New Beer Weekend #38

Blessings to you and your growing family, Frank.

 

I wanted to hit the Mystery Beer from @MacMalt but a laundry situation (or lack thereof due to a mysterious leak) arose at the sister-in-laws. I don't want to dig in at this late time (for the East coast) so I will save it for next weekend.

 

Review 1484
Thank you @swenny916, I appreciate the beer. Mr. Green this is a Mystery beer. The beer is 46 degrees and served in a tulip. The pour of the beer appears to be an IPA of some sort. The pour created a massive two-fingered head with good retention. I would have like to have seen the head last longer than it did. The frothy creamy and airy head left a good amount of lacing as it dissipated. The color of the beer is SRM 4, pale straw with golden hues. This beer is hazy.
The initial aromas in the beer are pine, grapefruit, oranges, and floral. Next, I smell biscuit, toasted crackers, lemons, and herbal. Lastly, I detect honey and a subtle earthiness. I am going to say this beer is an IPA. Let us continue with the review.
The flavors in the beer are orange, toasted biscuit, crackers, lemons, honey, a touch of pine, grapefruit, floral esters, and earthiness. I would say this beer is eclipsing toward an IPA, maybe a double NEIPA.
The mouthfeel is creamy, coating, and creamy.
The body of the beer is medium, medium-low carbonation, and a full finish.
This beer is a NEIPA, maybe closer to a double. I took the green wrapper off and noticed it is from Phase Three Brewing. Never heard of them. I picked up on the orange and honey in the beer but I thought the hops could have been amped up more for a double IPA. This is an awesome beer. I could sip these all night long. Thank You @swenny916, I appreciate the experience.

 

From the NBS BIF:



Opened up the mystery can from my sender @nc41 and am immediately hit with Citra hops as I'm pouring it. It doesn't have quite the punch of Citra that single hop beers often do, so there's probably some other hops in here too.

A touch of haze, but it drinks very crisp and clean; a bit of alcohol but the body is too light for it to be particularly high ABV, so regardless of what they call it I'm pegging it as being in the in-between space between IPA and DIPA. The bitterness, flavors, and lack of haze point to a West Coast IPA/DIPA for sure.

Aroma - Very hoppy, distinctly Citra; citrusy, I'd say tangerine mostly maybe a bit of navel orange flesh and a bit of pith.

Appearance - Two inches of pillowy head that dissipates but not too quickly, leaves a fair bit of lacing. Brightly golden with a little haze; certainly not "hazy" just not winning any clarity contests (not that I need it to). No turbidity.

Taste - Lots of that tangerine/navel orange flavor, including in the aftertaste, but there's also a bit of pineyness up front that does not stick around like the citrus flavors. Sharp bitterness but not overwhelming, clears the tongue relatively quickly so pretty low residual sugars which further reinforces the West Coast style.

Overall - Solid WC IPA, true to form in bitterness and flavors. A good reminder why this style was so popular for so long.

The reveal - Heist Brewery - Digital Lines. West Coast IPA, 7.4%, with Strata, Citra, Sequioa, and Centennial hops. So, other than guessing the name of the beer I had this pretty much dead to rights.

 

I’ll pitch in a Barleywine under the EDT wire for the unofficial theme

This is Evil Twin’s The Great Northern, a collab with American Solera. It’s a 13% Barleywine aged for 21 months on BLiS bourbon maple syrup barrels with Ugandan vanilla, served up in a handy 8oz can.



A: Opaque dark brown with reddish edges. Virtually no head at all.
A: Big whiff of vanilla, bourbon, molasses, maple
T: Vanilla, molasses, raisins, toffee, maple, bourbon, wood, booze.
M: Thick. Very low carb, full body, sticky texture. Luscious boozy finish with lingering vanilla and maple.
O: Love it. Rich and decadent, sweet but not cloying. Maybe needs a campfire and a chill in the air, but that’s about it - delicious!

Thanks to @smanson56 fir this LIF loot! He sent two of these and I won’t be sharing the other one either!

