New Beer Weekend #34

You know I will!

I agree with a lot of what you said there. I think the problem in this case was that last year they took their highest rated juicy DIPA and turned into almost the polar opposite according to most accounts. Brew Gentlemen keeps a stead rotation of a few varieties with a regular rotation of seasonal beers as well. On top of that they run a Prototype series that is always a bit more experimental. It sounds like whatever they changed last year would have been better suited for that classification rather than being sold as an old favorite.

Thanks, that's much appreciated. We took her in two weeks ago to get a surgical consultation, but we were leaning away from surgery. In the end the doctor's confidence convinced us that it was a viable option. It's a slow growing tumor, so hopefully the parts that remain won't be an issue for some time.

 

Am I an attention ***** for placing this in 3 threads?
Block 15 chocolate porter
...almost solid black appearance
..aroma is dark fudge,mocha,bakers chocolate and what comes off as chocolate ice cream.
..taste is drier,less sweet than aroma hints at. Mocha,dark fudge,bakers chocolate and a big bitter finish that lingers for a long time.
..what I really enjoyed about this was it covered a lot of chocolate flavors but I definitely wouldn't call it a dessert beer

 

I made the trip to Transient today to pick up stuff for NBW BIF #13. I may or may not have restocked my beer fridge as well. That’s the kind of multitasking ovaltine can dig!!!

Yes, I referred to myself in the third person. Sue me.





4.35/5 rDev +1.9%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

Pours a hazy, nearly turbid pineapple color with a dense, substantial off-white head that laces the glass nicely. The nose is sharper than the taste, with passion fruit, grapefruit, and mango decidedly prominent.

The aforementioned taste is mellower and balanced, with passion fruit, grapefruit, and mango per the nose, but with the addition of mandarin oranges, guava, and pineapple. Wow, is this tasty. It’s flavorful, balanced and dangerously crushable given the 8% ABV, but with none of the “hop burn” the NEIPA style can bring.

The mouthfeel is softer, as expected. This is exceptionally well executed and appropriately named.

 

Not as fresh as I'd like but still tasty.

https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/44548/350092/



16 oz. can,
Canned 01/30/21.

Moderate pour yields a one inch slightly off white head over a hazy light golden body with sticky lacing. Nose is quite floral from the Ella hops, dank from the Vic Secret, and citrus from the Pacific Jade. Flavors of pineapple, citrus, and a bit of spiced earthiness with a finish of citrus pith and a bit of pine. Very nice and quite a unique offering all around with a very nice feel. Overall, I'd recommend this to and DIPA drinker and cheers to Lone Pine for another worthy (Michael) experience!

 

Kieffer Pear by Barrique Brewing and Blending

4.45/5 rDev 0%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.25

Read about this brewer on Untappd and am very surprised that there are so few reviews on BA. First time beer and first time visit. Brewery has recently moved to a new location. Had a nice conversation with the owner brewer Joel and brewmaster Seth. They have 300 casks for their beers. Will open up an on premises bar and not too far from bearded iris



Sour blonde ale fermented with local Kieffer pears from 75 year old estate trees.

500 ml corked and caged bottle poured into a stemmed beer glass. Hazy golden yellow with several microcarbonation streams. Fluffy three finger white foam cap , good retention settles to a layer and ring with high tide lacings

Aroma is tart pears



Taste is pears, not sweet , tart finish

Good sudsing , crisp, clean finish , tartness lingers on the tongue

Delicious beer , recommended and repeatable

 

#2, cross posted from the porter thread.





4.46/5 rDev 0%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5

Pours onyx black in the body, but there’s some leakage to a dark cola color on the edges, all underneath the prettiest dark tan head you’ve ever seen that carries a little sizzle and dissipates fairly quickly.

The nose is rich, decadent milk chocolate, a bit of char, and creamy vanilla. Man, does this “fit” together perfectly.

The milk chocolate is forward on the taste, and the char is in the background, but it’s the vanilla that ties everything together and elevates this beer, IMHO. It lends an almost barrel quality to the beer, without the accompanying booziness.

The mouthfeel is very full, yet maintains a little “spritzy,” which is expected in a porter for me. What a magnificent beer this is.

 

2nd beer today.

Deschutes Brewery Black Butte
ABV: 5.2%
IBU: 30



The aroma is a little subdued. It is slightly roasty, dark fruits, and a bit sweet.

Color is dark brown and clear with rising bubbles visible with a backlight. The 1 inch head is tan, creamy, and recedes fairly quickly, leaving wall lacing. The lacing breaks up into a lacy appearance on the far side of the glass as you drink.

Taste has the roasted malts to the front, backed by earthy dark fruits. Hints of leather. A bright floral sweetness is at the beginning, moderated by mild bittering in the middle and finish. The finish and aftertaste are slightly sweet, with the bittering hops keeping things under control. The beer leaves a pleasant mix of the flavors in your mouth between drinks, ending with the bright floral flavors.

