New Beer Weekend #23

This very refreshing and quaffable Helles style ale is brewed fairly close to my residence in the Florida Panhandle. While it is not my top choice for a Helles, it does maintain the core characteristics despite using a hop from down under. It has hints of marmalade that one does not expect from this style; otherwise, well-made lager.

 

#2, not a lot of explanation needed here, I’ve been eyeing this for the three weeks I’ve held it. That ends on this snowy, very cold evening in Northern Indiana.





4.6/5 rDev +4.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Jet black pour with a substantial tan head that sticks around for a cup o’ coffee. The nose is roasty char, rich milk chocolate, maple syrup, and some berry aromas. Wow.

The milk chocolate and maple are forward, with the coffee and roasty char flavors following, and the berries on the back of the palate. The mouthfeel is surprisingly creamy and substantial, especially as the beer warms.

I approached this with muted expectations based on reviews I’d read, and the beer substantially exceeded those expectations. I thought this would be the BCBS version of CBS, but it’s not - it’s truly it’s own beer. Magnificent, IMHO.

 

Cross posted from the saison thread:
Merry Christmas to all who are celebrating the holiday!

I'm treating myself to this collab from Dogfish Head and Bruery Terreaux:

This is Ridiculous- a wine barrel-wild-hoppy saison.

Aptly named for sure. So floral and funky, with big shots of tropical fruit and spice; bracingly tart; and a long woody finish reminiscent of a full bodied riesling. Just outstanding, and I look forward to eventually trying the other beers in this series. Solid A (4.5).

 

Corsendonk Christmas Ale

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https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/41/140/

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750 ml. bottle.
Best Before End 18/08/18.
Over 28 months out of code.
Whatever...
...you're only as old as you feel!

Moderate to vigorous pour yields a 3/4 inch light tan head over a translucent brownish amber body with some lacing. Nose of dark roasted malt, nuts, slight caramel, slight toffee, and even slighter chocolate. Taste mirrors nose fairly closely, a tad sweet and spicy with a very slight bitter finish of bitter chocolate. As it warms a bit there are definite flavors of pumpernickel and sourdough bread coming forward and staying right through the finish. Delicious! Nice feel and overall, what a treat for a lonely Christmas Day!
Cheers!!!

 

Merry Christmas! Been holding onto this one since early Oct. Awesome brew, a very tasty sipper. One of their best.

11th Anniversary Barrel-Aged Stout Fremont Brewing Company

https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/20680/501705/?ba=Wasatch#review

Cheers!

 

Merry Christmas, everyone! One of several new Christmas beers for me this year is Still Nacht, a Belgian Pale Strong Ale brewed by Brouwerij De Dolle Brouwers. This is not a style I drink often and I like Duval a lot more. This ale is very sweet with lots of candied apple and banana. There is a nice hoppy finish. It's good for Christmas but I wouldn't make a steady diet of it. Here's my full review:

4.16/5 rDev -1.4%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

Reviewed on Christmas Day. Poured from 12 oz. bottle into an Orval Chalice. It pours a cloudy, dirty golden color with a thin, foamy, milk-white head and lacing. Quite the smell! Sour apple, banana, caramel, and familiar Belgian spicing. The sweetness of the taste belies the rather sour nose. Much more candied apple, raisin, and banana, and sugar, along with caramel/toffee, clove, coriander and bitterness from the Nugget hops. It has a holiday dessert quality. It's surprisingly thick and syrupy with lively carbonation, and the 12% ABV is noticeable and warming. Overall, this is a big, flavorful, strong ale. Ideal for sipping at Christmas.

It's nice to have an expanded NBW for this holiday weekend and I look forward to posting more reviews tomorrow and Sunday. Cheers, NBW!

