New Beer Sunday (Week 698)

Good afternoon all. This is my first day home after 10 days on Upper Saranac Lake. The week was HOT.....too hot. But it could had been far worse. I did take a 12 hour foray into Vermont and came back with 2 huge coolers full of fantastic IPAs most of which are new to me. We went to the Alchemist, Hill Farmstead, the Craft Beer Store across form Prohibition Pig and Hunger Mountain. The beer selections were out of this world. Today's new beer is "Alena" American IPA from the Alchemist. I never had it before so here is a copy of my review. "Poured from a 16 ounce can into an IPA glass. No date on the can but it has to be fresh. It is light golden yellow with a white foamy head that dissipates to 1/4 inch and holding with not much lacing. It smells awesome. Sweet and juicy. Kinda like the brewery when you walk in. The taste is a little deceiving when compared to the smell. It has some sweetness to it but overall for me it is bitter especially in the finish. It is still a great beer but I honestly don't care for it. I think that the freshness saves it." I am glad that I only purchased a 4 pack. So have a great day and enjoy the summer. The leaves will be falling in 90 days !!!

 

Third Window Brewing in Santa Barbara, CA
Pet Rock Vermont(ish) IPA

Juicy mouthfeel with a bitter bite.

 

More beer somehow keeps finding its way into my glass, The Veil greenferrari. It is a good DIPA but blueferrari is better.

4.22/5 rDev -2.8%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.25

16 oz can, dated 6/29/18, poured into a teku

A- A hazy golden orange with a two finger white head

S- Citrus, some tropical fruits, earthy, dank, some citrus zest.

T- Citrus, melons, earthy/dank, citrus zest, touch of pale malts.

M- Smooth, medium body, a little creamy.

O- A good DIPA, but I liked blueferrari better.

Cheers!

 

The crowning jewel of today's NBS adventures... a bottle of Manhattan NW by Cascade Brewing! Big thanks to my cousin for sharing such a special bottle... this pours a gorgeous medium-blush wine color with some slight red undertones when held up to light. Very restrained yet retentive bone-white head with a clear surface. Lots of small bubbles rising to the surface somewhat slowly... nice looking stuff with a great color!

Nose is very citrusy with a lot of surprising stone fruit notes... apricot and cherry with some brighter plum elements. I don't get as much barrel here as I thought I would... not a lot of tannic or bourbon-like aspects. The apricot "noyaux" takes up a lot of the forefront of this brew, honestly. It's almost too pervasive. I really like this, but it does seem to have some strange misgivings.

On the tongue, this is insanely acidic and puckering, with strong flavors of bright tart cherry and apricot with strong tangerine and orange backing notes. Still not much bourbon or even tannic qualities going on. I'm a little disappointed at the apparent lack of woodiness going on. This is a blend of beers aged in bourbon barrels, but the bourbon character is surprisingly absent. Definitely conspicuous to me, but I like the vibrant fruit flavors and unceasing acidity. I just feel like this is missing some of the most important elements of, well, a Manhattan. Perhaps they take refuge in calling it "Manhattan NW" and are re-appropriating the term for their own use, but it's really pretty far off from an actual Manhattan cocktail, if I'm being honest. I almost wish they didn't call it that.

The feel is drying and lip-smackingly sour with a super-fine carbonation element and a nice, thick dollop of fruitiness hanging out throughout the palate during each sip. I wanted this to be a little less fruity and a little more amaretto/bitter/woody, honestly, but... at the end of the day, it's quite good regardless. However, I can't help but think there's some dialing in that could be done here to blend the elements together better.

 

Kasteel Raspberry Chocolate Quad. Just got back from a long walk in Camusett State Park and sharing the bottle with my wife who picked it off the shelf at the Piggly Wiggly while we were on vacation in Myrtle Beach. The base beer is one of my wife's all-time favorites. Pours cola in color with a quarter inch beige head that settles quickly to a ring and leaves small spots of lacing. Smells like a chocolate covered raspberry jelly roll, Taste is very raspberry forward, with semi-sweet chocolate right behind it and some light roast coffee flavor, brown sugar and toffee. Medium bodied and carbonation, creamy mouth feel. Like so many variants, I find the base beer to be better. However this beer is very well done and the raspberry flavor does not come across as artificial at all.


On another note, best of luck to @lordofthewiens on the move and retirement.

