New Beer Weekend #2

Pours a clear golden color with a nice head and lacing
Aroma has bready malt and floral hints
The taste follows the nose with a bready malt and floral flavors
A light bodied very well carbonated crisp beer
A good Pilsner

 

Westvleteren

a brewery that I had always heard about and since there are zero travel plans in my near future, I bought a box of Belgium goodies. A dubbel is the “ lighter little brother” of a quad , still enjoyable, unique in its own way





westvletern 8

4.52/5 rDev +0.4%
look: 4.75 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

330cl brown bottle poured into a chalice.

Chilled to 50 degrees

Four finger dense foam thick taupe foam cap. Excellent retention. After five minutes settles to a dense foam layer with lacings and mountains over a dark cola like appearance

Aroma is malty, brown bread , raisin, fig, whiff of spice

Taste is malty, brown bread, fig, raisin

Mouthfeel has big sudsing, fizzy, lighter Body of liquid mouthfeel , rich, creamy , sudsy . Hint of Alcohol with no burn

Good beer

 

Good afternoon New Beer Weekend! Starting my weekend with Bearded Iris V. Latte, thanks @Buck89!
4.38/5 rDev +1.2%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.25

Thank you Buck89 for this
16 oz can poured into a pint glass

A- Black with a three finger mocha head.

S- Roasted coffee, chocolate, some vanilla, touch of caramel malts, some dark fruits.

T- Roasted coffee, chocolate, some vanilla, dark fruits, touch of caramel.

M- Smooth, creamy, medium to full body.

O- A tasty coffee stout, nice balance.

Cheers!!

 

Pours a hazy amber golden color with a generous head and lacing
Aroma has yeast, malt, hop and floral hints
The taste follows nose with a well balanced yeasty, malt, hop and floral flavor
A medium bodied very well carbonated beer
A great Belgian IPA

 

Thank you for the great start to the @JackHorzempa ! Excited to expand this to two days so I can plan and cover many more beers. You reference Christmas in your opening, and while my review notes from the early morning were written hours before your post, they unexpectedly feature prominently in my experience with this pour.

First pour for NBS 806 / NBW 2 is also my first new Goose Island and Oktoberfest in 2020.



Tale of the tape: 23 IBU, 5.7% ABV, Best Buy Date 12/21/20 estimated canned date 6/24/20. Purchased a single can on the shelf at Beer on the Wall for $1.93 + tax.

"And away they go".....

Appearance: 12 oz can poured into pint mug. Amber bronze pour, creamy off-white head leaves light soapy lacing after the head recedes within a few minutes of the pour., light carbonation. 4.0

Mouthfeel: Nice caramel malt aroma, rich and pleasant, spicy, brown sugar backing. Somewhat like a spicy Christmas pour. Odd, but works. 3.75

Taste: Light roast malt taste, salt, light sweetness from caramel. Spiciness continues, cinnamon, more like a Christmas pour than and Oktoberfest. 3.0

Mouthfeel: Faint carbonation, light body, lightly dry, easy finish. 2.75

Overall: Light Oktoberfest offering, wish the taste and feel as rich as it looked and smelled. 3.0

Ho ho ho, beer advocates, enjoy the weekend and I look forward to your new beer ideas and great reviews!

 

Ampelmännchen!!!

 

I was not aware that Wild Mind even distributed. In fact, their web site STILL says their beers are only available on tap or for pickup at the brewery.

And, due to our 21st century alcohol laws in MN (), they are not allowed to sell 12-16 oz packaged beer from the brewery.

So, after seeing your review & when placing my order earlier today, I checked, and found that the liquor store had some Wild Mind beers in stock!

Digging around on their Twitter feed, there are hints (although they don't come right out and say it) that they have a relationship with Octopi, a contract brewer in Waunakee, WI.

 

Today’s new beer is Westbrook’s Tennessee Whiskey [Jack Daniels] BA Mexican Cake. 10.5% abv, 20 IBUs and released 12/7/19.

Adjuncts are Cinnamon, Cocoa Nibs, Habanero Peppers and Vanilla. Malts are Chocolate, Dark Crystal, Oats, Pale, and Roasted Barley. Hopped with Chinook. I love Cake and can’t wait to try this new to me variant...let’s go!



