New Beer Weekend #68

Half Day Brewing, Coffee Infused, Barrel Aged Iron Horse Porter, that's a mouthful but quite tasty!



4.27/5 rDev +8.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

Pours an very oily looking dark brown, a one finger khaki head fades to a ring, leaving a nicely laced glass.
Aroma is big time coffee, roasted malts and a hint of whiskey, taste reflects the flavor nicely. Medium to thick body, not much carbonation a very nice sipper.

 

Changing things up with my second review today, and probably my last review of the weekend, Schlenkeria Marzen.
4.31/5 rDev +4.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25

500 ml bottle poured into a mug

A- A clear dark amber with a three finger off white head.

S- Smoky, slightly meaty, pale malts, some caramel, faint earthiness.

T- Smoky, pale malts, slightly meaty with a little bit of char, caramel, a little earthy.

M- Smooth, light to medium body.

O- Big fan of the smoke profile in these beers, very nice balance of flavors.

Cheers!

 

Helmut kolsch by Burke Gilman brewing company


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

Can received from @ snaotheus in Bif 14

Can poured into a willie becher glass, clear amber liquid capped by a two finger off white foam cap , settles to a thin , thin , thin foam layer with spotty lacings

Taste is malty, grassy, straw , a spicy, herbal Noble hop bitterness , hint of apple wine fruit

Light to medium in body with a soft mouthfeel ,a crisp, semi dry finish

Really good beer , I’m enjoying this one . Recommended for the store , thanks @snaotheus

 

Alright the Kozel went down way to quick and easy and I just couldn’t resist this one. Smoke and spruce tips, yup! Sounds good to me.

Einstok - Winter Ale



Pours a really dark murky brown color, nice light brown head. Settles into a creamy layer that looks like the moon small bubbles that look like craters of all sizes.

The aroma really caught me off guard on this one. Was expecting pine or smoke, not the case. It almost has a medicinal dark berry or cherry smell to it. Behind that it’s almost a spiced fruit bread or something.

The taste is a relief as the medicinal smell does not come out. However the dark fruit, spiced bread vibe is definitely still there. I’m definitely beginning to think the combo of flavors is making the spruce tips take on a generic spice taste. The last taste I notice is almost like a burnt caramelize flavor, is that you smoke?? Some how?

Good mouthfeel, nice medium body and very smooth. Not bitterness or sweetness just a really nice full malty presence.

Ok this beer is not bad, in fact it’s actually very good, but my expectations got in the way. Had I not known anything about this beer I’d say it was a spiced winter warmer, which technically I guess it is. I just would’ve never guessed spruce tips or smoke. Definitely worth trying but since I didn’t get my pine and smoke I’m happy I only grabbed a single to try. There are other spiced winter beers I enjoy more.

 

Good evening NBW
I've had this monster sitting in my cellar temp mini fridge for a couple months and decided tonight was the night.

The Bruery White Chocolate

16oz can stamped PKG 02/09/21 (9 months ago) poured into a Duvel glass at 55° F 14% ABV per label. The beer pours dense dark amber in color with light khaki head. The head recedes to fat ring and single layer of bubbles. Impressive lacing for the ABV. The aroma is moderate in strength featuring sweet cacao and vanilla prominently with subtle bourbon barrel. The taste is semisweet caramel, vanilla & cacao up front with bourbon and oak barrel anchoring the finish. Mild bitterness. The mouthfeel is medium bodied with just less than medium carbonation and a somewhat dry finish. It drinks like less than 14%, but the alcohol is there in the taste as a subtle heat. Not cloying or overly sweet. Overall, excellent wheatwine.

As I'm posting this, I realized that this is actually my first ever beer from The Bruery. I never had the budget for the big dollar bombers that we see here in Indiana so it was always look and pass. The cans aren't cheap, but they are doable, both in volume and value.

Cheers all and enjoy the new beer in your glass this weekend!

 

Hey, thanks for getting us started @Victory_Sabre1973 - and Happy weekend all!

Received this beauty in one of the boxes @ovaltine tried to destroy my porch with and I misread it at first as he also sent a Double Thai IPA and this one is curiously named Double Thai.P.A - only the subtext lets me know it's not an IPA. But enough of my confusion, this is about beer-
Poured deep black and sported a tall light brown head for a fair amount of time.
Aroma was malts forward, some coffee and dark fruits Not what I expected, but very nice.
The taste follows the aroma to a certain degree but adds in some cocoa and just at the swallow an impression of Scoville heat in there. This drinks super smooth with no spicy heat marring the flavor at all, but it's in there; just hides until you swallow. Very well done!
The feel is excellent for the ABV; just viscous enough to respectfully drink the stout.
Definitely enjoyed this one, Thanks @ovaltine !

 

One of the beers I shipped myself from NYC last month finally made it to the front of the queue: Other Half's District Sunrise.

16oz can served in a big snifter. Dated 09/02/21.

Pours a very pale yellow, hazy, smallish head. Smell is cotton candy, citrus, and mango. A little bit of a resin bite.

Taste is bubble gum / melon, citrus, mango. Lots of pith. Fair amount of resinous bitterness in the finish, but not overwhelming.

Mouthfeel is moderately gritty, fairly light, and seems somewhat effervescent. Overall, this is a pretty nice beer.

 

I went to the fridge thinking, "Stout!" and was lured in by a Czech pilsner.

Threes Brewing Lifeworld.

16oz can served in a footed pilsner glass. Bought it in NYC last month and shipped it home. No date on the can that I see.

