New Beer Sunday (Week 744)

This one comes to me by way of the Hawaii ninja (@y2kawakami ) and caught my eye immediately.

Beer: CocoWeizen
Brewery: Honolulu Beerworks (Honolulu, Hawaii)
ABV: 5.5%

Pouring from a 12 oz. can into a weizen glass, this beer pours out a deep shade of gold, almost crossing into a burnt orange. It forms a finger worth of white bubbles that dissipate rather quickly.

The nose brings the classic hefe smell with banana and clove popping up, but this time tangling that with a freshly cut coconut.

The taste comes in with a crisp wheat before turning into ripe banana and just a touch of fresh coconut.

The mouthfeel is crisp and dry. Maybe a little bit on the thinner side, but then again, maybe not. It’s been a while since I’ve had a hefe. It makes it nice on a hot day.

Overall, I think they did good not letting the coconut get out of hand here and keeping a nice, true to style, well rounded hefe base showing throughout while showing quick hints of coconut.

Thank you for this Sean!

 

Another exceptional beer from the generous @JBowenGeorgia
Pours a deep black with creamy head that dissipates, sweet aroma of maple, cinnamon, ginger with taste that follows, sweet gingerbread, vanilla, cocoa, and some rum that gives a nice tropical alcohol feel, thick creamy feel, well crafted imperial stout, thanks John

 

I had a long day flying from Pennsylvania to Porrland Oregon for a 2 week work tri . I got in early enough to be able to get downtown to Hair of the Dog and walk the Portlsnd Rose Festival along the river. Back at the hotel now having a pFiem Helles. I plan to visit their brewery tomorrow after hiking the Gorge below Mt Hood. Quick review because I'm tired.

A - Beautifull clear straw gold with a 1.5 finger white head.

S - Sourdough bread, noble hops, floral.

T - Rich, semi-sweet Pilsner malts, lightly toasted bread with honey, grassy/herbal spice. Appropriate bitterness.

M - Light-medium body and carbonation. Smooth.

O - A delicious beer, especially after an 8 mile walk on this perfect day on Portland.

 

Thanks for the reply. I certainly was not trying to hassle you, just trying to help. I use imgur and then just copy the link and there it is. If you need help there are many here who will make the effort..
In the interval post the brewery and the beer and we will know more about what you are having !

Good luck !

 

I'm on to the scary part of the night... the imperial stouts. I have two new ones tonight, and this is the less-crazy of the two. In my glass right now is Singlecut's Nexus of the Crisis (named after a lyric in a Blue Öyster Cult song, "Astronomy"), an 11% beer brewed with coffee, chocolate, and vanilla. This one was purchased in late November of 2018 and bottled 11/12/18, so I've had it for about half a year. Been waiting to open it to see how it ages. Let's find out!



Pours an utterly terrifying deep, dark, tar-black color that builds up with a few fingers of deep mocha foam before settling down to a finger of dark khaki. Subsequent small pours rebuild these deep suds, though they seem to dissipate quicker and quicker each time. Hmm...

I usually don't age beers with coffee in them (at least not intentionally... *recalls several bottles of KBS in cellar closet that he forgot about until just now when taking mental inventory* ) because I think the conventional wisdom is that those elements eventually stop being present. The nose here is full of dark fruit and dark chocolate, so perhaps the coffee going away is actually a truism and not a myth. This actually seems like it could be a bit infected, honestly. Smells more like a Belgian strong dark ale than any kind of imperial stout I've had... the roast is all missing.

On the tongue, this is definitely fruity and smooth with those vanilla flavors that still linger, and the chocolate is honestly quite present as well, still. I don't think there's an infection here, as the body is still heavy and it doesn't feel thinned-out by Brett taking hold or anything, but something about it still seems "off" to me. Perhaps the particular roast of coffee they used is dark fruit-leaning in the first place, which could lend it to petering out in terms of "roastiness" after 6 months when used in a beer context. I feel that could certainly explain some of my misgivings with this one.

Like I said, this drinks more like a Belgian strong dark ale. It is full-bodied, but there's no char or roast like I want from a stout; there's too much dark fruit. I wish I had tasted it closer to its born-on date to see if it is indeed aging poorly. It just doesn't taste like I expected it to, and it's a disappointing experience. I might pour out the rest to get to my final, actual nightcap beer. One I'm very excited for... and intimidated by!

