New Beer Sunday (Week 704)

Big bonus is the missus enjoys both just as much as I do, so it really works out well.

 

Hello New Beer Sunday!!!

Looks like I'm late to the party. 5 pages already? Wow!

After a long day, and weekend of work I want to be like @TheIPAHunter and go LARRRGE...

I'd say this beer fits the bill

Atomic 26 With Vanilla & Cocoa Nibs from Wild Mind Artisan Ales.

This was part of their 2 pack they released on Black Friday last year. I had already driven to the cities the day before for the family Thanksgiving, then the morning of black Friday to get my BCBS. I decided to drive AGAIN to the cities after a 10 hour day at work to get the 2 pack. Thankfully they had some left, and I gladly dropped the $50 for it. It came with a Wild Mind shirt, glass, and 2 bottles of Atomic 26 regular, an the Vanilla/Cocoa Nibs one. Ive had the regular bottle already for a NBS, and my review of it is here
https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/46325/316513/

So, now on to the jacked up version. Is it better, worse, or the same?

BETTER!

Damn, it is LARRRGE...!!!!
The vanilla and cocoa nibs really jack up this beer even more. It is so delicious, smooth, and easy drinking. So tasty. So awesome. I wish more on here could try it, but I think it was a one time thing from them.

So here's my review

4.85/5 rDev 0%
look: 4.75 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.75

This beer pours like motor oil. Thick, black, with a 1 finger brown head. Ok retention.
The nose is really rich with the added vanilla. I also do get a deep cocoa aroma as well, but the vanilla is the star of the show.
Consumed at 66 degrees - Taste - WOW! The vanilla is so smooth! The chocolate takes up the rear, and it's a perfect match between the 2 flavors! The chocolate does linger on the backside. As a fan of cocoa nibs, I really love this flavor.
Feel. Thick and rich. Full bodied, and a very smooth alcohol feeling. Not really an alcohol burn, but a smooth feel.
Damn! This beer was damn good before the addition of the vanilla and cocoa, the other 2 just jack it up to world class level. Probably one of the top rated beers I've ever had, and I'm so happy I bought the gift pack last Black Friday of the 2. Both are such good beers, but this is the better of the 2.


The problem with going LARRRGE... is that I'm likely done tonight. I've still got a lot of it left to enjoy in proper glassware (and I've been working on it for an hour now already). So, I'll see you NBS peeps next Sunday for the next NBS!!!

 

I am not going to review a new beer today...been dozing off and I really don't want to do a potentially great beer any injustice. That Lavenade will keep a week.

 

Great review! Upright has been on my list of breweries to visit my last couple of trips to Portland, but for whatever reason, I never made it. After reading your review and praise of the brewery, I’m definitely going to make a point of making it there next visit. Cheers!

 

NBS#3 Needed something to put a pleasurable taste back on my palate. Enter Night Shift Santilli.

Can dated 07/25/18 into a tulip glass.



L: Pours slightly hazy golden (could be mostly chill haze) with 1+ finger of variable density white frothy head with good retention and left ringed lacing.

S: Nice and enjoyable pineapple forward, with some earthiness and dankness hiding underneath.

T: Follows the nose well, but more balanced with some additional citrus. Finishes with moderate bitterness, some acidity, and dry.

F: Low-medium bodied with medium carbonation, lively on the tongue and slight burn from the acidity and the carbonation, slick on the swallow.

O: Very nice West Coast IPA, thoroughly enjoyed and would gladly have again.

BA score = 4.24, rdev = +1.7%

 

My 3rd new beer is one I brought back from a trip to Michigan last weekend-



Brew Detroit Cerveza Delray, an AAL. I grabbed this one to fill out a mix six because it was cheap, and I’m glad I did!

This beer is indeed “simple, clean, crisp, and refreshing” as the can claims. I’m getting sweet corn, bready malt, a little green apple tartness and mild floral hops in the aroma and taste. It’s medium-light bodied with medium carbonation and finishes somewhat dry with a bit of bitterness. Overall, it’s outstanding for an AAL. I could drink it all day.

 

Well, Golly & Shazam!


I'm working on the beers that our very esteemed @Beer_Economicus sent me. Be back with one momentarily...

 

Thanks! Upright is in a weird spot. It's off Broadway right by the freeway in between the Moda Center and th Portland Public Schools main building, so parking can be a bit difficult, plus there is no signage/ advertisement of where it is. It is in the downstairs section of a business center and coffee shop so tricky to find for a first timer. Plus unusual hours.

Despite all this quirky Portlandiness, it's absolutely worth the visit. Let me know next time you're in town! Well grab a beer or 20. Cheers!

 

Much to be proud of there. No substitute for a good head on one's shoulders!

 

NBS Nightcap - Maine's Zoe

Bottle dated 07/17/18 into a tulip glass.



L: Pours hickory (slight chill haze) with nearly 2 fingers of variable density khaki head with moderate retention and left ringed/windshield lacing.

S: Dank forward, then raisins, with undertones of caramel malt, grassiness, and subtle floral and bisquit notes.

T: Follows the nose to a large degree, but added prominence of the grassy elements, and some added pine. Finishes with moderate bitterness, holds on the palate a bit.

F: Medium bodied with higher carbonation, lively on the tongue which continues to the swallow.

O: One of my favorite styles, and this one is a solid example of what I love in hoppy reds/ambers. I'd definitely grab again.

BA score = 4.23, rdev = +1.0%

Time to get some Zzzzzs, more outstanding NE brews await tomorrow.