 

Good afternoon NBS today were traveling in Burlington to see Some music.
Thanks to @lordofthewiens for the kickoff, moving stuff is one thing, life changing moves are another, best to you on your next chapter.
Stopped at Lost Nation in Morrissville today for lunch, always spectacular, and picked up some smoked Helles to go.
What a beautifully balanced smoked offering.
Cheers all
Slightly Smoked

Lost Nation Brewing
Munich Helles Lager / 4.80% ABV

4.06/5 rDev +0.7% | Score: 4.03
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Poured from a can dated 3/2/18 , purchased today at the brewery, into the test glass.
A - Bright goldenrod color, a slight haze still allows the perfect carbonation to be watched as it assembles into a fine white cap.
S - A-waft of smoked grains blends well with a grassy hop element.
T - Balanced well, flavors include lemongrass, smoked malt, nice light grains.
M - Light across the palate, semi sweet start, then a move to the middle with a very nice slightly Smokey touch. The linger is very good. Like the perfect balance between toasted malts and lemon drop hops
O - A fine offering that displays the brewers talents, gently applied malts keep this smoked offering quite enjoyable

 

New beer #3. Thanks @larryi86 ! I ran into this brewery’s beers during my last VT trip, but have never tried this one.

Cloud Drop - Upper Pass
DIPA - 8% abv
Canned 6/20/18 (18 days ago)
Score: 4.19 (-3.2% rDev)



L - 2-finger pinkish head atop a muddy orange-brown body.

S - grapefruit, pine, some floral and herbal notes.

T - sugar-sprinkled grapefruit flesh, wrapped in a firm layer of dankness. Very clean, refreshing middle. Moderate-low bitterness, low sweetness, low booziness.

F - medium body with typical carb.

O - as refreshing as a dipa can be.

 

Soft water feel? Or any other aspects you care to share?

 

Last new beer of the day! My cousin has some stuff to do, so not opening anything else... even this one took a bit of convincing, but I managed it...



BuckleDown Brewing's Belt and Suspenders IPA w/ grapefruit added... clocking in at 7% and canned on 5/21/18.

Pours a really beautiful light amber/sunny orange color with a solid crown of solid-white foam, which leaves behind some spotty tiered lace. Nearly opaque body with only some slight translucence... solid looking!

Nose is radler-like with strong grapefruit overtones melding with a mildly-malty note and slight, stiff grassy hoppiness. Some rind-like grapefruit-y, acidic notes coming across as well, but I mostly get juicy fruit here rather than aspects of the peel itself. That said, the grassy herbalness still catches up and brings out some more traditional IPA elements.

Flavor is tart grapefruit upfront... almost shockingly prominent, the citrus really does penetrate the medium-bodied beer with an intense pulpiness and acidity. Light pilsner-like malt notes with a little nudge of crystal malt kicking in toward the mid-palate... finish is rather dry with superb lingering grapefruit flavors. This does a lot with its fruit flavoring when compared to similar fruited IPAs. I'd say it's one of the best examples I've consumed of the ubiquitous grapefruit IPA style. Very, very solid!

 

That can depicts the Bamberg town hall, which is fantastically situated right on a river.

 

Duclaw - All Roads Lead To Centennial

My other DIPA of the day. In no way could one be prepared for this beer according to style expectations. It's a very dark copper with a little touch of pink. Very hazy. Watery body. There's an underlying but not overwhelming sweetness and a dirty unpleasant bitterness. Nothing comes together. An ugly tasting beer. I'm beginning to think that I hate myself thanks to my 2 choices today.

 

What??? A KBS on an NBS thread. Yep, this is actually my first time having the "highly acclaimed" stout. Found this bottle during a random walk though the Total Wine store two weeks ago. Obviously this is the 2018 vintage.



Look The beer pours deep brown, though it’s pitch black in this glass. There is a thin light brown head that dissipates quickly; the bubbles are fairly uniform. There is no lacing left on the glass. (4.25)

Smell: Lots of molasses and chocolate. No coffee or oak on the nose, which is surprising considering all my beer friends in California have assured me that 2018 is nothing but barrel. (4.25)

Taste: The taste follows the nose. There is lots and lots of dark chocolate, which these dominates all the way through. Not much molasses in the taste. Coffee is again not apparent. Very slight barrel warming in the very end, with just a tiny hint of oak. I’ve had the 2017 CBS and the taste is definitely reminiscent of that in some sense. Alcohol is very well hidden for it being a 12% beer. (4.5)

Feel: Medium body, medium carbonation. Don’t know what else to say. (4.25)

Overall: Considering the California prices, I got this 2018 bottle for pretty cheap. All my beer friends have described this beer as an underperformer due to too much barrel on both the nose and the smell. Honestly I’m not getting much of that. Chocolate is definitely the dominant flavor overall. This stout is very well made and is great overall, but it’s definitely not a standout among its class in 2018. Would I buy more bottles at $2.50 a pop again, absolutely. Is it worth to seek out or spend more for than its real market value currently — definitely not in 2018 NorCal. (4.5)

All this comes down to a rating of 4.4 with a -4.3% rDev.

Cheers BA, enjoy your day!

