New Beer Sunday (Week 710)

The last lone soldier from @GreenBayBA. As if I don't drink enough sours, here is another one. Amazing! Fantastic lasting head retention/soapy lacing on the glass. Aromas and flavors of big tart lemon, lime, cranberry, strawberry, orange, grapefruit, cherry, peach, plum, pear, apricot, red/green apple, red grape/wine, hay, straw, grass, and oak; with moderate caramel, brown sugar, toasted bread malts; and light notes of oaken vanilla, leathery/musty funk, red wine vinegar, and yeast/oak earthiness. Light-moderate lactic tartness; light wine tang, and Brett spiciness on the finish. Medium carbonation/body; creamy/bready malts, some lactic acid, and light wine tang/tannins in the mouthfeel. Light-moderate increasing acidic/tangy/tannin dryness, no pucker. Pretty refreshing, not overly lactic, 5%. Every damn time, they blow it out of the park with sours. Mostly Flanders brown-like. Amazing Brett/bacteria complexity, oak presence, and dark/bready malt balance against acidity. Not overly sweet from lingering dryness. Top tier marks all around. 4.38


Excellent gose. Nice head retention/solid lacing on the glass. Aromas and flavors of big tart/sour red/black cherry, fruit skin/pits, lemon, lime, orange, grapefruit, citrus zest, pear, red/green apple, melon, white wine, coriander, peppercorn, mint, sea salt, hay, straw, and grass; with moderate wheat, cracker, lightly toasted bread malts; light lacto funk, and yeast earthiness. Light-moderate fruity/lactic tartness, fruit tang; light coriander spiciness, and herbal/grassy bitterness on the finish. Medium carbonation, light-medium body, and fairly crisp finishing. Balanced bready/grainy malt, lactic acid, fruit tang; and light salinity in the mouthfeel. Light-moderate increasing acidic/tangy dryness. No pucker. Very flavorful/refreshing. 5%. Not overly lactic or salty. They have had a great track record on sours since day one. Nicely jammy cherries; with balanced lemon, spice, salt, and lemon drop hops; with a solid pale/wheat malt backbone against acidity. Spot on style. 4


Cheers, be back soon with the milestone finale.

 

One last review today (maybe).
I am saving one for last that is admittedly not the first thing I'd usually grab for myself, but I have been known to discover some great beers by drinking what I wouldn't usually drink. This is a Sour raspberry milkshake IPA. Let's see what that entails.

It pours a thick-looking cloudy pink-verging-on-red with a finger and a half of faintly pink-tinted head. It has a sweet, full raspberry aroma with pez and a whiff of tropical hops that strikes a balance between tart and sweet. The flavor follows on the smell's heels with juice-like fruit flavors, lots of raspberries, a nutri-sweet twang and the faintest possible hint of tartness.
This is an interesting beer, though if I had it blind I don't know that I'd even peg it as beer. It is basically carbonated juice. It is tasty, but has a slight weirdness to the sweetness of the flavor that kind of traveled up my nose that reminds me of Kool-Aid powder or flavored Tums. This is a tricky one to score for me. On the one hand, I am not terribly fond of it. On the other hand, it tastes pretty good and I will drink it. And a on a third hand, they did mostly seem to put together what it is in a cohesive way. Regardless, it is a little lame that I can't really taste the IPA or the Sour in it. Just the raspberries.

Santé!

 

Proclamation's Tendril IPA (7% abv)...

Medium golden color, opaque, with a finger or two of white foam on top... Has a colorful melange of aromas and flavors, ranging from orange to melon to berry to grapefruit, along with a light undercurrent of pine... Fairly sweet and juicy - berry-like in that regard... Bitterness is very mild, though some bittering piles up as you drink through the beer... Smooth and soft - nice feel and body... Prolly my favorite of the day so far (one more new beer to go)...

9/10/18 canning...

 

New Beer Sunday: An American IPA

Afternoon NBSers, time for a report on yet another new IPA worth looking for if you haven’t tried it yet..

This afternoon's new beer is Binary from Sixpoint Brewing.

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

https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/10607/345566/?ba=drtth#review


The aromas/flavors are a very nice combination of tropical fruits, citrus, biscuity malt sweetness. some floral notes and some light resinous bitterness that closes the show. This is drinkable, enjoyable and I’ll be having more.

