New Beer Weekend #23

Discussion in 'The Bar' started by Roguer, Dec 25, 2020.

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  1. Dimidiata

    Dimidiata Pundit (846) Jul 14, 2017 California
    Trader

    Hi NBWers. Time for me to open my three NBW BIF holiday mystery beers so generously provided by the fabulous @WunderLlama .

    No indication of abv or other identifying characteristics on Mystery Beer 1, so here we go.

    [​IMG]

    A - pale straw, cloudy. minimal thin white head that dissipates to a ring quickly

    S - white grape, pear, sweet bready notes

    T - honey, apple juice, white grape, sweet malt

    M - lightish body, medium carb, sweet almost syrupy feel that somehow finishes on the dry side

    O - It tastes like a watered down saison, and a sweet one at that.

    Let's see what it is:

    [​IMG]

    Allagash Moselle - farmhouse style lager. Described by the brewery as: "a crisp, golden lager with a hint of saison aroma. In making Moselle, we brew two different beers, a lager and a saison, and then blend them together. Moselle leads with classic lager flavor while the saison portion adds a tropical note to the beer’s dry profile."

    I didn't get any tropical notes, but the lager-saison hybrid makes sense mostly for what I got taste-wise. I'm not sure it was a particularly good idea though, but it's probably a fine beer to drink on a hot afternoon. Thanks Maynard for a very interesting beer to try to pick apart. On to the next one!
     
    #161 Dimidiata, Dec 27, 2020
    Pinz412, TheGent, jvgoor3786 and 20 others like this.
  2. beergoot

    beergoot Grand High Pooh-Bah (9,310) Oct 11, 2010 Colorado
    Mod Team BA4LYFE Society Pooh-Bah Trader

    Oskar Blues -- One-y (low calorie hazy IPA)

    [​IMG]

    3.56/5 rDev -2.5%
    look: 3.5 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

    Pale, mildly cloudy pale yellow body; nice carbonation; coarse, soapy head, white and sticky. Herbal and grassy scent; a suggestion of dull citrus. The taste mimics the smell with an additional element of mild hop bitterness; lemon cookie. Light body; crisp and gently tart with a soft bite on the palate; a balanced effect of dryness and juicy tartness.

    For a lightweight hazy IPA, this beer is okay.
    ---
    This was a gifted beer. Which is good, as I don't believe I would buy this outright, and certainly not after tasting it. Again, it is not horrible or anything, just lightweight and weak in looks, taste, and mouthfeel overall. I appreciate the low ABV, but there are other beers out there that surpass this beer in its weak areas and still deliver a sessionable ABV level.
     
    #162 beergoot, Dec 27, 2020
    Pinz412, TheGent, VABA and 14 others like this.
  3. Snowcrash000

    Snowcrash000 Grand High Pooh-Bah (6,041) Oct 4, 2017 Germany
    Mod Team Society Pooh-Bah Trader

    To Øl - Let Cognac Mælk

    Session Milk Stout aged with Cognac barrel chips, from Denmark (4.1%).

    [​IMG]

    Pours a pitch-black coloration with a large, creamy head. Smells of roasted malt and light chocolate and coffee notes, as well as just a hint of earthy oak.

    Taste follows the nose, with a great balance of roasted malt, light chocolate and coffee, as well as just a hint of spicy and fruity Cognac accents and earthy oak. Finishes rather dry, with a light bitterness and some roasted malt, chocolate and coffee lingering in the aftertaste. Smooth mouthfeel with a light/medium body and medium carbonation.

    I think that for a Session beer at 4.1%, this is absolutely terrific, with a decent body and mouthfeel for the ABV and some rather nice chocolate and lighter coffee notes, with the Cognac chips leaving a fleeting impression as well. It's got a great, roasted, dry and lightly bitter character to it, with very little sweetness coming through and the lactose thankfully remaining very much in the background as well, making this almost feel like more of a Porter than a Milk Stout.

    While I didn't really know what to think of a "barrel-aged" Session Stout before trying this, I was very pleasantly surprised by this. Of course it doesn't compare to a full-strength Stout, but for its ABV, it really is a terrific beer with a great balance and subtle barrel character.
     
    #163 Snowcrash000, Dec 27, 2020
    Pinz412, TheGent, VABA and 18 others like this.
  4. Roy_Hobbs

    Roy_Hobbs Pooh-Bah (2,623) Jan 21, 2017 Connecticut
    BA4LYFE Society Pooh-Bah Trader

    Super interesting. I don't recall anybody reviewing a "session" stout before, nor have I ever come across one. Sounds like they executed it well, though. I"m all for more tasty beers at lower ABVs.
     