 

Thanks to @lordofthewiens for the opening today. I can relate, as we just moved a few weeks ago. Our move was a mere 3 miles and not across the country, but the packing and decluttering was both aggravating and necessary. We have had the first real relaxing weekend at the new place. My son and I spent the morning brewing, trying to dial in the new "brewhouse." We brewed a simple pale ale hopped with Enigma and Idaho 7, going for an easy drinking tropical beer. We will see!

Onto the beer. This one is an interesting brew from Jester King, a farmhouse altbier using Mesquite-smoked malt.


A nice looking beer. Cola-brown on the pour. First clear, then a muddy copper as the bottle dregs escaped. The beer was dark brown in the glass with a large and frothy tan head that only lazily receded. The aroma was somewhat muted but it presented a nice smoky mesquite note. Deeper sniffs revealed faint grassy and floral notes. The taste was different and interesting. Opening flavors were reminiscent of a Saison - slightly tart with fruity notes - but then they yielded to a smooth and gentle maltiness with a building smokiness that peaked on the finish. The finish was a great combination of crisp tart fruit and lingering Mesquite. Medium bodied with a lively but fine carbonation from the bottle conditioning. Interesting and enjoyable. Cheers!

 

Good afternoon NBS
The first of many reviews of Sierra Nevada beers that I brought home today. This was the only NBS contender, since Stout and Porter were regulars in my fridge pre-BA, until all the local places stopped ordering them to stock five "different" IPA'S. I digress...

The review:
12oz bottled 4/10/18 (nearly 3 months ago) poured into a chalice 5.3% ABV. Purchased at the SN gift shop in Mills River, NC. I've wanted to try this beer since it came out but have never seen it and apparently it doesn't even move quickly at the brewery. The beer pours mostly bright light straw yellow with a nearly white head which recedes to a small island and leaves a small amount of lacing. The aroma is equal parts wheat and coriander. The taste is semisweet wheat interwoven with citrus and coriander. No bitterness to speak of. The mouthfeel is medium to thin bodied, well carbonated and mostly dry in the finish. Overall, very good. It's a shame that this beer isn't more widely distributed. It's very well done, restrained in adjuncts and quite enjoyable. That's coming from someone who rarely enjoys a Witbier.

@lordofthewiens, thanks for the start this morning and good luck on the upcoming move. Both my dad and father-in-law were the "have truck and trailer, will move it" types so I have plenty of experience on that front. Do not envy you one bit. My youngest starts high school this year so I am safe for at least 4 more years.
Cheers all!

 

Poured into a 13 oz Funk Teku glass, not sure when it was canned. Pours a very dark and bright orange with a solid 2 plus inch sticky off white head that leaves tons of thin lace as it slowly settles. 4.5

Smell is tangerine, pine resin, biscuit, caramel, and grapefruit rind. 4

Taste follows pine and tangerine start the party, with some biscuit and caramel in the middle, with assertive grapefruit in the rather bold and lingering finish. 4

Mouthfeel is bigger than medium, plenty of life, a tad dry as one would expect, and drinks bigger with flavor and body than 7.3% but still goes down easy enough. 4.25

Overall this is very solid reminds me of Green Flash WCIPA back when it was 7.3%. I for one still enjoy and look forward to this style now and again. 4

 

Home from work and I can finally join in the festivities. NBS beer #1 is this sour from Hi-Wire brewing.



Sour Blonde - Lemon & Rosemary

Hi-Wire Brewing
American Wild Ale / 7.50% ABV

4.42/5 rDev 0% | Score: 4.36
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5

L- The beer pours a golden orange with a slight haze. The head is a full finger of white foam which shows surprising persistence. Eventually this recedes to a thin film leaving modest patches of lacing.
S- The nose has a fantastic lemon aroma which permeates the area around me. Rosemary is detectable behind the lemon once you get used to all that lemony goodness.
T-Up front the lemon is once again the strongest component. The rosemary makes itself known by adding an herbal finish. The beer was aged in oak for 14 months, but I don't get a lot of the contribution from the barrell. Lemony tart without being puckering.
F-The overall mouthfeel of the beer is on the lighter side of medium. The acidity of the lemon along with the herbal rosemary finish really dry out the beer and invite further sips. Assuming I can stop sticking my nose into my glass.
O- Easily one of the tastiest and most interesting sours I've had in a long time. I highly recommend it for those who like lemons especially. Surprisingly not as sour as the label indicated it might be, but maybe better overall for it.

 

Happy NBS!

Kane Overhead Imperial IPA is an abrasive and pungent take on the style. Seemingly inspired by West Coast IPAs with it's bone dry finish and piney burst of hoppy goodness, it still delivers on notes of tropical fruits and crushed herbs while having a substantial malt body to round everything out.

World class IPA, without a doubt!

Cheers!