The mouthfeel is on-point for the style (that is thin to moderate body) and smooth.

Overall, a well-done American porter. Very smooth, tasty, and easy drinking.

L: 3.75 | S: 3.75 | T: 4.25 | F: 3.75 | O: 4.0 | Rating: 4.0

 

I like sip of sunshine a lot but I always wished it was in the 6-7% range. Needless to say I was excited that little sip was being made, and even happier when it finally got distro like sip does.

Little Sip by Lawson’s...



Dark straw colored pour, it’s is pretty clear just a slight cloudiness. You can see through it but by no means crystal clear. Head dissipates to leave a few bigger bubbles and some minor lacing.

Smells like pineapple with a touch of orange colored citrus fruits.

Taste maintains the fruit notes from above with a nice and appropriate malt backbone.

Mouthfeel is medium, pretty low bitterness and actually pretty crispy dry finish.

This is a really good beer. It is exactly what I hoped it would be. A lighter sip of sunshine, I personally would choose this over sip of sunshine. It’s lighter and more drinkable but has all the aspects I love from its big bother. Really happy they decided/plan to distribute this regularly.

 

With #3 today I am leaving the traditional porters and trying those with add-junk or barrel aging. First up is the add-junk porter:

Lupulin Brewing CPB (Chocolate Peanut Butter Porter)
ABV: 5.3%
IBU: 20



Smell is Nestle's Quick powder backed by Nestle's Quick powder. I'm thinking I should put a spoon full of this into a glass of milk, stir vigorously, and enjoy some chocolate milk. OK, with persistence, I am now getting some peanut butter. This ain't your grandfather's porter, that's for sure.

Deep black color, completely impenetrable even with a strong back-light. The back-light only reveals a lighter brown tinge at the very bottom. No visible carbonation, obviously. A tall tan head that fairly quickly disappears into a bubbly cap and ring, leaving rows of stringy lacing.

Taste mirrors the aroma: cocoa and more cocoa. The middle does reveal a little peanut butter and dark malts along with growing bittering. The finish is sweet cocoa tinged with bitterness, with the bitter cocoa lingering.

The mouth feel is relatively flat and thin, bordering on watery, so a little thin even for a porter.

Overall, this beer just does not work for me. Of course, I was not expecting a traditional porter, so that is not the reason it does not work. The reason is the complete dominance of cocoa powder, and not just chocolate, but cocoa powder, like kids in the 50's (like me) used to spoon into a glass of milk. The promised peanut butter is mostly a no-show. The end result, then, is a one trick pony, a somewhat bitter cocoa malt.

You could tell from my intro to this beer that I going in with a negative bias. However, I was hoping for at least something enjoyable in its own right. To me, this wasn't. I also find I am quite out of step with the reviewers here on BA, where this beer carries an average of 4.08, and it is rated higher than that by some reviewers I respect. It just did not work more me.

Hopefully, the Creative Arts beer provides a nice finish to the evening. Otherwise, I may have to open the Schell's Fort Road Porter I was saving for tomorrow's NBS.

L: 4.0 | S: 3.5 | T: 3.0 | F: 3.25 | O: 3.25 | Rating: 3.26

 

Poured into a 16 oz tulip glass can’t read the bottom of the can. Pours a very attractive dark brown with a 2 finger sticky light brown head that leaves a wall of thin lace with excellent retention. 4.25

Aroma is cocoa nibs, caramel, vanilla bean, and toffee. 4.25

Taste follows cocoa, caramel, toffee, and vanilla. 4.25

Mouthfeel is above average, gentle carbonation, maybe a tad dry, and at 11% ABV goes down rather easy. 4.25

Overall this is a very nice Imperial Milk Porter from Greater Good. 4.25

 

Bamboozle by Bearded Iris

4.28/5 rDev +2.1%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.25

Beer recommended by Brewmaster Paul Vaughn



16 oz can poured into a stemmed Bearded Iris glass, two finger foam cap , settles to a ring over a hazy orange liquid

Aroma is citrus, candied orange

Taste is citrus , orange, tangerine

Low sudsing, gentle hop bite , abv well hidden for a triple ipa



Good beer

 

Cross-post with the porter tasting thread. https://www.beeradvocate.com/community/threads/online-tasting-porters-march-12-13.655906/page-9

The FarmHouse 's coffee-infused porter, Jittery Llama* [5%abv .....I think]
(*The base beer is Blind Alpaca Porter , so a play on that. )

Overall, quite good, easy-drinking, and sessionable. A little thin when I get towards the bottom of the glass, but a minor thing, that doesn't take away that much. Guessing it would be really good on nitro.

A: Dark,dark brown, with one finger of finely-textured tan head, that leaves a 1/4" ring, and a bit of spotty lacing.