 

Pours a dark mahogany with a 2 finger sticky khaki head that leaves thick streaks of lace with pretty solid retention. 4.25

Aroma Dr Pepper, rum soaked raisins, root beer, fig, maybe some raspberry, cherry, and whiskey. 3

Taste follows I am actually wondering if this is a infected bottle meaning too much air got in. Dr. Pepper and Bacardi upfront, with fig, sour cherry, a hint of spiced peppers, and maybe some clove. 2.75

Mouthfeel is about medium, very little carbonation, a tad dry, and a touch thin for an Old Ale. 3.5

Overall I truly believe something went wrong on the bottling line or I got one infected bottle because this worse watching the Patriots miss the playoffs. Cushnoc Brewing Co. I am sticking with infected bottle and will fix this score if that is the case. 2.75

 

Merry Christmas NBW, hope everyone is doing well! Starting with Southern Grist/Rhinegeist Cordially Yours, thanks @Buck89! This is an Old Ale with orange peel, cherries, cacao nibs and cinnamon.

3.96/5 rDev -1.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Thanks Buck89 for this
500 ml bottle poured into a tulip

A- A murky brown with a small tan head.

S- Cinnamon, orange peels, toffee, molasses, some cherries, touch of chocolate.

T- Orange peels, cherries, toffee, some molasses, cinnamon, some chocolate. Flavors seem to clash.

M- Smooth, medium to full body.

O- Hits the flavors they advertised but they clash too much. The fruits are more sublet in the nose and I feel I would like it more if it was balanced more like the nose.

Cheers!

 

You know what - this response (in a sense) to another's post is what I miss from this thread, long before it became a weekend. And I'm only bittersweet about it - as it means more locals are in the mix.

But then... we have the "local bias" that gets into reviews/ratings.

So yes, this is a late night brain dump on a thread I truly love, but when people wonder what happened to the old New Beer Sunday, I think one could argue, "reality" or "life" and be accurate.

I've generally learned of brewers that have shown up locally and been glad for the head's up. Then again, I'm going on brewer and not beer, so still need a little context.

So, to eat my own dog food, such as it were:
@beergoot - I can't argue the BC Caramella isn't sweet, I thought it more evident tonight as I had one between family Zooms. I didn't find it a mess, though - and felt it fit well in my world if properly viewed as an after dinner digestif, if you would. Should a beer have to fit a narrow situation? Not sure, it would be a whole discussion - but I can see your point up until the drain pour aspect.

Well this whole paragraph is interesting, given your generous nature on ratings and the insinuation that CBS sucks. CBS to me has regressed to the means, for sure, but it doesn't suck. Similarly, the beer you reviewed I thought was very good. However, both seem to have a $$ expectation hanging around their necks (right or wrong - I will not argue).

I found the Special #4 to be absolutely wonderful, yet would not spend $25 on a bottle, again.

Okay - I do have a new beer (or two) for this weekend, but for now I'll leave these thoughts for the hounds

 

My generous nature on ratings?????????



My reference to CBS was tied to the coffee/maple/mocha referenced on the BCBS label. I have CBS rated at 4.69 (which is greater than my BCBS #4 rating at 4.60), so I'm not sure where I insinuated CBS sucks - they're both coffee/chocolate/maple imperial stouts, and the BCBS #4 ratings are substantially lesser (4.41 for BCBS #4 vs 4.70 for CBS), which is the reference I made to muted expectations.

I have 3 more 2019 CBS 12 oz bottles in my beer fridge that won't make it through our winter here in Northern Indiana, and I'm probably gonna pick up another 4-pack of 2019 CBS, which is still in coolers here. And if I see any BCBS #4 bottles lingering, I'll probably pick those up, too.

 

In response to a couple points you quoted...

While I agree with your pros and cons of the expanded New Beer thread, I don’t think the new format has changed much at all. Take that for what you will.

Regarding Caramella and your response to @beergoot whose review I read...It’s my favorite variant this year. #4 was fantastic, but there was barely any maple. The coffee though was phenomenal. Better than any coffee variant I’ve had over the past few years. But it’s a maple beer and that aspect was lacking.

Back to Caramella...As a cinnamon spiced apple Wheatwine thing it hit the nail on the head. And it was less sweet than both the 2018 and 2019 Wheatwines, while capturing the essence of “Wheatwine” with the addition of some other great things. Therefore taking the two prior Wheatwine offerings to a different level.

Cheers!

 

@ovaltine - I based my discussion on this point, interpretation of which I may have taken my own route...

Not sure if "ït's truly it's own beer" was meant to mean CBS wasn't a distinct beer (or was a shadow of its base) whereas the beer you are tasting is, or if you truly expected it to taste like CBS (which is not how I originally took your statement).

