New Beer Sunday (Week 684)

Good afternoon and happy New Berried Sunday, BAs. Had quite the family adventure yesterday after a bit of Spring Cleaning in the front and back yards. Kind of a mini last horrah(?) before the Frau goes back to work tomorrow. First, a wonderful hike on Canon Trail in Forest Park where the Trilliums are in full bloom, and the green has never seemed greener.









Then, on random luck, we stumbled across a secluded shore front of the Willamette River with wonderful views, shared only with a couple of kayakers. I assume these are remnants of some of the docks that once anchored the ships built for WWII.





And now for the beer…

Pelican Brewing
Berried At Sea Volume 1- Tsunami Export Stout with Currants and Blackberries





Though it appears at first glance to be as pitch black as a starless night lost in Davey Jones' Locker, there is an eerie colorful aspect to Berried At Sea lying in the depths. Above as well, actually. The foamy and rocky pillow on top flaunts an interesting pink/red/purple hue within the initially percieved dark brown cap, and its intricate webbing of lace shows it off just a bit more. And as the glass is swirled, those colors shine like waves of blackberry juice.



And as subtle as with the colors, the berries and currants exist beneath the base stout qualities once again. Roasted grain, charred bread, and an earthy damp soil splash around with a slightly metallic aroma before getting those raw, sweet, and tart berries to pop from below.

Then the opposite. Fresh, ripe berries, with a burst of sweet, then a lingering tartness bring in the first wave. Dark chocolate and heavily toasted bread follow. There is a percieved oakiness to it as well, though no indication on the bottle of such treatment. Kind of a red wine tannin if that helps.

Speaking of wine, this has a similar feel as a typical red table wine. Slightly thin for an export stout I would say, but it works well with the fruit additions. As mentioned before, this is sweet and tart, but hugs the line of bitter on balance due to the roasted character, and its 8.0% abv goes unnoticed in the long, very dry finish.

This might not be for everyone. I'd barely suggest it's for me, but it works. I enjoy it, though I don't think I would again. It seems more like two separate beers than one harmoniously blended, and to be perfectly frank, I'm just fine with the original Tsunami Stout.

After my official review, I gave Berried At Sea a rating if 3.84. Cheers.

 

Cjgiant and lordoftheweins are doing well carrying the torch and thanks for the commitment. This beer comes from BIF NBS and the generous @TongoRad, thanks Mike

Jack Abbey, Smoke and Dagger, a Rauchbier, malts are dried over open flames, imparting the smokiness! Pours a dark black with a khaki one finger head, recedes to a cap that sustains to the end. This is a great looking beer. Aroma is smoke, dark malt, taste follows with the smoke adding a complexity to this well made lager. I see why this style is a favorite of yours Mike.

 

I enjoyed this beer quite well. Have bought it a couple times.

 

New beer #3 (for me that is, I know it's common lol).



Look: Pours bright yellow to light orange, with 3 fingers of head (for this glass) on a non-aggressive pour. Relatively large bubbles, and the head dissipates fairly quickly. I guess the original Nugget wasn't supposed to be a full on NEIPA, but look at the photo here... This thing is murky as hell. (4.25)

Smell: Very tropical-fruity. Not as pungent compared as some of the other NEIPAs I've been having. (4)

Taste: Let me just start by saying: "I love this!" Follows the nose in the whole fruity thing, but then there is also this citrus taste to it as well. This, to me, is what a mass-produced NEIPA should taste like; it's a new reference point. (4.5)

Feel: Very nice for the style. Very juicy, medium-to-low-carbonated, and light. (4.25)

Overall: Oh man, I'm so glad I got this beer. I've had a couple other hoppy releases from TG — couple variants of Pseudo Sue, and MoZee, but I thought this will be lesser somehow. I will admit that I think that MoZee is better, but this is still fantastic. Really glad I have another can waiting for me. TG hasn't disappointed me yet, and I hope they never do. (4.5)

Aggregated BA Score: 4.34 (+3.4%). Cheers!

 

Alright, here's my second entry for today. Groseille is French for "currant," and this beer, brewed with Vermont-grown red currants, is a foudre-aged sour ale. I've had the blackcurrant counterpart to this one, which was more of a rosé-wine looking beer. This one pours a medium-hazy golden blonde color with a thin but retentive head.



Some nice lace as I sip at it, honestly, but it does seem to present a slight collar as the several fingers of head calm down to a half-finger in my glass. Small pours don't seem to build that head up much more, however. A steady and rather intense stream of carbonation rises from the bottom of my glass, giving this a lively and effervescent appearance which makes this beer look quite appealing.

