New Beer Weekend #91

This should be intense. The color is pitch black, with no foam. The smell has a very strong coconut ambiance, with bourbon, fudge, vanilla, and a bit of graham cracker. The taste has has a stronger fudgy black licorice and bourbon flavor, with coconut on the back end. Sweet, but not too sweet. It is very well-balanced. I was surprised. I thought the coconut flavor would take over, like the strong coconut scent indicates. The beer is 15.6% ABV, but it hides the alcohol well. The mouthfeel is smooth, thick, full, and oily. Overall, I am quite impressed with this beer. I was expecting a pastry stout, but it is a well-done BA stout, with a touch of coconut sweetness.

 

Space Grass by Angry Chair

4.29/5 rDev +4.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.25



Chilled can poured into a nonic

Hazy pale orange liquid capped by a two finger fluffy off white foam cap , good retention, reduces to a rocky foam one finger layer

Aroma is citrus orange, grapefruit, hint of lemon lime, hint of grassiness

Taste is is orange citrus, grapefruit

Smooth, hop flavor, no bite , semi dry finish

Good beer

 

I think I liked it slightly more than you, but definitely agree more of a cocktail than a beer. I will drink the other three, not sure I can say the same of the 7 Layer Stout but have to give that one another chance. Cheers, Micah!

 

The purchase of this beer and perusing the list of other top beers in its *ahem* "style" is what led me to start the thread, "Why does the style 'Rye Beer' exist?"

There is no bleeping way this beer and a 4% ABV lager belong in the same style by any rational definition of style. "Rye Beer" is not a style. It is a "Collection of beers we don't know where else to put them since they all contain rye" list. Sorry. Micro-rant over.

Boulevard Rye on Rye Whiskey Barrel Aged Ale
ABV: 12.2%
IBU: 33

Dark brown-red from the front, bright, but hazy as expected from the rye, ruby with a back-light. Beautiful with the back-light. Moderately carbonated. Short light tan to off-white bubbly head with short retention, leaving no lacing.

Relatively strong aroma. The alcohol hits first, followed by raisins/dark fruit, spice, and bread, but the alcohol is pretty dominant in the smell.

Delightful flavor. Raisins, spice, bread, caramel, vanilla, rye bread. There's a sweetness to the flavor that is balanced by the spiciness, but even so, the overall leans toward sweet, but not overly sweet or cloying.

The alcohol, while not as in-your-face as in the aroma, is NOT well hidden. It's obvious and up front. It's not hidden at all, in fact, well or otherwise, giving a definite rye whiskey note with the alcohol. This is a strong beer than drinks like a strong beer. The flavor of alcohol/whiskey is obvious, but the warming effect, while not absent, is only just noticeable in my mouth. Although this warming does tend to grow the more I drink.

This beer starts on the sweet side, and maintains that through to the finish. It is not (very much not) a dessert beer, but it is sweet on the sweet-dry scale. It is a sipping beer. I need to drink it slowly to appreciate the nuances of flavor and also to control the alcohol hit.

The body is medium, with just a touch of carbonation initially that pretty much disappears by mid-way through the beer, leaving a feel more like a complex-tasting (but perhaps a bit creamy) whiskey, smooth.

Overall, an excellent Barlerye Wine. I really (really!) enjoyed this beer. This may become an annual purchase. I've set a couple back in my cellar, so maybe I'll build up a 2 or 3 year vertical (although, how I'd survive a 3 year vertical... probably not a good idea). Anyway, in a year or so I'll bring one up from the cellar. Perhaps 10 months - next February?

L: 4.25 | S: 4.25 | T: 4.5 | F: 4.25 | O: 4.5 | Rating: 4.40

 

Cool and windy today, need something warming. This fit the bill nicely!
Received via LIF associated with NBS BIF #15 (Or was it 14?) from @Coronaeus.
Poured oil black with very little mocha colored head which managed to stay much of the drink.
The aroma, even to my damaged nose, was bourbon and coffee and buckets of rich malty
scents. That doesn't happen for me often!
The taste followed, bourbon was definitely in charge but allowed plenty of space for the base stout and the other flavors to come out and play. Lots of coffee, cocoa, a little vanilla maybe and just rich, deep malty goodness.
Feel was good, albeit a little less lively than expected, it still went down too easily.
OA, this is a really fine BBA stout. Nice it comes in a responsibly sized bottle as I could easily have downed a bomber of this.
Thank you Peter!

