New Beer Weekend #75

I knew someone did, I forgot who. I liked that idea a lot. We gotta keep campaigning.

 

Firestone Walker 2021 Parabola Autumn Edition BBA Imperial Stout, 14% ABV. Pours thick and black, with a half-finger light brown head that left some lacing. Nose is coffee, chocolate, and cherry. Taste follows plus bourbon, with coffee on the open, and dark chocolate covered cherry on the close, slightly sweet, moderately bitter. Excellent carbonation and dry mouthfeel. Overall world-class.

4.61/5 rDev -1.3%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.75

Bought this on an out-of-state beer run, in a three beer 25th anniversary sampler. Wish they would have had a second sampler or individual bottles. Watching the Viking game, and cheering for whomever they're playing (Rams today). It's a real dilemma when they play da' bearz, don't want either to win.

 

Working my way through my stout gift pack. Here I'm sharing Maple Breakfast Stout from 14th Star Brewing with my middle son. Its a 6.5% beer with maple syrup and cold brew coffee.

3.87/5 rDev +1.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75

Poured from a 16oz can stamped BBF 4/23/22 to a tumbler.
Dark black body of course, 1/2" tan head. Lacing only occurs transiently as you swirl the glass.
Aroma is musty coffee and dark chocolate. No sense of maple.
Taste is similar, rich black coffee with dark chocolate undertones. Subtle maple comes in as it warms. Despite the dry taste for much of the swig, the finish has a hint of sweetness, so I'll attribute that to the syrup.
Mouthfeel is medium for a stout. There is some stickiness on the lips from this beer.
Overall- I love a dry stout, and I liked this one. But for all the occurrences of the word "maple" on the label, the beer does not come off as advertised.

 

The cellaring forum has a dedicated "cellar reviews" thread that fits your idea if I read you correctly. I think it would be great if there was a singular tasting weekend event thread like we have for certain styles... but this one being a "open a cellared beer now" thread. Then it would be that "special occasion" that people wait for when it comes to opening such beers. I think it would have to be in the cellaring forum rather than plain "beer talk," but it could still be promoted like any other dedicated weekend style tasting thread. @FBarber

 

New Province Brewing's Holding Hands Passionfruit IPA, 6.3% ABV; 4.39 overall

Pours a hazed & effervescent amber with 2+ fingers of beige head. Good head retention & lacing
S: A ton of tropical fruit; passion fruit, guava, some strawberry

T: Passion fruit, tangerines, a little lime up front. More passion fruit & some orange notes as this warms. Finishes with some lime notes & passion fruit, plus a little dryness

MF: Medium body, slight carbonation, good balance

Pretty drinkable, if this was as good as its nose, it's a world beater. Not far off as it is. This is one I hope these guys brew again

 

Deschutes Whiskey Butte Porter, 9.0% ABV; 3.68 overall

Pours an effervescent mahogany with one finger of fast falling tan head. Near zero head retention & lacing

S: Vanilla. toffee, roasty grains

T: Roasty grains, vanilla, slight smokeyness up front. A little barrel dryness mixes with toffee notes, a hint of coffee. Finishes dry, roasty with a trace of barrel

MF: Medium body, fairly firm carbonation

Hoped for way more from this, needs more barrel character

 

The thing to do would be to post 5-6 bottles you have in your cellar, and let the group decide which one to drink and review.

 

I like that idea a lot too- so how does one “campaign” for something here?

Cheers!

 

Greetings fellow NBSers! A snowy Holiday day yesterday (some friends and I went to a local park and drank some beers out in the snow for a couple hours), but the temps weren't bad, and there was no wind. Today? Cold Frazier Valley wind is blowing down from Canadia, up to 50 mph (I have no idea what that is in metric), and it was also snowing until a bit ago, almost blizzard-like conditions. It's stopped snowing, the sun has popped out a bit, and the current 20 degree F (no idea what that is in C) temp is expected to be the high point for the next couple of days. I fucking hate winter. I moved here 21 years ago to get away from winter. Fuck winter.