Edit: to say - I think I probably took an interpretation of your post wrongly, and extended it along that line further (and equally) incorrectly.

@TheGent - I don't think the thread has done anything but evolve with the times, as it had to. This was pretty obvious years ago, and I am actually glad it has. For instance, I feel "we" were far too long in subjugating the world to EST, more than we should have been.

That said, I think the world of beer is moving faster than we can keep up, from a "new" point of view, across nation(s). I've found the benefit of NBW nowadays to find the advocates that are willing to offer up opinions to the world, those who you could hit up if visiting their town.

That is, when we all feel safe visiting other BA's towns.

 

Drinking this second new beer today with my brother who is drinking over the phone at home in Summerlin, Las Vegas, NV. A toast to our British Grandmother, who was very fond of tea.

Goose Island Bourbon County Brand Kentucky Fog Stout



Bottle Notes: Stout aged in bourbon barrels blended with Earl Grey Tea, black tea and honey. Drink by August 13, 2022 9:49 (bottled 2 years prior), 1 pint, 9 oz, brewed in Illinois. 14.1% ABV, contains wheat. Made with tea from friends at Kilogram Tea. Bright bergamot aroma from Earl Gray Tea followed by deep dark tea notes with a subtle honey sweetness.

Pulled from the cellar this afternoon, refrigerated for 4 1/2 hours, poured thereafter and let sit at room temperature for 15 minutes before the first sip. 8.9 oz poured into a large BCBS snifter, the rest saved for tomorrow.

Appearance: Pitch black pour, rich creamy short fine creamy tan head made of small fine bubbles, settles after a couple minutes leaving light film across the top of the glass and a very rich ring around the rim of the BCBS snifter. 4.25

Aroma: Aroma leads with black tea and bergamot aroma leads, black licorice and bourbon county base backs, including a very smooth bourbon, leather and roast malt. Smells sweet overall, sweeter than the typical BCBS, but not as sweet as the 2020 Proprietors.Interesting blend. 4.0

Taste: Initial taste ten minutes in is primarily Bergamot backed by a smooth bourbon. The complexity experienced by the aroma is lost. After ten more minutes, a strong black licorice taste dominates, with a honey, bergamot, smooth bourbon, plums and other dark fruits back for the rest of this pour. Taste as advertised sweeter than the typical BCBS, and much sweeter than my preference, but no deduction for the latter. 3.75

Mouthfeel: Very creamy rich fully body, faint micro thin carbonation, light dryness, the strong ABV felt throughout. Licorice aftertaste. 4.0

Overall: This is a solid and unique variant, unlike any other BCBS I have tasted. A sweet black licorice dominates, bergamot, honey, plums and bourbon back. Nice desert beer. Glad I picked up, but prefer the standard or other variants to this one. 4.0

See you back later this weekend!

 

Well first off, I used "it's" wrong, and as the editor-in-chief of my HS yearbook, that's kinda pissin' me off.

Secondly, I expected BCBS #4 to resemble CBS as a BA imperial stout with maple and coffee, and it does, but as I stated, BCBS #4 is its own beer, specifically with the berry flavors, which are referenced on the label, but something I didn't expect to be as prominent as they were.

I love CBS, and I love BCBS #4, but I do enjoy CBS a little bit more. Both are outstanding, IMHO.

 

Prairie Mocha Noir, 14.2% ABV; 4.17 Overall

Pours an effervescent mahogany with fastest disappearing head I've ever seen, I believe it was caramel. Viscous, zero head retention & lacing

S: Dark fruit & some boozeyness that turns more towards Whisky as it warms

T: Figs, dark cherry, much dryness, a little bourbon & chocolate, faint coffee notes. Dark fruit stays strong, coffee & booze bite, plus barrel picks up as this warms, some Baker's Chocolate & vanilla, plus a little leafy hops. Finishes strong with dark chocolate, some whisky/bourbon barrel, figgyness & some coffee

MF: Fairly chewy, tamped down carbonation

This got better close to room temperature, drinks fairly easy considering the heft, but lets you know who is the boss here

 

I usually have no one to share them with. My Wife loathes most dark beer & even more so, the bigger it gets