New Beer Weekend #79

Dude, I've lived here 21+ years and I still haven't run out of beers......

 

Good evening, crew. Actually a pleasant day here, good enough to do some stuff with the tractor and take a nice woods walk. Grandson got to walk on actual ice for the first time and did very well.

I feel like dessert:



Heretic Brewing Caramel Moo-chiato, a 6% Stout - Sweet/Milk.

Popping the can unleashes an onslaught of caramel and vanilla aroma even before the cola-colored pour produces that massive, rocky head. After staying for about five minutes, the head falls to what is actually a decently thick ring and a layer coveting the surface. The residual foam clings spectacularly...must got me a clean glass for once!

Did I mention the hefty caramel and vanilla smell? Yeah...that just keeps on giving. But underneath there is s nice coffee aroma and better yet I think I can smell me a stout...wow. OK...that's cool.

Tasting...yeah, diggin' this and the approach. Nowhere near as sweet as the nosebuds led me to believe. The caramel is certainly up front, but it isn't sledgehammer strong. A little vanilla. Nice, clean coffee and a touch of light chocolate. So it does have the creamy caramel machiato thing happening, but it is not overwhelming at all. Because guess what...the stout character clearly comes in to play as the initial coffee drink subsides with some roasted malts and an ever so mild hit of bitter. What a pleasant drinking beer...quite happily surprised. The machiato makes a return appearance on the finish, nice and smooth.

It is medium maybe even light bodied, adequately carbonated. Silky and smooth, almost a creamy feel. Not particularly drying, kinda neutral in that regard.

Well...a brewery I have never tried, but Jamil Z. - certainly a name I know from reading and home brewing. Obviously I like this beer, so a guess I have to watch out for that bias in the score, but it's gonna be a 4 all day and twice on Sunday... how far north of that I don't know yet. Very nice drinking beer, still thinking about it.

 

Looks and sounds great. And I absolutely love the label.

 

Thanks!!

 

After a bit of a detour, I'm back with another noob, The Skagitonian Lager Ale from the fine folks at Garden Path. Basically, they took a Blonde Ale, hit it with their Skagit native yeast, put it into barrels, then "Lagered" it by putting the barrels outside during the day, and inside at night, until the freeze season was over, at which point they were left outside until bottling in March of 2021. (Yes, that's the short version of what's on the side of label)

https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/52917/58684

 

Oh and don’t worry @BBThunderbolt i will make sure to send you some of the local pickle beer if I find some for @larryi86

 

Be warned, I will return fire. You will not enjoy it.

 

Good to see someone else enjoying a simple, little ol’ “nothing going on here” imperial stout.

It’s like we have ESPN.

 

One more for the end of today’s football games, Burial Portal Into Infinite Nonexistence.
4.34/5 rDev -6.3%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.25

500 ml bottle poured into a tulip

A- Black with a small mocha head

S- Sweet, lots of cocoa nibs/chocolate, roasted malts, bourbon, some charred oak, touch of vanilla. This is super sweet with very little balance.

T- Chocolate/cocoa nibs, some bourbon, oak, touch of vanilla, roasted coffee/malts. Still sweet but far more balanced than the nose.

M- Smooth, full body, a little chewy.

O- This is a tasty stout but I actually feel it would be better if they didn’t do double cocoa nibs

Stay safe everyone and wear a mask, cheers!

 

WE'VE GOTTA GO TO GOLDFINGER TOGETHER SO WE CAN DRINK GREAT LAGERS AND BE AWESOME TOGETHER!!!

 

Hello New Beer Weekend!!!

I'm a bit late to the party, and I skipped last weekend also. I have good reason for both. Last weekend I was at the local Craft Beer Show. I learned a very good lesson at said show - do NOT even try to keep up with my co worker. She's in her mid 30's, and can drink college kids under the table with ease. She had the idea to hit every booth, and we almost did, well, I think. I really don't remember the last couple of hours at all. I may have flirted with cute gals there, and they me, but I remember nothing of it. The only way I know is she told me I did.

I also slipped and fell on the ice trying to get back into my apartment, and the driver had to help me off the ground, another thing I don't remember, but that explains why I was limping Sunday.

