New Beer Weekend #67

In the garden state for the son a good friends wedding requires a local brew to celebrate

Tomato Factory by Other Half



4.28/5 rDev +0.9%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.25

Pint can poured into a cheap plastic Marriott courtyard nonic

One finger white , frothy , creamy foam cap over a turbid orange liquid. No tomato red color at all

Aroma is citrus tangerine, kumquat, piney resin, tropical fruit , whiff of Coconut . No tomato fragrance

Taste is tropical fruit, hint of coconut . Oddly enough, No tomato taste !

Mouthfeel is smooth, creamy,like a fresh tomato purée but without the tomato flavor

Good beer

Congrats Andrew & Marlena - may your cups be filled with craft beer and good health

 

Back with part two of the “new to me” beers in the Sam Adams Beers for Cheers pack.
Reunion IPA with the promise of “Holiday Hoppiness”

There is nothing on the SA website about this beer. The only info on the label is 8% ABV 40 IBUs. The back label describes it as a golden IPA with bright citrus and pine aromatics and lightly toasted malt.

I'll cut to the chase here.
Reunion is a very nice looking beer, golden orange with a tall white head. The aromas are as described; bright orange/grapefruit/lemon zest on top of crushed pine needles, again, very nice.
The flavors though... there is pine and citrus over a noticable toasted malt backbone, but there is also something else. Something that tastes almost like an over ripe, bordering on spoiled, orange that leaves a sticky unpleasant aftertaste and a pithy dryness.

This isn't a drain pour, but definitely a beer I never want to have a reunion with
3.45/5
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.25

 

So, what are you going to do with the other bottle(s)?

Do you have any co-workers or neighbors that are not on your good side?

Cheers!

 

My next (probably) new beer is from @WunderLlama. It's a mystery beer, disguised in a wool sock for BIF #14 reasons.


Poured into the Mayflower pint glass Maynard sent me. As I poured, I thought, "It looks like an IPA" -- somewhat hazy, yellow, couple fingers of foamy head. Head collapses down to a bit less than a centimeter but is clinging to the sides of the glass.

Smell is reinforcing the IPA idea. Citrus, lots of lemon zest, maybe a bit of mango and a bit of melon.

Taste is also reinforcing the IPA idea. Tons of tropical fruit, and moderately boozy. Somewhat bitter resin is evident in the finish, but I really get a lot more creamy/juiciness out of it. Melon isn't gone, and maybe there's an echo of nelson-like bubble gum and some honeydew.

Mouthfeel is rich and creamy. Overall...I'm going to guess this is a New England Double IPA, about 8.1% abv. And I think it's pretty good.

 

I’d like to thank you for your informative post, but in fact I wasn’t drinking their regular Alt, but their Oststraße (the Street their brewery is located on) anniversary beer, which states that it uses a different malt bill, Tettnanger hops for brewing and for dry hopping. In fact, they are using freshly harvested hops to do so, which makes this beer quite a bit different from their regular offering.

 

Bells Side Yard Fresh Hop NEIPA brewed with all Chinook hops from Bells’s 2 acre field next to their brewery in Comstock. Dated 10/8/21.

Pours a full on hazy golden yellow color with a bright white, soapy 2.5 finger head that dissipates fairly slowly and leaves some nice glass lacing. Looks like a proper NEIPA. 4.0

Big pineapple on the nose. Pineapple juice, almost candy. Behind that is ruby red grapefruit, bright floral, cherry, red grape, light mandarin orange, little vanilla wafer from the malt. Super fruity, exotic, and awesome aroma. 4.5

Taste is almost a complete 180 from the nose. Up front there’s a splatter of pineapple gummis, red grape and sweet cherry, but that quickly gives way to underripe pineapple, yellow grapefruit, hop spice, rose water, grapefruit peel, and big pine resin. Cherry is not a descriptor I come across often with hops, but that really endures throughout the flavor profile, as well as the pineapple, just in a drier way as the flavor progresses. Speaking of dry, this beer really dries out and bring a significant bitterness with it as you get into the finish. 4.5

Medium body. Slick, oily, slightly chalky, some softness. 4.0

It’s been a minute since I’ve had a Bells beer and I’ve gotta say, this is one of the better hoppy beers I’ve ever had by them. Really exceeded my expectations. They do an excellent job of showing off the fresh hops. Michigan Chinook just hits differently compared to it’s PNW counterpart. This looks and smells like a NEIPA, but it definitely drinks more like a west coast and I’m not mad about it at all. 4.25
Overall: 4.37

 

The reveal:



It's Mayflower's 400 DIPA. I think I did OK, it clocks in at 8.0%. I'll give myself a B+. I think getting into the A range requires a detail like guessing the brewer or a hop variety or something.

