New Beer Sunday (Week 690)

Good evening NBS, starting with Breakside Salted Caramel Stout thank to @y2kawakami

3.85/5 rDev +2.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.75

Thank you y2kawakami for this
22 bottle, dated 1/24/18, poured into a snifter

A- Black with a two finger mocha head.

S- Chocolate, some roasted malts, some caramel, touch of salt.

T- Chocolate, roasted malts, some caramel, touch of salt.

M- Smooth, medium body.

O- A nice stout base, caramel and salt add a nice touch.

Cheers!

 

My Mom was great, a wonderful human being who enriched the lives of those around her. I raise a glass in her honor.

La Vermontoise from Brasserie De Blaugies / Hill Farmstead

caged and corked small bottle poured into a teku glass, good lacings

Three finger white meringue type solid foam cap. Crowns a golden yellow liquid with active carbonation. magnificent

aroma of cloves, tartness, yeastiness, apple cider-ish

taste is cloves, spiciness, saison yeasts, whiffs of pepper & nutmeg

light mouthfeel, dry finish

good beer

 

Happy Mother's Day! Happy New American IPA Sunday!

Pretty nice day on the Western Slope, around 72, sunny. Having a pretty tasty brew, nice to see some new Stone around here. Having some chicken tacos and watching some Next Generation reruns.

https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/147/322210/?ba=Wasatch#review

Cheers!

 

New Beer Sunday: A Fruit/Vegetable Beer

Evenin’ NBSers with a heads up for folks who enjoy the beer-wine hybrids.

Well, despite the scattered rain and drizzle, a good time was had by all on the special Mother’s Day train ride. It was raining hard as we drove out to the departure point but tapering off as we pulled into the parking lot. By the time we went to pick up the tickets it had stopped and we didn’t see a drop of rain after that. There were plenty of seats available in one of the passenger cars so the whole family was able to locate close to or next to each other.

This evening’s new beer is the Dogfish Head Mixed Media which is billed as being as close to wine as it can get and still legally be called a beer. (51% of the fermentables are from grain, with 49% coming from grape must.)

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

https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/64/341543/?ba=drtth#review


This is a light, crisp, slightly tart beer with white wine and green orchard fruit flavors along with some spicy clove and Belgian yeast character. Given the aroma/flavor profile of this beer it would be easy, in a blind tasting, to think is was a sparkling white wine, but there is also some light clove and earthy grassy bitterness in the slightly tart and crisp ending that would give away that it is a beer. I’m enjoying this one and looking forward to a repeat. That said, I think this will be an occasional treat rather than a regular thing around our house.

In keeping with the wetness of the day, the music on the player is about a river, the Moldau, that begins it’s life in the Bavarian Forest and eventually runs through Prague.

Smetana —The Moldau

Cheers, all!

 

A-Pours a nice clear golden color with a slight head and lacing
A-Aroma has typical lager hints
T-The taste follows the nose with a nice lager flavor
M-A light bodied decently carbonated beer
O-A decent take on lager

 

Whoops I accidentally double posted WBAYDN

First review as usual with the locals. Delicious session IPA. Fantastic head retention and thick soapy lacing on the glass. Flavors of big grapefruit, tangerine, lemon, peach, pineapple, passion fruit, mango, melon, berry, citrus peel/rind, light pepper, and pine hops; with moderate toasted biscuit, light caramel malts; and herbal, floral, grassy hop earthiness. Similar/muted aromas. Light-moderate pine, citrus peel/rind, herbal, grassy, peppery bitterness on the finish. Medium carbonation, light-medium body, and moderately crisp finishing. Balanced bready/grainy malts and sticky hops in the mouthfeel. Light resins/rinds, increasing bitter dryness, no hop astringency. Very flavorful/refreshing, never watery for 4.5%. Not aggressive on bitterness. Very juicy, vibrant, and dank hops; nice bready malt backbone, with minimal residual sweetness. One of the better Session IPAs I've had for sure. Would buy again. Mosaic/Centennial hops maybe? They did a great job. 3.91