 

Time for a more substantial beer on a cool moonlit Colorado evening. A 12oz. bottle of Firestone XXI that landed in Indiana right around the time I was packing up. Pouring this 11.8% limited release in a 12oz. snifter for the review.

It pours a cola colored brown with a ruby tint leaving a thin creamy cap of light tan foam in it's wake. No lacing is present, but there is a thin oily residue left clinging to the glass. The smell consists of a bourbon/rum cocktail along with toffee, burnt caramel, vanilla, figs and oak. Taste is a rum/bourbon blend followed by chocolate covered cherries, vanilla, toffee, burnt caramel, figs and wet oak. The feel is creamy and silky smooth with a touch of alcohol heat in the finish. Exquisite for such a big beer!

I've been a fan of these Firestone anniversary beers since they launched in Chicago with XIV. This blend is at or near the top of the ones I've had and tastes like a fine barrel aged barleywine. My score is 4.47 / rDev+3.5%. I'm ecstatic that I have another to enjoy at a later date.

I'm going back to sipping this wonderful beer while staring at the moon. Have yourselves a great week. Here is a bedtime story to lull you to sleep......

https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/2210/298320/?ba=Prager62#review

 

@Prager62 that image wins nbs picture of the day,nice shot

 

And Now, the Finale to New Full Pint Beer Sunday (Week 704)!

I set out on this adventure on Wednesday or Thursday, assembling the beers that I would be drinking/reviewing/rating once today arrived, but I had no real expectations for any sense of pleasure. After all, it was at base, part of The Eradication of the Bottle Backlog here at Chez Woody. Bottles, meh.

I was pleasantly surprised as my day progressed, punctuated by a hiatus in which I met up with a local uncle & his sister (my aunt) & her husband (another uncle) with the latter two visiting from DC, via NJ. We had dinner at a local Thai BYOB restaurant, but I couldn't find any takers for what I brought nor did anyone want to visit the nearby local meadery, so I schlepped everything home & took a nap.

I resumed with:
https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/22854/357792/?ba=woodychandler#review

& finished the "New" part of my adventure with:
https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/22854/212904/?ba=woodychandler#review

Wow! What fun! The Buccos ended up beating the Cubs today, 2-1 with a walk-off homer in the bottom of the 11th! This is significant since the previous two decisions went to the Cubs as 1-0. This was the first time since 1969, vs the NY Mets, that the Pirates had lost consecutive 1-0 games to the same team. The pitching is clearly there, but the bats need to awaken. Speaking of awakening, I have an early Reveille tomorrow ISO a train trip to BOS. That's it for this week!

 

Thank you for the kind words.

 

OK. Decided to join late night NBS today and go for broke.

Beer #3:



New Belgium - The Hemperor

After the recent thread on this beer, I was inspired to pick one up. When the cap comes off, it smells like someone having a good time just walked through the room. Strange. Beyond that initial punch, I bet my take on this beer is very different from the norm. To me, it tasted somewhat like amaretto. It wasn't sweet or thick, but it had this odd almond thing going on. I am not a smoker, so my reference point for this beer is certainly different from some others. All in all, this is definitely a one and done, but a nice drinking experiment regardless.


Beer #4:



Ommegang - Short Sleeve Saison

Right on cue - this is a perfect follow up to that "Coin Operated" beer since it's 4.5% and a Belgian styled pale.This beer doesn't suffer from the same fate as Coin Operated. I never cared for Hennepin, Ommegang's acclaimed saison, but this one is OK. I'm getting coriander. It's quite hazy.

 

Hello Late Night NBS
Sorry I have barely read the first page, and a smattering of others. We've been busy here. I am grateful to our very own Darwin, @Beer_Economicus for sending me this lovely from Heist Brewery in Charlotte, NC

Citraquench'l IPA

Pours a vibrant orange to golden hue. Opaque. Fluffy white head rises about 2 fingers in height. Scattered lacing.
Smell is bright citrus. Orange zest, floral lemon, and a fluffy oatmeal grain note. Very inviting.
Taste follows along. The flavor really does move in unison with the mouthfeel. The lite, fluffy delivery of such smooth citrus notes is quite satisfying. The finish is almost bitter, but definitely juicy.
Overall, a notable hazy. It is more nuanced hazy IPA, and I like that.
3.99/5 rDev -12.5%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

 

As always, good reading. Thanks, Jack.

 

Wow. Those look DELISH!!!

 

Wow, Corey. Congrats all around. Sounds like you have raised a really grounded kid. As a teacher, I really appreciate that. It takes 10 million things to go right in a kid's life to make them turn out ok, and sometimes it just takes a few things to go wrong to take him/her down a wrong path. I'm happy for you.

 

Had a few with my neighbor earlier while our kids played a bit that I intended to post while mine were getting to bed. My little one wasn't wanting to get in his bed tonight so I laid down with him and not sure who went to sleep first but here it is 2AM and I'm awake after a nice nap on my end so here goes.
Decided to keep it mostly local today.

Pours a slightly cloudy golden with a finger of white head.
Smells of citrus, orange, some mango, a bit of pine.
Taste follows the nose pretty well along with quite a bit of sweet bready malts.
Medium bodied with good carb level.
Overall a solid Sweetwater beer, not over the top but pretty tasty. I wish I had taken three cans over to get the full trout image.

I haven't made the trip to New Realm but from what I've heard it's a nice set up. It was started by Stone's former brewmaster so I expect good things.
This one pours a hazy golden color with a thin white head.
Aroma is definitely citrus, orange, pineapple, tangerine.
Taste follows to a tee. Sweet juicy citrus, very little bitterness.
Medium body, soft feel.
Overall a good beer, not exceptional but definitely one I'd have again.