New Beer Sunday (Week 689)

Last one, another IPA from St Boniface.



Burnt orange color with a lotta hop haze and billowy off-white head. The can references grapefruit, and there’s a significant grapefruit component on the nose, and a subtle malt note as well.

The grapefruit flavor is very forward on the taste, but the malt is more pronounced as well in the form of a toffee note that I really like - a LOT. The mouthfeel is full, and fits what this is - an “old school” IPA that you could sit on your deck/patio/couch/bar stool and crush until you couldn’t see straight. Just a pleasure to drink, IMHO. Rated 4.19.

 

Delicious blonde ale. Fantastic head retention and thick soapy lacing on the glass. Flavors of lemon, orange, grapefruit, peach, pear, and red apple; with moderate honey, wheat, white bread dough, and lightly toasted biscuit malts; some herbal, floral, grassy, light peppery hops and yeast earthiness. Similar/muted aromas. Mild pine, herbal, grassy, peppery, citrus peel bitterness on the finish. Medium carbonation/body, and fairly crisp/clean finishing. Bready/grainy malt and light sticky hops in the mouthfeel. Lightly increasing lingering bitter dryness. Very flavorful/refreshing, 5%. Great balance of citrus/earthy hops, pale/Munich malts, and restrained fruity English house yeast complexity. Spot on style as expected of Deschutes. 3.91


Italian IPA. This was very good. Fantastic lasting head retention and thick soapy lacing on the glass. Pretty murky looking. Aromas and flavors of tangerine, grapefruit, lemon, peach, pear, pineapple, red apple, apricot, mango, melon, passion fruit, white grape, citrus peel/zest, peppercorns, and light pine hops; with moderate wheat, biscuit dough, light nutty/caramel malts; and herbal, floral, grassy hop earthiness. Light-moderate pine, citrus peel, herbal, grassy bitterness; and peppercorn spiciness on the finish. Medium carbonation/body; balanced creamy/bready malts and sticky hops in the mouthfeel. Light-moderate increasing lingering bitter dryness. very drinkable, never aggressive, 6%. Nothing too out of the ordinary with the peppercorn additions, definitely feels like an English IPA. Nelson, Simcoe, and Saphir hops. Nicely juicy citrus/earthy hops; sizable bready malt backbone, but not overly sweet. Not overdone on peppercorn spice flavors. Really well done. 3.78


Cheers, be back for round 3 soon

 

Another tasty sour from @FlintB, Vivant Blood Orange and Cranberry

3.89/5 rDev -4.2%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.75

Thank you FlintB for this
500 ml bottle poured into a tulip

A- A clear ruby red with a two finger pink head.

S- Tart, cranberries, super floral, touch of blood oranges and oak.

T- Sour, cranberries, some blood oranges, funky, floral, some oak, some leather.

M- Smooth, light to medium body, high carbonation.

O- A good sour overall, but I’m getting a floral/soupy off flavor. Cranberries are done nicely.

 

New Beer Sunday: An American Stout

Evenin’ NBSers with a heads up for those who like the dark roast flavors in a well-made stout.

Just came home from dinner at the neighborhood Pizza place (but I had their Gyro) and now it's time for a new beer. This evening’s new beer is called Infinite Eclipse from Weyerbacher Brewing up in Easton, PA. It was brewed to be the official beer of the recent Metal and Beer fest in Philly.

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

https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/392/332016/?ba=drtth#review


The aromas and flavors of this beer are all about the dark side. They focus on the dark roasted malt that gives us dark roasted coffee, dark chocolate and dark molasses. The balance of sweetness vs. bitterness is very nice, with the sweetness initially up front but eventually leading into the dark roasted, almost burnt bitterness at the dry, bitter ending in the back of the palate. I expect I’ll go looking for another.

Time for some more music from Edvard Grieg’s Peer Gynt.

In the Hall of the Mountain King

Cheers, all!

