New Beer Weekend #29

Galactic Rays of Haze an 8.3 ABV NEIPA from Untied Brewing a local brewery that just turned 2 years old. This beer was given an excellent write up last week by @MacMalt last week in New Beer Weekend #28. (post # 32 if you care to read it).
Except for Super Bowl Sunday I'm doing a dry February so this is the first beer this month This brew looks like orange juice with whipped cream on top. There is a powerful aroma of various fruits. That must be because Galactic Rays of Haze is dry hopped with African Queen,Motueka, Amarillo and Ekuanot. The taste is fruit with a sturdy malt backbone. The mouthfeel is full but soft . The finish is off dry and long lasting. Overall one of the best NEIPAs this BA has tasted. It's also the just about the best beer Untied has brewed in it's short history.

 

Mobius peanut marshmallow porter.had this last night but figured I'd share here
..dark black brown appearance
..medium light carbonation leaning towards medium. Just above average body which added up to a nice body
...aroma is peanuts foremost followed by vanilla/marshmallow, roasted malt,black coffee, milk chocolate
...taste didnt stray too far from the aroma with peanut being first followed by marshmallow. It has a sweetness to it but far from cloying or syrupy
...overall its a very good beer which i got as a gift. Otherwise I believe its a bit expensive and I'm not sure its worth the price

 

Greetings, fellow NBWers.

As I type this, it is, per my current phone weather app, a chilly, mostly cloudy, 34°F outside. Eastern Washington and northern Idaho has been periodically rainy at the lower elevations this week, seeming quite like what's normal for western Washington, except for Friday, when the skies cleared considerably, and a strange, bright yellow thing was spotted in the sky, and one had to figure out how to wear sunglasses with masks without fogging them up!

The parental units came up on Friday and spent the night. We went out to an open air, semi-outdoor dinner at a "gastropub" that makes very good food, where I drank pFriem's Strong Golden Ale and the folks drank a Washington-made Sauvignon Blanc (they are incorrigible in their shared opinion that wine is the proper alcoholic beverage).

Yesterday, after they set off for home, I drove the 30ish miles to Coeur d'Alene, where I finally checked out BierHaus, a bar/restaurant dedicated to German food and beer.
I started with a Stiegel Pils:

It was a good, no frills pils with soft, floral happiness. Didn't impress me as much as some I've had, but was an enjoyable beer to have in the half liter mug you see.

After sampling a German IPA (not shown) that was mostly notable for being very malty, I ordered a Flensburger Dunkel, seen here with my lunch/dinner order of Jagerschnitzel.

I'm not sure this picture adequately conveys just how large and rich this meal was. The reason I'm calling it lunch/dinner was I ordered it for lunch, but found no dinner necessary!
Yeah, I think I will come back to BierHaus.

Along the drive home on I-90, I decided to hop off the freeway and check out Snow Eater Brewing, located in the odd town of Liberty Lake.

Started with their Nice Day IPA:

A nice, but somewhat restrained example of a west coast IPA. Enjoyable, but not particularly memorable.

Next I had a Devil's Dream, which was a combination of the black and rye IPA sub-styles.

Very pleasant to drink, and fairly mellow. The dark malts and rye did not clash with one another. Again, it's not a flavor bomb, but unlike the previous beer, it's got it's own identity.

Finished with their Enchantment IIIPA:

At 9.8% abv, I'm not sure it officially qualifies as a Triple IPA as they advertise it being, but it's close enough to 10% to make no practical difference. It reminded me a lot of the Nice Day, actually, as it was a bit like a somewhat bland, mellow drinking west coast IPA in flavor, with only a very slight alcohol taste to as it warmed, certainly not enough to convey the beer's actual strength.

I'm not sure yet if Snow Eater warrants a dedicated trip alone, but I enjoyed what I had enough to hit it again, either next time I venture over the border into Idaho, or checking out the newish restaurants that have popped up in Liberty Lake the last couple of years.

Back with at least one new beer to be consumed either before or during the Super Bowl at Casa Woemad.