 

Hemlock State Brewing in Mountlake Terrace. Their signage says they opened in 2012, but when I asked the guy behind the bar how long they've been around, he said 3 years. Maybe that's how long they've had that location?

 

Sounds like an amazing weekend in store, enjoy!!! See you tomorrow.

Looks like a cool spot to have a beer at, right there amongst the tanks.

 

Samuel Smith organic chocolate stout

ranked #3 for BA on English stouts



4.25/5 rDev +0.5%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

Bottle poured into a nonic

Brewers Notes: Brewed with well water (the original well, sunk in 1758, is still in use with the hard water is drawn from 85 feet underground), the gently roasted organic chocolate malt and real organic cocoa used in this ale impart a delicious, smooth and creamy character, with inviting deep flavours and a delightful finish - this is the perfect marriage of satisfying stout and luxurious chocolate that will lead to smiles and refills. Samuel Smith's brews in traditional coppers, uses stone 'Yorkshire Squares' for fermentation, and ships every bottle from the brewery with great pride.

Dark cola brown liquid topped by a two finger creamy taupe crown, good lacings

Aroma is sweet milk chocolate

Taste is sweet milk chocolate with faint roast malts

Sweet, low sudsing , smooth

Good beer

 

Great write up. I totally understand what you mean. Something there are elements that are correct, but not quite right to excite.

 

I’m enjoying two beers on this very chilly evening in Northern Indiana, one from my friend @jonphisher and NBS BIF #15 (plus glassware!), and the second from the virtual EBF that took place in February.

First up, a brewery that is knocking my socks off.



4.17/5 rDev +2%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25
by ovaltine from Indiana

This beer pours a golden straw color and sports a nearly clear body under a fluffy white head that provides significant lacing. Beautiful pilsner.

The nose is heavy on the grassy notes courtesy of the noble hops (Hallertau!), and there’s also a nice bread dough note. This is actually amplified on the taste and really makes this beer for me, providing a delicious complement to slightly spicy, definitely grassy noble hop flavors that impart bitterness that sneaks up on you as you enjoy the beer. This is REALLY well executed.

The mouthfeel is medium and on the crisper side, fitting the beer very well. Probably the best compliment I can give any beer is to refer to it as “a beer drinker’s beer.” That description perfectly fits this excellent German pilsner from a brewery I didn’t even know existed a month ago.

 

My wife found a very strange collaboration between New Belgium and Surly at the Whole Foods yesterday: Dark Forest, a Bourbon Barrel Aged Sour Barleywine with Spruce Tips.

375ml bottle served in a footed pilsner glass. Don't see a date on it, but it seems like it's probably a one-off.

Pours a clear dark amber with a huge dense head, looks super thick. Smell is a little bit of funk, a little bit of unripe peach or nectarine, some booze, a slight mustiness.

Taste is not barleywine-like. A little bit of the nectarine/peach tartness, a little bit of oak, I think the spruce is coming across more as a woodiness. I do start to get a green vegetal bitterness as I drink more of it.

Mouthfeel is much, much thinner than I was expecting, has a surprisingly dry finish. Overall, it's an interesting beer, and it's not bad. I wouldn't say no to another one, but I also wouldn't seek out another one.

 

Some great beers on display so far this weekend. I finally did a beer inventory worthy of the Lagina Brothers and while I thought I did some good work during Cellaruary, I still have quite a few relics. I also did something I never do, and drainpoured several beers based on style and age...ultimately justified by quick tastes before said drainage.

This is not a relic...



OEC Brewing Galaxia Tropical Lager. Besides decoction mashing, this beer makes a brief stop in the coolship. It is hopped with Australian and New Zealand hops. So traditional European brewing methods meet new age hops.