Pours inky black at 53 degrees, with creamy dark tan head; ok cap retention; solid ring; small oil slick and grainy floaties on surface; soapy lacing; ruby edges; medium legs on swirl. Nose is whiskey and chocolate; boozy exhale; vanilla and caramel. Taste up front is whiskey and chocolate, followed by bitter dark chocolate and cocoa nibs, oak and vanilla; mild hot sauce; more spicy Cake base as liquid warms to 58 degrees; finish is creamy caramel and vanilla candy, chocolate cake and spicy peppers. Silky smooth feel, creamy tongue coating; medium plus body, moderate minus carbonation; peppery bite on tip of tongue; a little warmth from 10.5% abv, and probably the peppers. Overall another amazing barrel aged beer from Westbrook; I had to deduct a little for the floaties, but the nose and taste are base and barrel powerhouses; the cinnamon and peppers compliment the whole, which allows the malt and vanilla to shine; the whiskey puts it over the Cake top; World Class Imperial Stout.

4.5 | 4.75 | 4.75 | 4.5 | 4.5
Score: 4.66 rDev +5.7%

 

Second pour, drinking it now.

Half Acre Fully Saturated Double Daisy Cutter



Tale of the tape: $4.83 single can purchased at Beer on the Wall 7/24, canned 6/29/20 @ fourteen hundred hours exactly. Multiple pours into a pint glass, 8% ABV.

"And away they go....."

Appearance: Rich bubbly white head recedes after a few minutes leaving spotty bubbly soapy lacing, Murky hazy darker orange pour. 3.75

Aroma: Very sweet citrus aroma, backed by pineapple, mango and lactose. I am bracing myself for an extreme sugar bomb. 4.0

Taste: Taste balanced with a strong bitterness not present in the aroma. Taste primarily grapefruit and citrus, the complex tropical fruit noted in the aroma muted by intense dry and bitterness. 3.25

Mouthfeel: Very dry and bitter, medium creamy body, no carbonation, sweet tingly sensation on the tongue throughout the pour, dryness lingers beyond the pour. 4.0

Overall: This is an interesting pour, makes its presence felt and is balanced. That said, the bitterness overwhelms the varied flavors projected in the aroma. Good pour, though I much prefer OG Daisy Cutter. 3.5

Will stick with Chicago with the next planned pour. Cheers!

 

Howdy!
Checking in with a new one for me, a TRVE Heathen Reign mixed culture "sour" ale aged on Colorado chokecherries. Not very cherry-like, and more of a farmhouse tart than true sour. 5.5% and just could drink this all day long. Best of all, shared this with a friend who really digs farmhouses/wilds/sours.

4.02/5 rDev -2.2%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

L - Pale pink-red bloodstained heathen beer. Proper. Little head (you'd expect that since it's more of a sour/tart)
S - Good whiff of the mixed culture sour aspect, you get a tiny bit of fruit, but it doesn't give away chokecherries.
T - Good rounded tart aspect, less of a sour and more of a wild ale farmhouse, nice tart-bread-light cherry on the palate. Dig it
F - Great balance, presence, nice and dry; finishes crisp, clean, and the chokecherries come out in the warming end. Nice. Incredibly easy to put these back.
O - A little wild sour/farmhouse mash-up that uses Colorado chokecherries. Neat; will buy again if I see it (again).

 

Hey what's going on?!

It's a ridiculously humid day here. We got a real break yesterday with a mostly half day of good steady rains, and only topping out at about 84 for the high. I know.. crazy.. but that didn't last it's muggy as heck out right now working on the lawn.

I've been going through my stack, some including a few N.As which have been a real surprise in choices over the years, quite a bunch of different varieties as I mix those in from time to time. Still occasionally looking for the right fit, but as we all know N.As are "missing" things by design.

I am thinking of a slow sipper right now, as I am trying to cool off. My cat jumping in my lap isn't helping but, I can't feel bad about that.

Well what's new right now for our hero!? A good doozy let's check it out.

Sprechen Sie Deutsch? - Aslin Beer Co.



Poured from the can into a teku glass.

Faint touching tan head, but dissolves incredibly quickly, does not even provide a collar either. Deep powdered dark brown cocoa looking body color to go with it. The body seems light in appearance and this actually resembles more like wine, or dare I say a wild (crossing fingers for no infection).

Excellent aroma, and not giving to infection luckily. Huge amounts of powdered dry cocoa with faint hits of toasted coconut. Dry hints of tannic nut as well in the mix, picking up and demonstrating all the stouts claimed additions. Hints real light bodied too, and not even a hint of booze for such a high abv. Real impressive.