 

Tonight is DnD night, because beer ain't the only nerdy outlet I've got going on, and this is our first session since my first character died . So I get to introduce the new replacement, who is a warlock. This is all just to set the scene as to why I chose the specific beer I did. Thematic synergy and all that.

Obsidian Throne is the second big stout from Half Acre that @FBarber sent me during the BIF, and the third beer I've had from them overall. The Double Barrel Catch Hell he sent was incredible, and I honestly have no recollection whatsoever of the GoneAway IPA I apparently had from them back in 2014. *shrug*.



If you thought I was going to use any word other than obsidian to describe the beer in my glass, well, I don't know what to do with you. Capped with a fractal swirl and thing ring of dark cocoa brown.

Nose presents with some of the highersharper notes that initially made me think of licorice, but after further investigation, and starting to sip, it's more oak and dark fruits and sharp bourbon. A lot of booze lurking in here.

Flavour does nothing to disabuse me of this boozy rich notion. Leans more into the rich fudgy dark chocolate with some tart dark fruits (think dark chocolate dipped dried cherries), and a lot of barrel presence. Oak and spice and booze and mash. This drinks somehow even potentially bigger than its 13.7%. Sip. Definitely sip.

This, similar to the DB Catch Hell before it, is luxuriant. Rich. Thick. Oily. Whatever other descriptors. These guys do big rich stouts. It is a delight on the tongue.

Thanks Frank for sending this my direction! It is big and bold and rich and *muah*. Of the two big stouts from HA, I think I prefer the Catch Hell, but that's a pretty high bar. This is still delicious. I love big rich stouts and this fits that bill like... I don't know a check for the exact amount or some other tortured analogy.

 

Back with another, this time, a true, old school WCIPA, one that doesn't make it to Washington, or if it does, not to my part of the state. Fortunately, there's plenty in Portland, where @vurt sent it from:

https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/5077/81755/?ba=woemad#review
This kind of IPA is kinda hard to find anymore, so when you do and it's done well, it's a great day.

 

Is there ever really a wrong season for enjoying a barleywine?

Expectations are eternally the enemy.

Glad you dug it! It was an interesting one for sure... similar to Frank's sending of the Moonship earlier... it was one that I enjoyed when I had it myself, and I figured it would at least be an interesting challenge to try and identify. Cheers!

Again: Barleywines=yes. also, love the half sized cans for the big boozy beverage. Also, that BLiS BBA maple syrup is quite fantastic... I was lucky enough to receive a bottle from... I think it was @WesMantooth back in one of the previous BIFs, and it was an absolute treat.

 

Mystery beer "new" from @LehighAce06 for NBS BIF #13. Poured into a Spiegelau tulip from a 12oz can. Definitely a stout. Letting it warm up from fridge temp.



A - Pours deep dark chocolate brown with a finger of creamy mocha head that sticks around for a while, leaving a thin layer across the surface of the beer along with some spotty lacing.

S - Smells fantastic. Rich vanilla, milk chocolate, light roast coffee

T - Follows the nose. Creamy vanilla, caramel, semi-sweet chocolate, and coffee. Decadent and rich. Getting a hint of bourbon barrel on the finish and a tiny bit of heat.

M - thick, creamy, approaching syrupy but not quite getting there. Bourbon lingers on the finish.

O - This is a damn fine pastry stout. And disturbingly crushable. I'm guessing vanilla and coffee as adjuncts, possibly cacao nibs as well. Sweet, but not too sweet. The coffee isn't overbearing or astringent. I have a sneaking suspicion this is another Tired Hands beer, and one of the IOUNNO series, because I have IOUNNO2 in my fridge. Given the other recent TH beers Kevin sent, and that it's a fantastic pastry stout in a 12oz can leads me to believe this is IOUNNO3. I'm not getting maple syrup though. Let's see what it is.