 

Good afternoon NBW
Upland Brewing Company in Bloomington, Indiana has started to distribute many of their (formerly taproom) variants of Teddy Bear Kisses RIS. This one is barrel aged with hazelnut in addition to the cocoa that's in the base stout.


The review:
12oz undated can (probably around 3 months old) poured into a tulip pint glass at just above fridge temp 11% ABV. The beer pours dense black with no light penetration and reddish brown head. The head recedes to a thin layer of bubbles and leaves a bit of lacing just above the liquid. The aroma is baker's chocolate, light nuttiness, caramel, roasted malt and a hint of oak barrel. The taste is semisweet caramel and roasted malt up front. The hazelnut flavor is strong after the initial sip, but shares moments with the cocoa, vanilla and barrel. Mild roasty bitterness. The mouthfeel is medium to full bodied with just less than medium carbonation and a somewhat dry finish. Not really sweet, but malt sticky with the barrel providing the balance. No sign of the ABV in the taste or aroma. Overall, very good. I'm not a big hazelnut fan, but the hazelnut here is well integrated and balanced with other flavors and the drying effects of the (my presumption) second use bourbon barrel. You won't find any bourbon flavor or heat here if that's your thing.

Cheers all and enjoy your Sunday!

 

Drekker Chonk Sundae Sour w strawberry/guava/white chocolate, 7.3% ABV. Pours thick and murky medium-brown, with a one finger off-white head that left puree residue instead of lacing. Nose is predictably strawberry, guava, and white-chocolate. Taste follows with strawberry up front, guava in the middle, and chocolate on the close, moderately sweet, slightly tart. Excellent smooth and thick mouthfeel with decent carbonation. Overall outstanding, but not their best variant in the Chonk lineup.

4.3/5 rDev -1.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

First superbowl beer of the day. We have our son over for the game - to watch Brady lose, and help set up the wife's new gaming/work PC he helped us build. I taught him how to build a PC when he was 12, now he helps us - teach a man to fish and all that. We've got calico beans in the crockpot, plus too many other things for three people. Neighbor is out looking for their calico cat.

 

Salem Lager by Notch brewing

4.48/5 rDev +0.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5

Canned on 11.3, opened 2.7.21 , poured into a Willi becher glass



"Lager is Life" printed on the bottom

Clear golden liquid with numerous micrcarbonation streams, a creamy frothy off white one finger foam cap, good retention, settles to a white foam layer, good lacings which ring the glass after each sip

Aroma is grains, malt, grassiness, I get the toasted bread and biscuit notes

Taste is malty, grains, bread crust

Low sudsing but a medium gravity in feels, not thin or watery

This beer tastes good, repeatable, this beer is as good as helles!!

Quaffable

 

A new SB beer from Treehouse for me.
Hurricane DIPA
Pours a very hazy orange juice with a very creamy orange tinged head that has excellent retention and leaves loads of lacing as the liquid recedes.
Aroma is huge juicy orange and tangerine, peach and passionfruit.
Taste follows with sweet citrus, peach, cantaloupe, a nice touch of grapefruit pith and piney bitterness. Very balanced between sweet/bitter.
Feel is well, a highlight of this beer. Its incredibly soft and pillowy. Its a little slick and goes down deliciously at 7.7% - a perfect spot for a DIPA, with nary a hint of alcohol.
Just when I think Ive had them all this beauty shines through. Its really impressive how they take the same yeast and many of the same hops and are able to brew something different in some aspect. Sure there are a few similar ones but when they shine it can be magic. I liked this one.
Cheers and enjoy the game if youre watching.

 

Surly Pentagram Dark Sour, 7% ABV. Pours deep purple with a half-finger tan head on an aggressive pour that left no lacing. Nose is wine and funk. Taste is quite tart cherry, grape/wine, vinegar, funk, a hint of vanilla, with other subtle flavors mixed in and evolving as it warms. Decent mouthfeel, overall outstanding. The complexity of Abyss - only in a dark sour.