Monster palate hit. Silky but also with a real honey syrup texture that brings a controlled but large sweetness. The palate rushes with dark silky chocolate, and big powdery cocoa flavors. The sweet mix brings honey and nougat to vanilla tone, with an exceptional controlled warmth. The aftertaste is even more impressive bring out unexpected and diverse flavors. Hot cinnamon, dry chili powder, gooey caramel, and macaroons. The heat that seems to come from the alcohol fires up an excellent counter to the sweet chocolate tones that abound on this brew and sits really comfortably in the belly.

This comes off like a nice cordial in many ways and blurs a lot of lines. Seems like people are always obsessed with Aslin's IPAs, but to me their stouts are on another level as my favorites. This one is really right up there, and without any barrel aging makes this even more impressive.

look: 3.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.75 | 4.57/5

Cheers!

 

Lol wow, so what size packaged beer do breweries sell there? 22oz and 750ml? under 12oz? Does 11.2oz 330ml or 16.9oz 500ml count? Some state laws are amazing and I don't know how they haven't been changed. I guess somebody somewhere is profiting off of it.

 

Good afternoon, New Beer Weekend Day 1.

I started my Saturday with some yardwork that nearly destroyed my shitty back; went on to attending my niece's first birthday via Skype, and continuing on to construct decent tacos out of leftovers and my wife's freshly-bottled homemade hot sauce, leading me to today's first new beer, Aecht Schlenkerla's Helles Lagerbier.


500ml bottle served in a nonic pint glass. Don't see a date on it. Haven't seen a date on any Schlenkerlas, actually. Bought it at Malt & Vine a couple weeks ago.

Pours a clear light golden with a big white head that fades fairly slowly, moderate carbonation. Smell is honey, lager yeast, a hint of smoke, lots of grain. Maybe a little bit of grass.

Taste is undeniably smoky, almost masks the honey/grain sweetness. Little bit of grass. Interestingly crisp finish along with the smokiness.

Mouthfeel is not too heavy, not too light, somehow comes across as chewy. Overall...I'm confused but attracted.

As I continued on through the beer, my confusion or internal conflict remained. So light and crisp, but the smokiness gave it a meaty feel that was a strange juxtaposition. Enjoyed it; felt it was well-constructed and well-executed; it was memorable; didn't love it.

 

Happy New Beer Weekend! Feels weird to be typing that but I'll deal with the change. Just a couple new brews for me today, both Ohio stouts:

The first was a Wolf's Ridge/Listermann/Lil Beaver collaboration with each brewery making their own versions (this was the Wolf's Ridge one so it was the most local to me)

https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/33530/496516/?ba=bluejacket74#review





And next up was a good coffee stout from one of Akron's best breweries:

https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/40873/487522/?ba=bluejacket74#review





I'm planning on having at least one new brew tomorrow too so I'll post back then. Cheers everyone!

 

MN beer laws are among the most backward in the country.

For example, beer above 3.2 ABW (~4% ABV) can only be sold at retail in licensed liquor stores. Grocery stores, gas stations, etc., can only sell 3.2 beer. I think we may be the last state in the union with that law.

To the point of discussion here, breweries above a certain production volume can sell nothing at all for consumption off-site. The limit is something like 20,000 barrels per year (ball park; I don't know the exact number, and I'm too lazy to look it up).

Breweries below the limit can only sell growlers / crowlers for take out. I think the legal definition is 750ml or larger, containers, but, again, I don't know the legal language. Most breweries seem to sell either 750ml crowlers, pre-packaged 750ml bottles, or fill 64 oz growlers.

The law is a bit more complicated than that, but the law hit some of the breweries pretty hard. For example, a brewery above the limit, but who sold significant volume at their taproom and/or had lots of taproom exclusives (e.g. Surly) could ONLY sell their beer through retail liquor stores during the shutdown. Even when the law was loosened to allow restaurants to sell beer to go along with a food order during the shutdown, the law did NOT allow Surly to sell beer to go, even though they are also a restaurant.

Our beer laws need a complete overhaul, but getting that through our notoriously slow-moving legislature is not likely in the near term. There are too many organized parties against such a thing and little to no organization behind any change. The Minnesota Craft Brewers Guild does what they can, but most voters don't care one way or the other, so nothing changes. It was a long slog to get taprooms for distributing breweries legalized a few years ago, and an equally long slog to get Sunday sales legalized most recently.