(I switched gears from death metal kinda quickly with some Manilla Road, but I just found I wasn't in the mood... too cheeseball for me. So I moved on to some jazz with Snarky Puppy, and now I'm on to grind... ahh, the soothing sounds of Polish noisemakers Squash Bowels...)

 

Dogs rule !!

 

Short's sour. 3/2015 bottling. This was fantastic. Poor head retention/no lacing as expected. Aromas and flavors of big sour/tart/tangy cherries, red/green apples, fruit skin/pits, lemon, lime, orange, grapefruit, peach, plum, pear, pineapple, apricot, mango, melon, berries, white grape/wine, peppercorn, hay, straw, and grass; with moderate honey, wheat, cracker, white bread dough malts; lighter notes of leathery/musty/lacto funk, white wine vinegar, and yeast earthiness. Light-moderate fruity/lactic tart/sourness, fruit tang, and yeast spiciness on the finish. Medium carbonation/body, and fairly crisp finishing. Balanced creamy/grainy malts, lactic acid, and fruit tang/tannins in the mouthfeel. Light-moderate increasing acidic/tangy fruit dryness, minimal puckering sourness. Dangerously smooth, not overly lactic, minimal warming 9.1%. Amazing balance of juicy/jammy fruit, Brett/Bacteria complexity, and malts against acidity. Minimal residual sweetness with crisp acidic/tangy dryness. Very well attenuated for the ABV. Age probably helped this out vs what ratings indicate. 4.2


Cheers, have a good night NBS.

 

My Mom and Dad are both buried at New Garden Friends Cemetery at Guilford College. There are soldiers from the Revolution, the Civil War, The Spanish American War, World War One and Two, Korea, Viet Nam, and maybe more. My Dad was an officer in the infantry in The Philippines. He fought at Leyte Bay and his platoon was key in the victory, cited by George C, Marshall.
This is the picture of one helluva soldier that never thought that he might be.

 

Piney River Barrel aged Raise a Ruckus Imperial Stout, 9.7% ABV, 3.98 overall

Pours black as night with effervescence and thickness with one pinky of mocha colored head. Viscous, zero head retention & lacing

S: Dark fruit, Bourbon, a little vanilla & chocolate

T: Follows the nose, dryness as well, a touch of coffee & dark chocolate & just a little barrel dryness up front. Raisin, fig, a little chocolate & barrel dryness as this warms, just a touch of leafy hops as well. Finishes with a little coffee, some barrel dryness, vanilla & just a little booze bite, a touch of coconut too

MF: Medium body, subtle carbonation & a general warming sensation

A good iteration, but honestly hoped for more from the barrel aging

 

This weekend I am celebrating a few things so I decided to stick with local beers I have not tried yet. While my first one was on Friday night, another one was after midnight this morning so I guess it counts: Victory Liberty Bell Ringer DDH DIPA. I have been cutting back on hoppy beers, especially DIPAs, for a multitude of reasons but this one piqued my interest and it was great and a nice combination of new school/fruity and juicy, old school, Pilsner...good balance and the 8.7% is barely noticeable.

But truth be told after a few over the days I was ready to go lighter again and if the above doesn't technically count this one sure does and now I am drinking Troegs Field Study IPA and this is really hitting the spot! I enjoy Perpetual but it's one of those beers that I have to be in the mood for and usually one in a sitting is enough... it's old school bitter with not much else going on IMO. But yet their other seasonal IPAs like First Cut and now this I find I really enjoy and the lower bitterness and more balance works well for these beers.

Looks like I will be drinking quite a bit of Field Study while it is out!

 

Good evening and happy New Barrel Sunday BAs. But not what the status quo of "barrel" these days might lead you to think. More on the beer later..

Sorry I've been almost non-existent lately. New job, extra work, extra stress. However, this new position has freed up my weekends and holidays so I finally get to do what I do best: take the family adventuring! This weekend, the beautiful (yet gloomy) Nehalem Bay on the Oregon Coast:









And now on to the beer. An exceptional Pilsner barrel fermented in new oak puncheons to honor the classic art if brewing.