Nice beer! Thank you, @WunderLlama!

PS: The squeaky imperial stout was hidden inside the other sock.

 

Howdy NBW
I’m drinking Copper Legend from Jack’s Abby


5.7 ABV. 22 IBUs. Can dated 8/24/21
4.25/. 3.75. 3.75. 3.75. 3.75. 3.78. rDev 0.8%

Clear amber appearance with a foamy 1 inch head, medium lacing good cap retention

Aroma of bread/ biscuit some caramel, wheat and roasted malt

Taste is slightly caramel and biscuit like, not overly sweet, I got a vanilla note, nice layers. Bright tasting

Mouthfeel is medium carbonation that gives it a slightly prickly feel, some stickyness and a lingering caramel finish. Crisp feeling

Overall it’s a nice representation of the style easy drinking and has a clean crisp feel to it.

 

A very busy Saturday has kept me away from my beer drinking duties, but thankfully I'm now bunkered in for the rest of the weekend and hope to review several of the seemingly beyond count beers that have been sent my way over the past few weeks by various BIF participants. My beer supply has never been so overflowing with great beers from around the country.

I'm going to keep it simple for my first beer, with this can of Euchre Pils from Arbor Brewing Company in Ypsilanti, MI (If you were to tell me that was a made up name of a town, I'd find it plausible). I received this courtesy of a ninja box from @foundersasap.

3.71/5 rDev +2.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.75

Pours a slightly murky golden yellow with a moderate (and somewhat less than expected) amount of fizzy white head that receded to a thin ring. Aroma has some nice herbal / floral notes mixed with some nice bready malt aromas. Taste is lightly bready with a nice little hop bite on the back-end. Not quite as clean / crisp as I would hope, but overall still a very tasty beer that is going down very quickly.

 

Hey Maynard hope all is well, I was hoping you made it through the storm all right. I heard things were bad on the other side of the bridge.

 

Next up

Stone Xocoveza Tres Leche

12oz canned 10/12/21 RVA (18 days ago) poured into a tulip glass at fridge temp 8.5% ABV. The beer pours dense black with no light penetration and light brown head. The head recedes to a thin ring and single layer of tiny bubbles. Slight lacing. The aroma is moderate in strength featuring coffee first with pepper & cinnamon following. The taste is semisweet dark malt with sweetened, creamed coffee up front and minor pepper, cinnamon and vanilla on the finish. Minimal bitterness with the pepper doing the job to offset the sweetness. The mouthfeel is medium plus bodied with average carbonation and a somewhat dry finish. Overall, good. The magic of the original Xocoveza is long gone however.

I was a huge fan of the original and still remember running around town buying one six pack at a time due to store limits. I'd love less sweetness and more pepper here, but I understand Stone's need to freshen things up. After getting no Xocoveza locally last year, I'm glad to have grabbed a six pack of this. I predict some whiskey pairings as the weather turns cold. Cheers all!

 

College football weather!!! It is damp, cloudy, and chilly in Northern Indiana, a mere 5 miles or so from Notre Dame Stadium, so I have been in college football mode today. Lots of competitive games to watch, led by Michigan/Michigan State (FANTASTIC game), but now it’s beer time.

This beer is part of the fresh hop howitzer launched my way by my friend @BBThunderbolt, and the glassware is courtesy of him as well. Let’s hop to it.





3.96/5 rDev +5.3%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Pours a hazyish golden copper color with a bone white head that laces the glass beautifully. Nice resiny pine notes on the nose, along with some grapefruit.

That resiny pine is forward and dominant on the taste, with a nice citrus flavor at the back of the palate along with the slightest bit of caramalt.

The mouthfeel is medium and dry, fitting this mostly WCIPA nicely. Truly a pleasure to drink.

 

This has been in my fridge for a while, and lots of stuff has taken priority. Finally getting to it today: Samuel Adams' Octoberfest.

12oz bottle served in a tulip. January is ticked as the "enjoy before" month. I bought it last month.

Pours a brownish amber with a smallish head. Very clear. Smell is mostly grain, and a little earthy.

Taste is grain/toffee/nuts, definite earthiness, and maybe a burnt toffee bitterness.

Mouthfeel is smooth and clean. Overall, it's not terribly exciting, but it's a solid and worthy beer.