4.24/5 rDev +1.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25

Second superbowl beer of the day, my first dark sour.

 

Poured into a 20 oz giant tulip glass not sure when it was canned but recent. Pours a very dark brown with a massive 3 finger head that leaves massive streaks of lace as it slowly settles into a small film of light brown bubbles. 4.25

Aroma is biscuity grain, cocoa nibs, toffee, vanilla, and roasted coffee grounds. 4

Taste follows but bigger and more pronounced chocolate, vanilla, and coffee jump out first, with some toffee and biscuit in the balanced finish. 4.25

Mouthfeel is above medium, soft gentle almost creamy carbonation, maybe a whisker dry, and at 6.4% it may drink a little bigger but easy sipping. 4.25

Overall this is a really nice slightly roasty stout from Modestman Brewing. I can say I am really enjoying this at a rather modest ABV. Cheers all. 4

 

Ok thanks. Honestly never noticed there were rules to the thread. I just thought it was posting new beers to you.

 

Pre-game IPA review of Lagunitas StereoHopic - Volume One.


So, we have a very clear beer meeting the focus of the camera. A modest foamy head forms a shallow white well after it falls to cover the surface of the beer in a light, white film.

A nice mix of floral and citrus/pithy notes have a leaning towards some pine dankness right after the pour. A medium light first sip brings a brief honey/honeydew sweetness followed by herbal to citrusy hops. There's a rough edge to the carbonation, breaking up the stickiness of the more bitter hops that make up the end of the taste.

With warmth, the citrus seems to fade and the back end bitterness turns a little more grape leave. There's something like maybe apricot that has replaced and joined the lessened citrus flavors on my palate. Along with this, white grape notes have joined in the other aromas.

There was a familiar note to the aroma, and I know that Lagunitas have a general profile, like many breweries have. I haven't had many Lagunitas in recent times, but I recalled that the GF had gotten some Lagunitas IPA along with some IPNA for a comparison. So I grabbed one.

The regular IPA is a shade or two darker, but has similar clarity and head. I'm note sure of the hops that actually go into the regular IPA (their website claims 43 with 65 malts), but there is a citrus note and an ever so slight yeasty funk that is similar on the nose. Regular IPA has a little more malt presence and seems a tad heavier because of it. It also has less citrus flavor, coming off slightly more earthy.

Those quick notes aside, there is something quite similar about the beers. Having them immediately after one another seems to highlight the fruit notes of the StereoHopic to me. I didn't start out meaning to do a comparison, but I like StereoHopic better between these two glasses (bottles seem to indicate IPA is a week fresher).

 

After posting in just about every NBS / NBW last year, this is oddly my first NBW post of 2021. I found myself drinking almost no beer in January, despite no intentional effort to avoid it. Regardless, a couple of beer runs over the last two weekends (to Fox Farm and Suarez) combined with seeing all the great beer already consumed this weekend on this thread has put me back in the mood.

With that, my first new beer of the year is CCCP Coffee and Coconut Cream Pie White Russian, sent by the ridiculously generous @Roguer in NBS BIF 12.5. Two quick notes before we get to the review...
1) I hope I reviewed this under the correct beer name. I'm still not sure what the actual full name of the beer is. Several similar beers in BA, Untappd is inconclusive, and even the brewers Facebook page announcing the release of the beer didn't match either any of the BA entries or Untappd. Ultimately, I logged it under the title that @Roguer used when he checked in a beer at the brewery on the day it was released. I think this is the same beer, but wouldn't bet my life on it.
2) The first time I ever really drank in my life (summer before freshman year of college...I was well-behaved in high school) involved White Russians. Let's just say the night didn't end well. I couldn't even think of the words White Russian for a good 15 years without feeling nauseous. I hope that didn't play into my review, but the subconscious can be a powerful thing!