    #164 Roy_Hobbs, Dec 27, 2020
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  5. TongoRad

    TongoRad Grand Pooh-Bah (3,884) Jun 3, 2004 New Jersey
    Society Pooh-Bah Trader

    Great job, you did as well as could be expected going into it blind.

    Well played @WunderLlama !
     
    #165 TongoRad, Dec 27, 2020
    jvgoor3786, 2beerdogs, ChicagoJ and 6 others like this.
  6. Dimidiata

    Dimidiata Pundit (846) Jul 14, 2017 California
    Trader

    @WunderLlama sent a "session coffee stout with cacao nibs, vanilla bean, and coffee" in my holiday box. Seven Bells And All's Well from Vitamin Sea, 4.9% abv. I haven't opened it yet, but curious to see how a lower abv stout does when stuffed with a bunch of adjuncts. Maybe I'll save it for next week's NBW.
     
    #166 Dimidiata, Dec 27, 2020
    Pinz412, 2beerdogs, ChicagoJ and 7 others like this.
  7. Coronaeus

    Coronaeus Grand Pooh-Bah (3,744) Apr 21, 2014 Canada (ON)
    Society Pooh-Bah Trader

    Grabbing a minute here to have the mystery beer from @Roy_Hobbs great BIF box.

    [​IMG]

    Pours a bright but opaque golden straw. Light head that dissipates to a scattered topper with nice lacing left as it drains.

    Very dank, piney aroma. I don’t discern any fruit notes at all. Looks like New England, but doesn’t smell like it.

    Moderate bitterness up front, pine and grass follow. A light sweetness to end the sip. Still no fruit really. Maybe a hint of peach or nectarine, but I’m searching here.

    Medium body.

    This is an excellent IPA. I want to say it is a hazy west coast inspired IPA. The dankness and piney notes tell me it has to at least be an homage to the West Coast. The bitterness fades by the swallow though.

    All the other cans in this box were from Fox Farm. So, I want to go out on a limb and guess it is another excellent Fox Farm beer.

    My research here on Fox Farm wants me to call this Double Burst, but I don’t get too much tropical or stone fruit like I see in reviews here and on Untappd. I feel like the description of P’ea is more in line with what I taste. But, the ABV is off by a smidgen.

    I am going to guess against my taste and go with Double Burst for the win!


    [​IMG]

    I did it! I think this may be a first for me!! What do I win?!?!?! Still not picking up on the fruit notes that others discuss. Regardless, this is delicious and I am thankful to have tried it. In fact, I’d drink this regularly if I could.

    Thanks Ross, Happy Holidays!!
     
    #167 Coronaeus, Dec 27, 2020
    Pinz412, Victory_Sabre1973, TheGent and 19 others like this.
  8. ovaltine

    ovaltine Grand High Pooh-Bah (6,787) Apr 6, 2010 Indiana
    BA4LYFE Society Pooh-Bah Trader

    I’ve got the last two beers from the phenomenal box that @tasterschoice62 sent my way a couple of weeks ago. It took all my beer nerd will power to save these for this share date for NBW BIF 12.5, but now I get to enjoy what I’m sure are another pair of excellent beers.

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    4.35/5 rDev +2.8%
    look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

    Pours a nicely hazy golden straw color with a creamy white head that laces down the glass nicely. Beautiful beer. The nose has loads of dank citrus notes, with pineapple, lemon, and grapefruit most prominent, and there’s a nice bready malt note.

    The lemon is especially forward on the taste, with the grapefruit taking on more of a grapefruit rind flavor for bitterness, and a nice pineapple flavor. The bready malt flavor, though, is what makes this for me - the label references a single malt, and my guess is that malt is pilsner malt from the color of the beer and the flavor. That malt is what balances and elevates this beer.

    The mouthfeel is a touch on the soft side and a bit creamy. Overall, this is an exceptionally well-executed beer, which I’ve come to expect from Tilted Barn.

    Larry, you are a rockstar beer nerd. Thanks so much for sending this my way.
     