 

Finback Double Something Nelson DIPA. Excited by this for multiple reasons, including it's Finback and their Double Something Citra DIPA is one of the best Citra beers I've ever had. I have high hopes for their treatment of Nelson, probably my favorite hop when executed correctly. Pour is a bright, Pulp Fiction-briefcase-gold that glows invitingly when held up to the light, and a dense, long-lasting head leaves behind sticky lacing as it slowly recedes. Aroma is incredibly promising, white wine all the way with a backnote of spicy rye reminiscent of OG Alpine Nelson, although this may be subliminal; there's no indication that rye was used in the making of this beer. First sip is glorious, immediately layered and complex, with berry and tropical notes riding atop a white wine foundation. As it warms, the white wine character becomes more dominant, with a musty dankness filling the glass and coating the tongue. Mouthfeel is as good as it gets, full and creamy with the zippy, spritzy carbonation Finback does so well. Overall, this is a top-ten Nelson beer, edging into OG Alpine territory, although I'm reminded that Alpine Nelson pulled this level off at only 7%; I always wonder how much of a great DIPA like this is muscling its way to the top by virtue of a higher ABV. At any rate, I'm really glad I picked up a couple of 4-packs of this gem. Cheers!

 

This American IPA brewed in the English style, pours a slightly hazy, golden hue with a faint, citrusy aroma. You really need to allow this one to warm a little in the glass to appreciate the flavor profile of restrained, but refreshing and slightly bitter hops. Very good mouthfeel with a pleasant and lingering bittersweetness on the palate. The body is a little thin, but this fine IPA is a nice break from all the Oktoberfests I have been drinking over the last few weeks.

 

Concur with your response regarding the green bottles, hope to one day hit the Czech Republic and sample their fine beers, including Pilsners, one of my favorite styles.

Decided to see if the extreme salt I tasted with this beer, and an Old Irving Pilsner I tried a few weeks ago were due to a change in my palate. I saved the second half of my morning beer, primarily to compare the salt factor, with a Pilsner Urquell (BB 1/10/22, or close to two months older, if both use the same Best By conventions (SOP = 3/3/22) which I am not sure they do)..



The Pilsner Urquell tastes a bit salty. but acceptably so. I also picked up a buttery smooth texture and light diacetyl which I accept and its fine. Pilsners are the only style of beer I have been picking up an extreme salty taste profile, but based on this exercise, I believe that while I am more sensitive to salt, thes other two I tried lately were imbalanced for the style.

The Pilsner Urquell single can was also 9 cents cheaper.

 

First of a couple new-to-me.

https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/60010/574852/



16 ounce can.
Canned Wednesday the 27th of October.
I'll be sampling another one of these (for science!) in a few days

Moderate to vigorous pour yields a 1/2 inch white head over a murky golden body with a bit of sticky lacing.

Nose of citrus (grapefruit, orange), slight tropical fruit (mango, papaya), and slighter pine resin.

Taste is grapefruit, orange, lemon, lime, melon, passion fruit, and peach with a little bit of spicy citrus pith on the finish.

Feel is good, but wishing for more.

Overall, a tasty offering from Springfield, VT.

Cheers!

 

Good Saturday evening, New Beer Weekenders. It was a busy Saturday. I caught up with some work and my wife and I ran errands all afternoon, including a stop at Bull N Bear Brewery in Summit. BnB marches to its own drummer and brews a lot of Euro styles that aren't prevalent. And when they do brew a popular IPA they do so in their own way. Shake Out is a Milkshake IPA - not exactly a typical offering from Bull n Bear. To my taste it's a hybrid between and MIlkshake and a NE IPA. While it's brewed with the obligatory lactose it isn't overly sweet and the tartness of the citrus provides balance. It's also fairly bitter at 80 IBU. Overall, very tasty and enjoyable.

Pint pour on draught at the brewery two days after release. It pours a cloudy, muddy golden-amber color with a half finger of creamy, milk-white head and thick, soapy lacing. The smell features lactose/vanilla, along with lemon, grapefruit, tangerine, and just a whiff of melon. It's not a typical creamsicle Milkshake IPA. While the flavor is sweetened by lactose, th citrus is quite tart. The hop bill isn't advertised but it's quite bitter (80 IBU) throughout. The flavors are nicely balanced. This ale has a pleasantly thick and creamy mouth feel with appropriate carbonation, and the 6.8% ABV gives it good substance without overpowering.

4.18/5 rDev 0%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

I'll be back tomorrow with more beers from the amazing boxes I received from @FBarber. Cheers, NBW!

 

#2, also from @BBThunderbolt, this is not your father’s dankity dank. Wow!





4.25/5 rDev +7.1%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

Pours a hazy golden straw color with a foamy white head and nice lacing. The nose is Dank-O-Saurus Rex with that almost oniony tropical citrus aroma that shows up at times in Citra-hopped and Mosaic-hopped IPA’s in my experience.

The dankity dank follows through to the taste, with loads of ripe tangerine and grapefruit the most prominent flavors. If you like dank beers (check!), this beer will work well for you, with the dry mouthfeel accentuating the Dr Dank flavors. Very well done, IMHO.