New Beer Weekend #50

Hello all, happy to join you again this weekend after missing last weekend. Almost all my drinking last weekend was actually out in social situations (it's so 2019!). This weekend, I've already gone out to lunch and to the zoo today, and both my kids have had play dates. It's terrifying.

But, I'm on my couch chilling with this Fat Camp from American Solera, so let me focus on that for a bit.

16oz can served in a big snifter. Dated 03/05/21. Gift from a friend.

Pours black, thick, and tarry with a tiny to non-existent head. There might be a ghost of active carbonation, but it can barely claw its way to the surface through the murky beer. Smell is a whiff of roasty smoke and vanilla (makes me think of roasted marshmallows), a little cinnamon spice and a fair amount of chocolate and anise.

Taste is cinnamon and vanilla, chocolate, the marshmallow notes seem to have disappeared. Sweet with a roasty bitterness. Just a little too much cinnamon for me.

Mouthfeel is thick and almost sticky. Overall, very good, and if I loved cinnamon in my beer, it would be a little better.

 

I can! Just another gimmick for them!

 

I’ll add another hill farmstead beer @Squire it’s always a pleasure to drink their stuff. Edward is such a perfect beer for me, the aroma on it is second to none if you ask me.

I brought back a mixed case from vacation, half of it was Edward. This was a four pack that is new to me and I almost skipped. Glad I gave it a try.

Hill Farmstead - Society & Solitude 4



Pours a very pretty and bright pale with the slights shades of orange/gold. It is very cloudy but it is not murky, it looks so in the picture but the edges have a slight clarity to them. Perfectly white creamy looking head, some generous lacing with almost every sip.

The smell is so so lively, like bursting out of the glass. Super pungent peach, citrus, also hints of tropical fruits.

The taste follows the nose mainly in the same peachy citrus I first got from the nose. There’s also a nice grassiness that I didn’t pick up on in the nose along with the slightest touch of herbal green flowers.

This beer has a medium body but it is such a soft and pleasant beer to drink. Semi dry finish with a medium bitterness that goes down so smooth and clean.

This beer is great! Even though it smells so strong it is so balanced in flavor and mouthfeel. It’s not just a juicy ipa, despite its look. Of course it has those characteristics but it drinks way more clear that it looks, if that makes sense. I almost didn’t buy this one but I’m glad a decided to buy a four pack to try.

 

Poured into a 16 oz Snulip glass canned 6/30/21. Pours a very attractive milky yellow with a half finger sticky white head that leaves thick streaks of lace with excellent retention. 4.75

Aroma ripe melon, mango, passionfruit, and apricot. 4.25

Taste follows honeydew, mango, passionfruit, and apricot really balanced and juicy. 4.5

Mouthfeel is a little bigger than average, a nice soft gentle body, not sticky or dry, and at 6.8% it may drink bigger, but also really easy going down. 4.75

Overall this is really nice. Plenty of flavor, but also really easy drinking. I would recommend this one for sure. 4.5

 

Getting to try my first Dovetail beer thanks to @FBarber, starting with Rauch Doppelbock.
4.39/5 rDev +4.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5

Thank you FBarber for this
16 oz can poured into a pint glass

A- Dark brown with a huge tan head.

S- Campfire smoke, caramel malts, earthy, some dark chocolate, hints of dark fruits.

T- Caramel malts, some chocolate, smoky campfire, touch of licorice, dark fruits, earthy.

M- Smooth, medium body.

O- A wonderful balance of smoke and sweet malts.

This is really good and has me excited to try the rest, cheers!

 

Poured into 13 oz Teku glass canned on 6/30/21. Pours a very attractive slick black with a 2 plus finger sticky brown head that thick streaks of lace with excellent retention. 4.75

Aroma is one dimensional but in a great way. Vanilla beans, cocoa nibs, caramel, coffee grounds, and toffee. 4.5

Taste follows sweet vanilla, cocoa, toffee, caramel, and a little dry coffee in nicely balanced finish. 4.5

Mouthfeel is above average, maybe a little dry, soft gentle carbonation, and at 7% it may drink a touch bigger. 4.25

Overall I am a fan of Spyglass Brewing, but besides hoppy stuff I was beginning to think they were a one trick pony, but not anymore. This is really tasty, would like a little more body personally but this is really tasty and well crafted. 4.25

 

Hello New Beer Weekend!!!

Also, Happy Independence Day to my fellow US citizens. I'll be celebrating the founding of this Republic by working to make sure those who need beer/wine and liquor, are able to get it.


Now off to my beer, and it's one I picked up at Junkyard brewing a week ago.

Green Fluff - Junkyard Brewing - Blonde Ale - 6.4% ABV

Yeah, this is hitting the mark tonight, and my review will say all I need to say about it.

4.01/5 rDev -2.9%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4

Pours a semi clear golden color. There's just a bit of a white head - 1 finger when poured from the crawler. The head retention of this beer is poor, and there's no lacing on the glass.
The nose is pleasing. There's pistachio on it with a hint of pineapple and marshmallow.
Taste - Up front I get lots of pistachio. This mellows on the backside to a nice marshmallow flavor. Throughout this beer there's pineapple. These flavors meld together very well.
The body is creamy feeling from the marshmallow. It's fairly thick and decent feeling.
Delicious beer overall, and it works out great.


Cheers and see you all later.

 

I got a chance to try Weller Full Proof a few weeks ago, and it was exceptionally good...haven't been able to find any Weller anything, though, so that sucks.

I'd try a beer aged in Weller barrels.

 

@FBarber is the 8 oz growler a norm around you? That is such a good idea and I’ve always wished more places would do that for high abv beers. I’ve never seen a place actually fill them though.

