New Beer Weekend #27

I think I’m turning Japanese, I really think so!

Do you remember that song from The Vapors?

You might be thinking I will be discussing a beer from Japan today, but not quite.

Last September I started a thread discussing a new brand from St. Bernardus: Tokyo.

https://www.beeradvocate.com/community/threads/a-new-beer-from-st-bernardus-tokyo.647535/

From that thread:

“St. Bernardus Tokyo Sounds familiar? You are quite right, because in 2012 we launched a one-off brew on the occasion of the opening of the first St. Bernardus-themed café in the Japanese capital. Eight years later, you can sample our St. Bernardus Tokyo again, albeit with a new recipe!”

They characterize this beer as being a hybrid beer style: “White beer / Saison”.

The description of this beer is quite intriguing:

“Character, taste, aromas

St. Bernardus Tokyo is famed for its hints of citrus, combined with likeable florals of chamomile and fruity yeast aromas of banana and red apple. Attentive beer fans may also detect a hint of clove and vanilla, as well as the typical esters of our unique St. Bernardus yeast. A refreshing beer with a spicy aroma and a slight hint of bitterness and sourness on the back of the palate! A real treat for the more adventurous beer fan.”

Over the holidays I spotted this beer in the singles section of my ‘local’ Total Wine & More (Claymont, DE) and even though it was quite pricey I decided to splurge and treat myself. Very little information provided on the can but it does list “6% ABV”.

Served in my Gulden Draak tulip glass:

Appearance:

A hazy straw colored appearance. There is a two finger white head with nice retention.

Aroma:

Wow! Lot’s going on here! There is lots of spicy flavors (coriander, ginger, peppery,..), some herbal, also floral aspects and some citrus as well.

Taste:

The flavor follows the nose with all of the stuff detailed above. A low/moderate bitterness.

Mouthfeel:

This beer has a medium body accompanied with an off-dry finish.

Overall:

This beer is very good! Hopefully other breweries will think to brew a Wit/Saison hybrid beer.

Cheers!

@KOP_Beer_OUtlet @rotsaruch @RobH

 

Happy New Beer Weekend BAs!

Today I had my first opportunity to drink a Heady Topper. Needless to say this was something I was looking forward to trying a good bit, and despite what I had read here that the latest batch seemed a bit "weedier" than typical batches, I was nonetheless excited to try it.

Well, let's get started!

After opening the can I disobeyed the instructions, but only a little, in order to properly rate the appearance.



Look: Heady Topped pours a beautiful dark orange/slightly amber color; it's a bit hazy and unfortunately due to my pour didn't have the opportunity to form much of a head, but it's still a very nice looking, inviting beer. 4.5

Smell: I had heard how good this beer smelled, and it did not disappoint. The nose explodes with orange, grapefruit, tropical zest, followed by a nice, extremely fresh dank pine hop aroma. 4.75

Taste: If the aroma wasn't good enough, the taste takes everything from the nose and hits you directly in the palate. I'm immediately greeted with an explosion of piney, earthy, fresh, dank hops. This is certainly what most IPAs strive for but fall short of in terms hop presence. On the backend a bit of malt sweetness appears to perfectly cut through and deliciously balance the bitterness, bringing the taste more in line with the archetypical juiciness found in NEIPAs. Still, this has a hop presence that all other NEIPAs I've tried seem to lack. Each sip seemingly opens additional layers in its taste -- this beer seems more complex than it initially lets on. 4.75

Feel: Medium-bodied, well carbonated, smooth and creamy on the palate. Very drinkable. 4.5

Overall: I drank the majority of the beer from the can, and I was surprised that this actually did seem to produce overall better aromas and flavors to me. My guess is that it's because the aromas are all concentrated through the small hole at the top of the can, though I've also read the other theories such as pouring it letting out all the hop aromas/oxidizing it all at once, it retaining its taste better in the can, etc. Regardless I was quite surprised and am not sure if it was placebo, but I can definitely report it still delicious drinking from the can which is something that surprised me about a world class beer.

I was a bit nervous going into this with all the surrounding hype and having read that this particular batch is different and perhaps inferior to previous batches (depending on your palate's affinity for dank/weedy notes), but ultimately this was still likely the best beer I've ever had and it did indeed live up to the hype for me. If I had regular access to this beer I could see myself consuming quite a bit of it so I'm certainly jealous of those who do!