 

Modela negra
..clear amber
..medium thin body.
...aroma is creal,cracker,grain and yeast
...taste is cereal and a bit skunky
..Overall it I wasn't eating Mexican food I wouldn't seek this out but okay when our to eat

 

Rec'd in a trade only 40 months ago.


https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/24018/



Moderate pour yields a one inch off white head over a mahogany-brown body with some lacing. Nose of very slight funk with some squash-like aromas as well. Tastes a bit sour, a bit funky, a bit spicy, with a tiny bit of sage, but mostly the squash comes through on flavor and feel. Overall, a fairly enjoyable offering from Jester King, but I've had better. Cheers!

3.84/5 rDev +0.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Review Edit: Upon warming, much better. Score went up overall a tad.

 

Hey everybody. Always good to see a few that I will have to grab.

I haven't been in the Belgian (style) corner of the beer universe in a while and this was new for me, cold and on the arm-level shelf in my co-op cooler so it got the call.

A - Golden (as advertised) with a thin white head that broke down and left random deposits on the side of my Spiegelau barrel-aged glass that was tulip-styled enough 3.5
S - Tropical fruits with with a faint but evocative bread dough/yeast mixed in. 3.75
T - Ripe, juicy stone fruits with a little spice 4.25
F - A bit watery for the intensity of the flavor - almost what seems to be a brewery signature 3.5
O - Super approachable, despite the 9.0 abv although I think the the use of "Belgian-Style" is a bit of a cop-out. 3.75

 

After dinner, and time for another excellent stout courtesy of @superspak

Odd Side Ales - Mokka Munt



Poured from 12 oz bottle dated 10/24/2016

A: Deep brown tending towards black with one finger mocha head. Decent retention and light lacing.

S: Punch of mint as soon as I popped the top. Reminded me of a Girl Scout Thin Mint cookie. Bourbon, chocolate, espresso, and vanilla.

T: In a nutshell, bourbon soaked thin mint cookie. Almost a mint julep thing going on. Bourbon is fairly pronounced even with a year and a half on it. Mint, chocolate, coffee, and vanilla.

M: Medium body with average carbonation. Some alcohol bite but expected for the style and ABV.

O: Very tasty BA stout with an unusual flavor profile.

 

Glad you like that one. I figgered that'd be right up your alley. It was one of my favorite, easily approachable, Bruery beers last year. Cheers.

 

4 IPAs over the 4.0 bar with Hubar & NY on top…

HUBAR | Mill House | NY
4.15/5 rDev +5.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25

Happy to be 2d reviewer of Hubar at Rattle N Hum NYC.
Im bumping up the rating.
a) Body pours as a hazed golden with firm 1 finger that splashes plenty of lace.
s) Big, which pleases me next to my steak ceasar (perfect meal here). Floral, citrus, intense grapefruit. Puckering.
t) Bigger, upfront like the aroma, with a growing bitter, pepper, drying, spicy finish, Nice flavor see-saw from fruit and flowers to pepper and crisp biting finish.
f) Per tasting notes, see saw that delights and cleans/contrasts with food.
o) Offers an original long.

2XSMaSH Double India Pale Ale | Southern Tier | NY
4.06/5 rDev +0.5%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Discovered single hop / single malt giant - King Gambrinus (6.66% ABV) from Shelter Island NY Craft last night, now this 2x Smash (8.1%) from other side of Empire State - Southern Tier. Wonderful wood-shop stuff.
a) Dark amber, clear, shellac like pour with long-lasting 2 finger head and awash in lace.
s) Too faint compared to the ample flavor. Sawdust, honey, cedar, pine, fresh sawn wood with its sap.
t) More heartwood, very woody, tree nut, juniper flavor profile, tempered by honey, molasses, and a bittering, clean up of pine bitters. Aromatic.
Proving Ground IPA | Magnolia | CA
4.05/5 rDev +4.7%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4

Proud to be 49th review of this gold standard, since ‘99.
a) Hazed dark gold color indeed, sending up a 1 finger frothy, creamy head, that fractures onto shards of coverage and lace.
s) Too faint, but sharp speciality hops and malts that bring welcome cutter ship from San Fran to China kind of a brew, West meets English.
t) Ample following of the smell, if you like strongly bitter and malty, with lots of piney, cedary, woody notes, this is for you. Immaculate wood shop sharp, tight finish.
f) The finish makes this woody brew, with ample carbonation and mid-twisting weight.
o) Highly original, hugely flavorful, try 24.