Answer Gose. This was fantastic. Bit of a gusher crowler. Really ugly murky pour with no head retention or lacing. Lots of streaming carbonation. Aromas and flavors of big juicy/lightly tart/tangy kiwi, strawberry, passion fruit, guava, mango, melon, and fruit skin/seeds; with moderate wheat, cracker, white bready malts; light salt and lacto funk. Light fruity/lactic tartness and fruit tang on the finish. Medium carbonation and medium-plus body; very creamy/bready/grainy malt mouthfeel; light acidity, tang, and tannic fruit. Lightly increasing tart/tangy fruit dryness. Very flavorful/refreshing. 3.5%. This drinks like a god damn fruit smoothie, so outstanding. Super jammy fruits, with nice base gose style presence. 4.22


Cheers, be back a bit later NBS

 

Good evening, all! My on-call weekend has unofficially drawn to a close, so now I'm winding down with a bowlful of this (and you're not): Smokin' Hemp Porter, from Pearl Street Brewing, La Crosse, Wisconsin. I grabbed this purely for the gimmicky photo op. As it happens, though, this stuff is really tasty. It's got a nice roasted malt character without any hint of burnt / charred coffee bean, as I often pick up in porters and stouts. A little chocolate, a little tart black cherry, and notes of sesame oil (possibly from the toasted hemp seeds used in the brewing process) round out the profile. Bitterness is quite understated. Body is on the lighter side of medium, with a slightly astringent finish. This would be great with a cheese tray and pita chips. I think I just talked myself into that one. Cheers!



For some reason, this song popped into my head. Go figure.

 

Here's one I picked up in south Jersey last night:

Forgotten Boardwalk Pocket Trick

This is a pretty damn fine IIPA, pretty full bodied with saturated fruit that starts tropical before gradually allowing the citrus to come forward. It's got this huge jammy apricot/orange marmalade thing going on, with just enough dank hop funk to keep it all grounded. Finish could be a smidge drier, but there's more than enough bitterness to balance things out. I'm really glad to have finally come across this beer that doesn't seem to make it up north. A- (4.3), and would get again.

 

Thanks for sharing Cavedave. Your post struck a lot of chords with me, though my own experience (with a father, not a mother) was much less trying since the ratio of good years to bad was not as stark as yours. I have very much had the same regrets and thoughts.

The only thing I might say is that you should extend yourself (and your siblings) the same degree of empathy and understanding that you are now feeling you wished you'd extended to your mother. Your mom may very well have been trying her best to cope with a bad situation she didn't fully understand, but so were you and the rest of your family. And you were doing it in a time with much less awareness and understanding of mental illness to boot.

So try to give yourselves the same break that you are extending to her. Cheers man.

 

Another one from Athens, OH.
Jackie O's "Chiron's Flame."
Imperial Red Aged in Bourbon Barrels.



Moderate to vigorous pour yields a 1/2 inch tan head a over a medium-dark brown body with a little lacing. Head is down to a thin ring in a matter of a couple minutes. Nose of bourbon, dark fruit, caramel, brown sugar, and a bit of vanilla. Taste mirrors nose with some chocolate fudge flavor coming through as well. Good feel with medium carbonation. Overall, a pretty tasty imperial red. Cheers!

3.96/5 rDev -0.5%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4

 

Salutations, NBS. I lucked out as far as moms go. She lives about a four-hour drive up the coast, and we see each other every couple of months. She's visiting today, and will helping prep dinner. She is, on top of the rest, an excellent cook. I did not inherit that quality, alas, and always appreciate a mom-made meal.

My new beer for today is Sierra Nevada's BFD (Beer For Drinking), a 4.8% blonde ale.



Canned 3/6, so about two months ago.