All in all this was simply a delicious, amazing beer that may not be life changing but is likely about as close as I'll get to the epitome of an IPA in today's craft beer market. 4.75

One day I hope to have the opportunity to try a more traditional batch of Heady. Some other comparisons I'd love to do are Focal Banger and Pliny, both of which I'd love to get my hands on some day.

Cheers BA!

 

Good morning NBW
I broke my alcohol fast yesterday at 21 days as six packs of Sublimely Self Righteous & Hopslam were whispering to me from the garage fridge. Today's new beer is one of four Evil Twin beers picked up on closeout at my LBS.

Aún Más Todo Jesus
11.2oz undated bottle purchased on closeout for $1.50, 12% ABV. Not sure how long or in what conditions this bottle was stored. Don't remember seeing these at this store before. The beer pours inky, thick black with zero light penetration and no real head. I have a few big bubbles clinging to the side of the glass after a hard pour. The aroma is lightly sweet and slightly vegetable. Roasted malts, cocoa and hints of pepper. The taste is roasty and semisweet with the cinnamon and peppers providing subtle heat and spice. Minimal bitterness. The mouthfeel is full bodied with low carbonation and a mostly dry finish. No hint of the ABV in the taste or aroma. Overall, good. I'm assuming this bottle is 2 or 3 years old looking at when the reviews started and it's held up well for having coffee beans and peppers added. There's no discernable coffee or pepper flavor, but at least it hasn't manifested itself as rotten vegetables.

In four years & 1300+ reviews, I hadn't picked up one Evil Twin. The high prices, lack of useful dating and silly names / gimics just aren't my thing. This one held up and was well worth a buck and a half.

I have an actual whole weekend off, so planning on reviewing a few here. Cheers all and enjoy the new beer in your glass today!

 

Good morning BAs. Trying a different kind of coffee this morning...”Daybreak” a coffee vanilla cream ale by Wolf’s Ridge Brewing, Columbus OH. This beer won the GABF Silver 2019, and then the Gold 2020 in the Coffee Beer category. Sounds good - let’s go!



Canned 11/10/20. Poured at 56 degrees. Fast rocky white head; pale gold with excellent clarity; poor cap retention; thin, incomplete ring; spots of lace with agitation. Strong coffee nose, vanilla right behind. Taste is strong coffee upfront; light sweet malt base; barest of vanilla. Light body, moderate carbonation; no warmth from 5% abv; fairly crisp and clean. Overall a coffee forward beer that was light and easy drinking; I’d drink again.

4.0 | 4.5 | 4.5 | 4.25 | 4.25
Score: 4.4 rDev +8.4%

 

New to me beer number 2...In celebration of Charlie Papazian, and National Pie Day which he founded, I’m drinking “Grandma Fingers - Cherry Pie” (2020), by Arkane Aleworks, Largo FL. I got this beer at the brewery on the morning of release TBBW Tuesday after an enjoyable in line beer share...

Refrigerated in one of my chillers since purchasing cold at the brewery, this bottle is part of an 8 beer set released by Arkane that week:



And we have a gusher! Booming “Pop” when I opened bottle (my other bottle of this beer exploded in the chiller a week or so after purchase)...



Poured at 57°. Bottled late February/early March 2020. A huge rocky off white head sits atop a rosy, opaque copper hue; good cap retention; heavy thick ring; medium heavy lacing. Cherries, Graham Crackers nose; some vanilla too. Taste follows nose; tart fruit; sour cherry Pop Tart filling; light sweetness. Prickly carbonation; light body; no warmth from 6% abv; dryish highly carbonated finish. Overall an enjoyable pastry sour; sour cherry pie with a sweet graham cracker crust; good balance of sour vs. sweet; at $15 a 500 ml bottle, I’ll probably enjoy again on tap (when available) if I’m in the mood for this kind of beer, which is rare...



4.5 | 4.25 | 4.25 | 4.25 | 4.25
Score: 4.27 rDev +6%

Cheers Charlie!

 

Wandering down the aisle I noticed a new to me Czech Pilsner
JAWS from Zero Gravity.

