New Beer Weekend #59

FiftyFifty Brewing Co. -- Eclipse (Woodford Reserve) (barrel aged imperial stout)



4.29/5 rDev -1.8%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

Molasses dark body topped with a thin, khaki colored head, lasting and leaving thin sheets of foam stepping down the glass. Fine, understated smell; oak with a subtle underpinning of bourbon; baker's chocolate. Sweet milk chocolate flavor; hints of cocoa and molasses; coconut; low-key alcohol presence. Heavy body; slick and velvety on the palate; gentle, balanced boozy warmth permeates through the residual sugar feel.

For a six year old bottle of beer, this one has aged beautifully. The flavors and rich and sumptuous, nicely balanced and bringing some nice subtly and complexity to the palate. Just a damn fine beer...

Poured at 47 °F; bottling info on label: BR/2 2015

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Got in a nearly 38 mile bicycle ride this morning, so this decadently delicious imperial stout is a nice way to ease in to a quiet and relaxing afternoon.

 

Brauhaus Faust-Miltenberger - Weizen Hell

Hefeweizen from Germany (5.1%).



Pours a very cloudy, almost hazy, deep golden coloration with a large. frothy head. Smells of doughy malt and fruity/spicy esters, with notes of banana and just a hint of clove, as well as some grassy hops.

Taste is a great balance of doughy malt, fruity, spicy esters and grassy, spicy hops, with notes of banana and lighter clove, citrus and apricot, as well as some grassy accents. Finishes with a light bitterness and some banana and clove lingering in the aftertaste. Full mouthfeel with a medium/rich body and medium carbonation.

A great Hefeweizen that is quite full-bodied, with a superb mouthfeel, yet still goes down easy. I really like the balance of malt, hops and yeast here, with this having some really nice fruity and spicy characteristics to it. This feels rather spritzy and easy-drinking, yet quite rich and full-bodied at the same time, with the estery and hoppy fruit notes standing out very nicely here, rounded out by a bit of spice.

Overall, this makes for a very enjoyable Hefeweizen that is rather well-balanced. with a great flavor profile and mouthfeel to it.

Currently listening to: Leonard Cohen - Alexandra Leaving.

 

Lillebräu - Weizen

"Hefeweizen" with Hallertauer Mittelfrüh and Hüll Melon hops, from Germany (4.9%).



Pours a slightly cloudy, golden coloration with a medium, fluffy head. Smells of doughy, biscuity malt and tropical/berry hops with notes of melon and red berries, as well as some faint banana esters.

Taste is a decent balance of doughy, biscuity malt, fruity, grassy hops and rather subtle esters, with notes of honeydew melon, red berry and citrus peel, as well as lighter banana and just a hint of clove. Finishes with a light bitterness and some melon and citrus peel lingering in the aftertaste. Smooth mouthfeel with a medium body and carbonation.

This is certainly a very modern take on the traditional German Hefeweizen that almost feels more like an American Pale Wheat Ale, with the hops standing out a lot more than the yeast esters here. While it's quite spritzy, with a certain zesty quality to it, those typical estery notes are being very much overshadowed by the hops here, while it also kinda lacks the full body and creamy mouthfeel that I associate with the style.

So while this makes for a very interesting modern interpretation of the Hefeweizen, it's not really in line with what you would expect of a traditional example of the style. That is not necessarily a bad thing, of course, but maybe this should be marketed as a "Hoppy Weizen" or something instead, while I also don't think that that modern interpretation justifies the price point of 3€ for a small bottle like this, to be honest.

Currently listening to: The Decemberists - The Abduction of Margaret.

 

Cloudwater - Blossom In Fog Lane Park

New England IPA from England (6%).



Pours a hazy, orange coloration with a medium, fluffy head. Smells of light biscuity malt and citrus/tropical hops, with notes of grapefruit and passion fruit, as well as some dank, herbal and earthy accents.

Taste is an excellent balance of biscuity malt and fruity, juicy, dank, herbal and slightly resinous and earthy accents, with citrus and tropical notes of grapefruit, tangerine, passion fruit and papaya, as well as a pronounced, quite herbal, earthy dankness and sticky, resinous pine. Finishes with a light/medium bitterness and some grapefruit, passion fruit and dank, resinous accents lingering in the aftertaste. Soft mouthfeel with a medium body and carbonation.

I really love the combination of quite juicy citrus/tropical and herbal dank/resinous notes here, which is exactly the kind of flavor profile that Cloudwater have really made their own, a kind of New England IPA with a certain touch of West Coast character to it. To me, that combination is just so much more interesting than the typical fruit basket examples of the style and there is just so much going on here when it comes to those herbal, earthy, dank and resinous notes, with a good bitterness as well as light malt sweetness.

Overall, this makes for a terrific hybrid of New England and West Coast IPA with a superb balance of juicy, fruity and dank, resinous and bitter notes.

Currently listening to: Tom Waits - The Piano Has Been Drinking.