Translucent pale gold with a finger of thick foam which lasts as a cap. Bands of lacing are left in its wake.

Smells lemony, lightly bready, herbal. Not overwhelming, but there.

Tastes quite lemony to me, and of white bread. Lightly herbal.

Light body, light carb, dry, almost creamy, and absurdly easy to drink. My 19.2 oz are almost gone already.

If I was in need of a cheap gas station beer and this was available, I would buy it again.

 

Stone Totalitarian RIS, 10.6% ABV, 70 IBU. Pours black with a one finger tan head. Nose is coffee and fruit. Taste follows, with moderate to strong coffee bitterness. Decent mouthfeel, overall excellent.

 

Hey everybody! I just got back from my mom's house where my dad and I moved an oak desk down 2 flights of stairs. We didn't weigh it but it was the 2nd heaviest thing I've ever moved behind a friggin piano. Anywhooo, this definitely calls for the most refreshing beer I can spy in my fridge.

Scrip - Wine barrel aged Grisette from Jackie O's thanks to ole @WesMantooth. Another out of the park winner, but it would be more surprising if it wasn't awesome to be honest.

A - Bright gold with minimal white head, looks like it's gonna quench my immense thirst.

S - Straw/hay, green apples, grains, white wine, slight funk/rustic smell.

T - my goodness. This is like beer champagne and we're not talking about the bubbles/mouthfeel. Lemon tart, pie crust boom into big green apple. Hints of tropical pineapple and guava. Peach jelly on a cracker. White oak, touch of vanilla. There's so much going on and then a super dry finish that makes you want another sip.

M - Perfectly carbonated, too much more would've been just for novelty to go with the champagne motif that I can't get out of my head. Light body, perfect afternoon sunny sipper. Patio pounder is what one might say.

O - I don't claim to know what the perfect Grisette is, but if this ain't it, I'd love to see it topped.

Thanks again buddy!

Happy mother's day, hug your moms real tight fellas. Cheers!

 

Very nice witbier. Nice head retention/lacing on the glass. Flavors of lemon, orange peel, pear, red apple, melon, coriander, peppercorn, and clove yeast; with moderate wheat, cracker, white bread dough malts; herbal, floral, grassy hop and yeast earthiness. Similar/muted aromas. Light herbal/grassy/citrus peel bitterness, yeast spiciness, and wheat tang/tartness on the finish. Medium carboantion, light-medium body, and moderately crisp finishing. Balanced creamy/bready/grainy wheat and sticky spice in the mouthfeel. Light-moderate increasing bitter/spicy dryness. Very flavorful/refreshing, 5.1%. Never watery. Really classic tasting style example. Balanced fruity/spicy yeast, spices, and pale/wheat malts. Really enjoyable and spot on stuff. 3.88


Barrel aged Sour CEO stout. This was awesome! Great head retention/lacing on the glass. Aromas and flavors of big nutty dark roasted coffee, milk/dark chocolate, cocoa, caramel, brown sugar, vanilla, toffee, whiskey, toasted oak, and dark/brown bread; with lighter notes of tart cherry, cranberry, lemon, raisin, red grape, green apple, funk, smoke, char, and yeast earthiness. Light roast/char bitterness, bourbon/oak spiciness, and lactic tartness on the finish. Medium-high carbonation and medium body; very creamy/silky/bready malt mouthfeel; light chalky roast, oak tannins, and lactic acidity. Lightly increasing bitter/tart/tannic oak drying. No pucker, cloying, astringent, or acrid roasted flavors. Very drinkable. No warming 5.5%, minimal barrel booze. Just as impressive as the regular BBA CEO I reviewed 3 years ago. Awesome balanced fruity/nutty coffee and rich malt complexity; awesome barrel integration/balance. Brett/Lacto presence is not overwhelming, and adds a pleasing extra layer of complexity to the beer. Would buy again. Wonder how it will age. 4.1


Cheers, have a good night NBS

 

Hello New Beer Sunday!!!