3.93/5 rDev -4.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4

Poured with a reddish hue on its way into the glass, but then pretty close to jet black once fully poured. Nose is sweet and boozy, with the vanilla shining through the most among the stated ingredients. There's an edge to the nose that goes beyond the booze, but I can't pinpoint. Whatever that edge is, it clears the sinuses. It's like smelling salts, but ones you'd actually want to smell.

I pick up less of the vanilla on the tongue, alhough it's still there along with coconut. Graham cracker is present as well, but the dominant tasting note is how milky / creamy this tastes. Very sweet, and almost tastes like a mixed drink. I don't pick up any coffee, presumably as it's playing third fiddle to the other adjuncts? Medium-bodied and extremely smooth going down.

 

From yesterday. Didn’t have a chance to get this down until now.

Thimble Island Mutually Assured Destruction BA ‘17 from @Roy_Hobbs in the NBW BIF 12.5



Pours a deep dark cola brown. Generous head that sticks around for a few minutes until dissipating to a faint ring around the edge of the glass.

The bourbon barrel jumps out in front on the nose. Lots of sweet malty notes, dried fruits, brown sugar.

Very sweet up front. This fades a little as the beer warms. The barrel is ever present, and each sip is a reminder of the barrels’ former inhabitants. The bourbon barrel takes centre stage throughout.

Medium body.

I prefer a subtler barrel presence. Those who enjoy the big bourbon flavour in their BA stouts will appreciate this one. I’m very glad to have a had the chance to try it. Many thanks Ross!

 

I didn’t get any diacetyl from this, but I’m not great at picking that up from past experience.

 

First new beer of the day. As a Seahawk fan, kicking off Super Bowl Sunday with a sour ale seems appropriate.


Reminiscent of white wine in the fruitiness, acidity and woodiness from the oak barrel aging. Tart, but light on funk. Pretty good, without being great.

 

Hey all. Two new ones on order today as I get utterly snowed-in. Working on some problems for my math class, gaming, doing laundry, and kinda just taking it easy today. Hope everyone is well!

The first one for today is Definitive Brewing's Lens, a triply-dry-hopped triple IPA clocking in at 10.3% ABV.



Lens is gonna be my fourth Definitive TIPA, so I have high hopes considering the other three I've consumed and reviewed have just been phenomenal. I don't know the hop bill here, so we'll try to figure it out as we go. For the record, Definitive describes this as tasting and smelling like "hazy pineapple clouds, orange creme popsicles, and the first days of Spring!" Umm, okay then. Sounds special.

The pour here is very nice... creamy-looking medium-orange color with stable body haze and a sticky head of three fingers that eventually settles to a solid finger of slightly-off-white foam that leaves behind extremely consistent lacing. Nice legs and some cloudy islands on the surface as well. Overall quite attractive!

Let's see what we have here in the nose... well, I'm definitely getting a Sabro-like quality, given the aggressive coconut and pineapple elements. Sort of herbal and maybe a little woody, too. Notes of nectarine, peach rings, and ripe mango. Maybe Idaho 7? Wouldn't be surprised if there was a bit of Cascade in here, either, honestly. Touch of piney dankness, but not really a lot; it's mostly covered up by intense tropical fruit.

Soft and smooth on the palate with hints of spice, papaya, piney dankness, grapefruit/pomelo, and pineapple. Slightly sweet with some coconut cream, light honeyed malt, and some stone fruit. Thinking El Dorado now, maybe. Has that delicate complexity and focus on tropical fruit, anyway. Some fresh-picked herbs and flowers to go with the palate-cleansing grassiness. Slightly punchy ethanol in the finish, but no hop burn despite this being obviously very highly hop-saturated. Now starting to think maybe some Ekuanot is in here, as the grassy flavors pick up and give off an almost peppery/vegetal note. Not in a bad way (as with a lot of Ekuanot beers), but just something I'm noticing. I enjoy this for sure, though! I think it's my least-favorite of the TIPAs I've had from these guys so far, but I've given the other three between 4.2 and 4.4. I would say this is just about on the cusp of being a solid, straight 4. Worth a shot. Try it!