Flower Child IPA | Cambridge | MA
4.04/5 rDev +0.7%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Could be an every day IPA. Would like to blind taste off of 6.5% faves like Dales Pale Ale.
a) slightly chill hazed, the one finger head lasts and laces nicely over a bright golden body,.
s) Too faint, but it's orange rind, pine, flowers.
t) Fruit as promised with emphasis on candied fruit rind, over a creamy, malty caramel base. honey, and nice landing bitter.
f) Mid weight, good flavor see saw, clean finish, great food or first beer of the evening.
o) Smart American IPA, not overly hopped, close to a hoppy APA. Try 24.

 

I'm glad you had to work at it! I thought it would throw a blind tasting in many directions. But truth be told, I was crossing my fingers that the orange zest & vanilla weren't evolving in the bottle to take this one sideways. Phew.

 

Bells Black Note barrel aged stout. Great beer for the dreary, rainy weather in PA this weekend. I've passed by this one on the shelves in the before. The label is more subtle and I'd completely missed the music theme. I think this is my last BIF beer from @ovaltine. Thanks for hooking me up with some much Midwest goodness! It's been a fun ride.



Pours deep black, virtually opaque. Tan head dissipates quickly.

Nose is largely bourbon, some chocolate and biscuit after. Chcolate notes become more pronounced as it warms.

Taste is whiskey, cola, raisins. Finish leans bitter, some heat as the swallow progresses. Woody notes linger on the sides of my tongue just like drinking bourbon. Vanilla becomes prominent as the beer warms.

Mouth feel is thick and creamy, meshing up with the taste nicely.

Overall, I wasnt sold on my first few sips, but this beer is a great example of one that really open up when you can take your time with it. Id love to get a few more to cellar.

 

Having a 2015 gnarleywine that I bought at the store last week. Looks smells and tastes like a liquid raisin. Soo much raisiny maltiness. This isn't a usual choice for me as I don't drink much barleywines, but I had to try this due to its cult status. At three years old, I can still enjoy it. I get why it's so popular.

 

Kind of a horrible picture, very yellow. Anywho, 2nd new beer today.



Pours a muddled looking brown with pinkish throughout. Small head of white. Hmmm...it smells like wheat bread, peanut butter and raspberry jelly. Raspberry dominates much of the taste and then peanuts swoop in. Not peanut buttery but still interesting. Mouthfeel is a bit too bubbly for me and thin. Overall, I’m enjoying this gimmick beer.

 

Good evening, NBSers - friends and strangers alike, it's good to see you all! I apologize for posting late (I only feel that it's late due to the beer that I'm posting - as noted below) - I have a few Dutch coworkers in town (for a major project) and we all agreed to go to the shooting range today (what is more essential to the American experience than shooting guns and then eating Mexican food - respect to Cinco de Mayo - and drinking beer?). My dog is also an inconsiderate goon and demanded outdoor time when I got home, so after dropping off a BIF package and a trade package, and picking up a Loon from a friend's house, I was finally able to get a little bit of QUALITY beer time (to clarify - my beer experience at the Mexican place earlier entailed Pacifico - which I will never outright bash, but it's just a lager... time for ales, y'know?).

So, here's where I'm late - as the name states, I'm enjoying a Weyerbacher Sunday Morning Stout.



Firstly - I always really appreciate the bottle cap on Weyerbacher beers. It's unique, it's interesting, and the colors are quite vivid. A friend of mine (a hazeboi, if you will) recently let me know that he's collecting bottle caps for a table project - and I was a little surprised. Why would he need caps? he has nearly three thousand unique beer check-ins on Untappd - what gives? Ah - right. He drinks all of these IPAs - of course, they're all in cans. So I'm donating my caps to his cause, and I think he'll be a fan of the Weyerbacher cap - it's a nice one.