Happy Mother's Day to all the moms on BA.

I had a 1/2 hour phone call to my mom, on my drive home from work, that continued after I got home. It was a good call, and we both had a good time talking to each other.

Now on to the beer, and it's a doosie!


Pere Noel from Bad Habit Brewing in St. Joe, MN. It is a Belgian Quad that has been barrel aged in Rye barrels from Panther Distillery. It clocks in at 12% ABV and is 34 IBU. It is bottle # 86.


So how is it?

Amazing!

The beer is so rich and complex. It also packs quite a punch, that I'm really starting to feel now, and I'm only half way through my first glass of it. The flavors are amazing. Solid beer.

Review

4.43/5 rDev 0%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

This beer pours a darker amber color. Almost no head, but what was there was off white, and not long lasting.
The nose is really complex. There's the aroma from the rye barrels it was aged in. There's hints of something sweet. Hints of fruit. No real hop aroma.
Taste - Oh, wow! It is really complex. I get up front a slight tartness, like a tart apple, that changes into something more sweet and mellow. It then on the backside gets into an alcohol burn from the high ABV. There's also notes from the rye barrel mixed into the mix.
The body is full, and rich. Alcohol burn feel, but not overwhelming.
A barrel aged Belgian quad, what could go wrong? A lot. In this case, nothing. This is an amazing beer from Bad Habit. The outdid themselves with this one.

With a 12 ABV beer I'm going to be done with this. I will see you all next Sunday from my happy place - Lake of the Woods. See you all then.

 

Dude! Are you drunk!?!

 

What a great review. Cheers. The bottled version is a gem, dry as a bone, dripping with the spices and fruits- cloves, bananas and something a little acidic- which makes it all a beer to think about or a beer to quaff. This is one damned good beer. I'm getting a few more tomorrow!

 

Hello NBS, and happy Sunday. I have been sleeping on NBS for a while, but it feels good to be back. I have been doing random things all day, and finally settled down to have some brews. Anyways, here is my first one up.
Ladies and Gents, I present to you, Alvarado Street's Motor Oil No.2. Let's dive in after some images.


My favorite picture of this sensual brew..

Canned 4/12/18, with an inspirational "10W-40" stamped on the bottom. Fun fact, this may be used in my car.
Look: 4.5
Pours viscous black, resembling motor oil as its poured. About 2 fingers worth of a tan head, which rapidly dissipated but left generous amounts of residual lacing.
Smell: 4.00
Notes of chocolate, roasty malts, and raspberry. The raspberry addition gives the beer a slight tartness, which contrasts nicely with the roasty malt/chocolate undertones. Minimal booze presence on the nose as well.
Taste: 4.75
First off, I love raspberries. Just so happens, I love chocolate as well. No doubt I am very much lovin' this taste. The raspberries are perceived first, giving a slight tartness to the flavor. Next comes the chocolate, reminding me of the fudge on a sundae. There is also a nice malt flavor, along with some dark fruit flavor as well, primarily figs and dates. The finish is sweet with a slight booze burn, though I can't taste alcohol for being 11.5abv. The raspberry tastes more like a purée, but not medicinal.
Feel: 4.75
Full in body and weight. The beer feels viscous, slick and chewy. Full on palate-coating property, accompanied by residual syrupy residue in my mouth. Carbonation is low to moderate, leaning more towards moderate. Great, full feel to this beer, with a nice heft.
Overall: 4.75
This beer is delicious. Smooth, full, and sweet. I can see that this beer is almost too sweet, but for me, I don't think it is. Alvarado did a great job in the making of this beer, and it stays true to the motor oil virtue. This is great.
Final BA Score: 4.56
Cheers!

 

Glad you enjoyed it. One of my favorites. Just wish it was a 750.

 

Nah I'm okay, just a random mishap. Too many open chrome tabs.