Aromas and flavors of big milk/dark chocolate, cocoa, caramel, toffee, fudge, almonds, vanilla, bourbon, toasted oak, brown sugar, maple syrup, and dark bread; with lighter notes of molasses, coconut, raisin, cherry, fig, date, licorice, smoke, and pepper. Slight booze in the aromas as it warmed. Light roast bitterness and bourbon/oak tannin spiciness on the finish. Medium carbonation and very full body; very creamy/silky, and lightly slick/sticky/chalky/tannic mouthfeel. Mildly increasing dryness from bourbon/oak tannin spiciness, no cloying sweetness. Mildly increasing warmth of 16.7%, minimal barrel booziness. A smooth but slow sipper. This is basically just Black Tuesday with almonds and vanilla. Nails everything I expected out of it. Rich malts and balanced almond/vanilla flavors; amazing barrel integration as usual. Never overly boozy, tannic, or drying. Bruery stouts always seem to have a class of their own on the flavor profile. Not as deeply roasty or charred on black/roasted malts like some others; but still extremely rich and complex. Right on par with the days of the week ones I've had, but Chocolate Rain is still way above any of them. I will need to revisit that soon, I have one in the cellar. 4.2


Cheers, be back much later on with more reviews

 

Mornin' NBSers and @cjgiant.

Without realizing it was an anniversary NBS day I've come prepared to celebrate the occasion. For a variety of reasons today will be a two beer New Beer Sunday (some reasons are weather related), and I'm expecting both beers to reinforce my belief that NBS is a great thread to pay some attention to and to participate in.

About 2 weeks ago, @CanConPhilly talked about a new beer he’d found in Philly from Foreign Objects, called In The Gold Dust Rush. Not too many days ago I found that beer and one other (both still fairly fresh) from Foreign Objects in a local bottle shop. I immediately bought a can of each of the two since from his description the In The Gold Rush beer sounded worth giving a try. (I did pay a couple of bits more for each of my cans, but didn’t mind the extra. Since I’ve been doing a lot of work from home lately I don’t get into the Center City and the University City areas of Philly as much as I used to and a round trip train fare would have cost me more than the extra I paid for the two beers. Also, based on his comments about the Foreign Objects beers, @CanConPhilly has provided me a good excuse to tell someone that I spent more money than I normally might have on a couple of cans of beer since at least one of beers came highly recommended. )

So I expect to be back to the Anniversary Celebration later today with reports on two new Foreign Objects beers.

Cheers, all!

 

Howdy, NBSers!

After about a three-week spell of general laziness, I finally got going again late this week to the point that MUSIC suddenly seemed like a good idea again. Craig asked about music-beer relationships, and there's definitely one in my life. It's generally a music-beer-housework trio for me, which is what I got cranking a couple hours ago after the late shift.

The beer this early Sunday morning was this one:

No Label's Irish Red

I've very little experience with the Irish red ale, so my review is likely naive at best. No Label's version has plenty of malt in it, and you can especially tell in the nose — aromas of bread, peach, fruitcake, plums and dates with the bread malt base being steady and peach/fruity sweetness joining it most often. The "darker" notes of plum/dates showed up late after it had warmed.

The flavor is much more earthy but not what I would call medicinal, so it comes off like a nicely building dirt-hop note. As it warms, some malt sweetness shows up ... very light molasses, burnt brown sugar and at times even some fruity peach/apricot or apricot kolache.

The review:
https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/24326/329963/?ba=Premo88#review
3.67 (0.0 rDev — mine is the first review)

The bottling code on the bottom of the bottle suggests the beer was bottled in July, but the brewery didn't put this beer on the market until early February, so I'm thoroughly confused about that code. The beer has a slight creamed corn note in the flavor, and generally that bit of DMS tends to grow over time in my experience, meaning I doubt this beer is six months old. The DMS isn't that bad yet.

Hope everybody finds a good one to try today!

Cheers!

 

A nationally distributed NEIPA!?! Is it possible!?!