    #168 ovaltine, Dec 27, 2020
    Pinz412, Victory_Sabre1973, TheGent and 18 others like this.
  9. SawDog505

    SawDog505 Grand High Pooh-Bah (6,922) Apr 9, 2010 New Hampshire
    Pooh-Bah

    [​IMG] Poured into a 13 oz Teku glass canned on 11/13/2020. Pours a hazy orange with a 2 finger sticky white head that leaves thin streaks of lace with excellent retention. 4.75

    Aroma pineapple, tangerine, mango, papaya, and hints of vanilla. 4.5

    Taste follows pineapple, mango, papaya, tangerine, and a little vanilla. 4.5

    Mouthfeel is big, creamy soft carbonation, a tad sticky not dry, and at 8% it drinks really easy and is crazy juicy. 4.5

    Overall I am really digging this one from Backyard Brewery & Kitchen. 4.5
     
    #169 SawDog505, Dec 28, 2020
    Pinz412, Victory_Sabre1973, TheGent and 18 others like this.
  10. BBThunderbolt

    BBThunderbolt Grand High Pooh-Bah (7,846) Sep 24, 2007 Kiribati
    Pooh-Bah Trader

    #170 BBThunderbolt, Dec 28, 2020
    Pinz412, Victory_Sabre1973, 2beerdogs and 12 others like this.
  11. Roguer

    Roguer Grand High Pooh-Bah (7,811) Mar 25, 2013 Connecticut
    Mod Team Society Pooh-Bah Trader

    Sorry for the long absence, but I'm now back home and ready to catch up on my last two new beers from yesterday - before breaking into one last new beer for the weekend. :slight_smile: Thrilled to see the thread lively and at five pages; I'll catch up with the last three pages as soon as I can.

    After the mystery beer experience that was Cherry Chocolate Rain, I went to something perhaps even more heralded as the evening set in: The Bruery's Small Batch Hoarders Black Tuesday Grand Reserve, which is Black Tuesday aged in three different carefully selected bourbon barrels for a year each.

    [​IMG]

    Over 21% ABV. Let me repeat that: over 21% ABV.

    Right up front, let me say that a lot of time, patience, care, and thought went into making this beer, and then making it work. There are so many different ways it could have gone sideways, and it didn't.

    That out of the way, I don't think this is quite as impressive as regular Black Tuesday (not that I've had the pleasure of the experience many times), simply because the triple barrel aging aspect - along with the sky-high ABV - makes for an overall liquor-like booziness that reduces, vice enhances, the complexity.

    The high notes are still there: brown sugar, red grapes, oak, coconut, vanilla, chocolate, molasses, honeycomb, nuts. It's just that the flavors don't stand out as smoothly; this one feels just a touch more like a chore to get through.

    It's worth noting that my partner had a sour stomach, and gave up early on, and my sister tried to sips before quitting, so I had almost the entire bottle to myself - over quite a bit of time. This is a slooooooooow sipper, indeed!

    Overall: a fantastic, incredible beer, but they may have gone overboard on this one. Sometimes, it's best to not mess with perfection, and for such a huge beer, the OG Black Tuesday comes pretty close already (I think Black Tuesday Reserve (vice Grand Reserve) might have actually been a slight improvement).

    https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/16866/371191/?ba=Roguer#review
    4.35 / -1.1%

    Thanks @2beerdogs ! I still have some beers left from your incredible BIF box, but no more for this weekend. :slight_smile:
     
    #171 Roguer, Dec 28, 2020
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  12. beergoot

    beergoot Grand High Pooh-Bah (9,310) Oct 11, 2010 Colorado
    Mod Team BA4LYFE Society Pooh-Bah Trader

    Cycle Brewing Inc. -- Rare Dos (barrel aged stout)

    [​IMG]

    4.26/5 rDev -4.3%
    look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.25

    Ink black body topped with a dense, creamy, light khaki hued head. Rich aroma blending roasted grain notes with bits of cocoa and toffee; a sense of coffee; muted esters; oak barrel char. Huge flavors of milk and bittersweet chocolate; roasted grains; raisins; light whiskey; raw oak. Heavy body; silky and smooth; moderate bit alcohol warmth and bite; dense residual sugars coat the palate.

    A dense yet approachable barrel-aged stout. The flavor palate is rich and complex. The heavy body brushes your palate with heavy, sticky goodness that enhances the overall appeal of the beer. It presents a nice balance between beer's sweet taste and body with a warming, smile inducing high octane underpinning that should bring joy to lovers of big stouts.
    -----
    This beer came to me via Tavour. It's a straight-forward barrel aged stout, done up right. Intense yet appreciably complex and intriguing.
     
    #172 beergoot, Dec 28, 2020
    Pinz412, Victory_Sabre1973, TheGent and 18 others like this.
  13. Roguer

    Roguer Grand High Pooh-Bah (7,811) Mar 25, 2013 Connecticut
    Mod Team Society Pooh-Bah Trader

    My last new beer for Saturday comes sans picture (my apologies). My sister picked up the bottle to celebrate my engagement, and we split it five ways, but I failed to grab a picture somehow.

    This beer is Funky Buddha's Undefeated Saison, a chardonnay barrel-aged saison with grape must and champagne yeast.