Cheers, all!

 

Having samuel Smith's chocolate stout. Great dark look with foamy tan head. Smell has a hint of the chocolate aforementioned. Flavor is roasty and chocolatey, a hint of sweetness with the cocoa. Thin enough to be drinkable, this one will be gone fast. I'll be on the lookout for 4 packs instead of singles next time. I've only had one or two of their beers before, but I don't know why. They make solid classics.

 

New Beer #2. And my first from Surly. Furious IPA, a throwback IPA with sweet malt, caramel, and toffee up front, and a blast of bitter, biting hops. This is outstanding! Thanks to @Vidblain for including in his BIF box!

Here's my complete review:

4.28/5 rDev -0.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

I received this from @Vidblain in a BIF box. Canned 8/20/2018. Poured into Spiegelau IPA glass. It pours a color something between orange and ruby with a huge, milk-white head and lots of clinging lacing. The nose is decidedly malt-forward. There's not much fruit but a fragrant smell of hops. The taste is interesting: it's malty with roasted barley and a hint of caramel or toffee up front but the complex hop bill of Amarillo, Simcoe, Cascade, and Warrior is bitter and bites hard. It finishes with a bitter after taste. I really like how the bitter hops and sweet malt battle for supremacy. This ale has a nice, creamy mouth feel with pleasant carbonation, and at 6.7% ABV a second pour is a must. Overall, I like this a lot! It's an IPA with an attitude.

I've been watching BAs post about Surly for years. This is why the BIF is so special! I'm happy to participate.

 

Moving onto hops.



Omnipollo's Zodiak Multiverse.

Pours a straw color with two fingers of white, foamy head. Transparency is foggy at the start, but merges deeply into murky as the remaining ounces are poured. Aroma is lactose and residual sugars up front, with herbal, earthy, and tropical fruits behind. Flavor profile is tropical fruits, citrus, earth, herbal, and floral hops with biscuit and burnt toast malts. It has a decidedly sweet taste. Mouth feel is medium in thickness with a velvety texture bolstered by the sugar. Overall, a fair IPA. Sugar notes are heavy and are not balanced out well between the hops and malt.

Score: 4.25 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | BA Score: 4.02 | rDev: -2.2%

 

NBS beer #2



Moose & Rocco

Harpoon Brewery & Beer Hall
American Strong Ale / 8.98% ABV

3.95/5 rDev -1.7% | Score: 4.02
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Enjoy by 12/15/18 --- Note: This version says 8% abv

L-The beer pours a hazy brown with a towering 3 plus finger tan head. The head recedes to a thin ring leaving a thin circle of lace at the top of the glass.
S- The nose is strong and super sweet mix of almond and vanilla. It's reminiscent of crème soda. Not much else can be detected.
T- On the palate the beer starts out with some cocoa. This transitions into that vanilla/almond combo from the nose. Thankfully here on the palate there is less sweetness and at the backend the vanilla subsides. You are left with a bit of lingering bitterness which I wouldn't think was possible based on the nose.
F- This is maybe the weakest aspect of the beer. Mouthfeel is fairly thin bordering on watery. Carbonation is strong initially, but light after the initial pour.
O- Different and despite the weak mouthfeel enjoyable. Not something your going to drink more than one of at a sitting. Hopheads will be turned off by the super sweet nose. May still be too sweet for that segment of drinkers. Worth a shot if you those with a sweet tooth.

 

Kafija Alus Baltic Coffee Porter Poured from a Crowler canned a week ago. Pours a near slick black, with a 2 plus finger tan head that leaves gobs of thick lace as it slowly settles. 4

Smell roasty dry coffee, dark chocolate , vanilla, biscuit, and hazelnut. 4.25

Taste follows coffee, dark chocolate, vanilla, biscuity grain, and hazelnut. 4.25

Mouthfeel is bigger than average, plenty of life, a tad dry for sure, and drinks too easy at 8.1% ABV. 4.25

Overall this is an excellent local and I am so excited to watch this very young Brewery grow. 4.25

 

Lucky you thats a fantastic brew!

 

Since I'm on a new foreign style kick, I figured I'd tick one more. Although I've already landed two in this category so far, this will be the second Russian brewed Kvass I've had to date. I've got about a dozen styles to go to have tried all styles listed by Beer Advocate.