S: Smell is fresh black coffee, a bit of dark chocolate brownie batter, and an earthy/nutty roasted malt aroma. The chocolate mostly, but not-entirely, disappears as the head dissipates. Smells really good, if you like coffee.

T: Taste is coffee, cola, a bit of roasted pecan+walnut flavor, and an earthy roasted malt flavor. Light bitterness.

F: Feel is light , lightly creamy , with some very,very fine carbonation bite coming in late. As I'm getting to the latter 1/3 of the (12oz) glass , it's getting a hair watery. Minor thing, but noticeable. Guessing that if this was on nitro (wishing - HINT : @ The FarmHouse/Marty ), it would raise it from good to great. They occasionally have things on nitro, including a cherry-chocolate stout right now, so it is possible. One can hope, eh?

4.27/5 rDev 0%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25
https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/35315/538810/

 

Bentonville Brewing's Natural State Porter, 6.3% ABV; 3.98 overall

Pours an auburn hued mahogany with a pinky of tan head. Minimal head retention & lacing

S: Roasty, a little smokey

T: Roasty, a little coffee, plus dryness up front, a little woody hop as well. A little vanilla sneaks in as this warms, plus roasty dryness, & a little more coffee. Finishes roasty & dry with leafy hops

MF: Medium body with moderate carbonation

Spot on for the style, pretty darn drinkable

 

So, I got a text earlier asking if I wanted to hang out in the back yard, eat smoked pork loin and grilled sausages, and drink beer. Yup, I think I can fit that in.


No reviews, but, here were the new-to-me beers we shared:

Von Ebert - Eat Me Cake, fruited sour
Von Ebert -Nest of Bees, APA
Pelican - Bird-Day Volume 1 - Imperial Porter

Hmm, there were others, but I didn't seem to note them. Shrug.

 

I thought I had posted this here earlier today but instead posted it on the WBAYDN thread. I'd like to blame it on the beer but it was just a dumb mistake on my part.

Good Saturday afternoon, New Beer Weekenders. I was hoping to find a new-to-me South Jersey Porter for the tasting thread and thankfully I succeeded. Ludlam Island Brewing's Double Polar Bear Porter. Ludlam Island hasn't gained much notoriety yet but it continues to improve and some of the beers are impressive. The brewery lists the style as Imperial Porter but I think it's a very good example of a Smoked Porter.

It pours a deep mahogany with dark, ruby-cola hues, and a thick, frothy, medium khaki-colored head and spotty lacing. Its nose is roasty with notes of earthy char, burnt nuts, tobacco ash, woodsmoke, and vanilla. The smell improves as it warms in the glass. The taste offers a pleasant blend of harsh, bitter char and soft, creamy vanilla. As it breathes it opens considerably and I begin to taste baker's chocolate and tobacco. Also, the vanilla bean becomes more pronounced as it warms. It's quite smoky. The mouth feel is relatively thick and creamy for the style with lite/moderate carbonation, and you can feel the 10% ABV. Overall, it nicely reconciles the attributes of smoky bitterness and vanilla sweetness. I gave it extra credit for achieving what it purports to be on the can. My rating is the second highest (of a small sample size). The average is influenced by one rating of 4.77.

4.02/5 rDev -2.2%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

I hope everyone is enjoying a new beer (and hopefully a new Porter) today. Cheers, NBW!

 

Grimm's usual(but not always) price of $20-22/4pk is normally a pass, but I felt the urge for NEIPA, & I was also not in the mood for a disappointing close,-but-not-quite , so took the plunge.($19.99/4pk)
A : not-disappointing!
Catch Wave , a 6.5%abv NEIPA, with the 1/2-unusual combo of El Dorado,Hallertau Blanc, Mosaic, & Citra .
Canned March 2, 2021.
Short version : Nicely on the bitter/rough side of the spectrum, while also delivering a fruity mix of melon,citrus,pine, dank, & stone fruits .
I really like those Frost Beer Works, & Aurora NEIPAs, that lean mostly temperate fruity mix. Alas, none of them were present today. This has some of those elements.

A: Hazy yellow, with a hint of orange. Looks like pineapple juice, with some tangerine in it. Light , off-white head, that leaves a ring, and a few tiny spots of lacing.
(Fyi, the "Flash" settings , that offset my kitchen lights, also make everything look darker, & less-yellow than they actually are.)

S: Smell is pineapple, tangelo, slight peach & persimmon, and a bit of "fresh" malt scent.

T: Taste is grapefruit pith, dank/pine, a bit of honeydew melon and galia melon [melon+pear+spice], and a hint of peach/nectarine/pit. Moderate bitterness.

F: Feel is medium, juicy, with very,very fine carbonation bite, that effervesces towards finish, and increases in volume, rather than diminishes. Odd, (for beer) but pleasant feeling.

4.21/5 rDev -0.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25
https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/32893/237806/