Anyway. First up today comes a brew reviewed upthread by @snaotheus (aka Snothouse), and provided by @jonphisher , Tonewoods Stratacaster. When Jon first sent me some of their beers, and I looked them up, I was a bit surprised that a brewery named for guitar building materials didn't have more music/guitar named beers. Shrug, maybe they focus on brewing and marketing. Being a Murkbomb, I wasn't as happy with it as most others seem to be, but it was still solid enough:

https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/46284/390690/

 

Since we're just at the end of the year, here's my suggestion: On Jan 1, start a thread called "Cellar Clearing 2022" (much like the annual post your haul thread), and set the parameters you want. Then, folks can just jump in.

For example: Welcome to the Cellar Drinking thread. Please post a list of up to 5 beers in your cellar. Have folks reply to your post with which beer you should drink next.. After 5 days, the beer most mentioned shall be consumed, and posted in the thread, along with WBAYDN and NBS (if applicable).

Feel free to change that around to your vision. Just do it!!!!!

 

Happy Holidays, everyone! My favorite part is now because they are just about over and I've never been a huge fan.

Lagunitas Unrefined Shugga - I am a fan of the original and was looking forward to trying this. Pours a nice clear red color with a fluffy head. Typical Lagunitas smell and some sweet malts. Taste is good, sweet then hoppy/dry then sweet and fairly complex...and there does seem to be a more authentically sweet taste going on here. Very drinkable and smooth for 10% and I can tell that this should age pretty nicely if you so desire.

If you're a fan of the original you will like this and it's definitely the same beer but I do think that I like this version a little more from what I can remember. Prost!

PS - Mixed feelings on Lagunitas moving to four packs. For a beer of this size a four pack makes sense but at $12.99 one could argue that Lagunitas is losing the value side just a bit.

 

Good Sunday afternoon, New Beer Samplers and commentators. I hope everyone enjoyed a festive Christmas! Our son and daughter returned to North Carolina this morning after a really special visit. It will almost certainly be the last time that they are both here for the holiday without their future spouses. A last minute quirk of work schedule and the arrival of a new puppy resulted in just our nuclear family for Christmas this year. Things are now settling back to routine and I have a short but intense couple of days of work ahead.

My daughter and son-in-law-to-be gave me some local North Carolina beers for Christmas and I'm excited to review two of them today. The first is Omni Dome, a Milkshake IPA collaboration between Heist Brewing in Charlotte and Definitive Brewing Co. in Maine. It may very well be the best creamsicle IPA I've had. It pours a hazy, burnt orange color with a large, creamy, milk-white cap and thick lacing. It has a super fragrant nose with bright tangerine and vanilla cream. This is probably has the strongest creamsicle smell I've experienced. The taste is simple yet effective - the fruit flavor is bold and both sweet and tart with tangerine, lemon, and perhaps a hint of ripe melon and berry. The tried and true combination of Citra and Mosaic hops is effective and the Simcoe adds some earthy fruitiness but minimal bitterness. The vanilla bean and lactose provide a soft vanilla sweetness in the background that compliments the citrus. It really does taste like a creamsicle. The mouth feel is moderately thick and creamy with pleasant carbonation, and the 7.7% ABV gives it good substance. Sometimes collaborations between well-known brewers yield disappointing results. But Omne Dome is a tasty and thoroughly enjoyable creamsicle milkshake IPA.

4.31/5 rDev +0.7%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

I'll be back shortly with another North Carolina treat. Cheers!

 

Keep bringing it up in the tasting idea thread

 

Hello there Advocates! Wishing you all happy holidays.
I like beers with lactose and this one is/was super fantastic. Cheers!
Surly 13 Maple Barrel Aged Imperial Stout
4.45/5 rDev +3.7%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.25