Pours a clear, light golden color with a generous head that condenses to about a centimeter. Smell is grassy and clean, with a light grain / lager yeast / slightly spicy aroma.

Taste is light grassy character with a lot more grain and a little bit of a honeysuckle sweetness. Tastes slightly watery, but I think that's more the preceding IPAs influencing my palate than the actuality of this beer. Hops pick up a bit as I drink more.

Mouthfeel is light, smooth, clean. Very nice beer.

 

C'mon now, Frank, I bet you have a nice Czech pilsner to clear the palate after that monster...

 

Thanks for kicking things off today, @Victory_Sabre1973.

Sorry for joining so late. I had this beer earlier today, but just have not been able to get to the computer before now. Also, given the hour, I'm just gonna post and retire for the evening, so I'll be catching up on the thread tomorrow. Sorry...

Anyhow, the beer:

Modist False Pattern Pale Ale
ABV: 5.5%
IBU: NA



Hazy muddy orange color from the front, but bright orange with a backlight. (The photo is the natural appearance - at least on my monitor - of the beer with a backlight.) No visible carbonation, but it may be behind the haze. 1 inch white, thick and creamy head with excellent retention, receding in the middle while leaving a thick wall along the edge of the glass.

Aroma is dominated by pine, with citrus behind.

Taste is piney, almost like a classic WCIPA. Bitterness is present and not very subdued as I might have expected from the "New England" moniker. Citrus flavors are there as well, but more in the vein of an AIPA rather than "juicy" like a NEIPA. The brewer tags this beer as a pale ale, but I keep describing it in IPA terms. C'est la vie. The finish is bitter and also a bit sweet, with the bitterness lingering into the aftertaste.

Mouth feel is smooth with a moderate to thin body.

Overall, an enjoyable beer, but the tendency toward sweetness keeps me from calling it "refreshing". It seems as if this beer doesn't know what it wants to be. What it is (to me) is a very hazy, but bitter and piney, pale ale.

L: 4.25 | S: 3.5 | T: 3.75 | F: 3.5 | O: 3.75 | Rating: 3.70

 

@mschrei and @ovaltine - had a portion of that same beer tonight. Was sipping in a share with company, so I wasn’t taking extensive notes. I expected more cinnamon (based on Matt’s description) than I got. It definitely came through, but I didn’t it find it overly strong.

My very distracted and general assessment, though, fits in with the vibe I am getting from both of your reviews: the series didn’t really need or gain anything from this variant.

 

Social Project Boo Berry yum yum Double Fruited IPA, 8.0% ABV ; 3,85 overall

Pours a super hazed amber with some purplely pink with one finger of beige head. Below average head retention & lacing

S: Berries, vanilla

T: Follows the nose, a little dryness & some sweetness from the added milk sugar up front. Sweet blueberry puree, vanilla & dryness as this warms, slight acidic notes as well, just a hint of lemon as well. Finishes dry, sweet with blueberries & a little lemon, nice counter to the sweetness

MF: Medium body low carbonation, good balance

Easy to drink, ABV is so well hidden

 

Happy New Beer Sunday #872 one and all!

Just opened my second Keeping Together beer, going to save the second half for lunch later today. This is only my third Biere de Garde, with the most popular in the style (Oro De Calabaza by Jolly Pumpkin) my higher rated of the two tried previous (4.07).

Keeping Together The Earth is What We All Have in Common



Bottle Notes: $16 + tax purchased shortly after the 8/20/21 release, refrigerated the entire time. Biere de Garde with Roasted Chestnuts, Dried Oranges, and Rosemary. 25.4 oz, Unfiltered, Unpasteurized and Bottle Conditioned.

Appearance: Single pour of about half the bottle into a large tulip glass. Creamy full rich head, bubbly, lasts for several minutes before leaving clumpy lacing and a generous cover over the base. Heavy sustained carbonation visible through the clear chestnut brown colored base. Most excellent! 4.75

Aroma: Nice white grape leads, tart citrus and cherry follow, with light lemongrass as well, really love the blend here. 4.5

Taste: Like the taste, though not getting the same complexity with the white grape and tart cherry front and center, sweet citrus and strawberries follow. Sweet overall, consistent with style. The longer I dig in, the more I'm enjoying. getting more strawberry and tart cherries to lead overall after this warms up a bit. 4.5

Mouthfeel: Liking the tart and funkiness, both help the natural sweetness in check to produce and enjoyable balanced presentation. Fully creamy body, light soft fizzy carbonation lingers throughout to provide a nice texture. Listed online ABV (7.1%) on the high end for Farmhouse Ales, but this drinks just slightly above the average offering, taking this nice and slow. Light tart aftertaste. Luxurious. 4.75

Overall: Really glad I picked this up, need to explore this style more. Enjoyed the complexity, tart sweet balance, grape and cherry. I highly recommend this offering. 4.5

Will pick up a couple more when I stop at Spiteful when they (hopefully the next week or two) release this year's Bike Messenger IPA.

 

Man, y'all drinking good! This is the place to come when you want to enjoy some great beer vicariously! Absolute drool-inducing goodness.

Today the plan is to join in with a beer that absolutely must get consumed, one of those that when you find it you feel like kicking yourself for not consuming it years ago. Some good soccer to watch later, what better way to enjoy a beer?

 

Waiting for a long awaited @cavedave review!

 

I agree. As many fine beers as we have on the shelves in CA, I am astounded at how many obviously excellent beers that I have never even heard of, but which you all back east can get...and it is a great way to sharpen my reviewing skills.