The can says that this is

The website says the same thing and notes:
MALT: Pilsner, Vienna HOPS: Saaz, Kazbek, Perle YEAST: House Ale OG: 13.4°P ABV: 5.4%

Vermont & Czech Republic are both landlocked so I'm not sure how the Jaws name is relevant (maybe the "bitey" finish?) also, "House Ale" yeast for a Czech lager ｢(ﾟﾍﾟ)

Jaws is opaque, but clear; like straw colored stained glass with a dash of yellow, with a foamy slow dissolving white head that leaves some nice lacing.
The aromas are wheat, malts, straw, and peasant bread backed up by a little corn and a freshly opened pack of saltines.
Flavors follows the aromas with bready malts, crackers, biscuit, and some grape nuts, along with a dash of lemon and with a floral hops backbone.
Jaws is very, very nice example of a Czech style pils. The malty, bready, crackery front is balanced by the smooth hops on the back. One of the best Czech pils I've had.

 

I think that my 21 day alcohol fast will also be ending today after picking up my pre-order 4 pack of the limited edition, initial batch of Troegs Double Nugget Nectar. 21 days is pretty impressive.

 

Much better than my 12 day "Dry January" of 2020....

 

I have one new beer this weekend. Maine Beer Company's Mean Old Tom. An American Stout with vanilla beans, 6.5% ABV. I am always glad to try a new Maine beer.



Pours a dark black, not exactly opaque as a bit of ruby red is around the edges. A one finger tan head rises with good retention and plenty of lace left behind.
Aroma is roasted malt, char, coffee, vanilla. All the typical stout characteristics are there. If not particularly unique and pretty by the books.
Taste again is that roast and char up front. Vanilla beans for sure, and coffee that boarders on more of a latte like flavor. Lingering roasted bitterness.
M/O: A medium to full body. Good carbonation, and becomes ultra smooth as this breaths. After a while the lingering bitterness becomes a little acrid, and I'm sipping on this a bit slower than I normally would for a stout of this strength and body.

An enjoyable stout for the most part. The vanilla is certainly apparent, but never becomes over done. Maine is always about balance, so that doesn't surprise me at all. This is a good, though not great or particularly interesting example of a stout. Glad I tried it, like everything from Maine, but there are other stouts/porters that are local and regional that I will pick up more often. Certainly good, I just don't seem to enjoy it as much as other Maine or local options around.

Overall score is 3.66, which for me is a B.

https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/20681/56545/?ba=champ103#review

Though enjoyable enough to drink this afternoon, while reading my new fantasy novel. Mordew by Alex Pheby. Definitely reminds me of Mervyn Peake's The Gormenghast Trilogy. Which is exactly what the author is going for, and I'm not complaining

 

Hopefully you'll be sharing your thoughts on that with us? After being disappointed with this year's regular NN, I'm very interested in this "double" version . . .

 

Or my 1 day...

 

Great review. From my few experiences I think Heady Topper is a little more bitter and "refreshing" from the can, I personally like it more poured in a glass though. Glad you got the chance to enjoy it. Cheers!

Holy smokes, $1.50 I'm jealous. I wish places around here did sales like that. Cheers!

 

White Elm Campfire Karaoke BBA Coconut S'mores Imperial Stout, 13% ABV. Pours thick and black with a one-finger medium-brown head that left little lacing. Nose is coconut, marshmallow, chocolate, graham, and light bourbon. Taste is heavy coconut up front, then chocolate, graham, slight vanilla, and marshmallow on the close. Moderately sweet, slightly bitter. Excellent mouthfeel, overall outstanding to near world-class. Not a big coconut fan, and never heard of s'mores with coconut, so for me it slightly hurts the flavor.

4.54/5 rDev 0%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5

 

Happy Weekend One and All. Trying to prioritize my new beers on hand has been a challenge, to ensure they are reviewed as fresh as possible, differing styles which are fine with a few months under their belt (refrigerated). Cutting off new beer purchases until the Spring will help manage things until then.

The first selection for the weekend is a DDH DIPA from Half Acre Burl. It was first released in 2019, and looks to be a reoccurring Fall release.



Can Notes: 16 oz canned 11/2/20, purchased as a single at Beer on the Wall @ 15:07. Double Dry Hopped, Double IPA, 8.5% ABV, same sticker label as the 2019 release.