    It is, indeed, a saison, but little else from the extended description comes into play. The champagne yeast adds a nice dryness to the overall product, but the grape must and barrel aging have little, if any, discernible impact. It's exceptionally dark for a saison, as well, coming in between burnt orange and straight up brown.

    It's certainly tasty, without question; it's just nothing special, and it's certainly billed as such, including coming with a fancy champagne-like foil wrapper (over a regular FB cap, instead of a cork-and-cage, which I found amusingly awkward).

    If you want to give this a try at a reasonable price, by all means go for it - especially if you like dry saisons - but don't get your hopes up for some transcendental experience. :wink:

    https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/31805/313734/?ba=Roguer#review
    3.82 / +15.8%

    And with that, it's time to pour my first beer - new or otherwise! - of the Sunday, get the NFL running, figure out what I'm doing for dinner, catch up on the thread, and start cleaning up the Funky Buddha and Bruery sites in the database. :wink:

    Cheers!
     
    #173 Roguer, Dec 28, 2020
    Pinz412, Victory_Sabre1973, TheGent and 18 others like this.
  14. Snowcrash000

    Snowcrash000 Grand High Pooh-Bah (6,041) Oct 4, 2017 Germany
    Mod Team Society Pooh-Bah Trader

    To Øl - Plato Problems

    Imperial Pastry Stout with vanilla, chocolate and coffee, from Denmark (10.5%).

    [​IMG]

    Pours a pitch-black coloration with a small, creamy, mocha-colored head. Smells of slightly roasted, caramel malt, strong vanilla and lighter coffee and chocolate.

    Taste is a decent balance of slighty roasted, quite caramelly malt, very light bitter and herbal hops, strong vanilla, lighter milk chocolate and even lighter coffee, with just a hint of dark fruit, with notes of raisin and plum also coming through. Finishes rather sweet, with a light bitterness and some vanilla, chocolate and a hint of coffee lingering in the aftertaste. Full mouthfeel with a rich body and light carbonation.

    This is a very additive-heavy Stout that suffers from a clear case of "too much vanilla", rendering this rather sweet in combination with the heavily caramelly malt, although it is barely saved from becoming quite too cloying by some light roasted and bitter notes. Nevertheless, the balance could be better here, with the roasted malt and bitter hops really struggling to leave an impression against the caramel malt, vanilla and milk chocolate sweetness, while the coffee could also be more distinct here. Feels very much like a Pastry Stout, unfortunately, although the body and mouthfeel really feel rather full and rich here.
     
    #174 Snowcrash000, Dec 28, 2020
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  15. ovaltine

    ovaltine Grand High Pooh-Bah (6,787) Apr 6, 2010 Indiana
    BA4LYFE Society Pooh-Bah Trader

    #2, that’s right, it’s MYSTERY BEER TIME!!! I’m going to review this live and see what’s what. NOTE: I left the tape on the bottle cap because ..... as professional beer nerds, we know bottle caps can be a dead giveaway. Here we go!!!

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    An aggressive pour reveals a beer that is purely black - no leakage anywhere - with a dark tan head that sizzles as it sticks around a bit. I’ve not seen a sizzling head on a “regular” stout, so I’m fairly certain this is an imperial stout.

    The first aroma I pick up is cinnamon - like, a LOT of cinnamon. That’s fantastic, because I love cinnamon. A deeper whiff pulls in dark chocolate aromas and a whiff of char - and booze. Definitely booze. So now I’m in “BA Imperial Stoutville,” a beer village I love to visit.

    A healthy pull confirms cinnamon and dark chocolate, and the char is more prominent - and the booze is a definite presence at the back of the palate. But man, that cinnamon - absolutely delicious, and not too sweet, which can happen with cinnamon in a beer in my experience.

    The mouthfeel is full and substantial and more than a bit creamy. I’m guessing, based on the flavor profile and the bottle shape that this is something from Prairie, and I’m placing it as a solid 4.50, edging toward 4.60, which is world-class, IMHO. Let’s see what the reveal shows .....

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    Christmas Bomb! I had this a couple of years ago, IIRC, and rated it 4.21, but this iteration was stronger on the cinnamon, which I love. I missed on the barrel, though.

    Larry, the box you sent was magnificent, and this was the perfect conclusion to that box. You are a beer nerd extraordinaire.
     
    #175 ovaltine, Dec 28, 2020
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  16. larryi86

    larryi86 Grand Pooh-Bah (5,118) Apr 4, 2010 Delaware
    Pooh-Bah Trader

    Moving on to Living Waters Meuse from @Buck89.
    4/5 rDev +2%
    look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

    Thank you Buck89 for this
    375? ml bottle poured into a goblet

    A- Dark brown with a small tan head.