Fort George
Cathedral Tree- Barrel Fermented Pilsner

Full disclosure, I tried this beer for the first time the other night. It deserves this property NBS review. Sue me.





A good looking beer, but nothing mind blowing. Good, not great, clarity makes for a pretty shiny golden body and streaming bubbles constantly rise in attempt to hold a bone white foam to no avail.

Spot on Pilsner aroma with a wonderful fresh wood pop. Classic grassy Noble hops blanketing a crushed grain and dried bread crusts.

But the flavor...wow! Those puncheons really pack a subtle but lingering punch on the end. Again with your standard bread and biscuit and dried grass, but the smooth oak engulfs from beginning to end, sip after wonderful sip.

As hoped for and par for the course, this is refreshing, smooth, crisp, and dry. So friggin dry! The oak must be the culprit here. It's too drinkable and disappears in a flash.

This here could easily be my all day every (warm) day beer. Fort George continues to be consistently delicious and brings their special releases up notch by notch. I wish every pilsener fan could try this beer.

After my official review, I gave Cathedral Tree a rating of 4.3 with an rDev of +6.4%.

Cheers!

 

Thanks for sharing and thanks to your parents for their service !!

 

My Mom was at Key West helping monitor German submarine activity. Her brother in law and next door neighbor was a Naval Commander. He married her sister and got her the job.

 

Last one of the night, and it's a doozy for sure. Like with Singlecut, I haven't had many Grimm stouts, but I will say the ones I've had have generally been of a higher quality. I mean, Double Negative... right?



Midnight Morning is a 13% ABV (jeeeeeez) stout with coffee, pecans, vanilla, and maple syrup. My assumption is that it's intended to be kind of a cross between a roasty and a sweet imperial breakfast stout taken to an extreme alcohol percentage. The pour is a well-structured dark brown color with a scary looking mocha head that settles to a deep khaki color. Lace is absolutely awesome here... straight-up tiers of lace mark each specific sip I take. Great legs and surface haze, to boot, as well. Overall, a wonderful looking brew.

The nose is sticky pecan pie with some roasty, mostly "diner-like" acrid coffee and a dose of woody maple. The maple addition is certainly kind of contentious here, and I will say that right off the bat. I am intimately familiar with maple additions to stouts (as a homebrewer who has made maple infused breakfast stouts more than once), and I know that when syrup is added to secondary, it can be harsh and tannic while pretty much avoiding being "maple-y" at all. The alchemical process of beer just doesn't jive well with this sugar for various reasons. That said, Grimm has done an increasingly better job of using maple, considering I remember their Sugarmaker imperial stout from 2017 was not great at its utilization of this sugar (...I still have a bottle of that... I should probably open it, though it'll likely be a drain pour, I'm thinking). I suppose the stack of pancakes on the label has me biased a bit, but this definitely has the nose of "I have no standards and just stopped into this crappy diner at 1 AM after getting drunk on PBR"... which isn't a bad thing! It's incredibly evocative, to be honest.

On the tongue, this is even more intense with more nuttiness and deep coffee-driven roast backed up by a solid sweetness. Maple definitely gives it some dense and sometimes overbearing woody structure, however. Sorta hoppy and bitter as well. There's a good balance between creamy "au lait" coffee notes and the stronger, bolder underlying stout. I have to keep reminding myself that this is almost twice as strong as it drinks... it feels like an 8-9% stout, for sure. I assume the maple catapulted this into the ABV territory it's in. Luckily, it's not too dry thanks to the vanilla and deft handling of the malt bill. Like I said, Grimm is getting really good at this kind of thing! A far-cry from their days of yore full of dry-hopped/fruited sours and weird gruit-like beers. Though I miss those simpler times (Psychokinesis and stuff like Rainbow in Curved Air were so good in 2013-2014!), this is a logical next step for them. A wonderful sipper with complexity and panache. Glad I picked it up!

 

Happy New CANned Modern Twin Peak Evil Times Beer Sunday (Week 744), CANtinued!