Boston Beer Company (Sam Adams) just recently created a beer they brand as Sam Adams New England IPA. I just saw this beer at my local beer retailer so I figured I would buy a 4-pack and see how this beer tastes.

There is a lot of belief by BAs that the so called ‘NE’ style IPA can only be properly produced by small, local breweries and must be consumed very quickly (e.g., a matter of weeks from packaging). A number of breweries that ‘specialize’ in producing these sorts of beers sell their canned beers directly from their breweries. Some examples are Trillium, Tree House, Tired Hands,…

Below is a description of this beer I found via a web search:

“Developed in Sam Adams' experimental nanobrewery in Boston, New England IPA is a medium-bodied, unfiltered brew with a slight sweetness that is perfectly balanced by the unique combination of Mosaic, Citra, Galaxy, Simcoe and Cascade hops. The hops bring a big fruited pineapple and grapefruit hop character to the beer, and at 35 IBUs, the brew is neither bitter nor harsh on drinkers' palates. At 6.8% ABV, the unfiltered IPA is a mouth-watering refresher with a smooth, clean finish that leaves drinkers wanting another sip.”

https://www.prnewswire.com/news-rel...azy-new-england-ipa-nationwide-300600435.html

One of the challenging aspects in discussing the so called ‘NE’ style IPA is that there is no agreed upon definition of this sort of beer (i.e., no style definition in the BJCP Style Guidelines, no style definition in the Brewers Association Beer Style Guidelines,…)

I have opined in a number of past BA threads my thoughts on this topic. Below is a copy of something I have posted previously:

My crack at defining the attributes/qualities for the so called 'NE' style IPA:

• Low/moderate bitterness
• A turbid/murky/opaque appearance
• A soft/velvety mouthfeel
• A quality that some (many?) folks like to describe using the terminology of "juicy"

So, I will drink a can of Sam Adams New England IPA with the above criteria in mind.

Served in my Gulden Draak tulip glass:

Appearance:

Golden colored with a turbid/murky/opaque appearance. There is a BIG fluffy white head.

Aroma:

There is a combination of tropical fruits and citrus with the tropical fruit aromas being dominant.

Taste:

The flavor follows the nose with tropical fruit flavors accompanied with some citrus. This beer has a quality that some folks would describe using the word “juicy”. There is a low/moderate bitterness.

Mouthfeel:

There is a soft mouthfeel.

Overall:

I think this beer is very good.


So, needless to say but this beer is consistent with the criteria I itemized above and to boot it is a tasty beer. I would not state this beer is the equivalent of a beer from Tree House, Trillium, Tired Hands, Bissell Brothers,… but it has the benefits of:

· You do not have to wait in a line at a brewery to purchase this beer

· I paid less than $12 for this 4-pack while the beers from the aforementioned breweries are typically in the high teens for a 4-pack of their beers

FWIW my favorite distributed so called ‘NE’ style IPA is Thomas Hooker #NO FILTER New England India Pale Ale but at $16 a 4-pack the Sam Adams New England IPA wins the ‘bang for the buck’ award.

The cans have a date of “APR 2018” on the bottom. I am guessing that they are communicating the beer is best by beginning/end of April 2018. I will save one can and drink it April 1st (an appropriate date?) and see whether this beer holds up for a period of months.

Cheers to the brewers of Boston Beer Company for producing a high quality ‘NEIPA’!

@KOP_Beer_OUtlet @rotsaruch @chipawayboy @Sixpoint @SierraTerence

 

Wow you guys and gals! I can't believe this thread has been going for 13 years! Some people think that the number 13 is unlucky but I don't because today for NBS 13th anniversary I have a beer that was sent to me by our very own @TongoRad and @cavedave ! I never get to participate in the BIF's and this box comes to me as the spoils from a BIF contest here on BA. Thank you so much Michael and Dave for thinking of me. Thank you @cjgiant for getting us started today.

My beer today is from Catskill Brewery. The brewery is very young , only about 4 years old and I have a huge crowler of their Ball Lightning Pilsner. Happy Lucky 13 Sunday!