As a quick aside before continuing, the label of this beer says that at least part of the yeast used to ferment this beer was gathered from the skin of the red currants themselves, which I find fascinating. I believe the Cassis/blackcurrant sour also utilized this process, and it lent a lot of complexity to the proceedings with that brew. This one has an intense, funky nose which presents strong notes of lemony lactic acidity, barnyard funk and rustic, hay-like notes alongside slight elements of Sémillon wine and bright, tart red berry. The oak of the foudre itself plays a slight part, lending some tannic stiffness overall, but I mostly think this beer is evocative of the base recipe itself rather than coming off as a "fruited sour." The fruit notes are surprisingly dialed back, especially compared to the Cassis, and there seems to be a simple, crackery malt and rustic Brett character coming out more than anything.

The flavor profile kind of follows this, with a tart and bright lacto/mixed-culture funk pairing with some raspberry, white grape, grapefruit and lemony tang toward the finish, but I still feel like I'm missing the depth that the red currants should be adding here. Perhaps I'm biased by the color itself, which just doesn't "seem" to have any red currant affect to it, but I would likely never guess that said fruit was involved here if I went into this blind, I don't think. The feel is very heavily-carbonated and surprisingly chewy, but still quite enjoyable and complex, making it more of a sipper than anything despite its seemingly light and playful demeanor. Good stuff, but not as good as its darker sister beer. Whereas I would almost certainly pick up more of that one were I to see it again, I would likely seek out other branches of Hermit Thrush's repertoire before returning to this. Pleasant but not really holding my attention as much as I'd like.

If you're stressing today, whether the stressors be in the form of familial obligations, the upcoming work week, agonizing over which beer to review and present in this thread, or the ever-present fear of being pranked by some trickster on this most-cynical of days... I implore you to relax and drown out your anxieties with some meditative ambient music. Cheers, and see you next week!



(and, no... before you ask, this isn't super loud or harsh. I'm not into April Fools like that )

 

New beer #5.

Orange-Colored Malcontent - Free Will
DIPA - 9.5% abv
Canned 2/28/18 (32 days ago)
Purchased for $5.79 at Monde Market
Score: 3.79 (-9.5% rDev)



L - 2-finger offwhite head atop a translucent orange body.

S - oranges, hard candy. pineapple, booze.

T - very sweet orange mead at first. Some pine, but sweetness overpowers everything. Low bitterness, moderate booziness.

F - medium body with average carb.

O - If sickly sweet flavored liqueurs are your thing, this’ll be right up your alley.

 

Back again for another New Beer. Hope you all are enjoying this fine day as well!

 

Up next is a crowler I picked up at Salud in Charlotte and is a hot chocolate variant of their base La Morena imperial stout called Chocolate Caliente.It is brewed with spiced chocolate, cinnamon, clove and ginger. Great flavors might would have left the ginger out but still very solid beer from these guys. @Vidblain you know who that is in the back ground? If you see a graded #1 above a 9.0 let me know!!! The bust behind it is a story unto itself I will have to fill you in on.

Appearance 4 - Pours jet black thick with very minimal mocha colored head that dissipates to a thin ring around the glass. No lacing.

Aroma 4.25 - Great hot chocolate smell, vanilla, cinnamon, milk chocolate, light pepper aroma hinting that there could be a little heat.

Taste 4.25 - The spicy chocolate is right up front along with the cinnamon and clove. The spiciness is a taste of spice and really provides no heat but the ginger which I could not detect in the aroma comes through at the end. I really like how well all of the flavors are very balanced I might could do without the ginger but still great flavors.

Feel 4.5 - Full bodied creamy slick feel, little tingle I assume from the ginger and a mild dry finish.

Overall 4.26 - A really well done imperial stout, no sign of the 11.9% ABV very smooth and easy drinking.