I also caught a cold there, and am almost over it, so it's time for a beer. I wasn't sure I was ready, but I know I am ready for my first beer since Tuesday.


Island Hoppin' IPA - St. John's Brewers - US Virgin Islands - American IPA - 6.2% ABV

Wait, Virgin Islands? Yes that's correct. My friends kindly brought back a couple of beers from there when they returned from their vacation a couple days back. I am happy to try this beer, and thank them for thinking of me.

That being said - this is terrible.

This IPA is very malt forward. When the hops hit, on the back, it's a very artificial hop/pine flavor. I love a good pine hop flavor, but, when it reminds me of the artificial pine spray my parents used on the plastic Christmas tree as a kid, it's not good at all.

It might taste better on a hot sunny beach, but, it's awful here.

Review:
https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/12230/54127/

2.22/5 rDev -32.5%
look: 4 | smell: 2 | taste: 2 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2.25
by Victory_Sabre1973 from Minnesota

This beer pours a beautiful dark amber color. The beer is pretty heavily carbonated, and on a not aggressive pour, there's a 3 finger off white head (hints of red in it) that forms. The head retention is good, and there's a good deal of lacing that clings to the glass as the head dissipates.
As for the nose, I'm getting a lot of malt here, and, no, this beer isn't old. It has a best by date of 10-11-22 (today's date is 1-23-22). I'm barely getting any hops in the aroma. A bit confusing.
Taste - Up front it's all malt. Then it turns into a strange pine flavor, that reminds me of when I was a kid and my parents sprayed artificial pine aroma on our plastic tree.
That artificial pine lingers in my plate, and is not pleasing.
I'm very happy that my friends so kindly brought this beer back from the US Virgin Islands for me. I'm honored that they thought highly of me to take up precious suitcase space for this. Boy, this is a miss, however.

 

I got confused with my local Island Hoppin'
https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/30589/

 

@Victory_Sabre1973 , I had a similar experience, minus the flirting, at Homer (NY) Winterfest '17. Went there with a friend/former co-worker , at her other half's insistence, as he doesn't drink anymore. We (at her urging ) sampled 22 beers, some more than once. (Wrote em down, or I wouldn't remember everything. ) I didn't have anybody to help me up off the ice at my back door, but didn't seem to have sustained any injuries. Most of what I remember of those beers is from rereading my post on WBAYDN? the next day. (I posted soon as I got home, so I could remember)

"Easy to drink..."
Fyi, Brugmansia[background] aroma is psychotropic/intoxicating/toxic , so yeah most beers might be enhanced by drinking in that spot.

A local brewery does a dry Irish stout (Rascal) with buckwheat. Not sure what the buckwheat adds, probably similar to oats?, but the beer is a delight.

Didn't know it was a special day for Baltic porter, nor realize I have one handy, so might as well go with this. (Thanks, Frank )
Lot # 57/31/20/1. Not sure what that means for bottling date, but overall impression of the beer is that it's been awhile, but not too long. Seems smoothly in the "good" window.

Very dark brown, with a ruby red tint, & about 1 finger of quickly-dissipating tan head.

It smells like the raspberry aroma from raspberry wine. That plus cola, brownie batter, and, with a deep inhale, the boozy vanilla aroma as happens with BBA beers, but fainter.

My first impression was that this is almost like having a Cherry Coke with a bite of brownie, but that they used raspberry instead of cherry.
The taste is all that that's in the aroma, plus some nutty,earthy flavors, as in a doppelbock. As it warms, & I drink more, there is a faintly bitter fruity flavor from the peppers.

The light-medium, slightly smooth/slick feel also contributes to the initial impression of a flavored doppelbock. A little heat shows up at the back of the throat, after finish.

Overall, nice job. The raspberry is noticeable , but not overwhelming, nor artificial-seeming. (Some raspberry-infused beers strike me as Miller Lite+Kool-Aid). The peppers are subtle, and almost not noticed, but they do make a significant contribution to the whole. I like it! While not an everyday beer, I can see having this again, from time to time. It's on the (mental) list!

3.98/5 rDev -2.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4
https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/18154/382359/?ba=mikeinportc#lists

 

No wonder I can’t work from home.