Appearance: Typical Half Acre Hazy pour, murkey orange tan, creamy off-white bubbly lead leaves clumpy lacing throughout, and a plush layer covering the top. 4.0

Aroma: Strong pleasant grapefruit and citrus, some pineapple as well. Smells sweet. 4.25

Taste: Consistent with Half Acre haze profile. Sweet overall, citrus and pineapple lead, some piney bitterness attempts to reign in but it's destined to fall short in this effort. Overall solid, not my favorite profile but rating to style. 4.25

Mouthfeel: Like the dryness the DDH provided, bitterness tries to emerge but the sweetness beats it down. Sweetness tingles the tongue like eating a sweet-tart, leaving a sweet aftertaste as well. 3.75

Overall: This is the haze Half Acre is known for, sweet, somewhat balanced, nice tropical blend, within their standard lane. Good offering to try, recommend to others and would order again. 4.0

May return with one more later today, definitely will return with at least one tomorrow.

Cheers!

 

Happy Saturday, NBW!

Thank God It's Friday from Black Stack (and apparently collaboration with Fair State, Forager, and a brewery whose logo I don't know?). I like the print error dialogs all over the label.

16oz can served in a big snifter. If there's a date on it, I don't see it. Gift from @mr-jj, probably bought from Tavour.

Pours a hazy orange-yellow with a small head and not much carbonation. Smell is super ripe tropical fruit and little else. Maybe a little bit of lemon, or orange zest.

Taste is in the same direction, and boozy to boot. A little bit of grain or husk, a little bit of pith.

Mouthfeel is thick, but not heavy or sticky. Overall, it's certainly not bad, but it's not particularly stand-out.

Apparently my view on this beer deviates pretty widely from the norm (rdev -14%).

 

4 ~ 5% Rare Beers rated 4+. (*Each Sat I post new to BA/favorite recent beers)
Green Is Lord | FrauGruber | APA | 5% | Munich
4.24/5 rDev +5%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
a) Pours a cloudy bright, light golden with a dense white head that lasts and laces.
s) Abundant hops, brighter than, but not far from Dales. More floral, with light fruit like lime or orange creamsicle.
t) Complex mix of fruity, floral, and grassy. Complex, sweet, yet not at all cloying. Always scrubbing and fresh, with a mineral, cleansing finish.
f) Feels and tastes more interesting than expected than the 5 abv. My favorite of 3 tasted from the brewer. Another day walked around Munich with it. A big beer for big squares and avenues.

Beets, Rhymes, And Life | Fonta Flora | Saison | 5.2% | NC
4.2/5 rDev +7.7%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
5th Review. Beets in fall beer work well. See also Carton Vild Bits.
a) slight beet ping tinge, in hazed golden/amber/beety body, with surprising lasting white head for a field beer.
s) bright field aromas, of earth, beets, dirt, but no real dankness. Garden wild, saison wild yeast notes.
t) Follow all the aromas and builds. Very dry and white wine like, champagne like. Invites you back for sip after minerally, dirt-dry sip.
f) Champagne like, effervescent, drinkable, mineral.
o) Along with Carton Vild Beets - best use of beets in beer which is a more natural complement than say your tired old pumpkin.

Jam Up The Mash | Collective Art | Wild | 5.2% | Ontario
4.16/5 rDev +1.2%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
Loving all that comes out of collective arts. Love sour hoppy beers, of which this is leader example.
A) Pours a hazed golden straw body, with lofty but fast fade, loose head, that laces little.
S) Wine like, astringent, mix of mineral and cereal, and lime rind, yeast.
T) Bready, white cracker malt, mineral, lemon yogurt, grapefruit pith, moving into long grassy, yeasty, orchard, cider hops.
F) Wine-like, astringent, clean, sour.
O) Fine example

BFDP | Fair State Coop | Wild | 5.2%
4.12/5 rDev +2.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25
Thrilled to be 2nd (and first three word) review of this delightful Saison.
Brewer: My first, want to try all.
a) cider, flat head.
s) wine, cider, astringent.
t) Super pucker without over play. Lemon, cider, overripe cherry, fall fruit.
f) Cleansing, puckering, aperitif.
o) Flanders, fall fruit, cherry like. Winner. As good as any.
Brewer Notes: "BFDP is a blend of our favorite barrels from the cellar." Another big saison in a session format.