This beer pours like a perfect gold bar rendered into my glass. Bright and perfectly clear. A fat head of white foam adorns it sweetly and lasts well. The whole cone saaz hops are generously floral but not sharp. they are light billowy grasses with a fresh almost minty coolness. The malt is stalwart and tremendously breaddy. Just golden bread crust on a soft white bread. This is one of the cleanest pilsners I have ever observed. There is nary a hint of DMS on it. Most pilsners have some. No diacetyl, no acetaldehyde. The beer drinks so lightly. The bubbles tease you but don't bite they only prick you a little ans they burst softly in the finish. Those hops are as sensual on the palate as on the nose and they fill up the middle of the beer with sweet softness. Fine billowy grasses that are just sweetly herbal and fresh. A crisp German style bitterness finishes this one cleanly and without too much lollygagging to leave you with more bread than you thought! No fruity flavors at all. Just soft succulence form hops that cannot outlast the malt.

For food pairings to celebrate this wonderful surprise gift i thought I would try my hand at making New York style bagels to go with this new York style beer. Then this afternoon I am going to pair it with home made egg rolls!

 

I agree with you on the Thomas Hooker #NoFilter choice. Not sure if you’ve seen this yet, but Whole Foods has started carrying it, and at the 2 nearest to me it’s only $13 a 4-pack. So even on value, #NoFilter can compete.

 

Cold, wet morning, so . . .





Score 4.03
look: 3.75 | aroma: 3.75 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Dark reddish brown brew with solid tan cap.

Scent of roasted malt with an accompanying hit of bright coffee. Rather rich scent with an overriding but not intrusive scent of spice and floral.

Taste on entry is a nicely combined group of flavors that echo the scent but paint it in broader strokes. Just more in all respects. I get the spice in the scent and the chocolate emerges mid palate like a solo singer that takes center stage briefly then recedes back into the chorus. I get the chili as almost a high note in the middle that goes away then reappears in the aftertaste.

Full texture with balancing carbonation.

Brewer says this is an Imperial oatmeal stout brewed with coffee, chocolate, cinnamon and chili peppers. It's that and a bit more, fairly complex for a flavored Stout in that everything promised is there and works together in harmony.

 

Can’t wait to read your thoughts! I’m sure your prose will be better written than mine, ha.

Also, I hope the other Foreign Objects can you found is Mind/Body/Light/Sound. Still searching for a beer that I like better than that one in 2018.

 

Havent' seen MBLS yet. The second one, waiting quietly in the fridge, is What We All Want.

 

Thanks for that tip. I bought a 4-pack a few weeks ago at Capone's and the price was $16.

How often do you see it available at Whole Foods?

Cheers!

 

#NoFilter has been there the last 3-4 weeks. I pop in once a week to see if they’ve stocked anything new. Hard to beat Whole Foods on price in the city!

 

A week ago my wife and I went to TJs Everyday (Paoli) for beers/dinner. They had three FO beers on tap: In the Gold Dust Rush, Mind/Body/Light/Soul and What We All Want. I asked the bartender for three taste/sample pours. I liked all three but the 'winner' for me was What We All Want. I ordered a pint of this beer. I thought it was a very good beer.

The only downside was the price; over 7 bucks for a pint.

Cheers!

 

I am very fortunate that a good friend of mine has a kid who goes to school in Boston and has been bringing me Tree House beers, this time Julius. Had this beer after midnight so it qualifies for NBS. First off, ignore the pour as the can fell out of the refrigerator and rolled just before pouring. That being said, Julius looks like fresh squeezed orange juice ( just a slightly lighter orange) with a fluffy white head that left lacing all the way down the glass. Smells of incredible tropical fruits and orange. Tastes of peach, mango, ripe pineapple, clementines and a hint of sweet malt. Virtually no bitterness. Medium to full bodied, light but lively carbonation, creamy mouth feel. Just an awesome beer that lived up to the hype.

