New Beer Sunday (Week 695)

There's a spicy/floral element to that beer that reminds me exactly of a nice gewurztraminer, it's uncanny. I think I enjoy it better than you do, overall.

 

New beer #2. I am a bit of a fanboy when it comes to this brewery, but this is not their best work.

Venus Rising - Foreign Objects
IPA - 6.8% abv
Canned 5/30/18 (18 days ago)
Purchased for $5.89 at Beer Heaven
Score: 4.00 (+3.9% rDev)



L - 1-finger sparse offwhite head atop a translucent orange body.

S - citrus, caramel, dank, pine, bread, spice.

T - unusual spicy/herbal hops wrapped in more traditional citrus flavors. I get some bread, licorice, bitter grapefruit rind, sour limes. Some tropical fruits in there as well. Very earthy, dirty middle. Medium-high bitterness. Low sweetness. Low booziness.

F - medium body with average carb.

O - there are so many flavors going on in this one, I find it hard to disentangle them. Would be curious what descriptors @superspak would pull out of this. Definitely muddled, but interesting.

 

White birch raspberry Berliner weisse
..had a yellow,Amber color
..medium body with an above average amount of carbonation but an overall nice feel
..Aroma is raspberrys, raspberry jam, wheat and grain
..Taste is fresh raspberrys and jam,somewhat sweet but not overly so. The grain does come through well and the raspberry flavor doesn't taste artifical at all.
.Overall it was a really nice surprise how much I liked it and would try it again. The fact that it didn't taste artifical really made it nice

 

Hazy Shade of Citra a very hazy IPA from the good people at Twin Elephant. This is the haziest beer I have ever seen. This brew is 7.4 ABV. It pours with a thick off white head that leaves a nice lacing. The aroma is bready and somewhat fruity, The taste is some bread but mostly fruit. I noticed orange and cantaloupe. There are oats in the grain bill so the mouthfeel is full but soft. The finish is dry. Overall a haze bomb but very enjoyable brew,

 

I babbled on in another thread about getting away from the IPA, and dammit, I won! Got me this IPL (which is a waaaayyyy different beverage.......), Get out me Garden from The Answer



4.18/5 rDev 0%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

Billowing white head tops this slightly hazy “lager”, momentarily muting a smell of dandelion that once the head clears, carries with it a hint of lemon. Feel begins just slightly tart before bitter takes control. I get that dandelion and lemon but it has morphed into the taste of noble hops, with the feel of again, tartness up against a bitter finish.

 

Just saw that one this morning. Sounds like it's worth a try.

 

Many thanks to @cjgiant for getting this great thread off and running! Also wishing all the fathers a very happy day with your children. I hope that they've grown to appreciate your guidance and wisdom, even when it may not have seemed so in the moment.

I grew up the only child on a cattle ranch. My father worked a full-time job as an accountant for one of the hospitals in town. As such, there was a lot of work that I was expected to complete with autonomy. It definitely taught me independence and established a strong work ethic. However, growing up it felt as though the praise for a job well done was far less frequent and overshadowed by blame for things that went wrong. Even when out of my control, being the only person present while my father was at work meant that I shouldered the blame whether rightful or not.

For quite awhile I didn't appreciate my father's guidance and instruction, often I was too focused on the received criticism and blame. When I finally left for college in another state, our relationship changed dramatically for the better. When he was forced to find others to do the work that I had for many years, he gained new appreciation for my abilities and efficiencies. It took him several years to vocalize that new perception to me directly, but my mother shared his observations with me far earlier. Since leaving the ranch my father and I have maintained a great appreciation for each others strengths and insight. I value that immensely to this day.

After finally retiring from his day job at 70, he's now 'just' a rancher. Sadly he's doing this solo given my mother's sudden unexpected passing from a brain aneurysm. I do all that I can, while living in a different state, to support his passion (ranching) as long as he's physically able. At 75 years old he's still going strong with over 100 cows on ~1000 acres. I hope that he continues to find satisfaction in his endeavors and hope that I can continue to help him in his pursuits whenever possible.

Now on to the beer. Today's offering is both new to BA and myself. Altamont's imperial oatmeal stout Mocha Something New. Altamont is one of the Bay Area breweries that tends to somewhat fly under the radar. Hopefully that changes as they've begun to offer packaged formats (both cans and bottles).