 

Revolution Brewing Co. -- Riot (Bohemian keller beer) -- 46 °F



3.93/5 rDev +1%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Clear, golden body; excellent carbonation; fairly thin yet persistent head, white and dense. Pleasing herbal nose with some rounded esters. Light malt base taste with a fine complementary hop bitterness. Light to medium mouthfeel; crisp; initial delicate sweetness that ends with a feathery dryness.

This is a pretty straightforward keller pils. No frills yet tasty and refreshing.

Poured at 46 °F; FILLED JUN/24/2021
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...after that delicious yet potent FiftyFifty barrel aged imperial stout, a simple, clean beer sure hits the spot on a lazy, late afternoon...

 

I had lots of new beers yesterday, but didn't feel like I had enough to write good reviews of each. My new beer today is actually an old beer, but this is the first time trying it. Bell's Batch 9,000 bottled in 2010. I snagged a bottle last week. Still a nice hiss when the cap is popped. Pours motor oil black with little head. Looks perfect! I immediately think of sherry/port when I first sniff this one. Lots of figs and dates. Black licorice is definitely raising its hand. Blackstrap molasses, a bit of honey, a whiff of pipe tobacco, dark chocolate, and a hint of french roast coffee beans. Of all the notes, the molasses screams the loudest. The taste is super intense, balanced, and smooth. Follows the nose really nicely, with intense notes of molasses, dark chocolate, sherry, red wine, prunes, walnuts, pecans, blackberries, and an oak bitterness on the back end. However, there is also a sherry sweetness mixed in at the end as well. This is beyond outstanding, and has aged beautifully. The mouthfeel is thick and creamy. Coats and the mouth and sticks around for a LONG time. What a lovely beer to both smell and sip on. Absolutely stunning after 11 years! Cheers!

look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

 

Kemker Kultuur - Tiet

A blend of young and old barrel-aged Farmhouse Ales, from Germany (6%).



Pours a hazy, deep golden amber coloration with a small, fluffy head that would probably have been huge if I didn't need to rest the bottle a little to clean up after it gushed quite a bit upon opening. Smells of doughy, bready malt and estery/hoppy fruit notes of apricot, apple and gooseberry, as well as just a hint of funk, oak and tannins.

Taste is an excellent balance of biscuity, bready malt, estery fruit and much lighter spice and some floral, grassy hoppy accents, with notes of apricot, apple, gooseberry, white grape, red berries and white pepper, as well as a subtle underlying tartness, mildly cheesy funk and musty, tannic oak. Finishes with a light tartness and bitterness, as well as some fruity esters and subtle musty, tannnic funk and oak lingering in the aftertaste. Effervescent mouthfeel with a medium body and carbonation.

I've said this before, but it really can't be overstated that noone does Wild/Farmhouse Ales like Kemker does in Germany and this is a prime example of this. There is just such a lovely, subtle complexity to this, with a superb balance of fruity esters, grassy hops, musty funk and tannic oak as well as a perfect underlying acidity. It just makes for a brew that feels quite rich and complex, yet subtle and easy-drinking, with a great depth of character.

The fruity and slighty spicy esters are most pronounced here, with some rich stone fruit and berry notes, that go just perfectly with the subtle funk/acidity and more pronounced musty, tannic oak. Overall. this makes for an excellent, fruit-forward Farmhouse Ale with a great depth of character, subtle complexity and great body and mouthfeel: an absolute joy to drink.

Currently listening to: Radiohead - Backdrifters.

 

This sounds amazing. Do they distribute throughout Germany? I will definitely keep my eye out when I visit next year!

 

Soquell Fermentation Project -- Red #4 With Rye (wild ale)



3.93/5 rDev +0.3%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

The body poured out with a nice, clear, cola brown color; thin yet lasting off-white head. An interesting funk to the nose; it's hard to describe - its not a barnyard or horse blanket smell, but definitely some old wooden barrel character. Sharp sour taste right off; cherries and raspberries; more spirit barrel woodiness in the taste. Medium-heavy body; some texture to the beer though primarily smooth; tangy and acidic.

The use of rum, tequila and bourbon barrels for aging gives this beer a certain uniqueness, especially with the smell, but also a bit in the taste.

Poured at 46 °F; no canning date info seen on the can.
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...I can't say I note any rye in this wild ale...and honestly, it's unclear to me whether rye was part of the grain bill or if the bourbon barrels they used were rye whiskey...regardless, it's a pretty decent sour ale...

 

Next new beer is a Brandy Barrel-aged Barleywine from Central Waters. Picked this up in a trade last week. Poured at fridge temp. Pours a nice dark brown with a small amount of tan head. Nose is brandy, raspberries, toffee, vanilla, raisins, malts, plums, and a bit of wood. The taste is fantastic. Very toffee forward. Like sucking on a wonderful toffee candy. Some nuttiness is there - almonds mostly. Brandy, molasses, plums, licorice, green grapes, a touch of leather, freshly baked bread, and a bit of alcohol. This one is definitely a winner for me. A very nice compliment to the traditional bourbon barrel-aged barleywine. Mouthfeel is medium bodied with low carbonation. Sweet aftertaste. Love it!

look: 4.5 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25