Boxed 16oz can fill date of 7/27/21 poured vigorously into a large snifter.
L: Pours jet black with a 1 inch fizzy dark khaki head that is short-lived & recedes to a thin skin & gently carbonated edge foam. Very little spotty lacing.
S: Chocolate, maple, coffee, dark fruits, charred malts, vanilla, molasses, light booze/bourbon.
T: Complex rich & sweet, oak wood, maple, molasses, bourbon, vanilla, light cherry notes, dark chocolate, fudge, chocolate milk, coffee char, figs, dates, light prune. Elegant and dignified smokiness within the oak and coffee char. It's sweet nature is not cloying. Light delicious alcohol and more oak char become more prominent as the beer warms.
F: Very full-bodied, lightly carbonated, smooth, thick, sticky and milk-soft lightly dry mouthfeel with a full & robust long, firm moderately dry finish.
O: Fairly complex huge flavor that is slick, smooth, quite full-bodied & rich. It is sweet, dense, deep and is a sipper. It is outstanding in it's style.

 

My first beer today is from NBW BIF#14, it was salvaged from the wreckage that Michael did to my poor porch and immediately put into the beer fridge and forgotten about. So I have to get this right-

Get Right-er from Transient.
Poured nearly transparent golden amber with minimal soap like sudsy foam. The head never actually completely formed.
The aroma is mild and grassy, no pine or citrus. Curious, but maybe I am just too used to IPAs.
The taste followed, again, mild and grassy and a little bread like base. The feel made this astonishing crushable and I almost finished it before writing down what I thought.
Good beer, thanks @ovaltine !

 

Finally sitting down to review a beer, St. Bernardus Christmas Ale. I wanted to have it yesterday but didn’t bring it to the in-laws yesterday since I knew I had drive home and it was just too late when I got home to enjoy a 750 ml bottle. Spent today my my family for a nice lunch. It was great to see everyone, anyways thanks for reading and time for the review!
4.48/5 rDev +5.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5

750 ml bottle poured into a goblet

A- A clear ruby red with two finger tan head.

S- Figs, dark fruits, some cherries, slightly earthy, touch of toffee/caramel.

T- Figs, cherries, dark fruits, earthy, some toffee/caramel, touch of yeast.

M- Smooth, medium body, high carbonation

O- A well done Quad, seems to be fruitier than Abt 12

Hope everyone is have a good holiday season and staying safe, cheers!

 

Insert eye roll here by hop butcher for the world and vitamin sea



4.04/5 rDev -1.2%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4

Can received from @FBarber in a ninja strike associated with Bif14

A collaboration between hop butcher for the world and vitamin sea

Brewers Notes: Motueka, Rakau & Galaxy- hopped Double India Pale Ale. Insert Eyeroll Here is a collab with our guy Dino from Vitamin Sea that's been in the making since mid-lockdown 2020.

Pours a fresh squeezed orange juice appearance capped by an off white creamy one finger layer, good layered lacings, settles to a thin layer and ring

Aroma is bubble gum

Taste is bubble gum , orange, orange creamsicle

Smooth and creamy , hop taste, no bite

Good beer , thanks gritty

 

@Beersnake1 sent me this bottle of Rio Reserva from de Struise, and boy howdy I appreciate it.


330ml bottle served in a sample-sized snifter. Side of the label says VINTAGE 2012, the other side of the label says the bottling date is 12/07/2016. The cap says 1042012. Received this beer from @Beersnake1.

Pours a pretty toffee-brown color, fairly clear, with a smallish head that fades to a tiny ring, but still has a moderate amount of very fine, very slow active carbonation. Smell is dates, raisins, maybe prunes. Maybe a little root beer or horehound, something dark and earthy which I think might be described as leather.

Taste is toned-down sweetness, molasses isn't the right word. Prunes and dates for sure, maybe like a figgy character, something that reminds me of fruitcake. A little bit of bitterness, maybe something like wood tannins or even bark. Remembering that it spent some time in wine barrels, I could see a bit of a wine grape flavor.

Mouthfeel is surprisingly light, dry, and clean. Overall, this is a very good, very impressive beer. The only other beer I've reviewed from de Struise was a memorably bad bottle of Pannepot, and now I have the opposite end of the spectrum, and nothing in between.

My wife also appreciates it.

 

Up next, the first Ale I've seen from a PNW brewery well known for their Lagers, Heater-Allen. Brave Noise Pale. Earthy grains and lemony hops are the highlights:

https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/16378/572322/