 

This stuff is fresh, not sure when it was canned. Poured and got a nice fluffy 2 plus finger sticky off white head that leaves behind plenty of webby lace as it slowly settles into a thick ring of bubbles around the sides of the glass. 4.75

Smell guava, manderine oranges, pineapple, some marijuana, pine resin, and grapefruit rind. 4.5

Taste follows tropical front to back, some dank weedy flavor, with a little pine and grapefruit bitterness that is actually exceptionally balanced. 4.5

Mouthfeel is above medium, a nice soft mouthfeel with gentle carbonation, not dry but sticky from a massive amount of hops and I think one them is Eldorado I may be wrong, and excellent drinkability at 8% ABV. 4.5

Overall this is juicy and a little different flavor that I really dig. Austin Street Brewery in Maine, really tasty stuff! 4.5

 

NBS Entry #1



Skadoosh XVIII: Galaxy

The Alchemist Brewery and Visitors Center
American IPA / 7.00% ABV

4.43/5 rDev -0.4% | Score: 4.45
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

L-The beer pours a hazy orange with a fluffy two finger white head. The head reduces to a thick film. Lacing is excellent.
S-The nose is citrusy, consisting mainly of orange, medium in intensity.
T-The palate is similar to the nose. Up front your hit with a blast of orange which lasts til the mid palate. The citrus then is taken over by a firm pithy bitterness which lingers through the end.
F- The mouthfeel is on the high side of medium. It starts out with a slick feel which is quickly dried out by the pithy bitter finish. Carbonation is modest, but adequate.
O- This is an excellent display of the juicy side of the IPA spectrum. The bitterness keeps it from feeling cloying and the dry finish invites further sips. Highly recommended.

 

I think it's time for another new Sunday brew!



Baltic Sunrise | Hardywood Park Craft Brewery

Poured from the bottle into a snifter style glass.

Creamy topped head, off tan to a faint khaki brown color, and reaching a solid two plus fingers in height. Very dark body, nearly black with a faint red tinge and not a spec of other color getting through at all.

Rich coffee notes on the aroma. Soft mixing coffee and dark like cocao nibs, and sweet roasting tones. Touches of fruity yeast and estery quality but gets taken over by the coffee, does perhaps flirt with a bit of strawberry, but more dark rich character dominates the beer's nose.

Crackling body surprisingly and different coffee flavors than expected. Light bodied, but with a touch of creamy feel and flavor, but just by a hair. Mild sensing roast, with more drip coffee quality on the palate. Strong black licrorices aftertaste as well, flirting with a sticky sweetness that gives a good rooftop tongue sticky feeling. Strangely has much brown ale character, but bigger, lots of nutty rich qualities.

Pretty solid coffee porter, a few interesting unexpected twists, but also doesn’t come across as that much baltic, but no complaints.

look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4 | BA Generated: 4.08

Cheers!

 

Prairie No Chill
Milk Stout - 5.1% ABV



3.62/5 rDev -1.6%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 2.75 | overall: 3.5

12oz can poured into a snifter. No canning date visible anywhere on the can. Pours a fizzy dark black color with a light tan head that quickly fizzles away. The nose is espresso and sweetened cream. Light bodied and prickly carbonation on the tongue leads into a sweetened coffee taste that leaves a lasting roastiness into the finish. I would have prefered a thicker/smoother mouthfeel, this was more like a light lager or pilsner on the tongue. Not bad, not great, an average coffee stout.

 

Had this beer for the first time this week. Valley of the Heart's Delight by Almanac Beer Co. in San Francisco, CA. Bottle labeled 01/25/18. Note: not continuously refrigerated.



Look: Pours somewhere between pink and orange, completely murky. Almost no head, and whatever does form, dissipates immediately. Minimal lacing left on the glass. (4.25)

Smell: Apricots dominate the nose, though cherries are also noticeable. The oak character is apparent on the nose as well. Fairly pungent. (4.25)

Taste: Cherries dominate the apricots on the taste, slightly. This guy is quite tart, but not in the artificial way. Oak from the wine barrels is also noticeable in the taste. No alcohol is apparent, and overall the taste is extremely enjoyable. The aftertaste lingers for quite a while. (4.5)

Feel: The body is quite light, carbonation is medium to low. (4.25)

Overall: Very pleased with this. Had two bottles of it — the first one was split on Friday with @TheBrewsky, and the second I had today myself to really dissect. Naturally tart, fruity and tart, I'd buy this again at $12.50 (remember we are in California). (4.5)

My original (drunk) rating had this at 4.34, but updated came out to 4.4 (+1.4%) today. Cheers!

 

Cheers to both of you. You've both done an excellent job, and really brought your touch to our little corner of BA.
PS. No problem with the **** dream story.