Whew, I may have chewed more than I bit off! Or CANned less than I bargained for! Or Crack!ed the CAN that fed me. At any rate, my stamina is waning. Let's get yinz caught up, beginning with:
https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/13884/326025/?ba=woodychandler#review

& then I felt more like a cider:

You CAN imagine that such was less than satiating, so I turned to:
https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/13884/391056/?ba=woodychandler#review

Now, things were back on track! I CANtinued with:
https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/13884/286228/?ba=woodychandler#review

& now:
https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/13884/318851/?ba=woodychandler#review


I must now take my leave to reCANpurate. Back before close. promise!

 

New Beer Sunday; New England IPA

Evenin’ NBSers with recommendation for those who are new to seeing Industrial Arts beers in their area.

This evening’s new beer is my second from Industrial Arts and the is called Wrench.

My review, still in progress, can be found here:

https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/42049/253447/?ba=drtth#review


The aromas/flavors are mostly about the fruit with lots of grapefruit, grapefruit pith and peach. There’s also a bit of tropical fruits in the mix. While there’s a bit of crackery malt sweetness it does not conceal either the fruits or the lightly citric and resinous bitterness that actually shows fairly well in the long fruit tinged ending. Drinkable and worth a try if you enjoy the NEIPA style. That said, I’m more likely to repeat the earlier APA, Tools of the Trade.

The music on the player this evening fits the occasion. Here's a sample:


Cheers, all!

 

One more beer, Tired Hands Ethereal Noise. This is a blended saison, one part is just chardonnay barrel aged and the other part is aged on smoked peaches. The smoked peaches are great in this, but I could see how they could turn some people off.

4.35/5 rDev 0%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

32 oz crowler poured into a flute

A- A fairly golden copper with a three finger white head.

S- Tart, smoky, some peaches, lemons, some funk, hints of white wine.

T- Tart, lemons, smoky, some band-aids, peaches, touch of chardonnay, some oak, touch of funk.

M- Smooth, light body.

O- Love the smoked peaches, low ABV but big flavors.

Cheers!

 

Hello New Beer Sunday!!!

I'm going to be fairly quick and short here, because I'm hanging out with my neighbors. It's a weekend that is a lot more than having fun to me, and, no it's not because I worked over half of it hours wise. It means a lot to me to thank those who gave all to keep this republic free over the two hundred plus years we've been a nation. I can not express enough how much their sacrifice means to me.

Also, about grandparents: all of mine have left the building. My last one, my mom's mom died in 2003 at the age of 96. Actually my mom's side were bookends, because her dad died in 1960. I miss all 3 that I knew in my life time, and have a lot of memories of them in my younger days. I also have a picture of my grandpa - dad's dad - pictured sometime in the late 70's - standing in front of the house he was born in in 1905. The house has a very historical meaning, because it's the oldest building in Brown County, Minnesota.

I really should find a way to see it again.

Now on to the beer, after my longer rambling than I was expecting:


Cigar City Brewing Oatmeal Raisin Cookie - 5.5% ABV

Wait, a new Cigar City beer here in central Minnesota? Ummm TAKE MY MONEY!!!

Yeah, I was on it like crazy.

So, what is my opinion?

Well, I did like it. It was a bit lighter looking, color wise, than I was expecting. The head retention wasn't the best. The nose was a bit light, though a bit like my favorite - Maduro. Taste wise, it was damn good. It reminded me of my grandmothers' - both - oatmeal raisin cookies. This beer is a oatmeal raisin cookie. Nice lactose. Cinnamon was throughout. Some raisin mixed in. Really well built. Hell, I'll be headed outside with one more to enjoy the one nice day of the weekend here in central, MN.

Review:

4.03/5 rDev -1.9%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Pours a lighter brown color. 1 finger off white head. Slightly frothy, but the retention isn't the best.
The nose smells a lot like Maduro. I also get some lactose in the aroma.
Taste - Ok, this beer is quite cinnamon forward, and it lingers throughout. The lactose plays in in the middle. Some sweetness, and I do get a hint of raisin.
The body is what I'd expect from the style, and ABV. Nothing wrong with it at all.
This beer is aptly named - it does taste like an oatmeal raisin cookie.

One new beer and done, but I'll be drinking one more of these tonight. See you all next Sunday for our favorite past time - New Beer Sunday.