Being a 2015 vintage, I am fairly surprised by how fresh and rich the coffee in Sunday Morning Stout tastes - there's no sign of oxidation, and the beer has plenty of creamy, rich mouth feel that you might be surprised to know that it's not a fresh beer, not at all. It's also quite smooth, and so subdued that you would have no idea what the ABV is. And that's a bit of a gobsmack, so we may be transitioning to a few Berliners or IPAs for the remainder of the evening.

I only wish that I could remember who gifted me this beer. Sound off, please, if you're the generous BA who helped me out. This is not my first SMS, but it is the oldest vintage that I've had and really demonstrates how fantastic this beer is, even with age on it. Thank you, whoever you might be - you're a winner, my friend.

Edit: apologies for gushing a bit, and for any unforgivable typos above. I've spent plenty of time in the sun today whilst drinking. Let's chalk it up to that. Cheers, friends.

 

Enjoying this beer courtesy of @jhavs Lots of bold flavors. Thanks Jon.

 

I thought I would follow up Contact Hive with another weedy sounding one. Lupulin's Straight Hash Homie courtesy of @Vidblain

Poured a clear golden orange with a thin cap of white foam.
Smell is ripe tropical fruits with a touch of pine.
Taste follows with ripe pineapple and other tropical notes. A little citrus and pine.
Medium bodied good carb level.
Overall a solid offering that I would purchase often if it were available here.

 

Can you tell us about the aromas and flavors, etc. so we can figure out if it's worth making an effort to try and find a bottle of this stuff?

 

Poured into a 12 oz Snulip glass not sure when it was bottled. Pours near pitch black with a 2 finger head that leaves spotty lace. 4.25

Smell is chilli pepper, dark chocolate, vanilla, coffee, and cinnamon. 3.75

Taste follows roast with some heat, vanilla dark chocolate, and some cinnamon. 3.75

Mouthfeel a tad bigger than medium, plenty of carbonation, a touch dry, and drinks bigger than 8.0% ABV. 3.75

Overall a very solid stout and I need to thank @jzeilinger for another stellar beer. 3.75

 

Daily macro review. This is very good stuff! Fantastic lasting head retention and soapy lacing down the glass. Aromas and flavors of cracker, corn, white bread dough, lightly toasted biscuit, and light nutty malts; with some herbal, grassy, light peppery hops. Touch of fruity aromas, but not overwhelming. Light-moderate herbal, grassy, peppery bitterness on the finish. Medium-high carbonation, light-medium body, and moderately crisp/clean finishing. Very bready/grainy malts, with some sticky hops in the mouthfeel. Light-moderate increasing bitter/carbonated dryness. Very flavorful/refreshing, 4.7%. Never watery. Perfectly clean lager flavors. This beats out Hamm's by a slight margin, making it the best Macro AAL I've had yet. Better than High Life surprisingly. Perfectly clean pale malt/grain flavors, and nice earthy hop presence for the style. Not overdone on adjuncts at all, plenty of barley presence. I knew it was going to be good, but definitely exceeded expectations. Miller definitely has the best macro pale lagers. Feel free to leave any hate mail because I review things to style properly. 3.81


Very good American blonde ale. Great head retention/lacing and crystal clarity. Aromas and flavors of cracker, white bread dough, and lightly toasted biscuit malts; with lighter notes of lemon/pear yeast and herbal/floral/grassy/peppery noble hops. Light-moderate herbal, grassy, peppery bitterness on the finish. Medium-high carbonation, light-medium body, and moderately crisp/clean finishing. Balanced bready/grainy malt and sticky hops in the mouthfeel. Moderate increasing bitter/carbonated dryness. Very flavorful/refreshing, 5%. Never watery. Was expecting an American pale ale when I bought it, but this works well as a Blonde ale. Balanced pale malt and earthy hops. Probably just the Moosehead lager with ale yeast. 3.78


Cheers, have a good night NBS