Tired Hands Brewing - IOUNNO3 - Imperial Pastry Stout - 12.5% abv

Description: "IOUNNO3 is brewed with an IMMENSE grist composed of American two row barley, flaked oats and a dizzying assortment of dark specialty malts, as well as a touch of lactose sugar. Conditioned on Madagascar vanilla beans, maple syrup, and house-roasted coffee (we chose a super rich, chocolatey and caramelly bean from Brazil to match this dense, lush beer,) we blended the beer with a portion of mature Stout that we've had aging in Buffalo Trace Bourbon barrels for about 16 months. "

Yeah, I drank this one real fast. The last sips have now warmed up to the point where I can detect the maple on nose and palate. Subtle, which is perfect because I hate beers that are overwhelmed by maple flavor. The vanilla is the standout for me, and works perfectly with their coffee. The bourbon comes in nicely on the finish. Tired Hands roasts their own coffee, and I've had a few bags of it (although it looks like they are rebranding it and it's not currently available) and it's excellent.

Thank you, Kevin! This was a fantastic beer. Thanks for sending it my way. Can't wait to open the IOUNNO2 in my fridge. 4.6

 

If I didn't have the IOUNNO2, I'd have had no idea. I'm not even sure where this other can came from. I'm going to blame @JayORear though, he's my Tired Hands hookup.

 

Greetings all from the Great Northwest where we are cool and blustery this weekend.

Today we have Fathom IPA from Ballast Point brewery.
https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/199/305774/

A very drinkable well balanced IPA. Interesting design on the packaging as well. Worthy of 2 pics.

Until next time,

 

I tasted two new brews this weekend. Both tonight at a smallish backyard bbq. A German friend is an awesome cook and about every three weeks he cooks in the backyard. I am ever grateful as he does many German dishes and SAUSAGES! I bring a salad or bread usually. Sometimes an app.
It’s byobeer and we took an ipa that mekiwi got on sale. Nuttin to write about. The two I tasted are worthy even if for differing reasons.

First a German Pilsner - Radelberger
https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/2974/799/

I tasted right out of my friend’s bottle (oops) but we are vaccinated. It is smooth and I could drink more of this beer for sure!

Next. Meowsa by Georgetown Brewing. Ick!
This beer is not drinkable. Tooooooo sweet. whoa! and I drink Bud Light regularly which is prettty sweet for beer. I do not recommend this “beer”.


There are tulips and daffodils everywhere in Western WA! So pretty right now. Happy Spring. 4/20 and Earth Day just around the corner!

cheers!

 

I knew I had to get you a "pastry" stout and this one being labeled as such by the brewer themselves was a sign that it had to be this one. I'm glad you enjoyed it so much, I was hoping that would be a highlight of the box for you; and nice sleuthing to figure out its identity!

Funny story, I used their local delivery service (they're a good 30-40 minute drive for me, not too far when I can go get something to eat and have a beer, but compared to a $7 delivery fee....) and accidentally they subbed in a second 4pk of a hoppy beer instead of this stout.

As they always have been, they were SUPER accommodating in fixing it, came all the way back to my house just to drop off the correct beer; they could easily have just given me an apology and a refund since they probably ended up losing money on making the trip a second time; and they even let me keep the extra 4pk, no charge.

I can't imagine a reason I wouldn't be a customer of theirs at any point, but they way they treat customer service issues GUARANTEES I'm a customer for life.


ps - Their coffee is available now, including nationwide shipping near as I can tell; looks like you could get a bag of each of their 3 available varieties for $57 including shipping, for example.

I admit I considered a bag of it as your "local food item" but it being Easter week it was too easy to send local favorites from the Easter candy aisle instead, not to mention I wasn't SURE you were a "coffee person" and if you weren't it might have been a bad choice, whereas candy rarely is.

 

Not me . . . you've got me wanting to order that one, though, I think they still have it available for online ordering.

 

Remember when people would actually trade glass growlers of beer? That was one of the first someone sent to me from OR, maybe 2012-13? Anyway, I remember it well, and would love to try again. I was sending out glass growlers of OG Alpine Nelson, among others.