Gorgeous looking beer, jet black with 2+ fingers of pillowy head with great retention but left minimal lacing. Nose is heavy on the chocolate, coffee shows more prominence as it warms, but the cocoa dominates the nose until nearly at room temperature. Taste has more balance between the chocolate and coffee, and adds in some roast undertones. Finishes with some mild coffee bitterness that lingers on the palate a bit. Great mouthfeel, creamy on the tongue with a silky finish, just the slightest bit of tongue burn from the ABV. A very nice breakfast stout that I'll happily repeat. Do I like it better than FBS, no, but its still very good. This beer definitely treated me well during the Mexico v. Germany match, with no USA team to root for I'm throwing support to our North American neighbors to the South. Complete review link, BA score = 4.47.

 

A-Pours a nice light amber color
A-Aroma has slight mint and mango hints
T-The taste follows the nose with subtle mint and mango flavors
M-A light bodied well carbonated beer
O-A well done beer

 

KCBC Helles Kitchen

This can’t be the first use of that pun, right? Keeping with pale local lagers, next up is this one… a “smoked Helles.” One would assume the target is Schlenkerla Helles - a beer that isn’t smoked but sure is smokey. The can art is supremely Mephistophelian… in a comics sort of way.

Here we have another nicely clear yellow beer. Head is fleeting but some light carbonation remains. First taste is … a Helles with smoked malt. Yep, it does what it says on the tin/aluminum. I’d say mission accomplished. There aren’t many brewers tackling this type… as far as I know. This beer get’s its smoke level right. There’s a subtle background sour note. It would be awesome if an American brewer could get somewhat close to Schlenkerla quality levels in a 6 pack at a good cost, but here we have a local producing an expensive 16oz can four pack that competes with an expensive Schlenkerla 16oz can four pack. In other words, the attraction just isn’t really there.

 

Definitely try one before commiting to a 4-pack. It’s good but not worth $20/4.

 

New beer #3. Was saving this for a hot day. This’ll do.

Blackberry Pick’n - Heist
Berliner - 4.1% abv
Score: 4.49 (+3.2% rDev)



L - trace head atop an opaque maroon body.

S - salt, berries, sugar.

T - blackberry dessert. Biscuit, lactose, graham cracker. Equally sweet and tart. No bitterness. No booziness.

F - medium body with above average carb.

O - this is delightful.

 

Good afternoon NBS, I’m checking in from Canada so time for some new Canadian beers! First up is Dieu du Ciel! Tamarindo Gose.

3.94/5 rDev +2.9%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4

341 ml bottle, dated 3/28/18, poured into a teku

A- A clear golden copper with a two finger white head.

S- Tart, a little salty, some lemons, touch of fruits and a little earthy.

T- Tart, a little salty, fruity, some apricots, tamarind, slightly earthy, touch of lacto.

M- Smooth, light body crisp.

O- A very very gose, I really enjoy it.

Cheers!

 

Yeah, I had a very similar thought when it comes to the Jack's Abby smoked beers; for the same exact price I'm much better off with the Schlenkerla. I guess it's nice that these places give it the ol' college try, but that doesn't make for a repeat purchase if they're not a good value.

 

Dream Demon milkshake double ipa, a collaboration from bare hands and elm street brewing.

Appearance- magenta coloring which is hazy and thick (after I shook the can profusely to stir the sediment)

Aroma- fruity, blackberries, grass,lemony?

Taste- sweet and fruity up front, creamy in the middle, and tart finish

Feel- a little creamy, thin at times, would have been great on draft I’m sure

Overall- not as good as I was expecting (I had bearded iris milkshake ipa earlier this week so that probably spoiled me) but definitely serviceable.

 

Assume the reference is to Tamarindo, Costa Rica? If so sounds like a great beer for that locale. Perhaps I'll be able to take one for my nest visit down there.

 

Wow I miss this thread. What a great review and the food is out of this world!

 

I think it is named that more in reference to the tamarind, but it could be both. It would be perfect for a hot day on the beach in Costa Rica!!!

 

Man, it's a scorcher today. It's nice to finally get that umbrella out here on the deck.

My next is another August Schell beer from @vidbain , and a perfect one for a day like this:

Wow- seriously nice Hefeweizen here. It's got that perfect balance of banana and clove, neither one dominating, smooth blend of flavors, bready/doughy background, rich malty feel with the perfectly dry finish, full flavored without being obnoxious. It kinda reminds me of the underappreciated Paulaner except this one has it beat on mouthfeel- I can see making this one a regular if I could. Solid A (4.4)

 

I take it as a reference to the flavor, as well as a type of drink:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tamarindo_(drink)