 

Happy Sunday, New Beer Samplers and commentators. And Happy Easter and Passover to all who celebrate. It's finally starting to feel like spring here in North Jersey. Both of our kids live in North Carolina so it's been a quiet Easter for us. We attended early service and then went for a long walk through Duke Gardens, a really nice park a half hour to the south. My first NBS review today is Fraxos, a 6.5% tropical IPA from Modern Times that I received in @Bum4ever's LIF box. It's tropical and very delicate. Just a delicious beer. Thank you, Josh! My full review follows:

4.35/5 rDev +0.7%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

I received this in @Bum4ever's LIF box. Canned on 3/18, 2018 so less than two weeks old when reviewed. Poured into Spiegelau IPA glass. It pours an opaque bright golden-tangerine color with over a finger of fluffy, milk-white head and soapy lacing that lasted through the pour. It has an aromatic tropical nose featuring tangerine, mango, lemon, and another sweet fruit that I couldn't identify. There's not much pine of hops in the smell. The taste is luscious: lots of mango up front followed by lemon and grapefruit that provide a nice tart balance to the sweet fruit. The Citra and Simcoe hops add to the flavor but aren't overly bitter. It finishes nicely dry and clean. This ale is crisp and light with pleasant carbonation, and at 6.5% ABV it's super-drinkable. Overall, this is a terrific tropical IPA with great balance of sweet, tart, and bitter. I'm really impressed. I don't know whether Fraxos ever makes it to the East Coast but if I ever see it I'll buy it in a heartbeat.

I hope you're all enjoying your new beers today. I hope to be back later.

 

Another little bit of leeway. I honestly didn’t realize this was a different offering than North Coast’s Cranberry/Quice version, but it is their Tart Cherry version:


My, I guess “sister?” Cali might want to chime in...

I’ll give my parent’s reviews:
Mom: this is beer?
Me: Yes, it might be a bit tart.
Mom: I wouldn’t call it beer. More wine like but not really. <<to my dad>> Have you tried it?
Dad: No. <<takes a sip>> Interesting.
Me: The style is from Germany, usually involves a souring agent like lactic acid. Granted, the Germans won’t throw in hibiscus (shows how little I paid attention, neither involved hibiscus).
Mom: I like it, or could drink it, but I wouldn’t call it a beer.
Dad: I like it, too.

I do think the cherry comes out more distinctively as it warms. Otherwise, it reminded me of my memory of the cranberry-quince version. Light, clean, refreshing, with a low tartness level. Fair carbonation, wheat plays is in a dry bread fashion.

Have two more at home to get an official review in later.

 

I always like a tasty Pils, so I had to check out Dakota Soul from Summit. It pours a light straw and rather clear with a pillowy 2.5 finger white head and lacing that coats my glass.. Aroma is fresh and light with a cracker malt and hops are spicy floral aroma. Starts off with the clean malt flavors, some biscuit or cracker and becomes a bit grassy. The hops add a bit of bitterness on top of the light sweetness. It is smooth and crisp, very refreshing. I think that Summit represents the Czech Pils well with this beer.

 

Firestone Walker Bretta Weisse

Another LIF bottle from the generous @y2kawakami. Thanks!

This one opened with a nice pop and some smoke. It pours a highly-hazed, light-orange color with good effervescence and almost three fingers of airy, yellow-tinted head that leave nice, sloppy rings of lacing.

It has a lovely, delicately sour aroma: horse blanket, barnyard funk, that sort of thing -- as well as some distant lemon.

These elements continue to the taste, along with a very dry tartness. There's sour apple in there that really packs a punch, then all-but-disappears very quickly each and every sip. Just a hint of the tartness, lemon juice sourness, oak and dry red wine lingers in the aftertaste, begging you to drink more.

It's hard to get a sense of the feel through the tartness of the taste, but it's relatively light bodied with strong carbonation.

All-in-all, this is an excellent beer. It's robust enough that I'd probably pair it with food rather than drinking it on its own in the future.

 

Now up a beer I had a low bar for Tired Hands Lush Life. I haven’t really enjoyed a lot of DIPA or TIPAs from Tired Hands, but the sweetness is pretty toned down for Tired Hands. I still feel it is overpriced at $26/4-pack, if they could drop it to $20-22 I would be in love with this!

4.38/5 rDev +1.4%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.25

16 oz can, dated 3/26/18, poured into a teku

A- A hazy golden straw with a two finger white head.

S- Mango, lime zest, some honey and lactose, vanilla, bright citrus hops, a nice amount of tea.

T- Mango, citrus zest, tropical fruits, some lactose and honey, citrus hops, vanilla, tea, mild dankness.

M- Smooth, medium body, creamy.

O- A little on the sweet side but better than other Tired Hands Triple IPAs. The honey and tea add a nice balancing touch to this that I feel other higher ABV IPAs Tired Hands have brewed. Still overpriced, but I really enjoy it.