Pours cloudy golden color with a nice, tight inch of head. Head falls to a pretty uniform layer and streaks the glass some. Kinda wheat beer looking, actually.

The smell is lemon/limey, grassy/floral, a little white wine grape, a bit of crackery malt eventually emerges, some yeast and maybe a slight touch of funk...I'm thinking thank you coolship swim for that little bit. Melon peeks out just a tad.

This is a nice tasting beer. It is quite subtle overall. Lemon lime scores the first points. Cracker malt with a little sweetness. Floral, melon, and white wine aromatics. Pretty clear yeast taste, light bitterness, and a perfect amount of funkiness. It is more rustic than refined, yet it shows sophistication in how it was constructed.

Light body, fairly lively, but soft is the first word I thought of here. Bitterness is mild, just enough to notice. The lemon/lime lingers pleasantly.

Diggin' this one. Smooth, goes down easily. I really like the restraint shown. This is sensibly hopped and has just the right level of yeastiness and funk. It reminds me of Allagash Moselle in a way, but with a little extra going on. Thinking in the 4.0 - 4.1 range, and I have to temper the liking factor because on the personal scale, this is an "Oh hell yeah..."

 

#2, the beer is from the recently completed virtual EBF, and the glassware is courtesy of my friend @BBThunderbolt and an NBS BIF 5 years ago. I’ve probably used this glass close to 200 times.

That is not a typo. A perfect glass (for me).



4.43/5 rDev +6%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
by ovaltine from Indiana

Pours a dark cola color and settles in the glass black with mahogany brown on the edges and a minimal tan head that is creamy and sticks around pretty much for the entire journey through the beer.

The nose has a nice barrel note right out of the can, and there’s chocolate and vanilla as well, but no discernible coffee. That is corrected on the taste, with a roasty coffee flavor at the back of the palate, a great finish to flavors that include rich milk chocolate, toffee, vanilla, and a delicious oaky flavor from the barrel. What is absent is any alcohol flavor, which is difficult to manage with a 14% ABV beer. Exceptionally well done.

The mouthfeel is rich and creamy, perfect for this big beer. What a treat it is to enjoy this beer.

 

American brewed pilsners can be a mixed lot with much experimentation gone wrong or simply not nailing the classic Czech or German style. In this offering from Green Bench Brewery in St. Petersburg, FL, I think they really hit the mark. Very crisp, dry, and quaffable, this one rivals the better imports. This one is brewed with an American hop - Mount Hood and contains "a touch of flaked maize", but I would still choose it over most imports.

 

@Ozzylizard has crushed me in the last two weeks with two massive boxes of beer. This can of BA Chocolate Covered Raisin from Hoppin' Frog is the first of many Hoppin' Frog beers I'll be enjoying thanks to his generosity, and it did not disappoint.


4.05/5 rDev -2.2%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Pour is a light and fairly clear root beer / cola color that settles into a deep, opaque brown once in the glass. Head was fizzy and very short-lived. I wasn't sure if this label was more gimmick than anything, but sure enough the aroma is wonderfully rich with clear raisin and chocolate notes. Maybe it's all in my head, but the more I smell this, the more I'm reminded of Raisinets.

Taste is more complex than the nose. While I still get the raisin and a bit of chocolate, the whiskey barrel really takes the lead here. It's hot, but not overly so, with plenty of warming from the alcohol. Nicely balanced with just enough depth to keep things interesting.

Overall, a very good Saturday evening sipper

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I LOVE that beer. I think I ended up buying about 12 bottles of it. They released batch 2 a month or so ago and I've resisted buying any so far (simply because I really, really need to reduce my inventory), but man was it hard not to get more.

 

Back with another hit from @Roy_Hobbs , Found a Scythe from Tired Hands. A single-hop murkster, that didn't really have any of the aspects that I associate with Nelson Sauvin hops:

https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/28383/269385/

 

From the ongoing bif 15 and 16oz can thanks to @snaotheus .

what it is only time will tell

Pores slightest a Tatuajes deep amber color light off cream colored head

Light nose nothing jumps out , all I get is rasin

low bittness Carmel /toffee notes

No idea what it is but tasty beer ..

will update with details of the beer