 

5 new beers rated 4% Higher than BAs
Leo V. Ursus: Wookus | Firestone
4.4/5 rDev +6%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5
16oz can from Park Slope Brooklyn co-op (best prices) poured into a snifter.
a) Retention, lace clouds result from a pour of the dense black body, that pours forth with an active large brown head.
s) Abundant, dark roasted malt yields char, wood smoke, fall earth, transitioning to chocolate, coffee, and toast.
t) the taste follows the big aroma, and gets BIGGER, all the same flavors, PLUS a resinous piney hops, with dried, sugared citrus rind. Big see-saw, played out lovely game between sweet and bitter resin.
f) Mid body, creamy feel. The finish has bitter, cleansing pine that leaves your mouth kissed and satisfied.
o) Battle of sharp hops balancing sweet and mysterious dark roasted malts. This is beer at its best.

Pastiche | Allagash
4.34/5 rDev +5.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
Discovered at Threes in Brooklyn's Park Slope, which I suggest you discover.
Never disappointed by Allagash, but this one is over the top - rare and good.
a) No surprise it's dark reddish amber with creamy head that lasts and laces.
s) Amazingly no one barrel dominates and there's a complex twist of scents of wood, char, whiskey, wine on the amber sweet malt base. Sturdy.
t) More significant is the taste which raises the bar as it warms from whiskey barrel to wine cellar.
f) Creamy, serious, meditative. I'd enjoy more of this. Reminds me of my favorite strong ales like Arrogant Bastard.

Rye Fidelity | The Bronx
4.3/5 rDev +4.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25
Thrilled to be 3rd review of this new rye IPA from a great Bronx brewer that starts with the great minerally Adirondack water of NYC.
a) Hazed amber-apricot body that lifts a small white head and laces dots.
s) Wow, perfume, spice, pungent rye with malt back.
t) Strong bitterness that's tempered with citrus, tropical fruit, grass, hemp, and big, large scale, complex flavor. More hemp and hash and smoke that most DIPAs. Good and complex finish. Worth a conversation.
f) You feel cider, juicy, peppery, and strong finish along with the 8.1% ABV. A crisp, dry, warm finish.
o) Nice when a brewer knows its expertise and amplifies it. A Rye great.


Pale Sour Ale | Brewery Ommegang
4.2/5 rDev +4%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25
Snifter of sunshine, earth, grass, and orchard rows.
a) Bright, shiny golden body with slight haze. White fizzy head that lasts, rings, and massively laces like ocean water.
s) Nose has a better than white wine astringent fruit aroma of grapes, green apples, yeast, cider house.
t) Follows the smell but grows more complex. See saw of sweet and sour, better than any astringent wine could do.
Great apertif. I could have another. like a white wine, lighter, and the fruit sours at just the right progression.
f) Wine like, minerally gentle prickle, bright cleansing bubbles, that finish long and scrubbing with a wine, dry, light, sun-baked conclusion.
o) Complex and complete. I enjoyed it more as it warmed.

Kalifornia Kolsch | Magnolia
3.83/5 rDev +4.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.75
Approachable, sessionable, clean, but sweet Kolsch.
a) On the run at Uncorked SFO airport. Pours a welcome lasting white creamy head that lasts and laces over fine bubbled clear golden body. Deserves a narrow cylinder Kolsch glass.
s) Weakest of its parts. Light, simple bready with hints of lemon. Too faint.
t) But the taste is on target with more of the crackery clean malt back ground and featuring bright lemon, floral top notes like an astringent wine, but in this case a fruity and off-dry one.
f) Palate feels creamy yet clean, sessionable. Would have another. Low ABV.
o) More sweetness than I would prefer, but otherwise fine effort. Feel like I'm in Cologne, or Koln alley.

 

Think I am going to sit this weekend out due to overdoing it yesterday, beer wise. As far as the topic goes I love listening to music while I drink. I was out of town yesterday or I would have joined in on WBAYDN. I don't think I have a certain musical preference while drinking. Most of musical posts are local Oklahoma country artists that really enjoy.