    S- Dark fruits, toffee, cereal grains, a little earthy.

    T- Dark fruits, toffee, some pale grains, candied sugar, figs.

    S- Smooth, medium body.

    O- This is a nice Quad, but missing the complexity and depth of its Belgian counterparts.
    [​IMG]
    Cheers!
     
    #176 larryi86, Dec 28, 2020
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  17. Roguer

    Roguer Grand High Pooh-Bah (7,811) Mar 25, 2013 Connecticut
    Mod Team Society Pooh-Bah Trader

    Whew! First - and possibly only - new beer review for Sunday: Swiss Guard, an Oskar Blues / 3 Sons collaboration canned 16 months ago.

    [​IMG]

    This is an imperial stout (10.1% ABV) aged in port barrels, and with peanut flour (whatever that is) and raspberry puree added. I can only imagine the idea is to create a pastry stout.

    Spoilers: this seems spot on, as the peanut flour adds very little to the flavor, but the body is incredible. It's smooth, thick, and chewy, even at fridge temperature (I started a bit colder than I intended, but I don't mind experiencing the beer as it warms). Moreover, there is almost no hint of the sky high ABV. If not for the thick body, you'd guess this is more in the 6% to maybe 8% range, instead of the nearly double that it manages.

    It really comes across as a dessert: a flaky pastry, with a chocolate-Nutella spread, with jellied raspberry right in the middle. The raspberry puree and port come together wonderfully, truly complementing each other; the heavy malt base provides all the tones of chocolate, espresso, molasses, and toffee you could need - cacao nibs and coffee beans are simply not necessary here (sometimes, less is more).

    This is really delightful and expertly made, and I'm not a big raspberry fan. If you can find this apparent one-off, don't hesitate to pull the trigger; if we had it locally (I got it in South Florida), I would definitely pick up a four pack (or two!) despite the $20+ price tag.

    https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/2681/430290/?ba=Roguer#review
    4.49 / +5.6% (9 total ratings / 3rd full review)
     
    #177 Roguer, Dec 28, 2020
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  18. Dimidiata

    Dimidiata Pundit (846) Jul 14, 2017 California
    Trader

    Next NBW BIF holiday mystery beer from @WunderLlama .

    Mystery Beer 2:

    [​IMG]

    A - Several fingers of fluffy white head that sticks around, cloudy golden with some suspended sediment.

    S - tropical fruit, citrus, pine

    T - Follows the nose, with some white wine notes leading me to believe there's Nelson in here. Not much malty sweetness, and a nice hit of bitter pine in the finish.

    M - medium body, medium carb, finishes on the dry side

    O - Nice ipa besides the floaties. Guessing the main hop is Nelson, could be something else in there.

    If this isn't an ipa, I'm quitting drinking. Please be an ipa:

    [​IMG]

    Foley Brother's Brewing - Captain's Series: Nelson Sauvin - 6% abv

    Thank god. I thought there had to be some sort of trick here after Maynard's last mystery beer. It's a decent ipa, not sure what's up with the sediment as it still tastes fine. I am seeing a few other reports of sediment in Untappd reviews, so it's not just me. Thanks, Maynard!
     
    #178 Dimidiata, Dec 28, 2020
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  19. Roguer

    Roguer Grand High Pooh-Bah (7,811) Mar 25, 2013 Connecticut
    Mod Team Society Pooh-Bah Trader

    By and large I agree with you, although I think there are exceptions - most notably Bourbon Paradise.

    Paradise is a very, very good stout. Bourbon Paradise is one of the best beers I've ever had. It's probably the only example of a Prairie stout where, for me, the barrel aged variant is noticeably and significantly better than the (already damn good) base beer.
     
    #179 Roguer, Dec 28, 2020
    2beerdogs, ChicagoJ, CaptainHate and 1 other person like this.
  20. BBThunderbolt

    BBThunderbolt Grand High Pooh-Bah (7,846) Sep 24, 2007 Kiribati
    Pooh-Bah Trader

    Doin' my heckin' Mystery Beer from @Coronaeus . As I drank it started thing it was maybe an Imperial version of Quel Que Chose from Unibroue, as i got cherry flavors, and some alcohol heat.

    Well, I was wrong, as usual. It's from Little Beasts, and Odin is its name. An Imperial Saison with berries, and aged in Cab Sav barrels. It's rather nice!

    https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/49683/525997/
     
    #180 BBThunderbolt, Dec 28, 2020
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