 

Poured into a 16 oz Nordic pint glass canned I am thinking 6/29/21. Pours a hazy orange yellow with a finger sticky white head that leaves plenty of thin streaks of lace with nice retention. 4.25

Aroma is slightly spicy tropical fruit, mandarin, papaya, peach, apricot, and pink grapefruit rind. 4.25

Taste follows again not sure if spicy or sharp is the proper word but the fruit hits the palate immediately mandarin, papaya, peach, dried apricot, and a little grapefruit bitterness really well balanced, but rather aggressive for only 7%. 4.25

Mouthfeel is bigger than average, fairly soft carbonation, maybe a tad dry for the style, and it goes down rather easy. 4.25

Overall this might be a tad green meaning in a few a few weeks it may mello a bit and soften up a bit. Still very nice Amarillo and Citra hops. I recommend it for sure. 4.25

 

Good day BAs! Off to a sunny start for this year's July 4th! Looking forward to crawling around my yard picking apples from the ground cover and later hand-pulling weeds from the garden - there's something relaxing about smelling the earth while the harvestmen walk across my back. Anyway, today's New Breakfast Beer is from @Rub_This_BBQ and NBS BIF #13 - thanks Bill!




Grunner’s Daughter from Mast Landing Brewing. Received on 9/4/21 from @Rub_This_BBQ in NBS BIF #13. 16 oz can stored at home at 42 degrees. Reviewed 4/7/21. Note that I use DD/MM/YY protocol.
Bottom of can stamped “CANNED ON 12/30/2020 BATCH 197”. Served at 51.6 degrees in a hand washed and dried Jester King snifter. Final temperature 60.0 degrees.
Appearance – 3.5.
First pour – Brown (SRM 20), clear.
Body – Black (SRM 40), opaque. When rear-lite, slight penetration at the edges.
Head – Large (Maximum seven cm, aggressive center pour), desert sand, high density, average retention, diminishing to a three mm crown and a thin, rocky cap. Second pour produces a one cm head.
Lacing – None.
Aroma – 3.5 – Begins with peanut butter and scorched malt, no hops, no yeast, no coffee, no chocolate.
Flavor – 4 – Begins and ends with peanut butter, slightly bitter. No malt, no hops, no yeast, no chocolate, no coffee. No ethanol (5.5% ABV, as marked on container) taste or aroma. Gastric warming does not occur. No dimethylsulfide or diacetyl.
Palate – 4 – Full, creamy, soft carbonation. Seems to thin slightly as it warms.
Final impression and summation: 3.75 Peanut butter overpowers any other flavor which may be present. Otherwise, a serviceable sweet stout.

Rating 3.8, rDev -10.8%

 

He is one of my favorite artists, so many earlier great bands and then his solo career. Wish Blind Faith stuck around longer of all his associations.

@FBarber - If given the choice, would you rather have had the Weller BBA with a stand alone base, or the No Cake version? I'm liking the trend of brewers shifting their BA stouts, or at least ones with "special" barrels without adjuncts (like GI's BD/Anniversary).

@ovaltine - Featured two beers I would like to try, sounds like you have a great store in NW Indiana!

Thank you @WunderLlama for noting this is New Beer Sunday #854!

On to my beer for today. Really anxious about this brewery staying in Chicago beyond this year, as they were the casualty of Half Acre selling their OG location, the location both this brewery and HA brewed Saisons and Wild Ales, respectively. Hopefully Averie and Half Acre will move into a new place soon to continue the great work they do with their styles.

Keeping Together We Are Not The Counter Culture



Release Notes: Not on the bottle, this saison was released 12/23/20, cellared until the Spring and then refrigerated since. ABV, also not on the bottle, is 6.2% per Averie's website.

Bottle Notes: 25.4 oz, saison brun.
.
Appearance: Multiple 6-8 oz pours into a large tulip, review notes based on the first pour. Golden plum base, orange tan when held directly to light, creamy generous egg white head leaves spotty lacing after lingering for a few minutes. Burst of carbonation fades quickly. 4.0

Aroma: Acidic funky aroma, the funky aroma smells delicious, Belgian yeast mixed with a wild funkiness, Honey leads followed by plum, nutmeg, and fall dried leaves. Light cinnamon and brown sugar. Somewhat of a mix between Thanksgiving cranberries and a Christmas fruit cake. Really like what I'm getting this morning. 4.5

Taste: Consistent with the aroma, getting the honey front and center, backed well by a strawberry and funky raspberry/cranberry, lemon on the back end. Further in, get a warm cinnamon apple. Really liking this with each sip, so much so that my early morning 8 oz pour went quicker than expected. 4.5

Mouthfeel: Light to medium crisp body, light carbonation, honey brings some creaminess, faint dryness, the sweet fruit flavors balanced out nicely by the funk laid down in a controlled, but appreciated level. Feels wonderful, the drinks consistent with the ABV. 4.75

Overall: Another amazing offering by Keeping Together, bursting with flavor, well balanced and blended, light, crisp, gentle easy drinking, Can't ask for more, other than to hope Keeping Together is with us in Chicago for a very long time. What an amazing morning I'm enjoying, going to pull out strawberries and walnuts and pour another. I believe this is my favorite Keeping Together beer to date, which is saying something. 4.75

Musical Selection: Settled on Ray Charles after getting fully immersed, though perhaps not the song you'll hear at least once today but pairs perfectly with this bottle.

Cheers and Merry Christmas one and all!!!

 

NorthEAST Indiana (Angola IN), we have a camper on a lake (a “seasonal” campground) about 10 minutes from Angola. The beer store (Gay’s) is one of the better I’ve visited, especially in a town with a population of around 8,600 people. It’s a chain in this neck of the nape, and it’s pretty outstanding.