Ochakovo's Ochakovskiy.

Pours a very dark brown that nets a black glass once full. No head formation. Aroma is sweet, hitting caramel and toffee right of the bat. Caramel and toffee lead into a sugary cola aroma. Rye and whole wheat bread are present throughout. Flavor profile is whole and rye wheat bread stirred and mashed into a glass of cola. Caramel, toffee, and some light spices give it a little extra depth, but overall it's very sugary. No discernible alcohol. Mouth feel is smooth, no fizziness or texture. It has a medium-thin consistency. Overall, sugary notes are abundant, and yet the rye and wheat beers make it seem somewhat healthy. Very unique.

Score: 3 | 3.5 | 2.75 | 3 | 3 | BA Score: 3.02 | rDev: +6.3%

 

Review 7400. It was either this or PB & Thursday. PORT. This was amazing. Solid head retention and minimal lacing as expected of 17.8%. Flavors of huge milk/dark chocolate, cocoa, coffee, caramel, brown sugar, toffee, vanilla, port, raisin, plum, cherry, berries, fig, currant, fudge, toasted oak, nuts, and dark bread; with lighter notes of licorice, molasses, smoke, leather, tobacco, and pepper. Similar/fruitier aromas, a bit of booze as it warmed, but not overwhelming. Light herbal/roast bitterness, oak tannin spiciness, and wine tang/tartness on the finish. Medium carbonation and full body; very creamy, silky, velvety mouthfeel that is fantastic. Slight slickness, sticky hop, chalky roast, wine tang/tannins, and increasing dryness. No cloying/acrid flavors. Mildly increasing warmth of 17.8%, no barrel booze. Dangerously smooth sipping. Liked this quite a bit more than the regular! Amazingly rich/well rounded stout malt complexity, with perfect port barrel integration. Perfect balance of malt and dark fruit character. Will definitely have to revisit base BT eventually! I had a 4 YO at the time, maybe fresh will be better. This is 11/20/2017 bottle. 4.35


Cheers, have a good night NBS.

 

Is that bottled in a plastic soda bottle?

 

Good evening, NBS! Dinner has been eaten, so I decided to pull a beer from the cellar for dessert. This beer, Cigar City's Marshal Zuhkov's Imperial Stout with Vanilla and Hazelnut, was out in the market place early last year, as I recall. The reviews at the time mentioned that the beer was a little strong - on feel and added ingredients, so I decided to listen to a couple BAs who said to cellar it.

Well, I threw it in the back of the fridge, so it's stayed at fridge temps for 18-20 months or so. It turned out to be pretty tasty, too bad it appears to be a one off (at least at this point). I liked it about the same as I recall liking the base beer, even though I gave the base beer a higher rating (it apparently had a considerably better nose).


The basics from my review:
Black and oily, with an interesting mix of an oily opening feel that dries out to remind me a little of cocoa powder. The nose and taste didn't have a distinctive vanilla note to me, but there was a little sweetness that may have been the remnants of the vanilla addition. The beer was a fairly straightforward big stout, with roast, char, brownie/cocoa and a little umami. The hazelnut didn't present itself right away, but it became more obvious before the glass was halfway empty.

If you cellared one or more of these yourself, I would suggest grabbing it from the cellar and giving it a go.

 

Happy New English Old Ale Sunday!

Pretty nice day on the Western Slope, around 80 at the trailhead, mostly cloudly/some sun. This new brew surprised me, pretty tasty, not sure if I've had a barrel aged version of this style, pretty tasty, not really a big fan of this brewery. Also, picked up some chicken tacos. Watching some football, NYPD Blues.

https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/848/303082/?ba=Wasatch#review

Cheers!

 

I have found that Cigar City beers do not age well at all. I will never cellar another of their beers.

 

Correct! This one seems to come in a 1.5L plastic bottle and 16oz (metric version) cans.

 

Uncle Harry the Maine **** cat.



https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/40927/313276/



From 375 ml. bottle.
Moderate pour yields a 1/2 inch white head over a light golden body with no lacing. Nose of lemon, oak, and slight funk. Taste mirrors nose with bit of extra sourness not quite anticipated from the aromas. Nice feel for the style and overall, a nice, tart wit that I'd have again. Cheers!!!

4.09/5 rDev +3%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4