New Beer Weekend #95

Stonecloud Fluffy Finger Chocolate Orange Imperial Stout, 14.9% ABV; 3.88 overall

Pours an effervescent mahogany with 2+ fingers of mocha colored head. A little head retention & lacing

S: Chocolate & a touch of orange, was hoping it would open up more once warm

T: Follows the nose, but with more orange presence & a little vanilla, a little dryness & booze bite too up front. Dryness & roastyness present as this warms, along with a little orange & plenty of dark chocolate. Finishes with tons of chocolate, dryness, a kiss of orange & some roastyness

MF: Medium body, fairly assertive carbonation. Body thickens as this warmed up

Pretty drinkable for the heft, nice flavor, everything else in this beer didn't really keep up. Good, not great

 

Another new one from Atwood, a collab with a member of the local homebrew club, Lager Shortage. Called a "Pale Lager" it was a nice coppery yellow color. So confusing: https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/45649/604024/

 

Love that glass. I got one just like it from @larryi86 . I use it OFTEN.

 

Hello NBW.
Before I read all y'alls I'm going to give a shoutout to @Mbgreg who sent me this lovely in our NBS BIF #15.

Unusual Frequency [Track One]

Great looking. Fluffy white head leaps nearly 3 fingers high. Great retention. Slightly clumpy lacing.
Nose is a fun wash of pineapple, gentle citrus, berry, grass, and hints of pine.
Flavor mainly pumps pineapple, grass, orange zest, with understated notes of peach and berry, coupled with a slightly sweet grain note.
Mouthfeel is active, a tad fluffy, and finishes with a drying bitterness that has a bit of a grainy feel.
Overall, quite nice.
3.92/5 rDev +1%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4

 

Praga Dark Lager Czech Beer 1784
ABV: 4.5%
IBU: NA

The back of the label is stamped L21060 11:58 # H/PS, which leads me to assume the bottling date was March 1, 2021. 14½ months.

Clear dark ruby body, nicely carbonated. The head is about 1 inch tall from a gentle pour, thick, creamy-looking, off-white with good retention, but no lacing at first, but it forms a thick sheet of lacing down the opposite side of the glass as I drink.

Toasty malt aroma, some dark fruit and perhaps a touch of floral in the aroma as well.

Excellent initial flavor of toasted malts and dark pumpernickel bread. Caramel and brown sugar appears in the middle. Hints of the dark fruit. The beer is just toward the sweet side in the beginning, with a move toward drying balancing things by the finish. The finish and aftertaste is dry-sweet (like bittersweet, only not bitter) with pleasant malty flavors lingering.

The body is moderate-thin and smooth, light carbonation, and creamy on my tongue.

Overall, even though it has some age on it, I am enjoying drinking this beer. Malty and the balance is good.

L: 4.0 | S: 3.75 | T: 4.25 | F: 3.5 | O: 4.0 | Rating: 3.99

 

Time for another hotel beer, Goose Island Neon Beer Hug:

Appearance: Clear yellow, huge head.

Smell: Kind of generic citrus and hint of dankness.

Taste: Hits with moderate bitterness up front, grapefruit and lemon. Stays pretty bitter and dry throughout, finishes with more grapefruit and pith. Pretty light body for 7%.

Overall: Goose Island is everywhere so I picked up a silo for a hotel beer. It's not bad, but not too special either. Good amount of bitterness, which I like, wasn't expecting it from a beer called Neon Beer Hug. Decent IPA.

 

Sorry about your Leafs. Went down like our Kings.

 

Good Sunday Morning NBS/nbw
and thanks to @SawDog505 for hosting this weekend. This has been a working on and around the house weekend, and its not over yet, We are in full preperation mode for a month long visit from Team#1 and our first grandchild in a few weeks. So the list is longer than usual.
We cant be more excited
Todays offering was prchased on a whim, and quite a pleasant surprise.
The Nugget has a split personality with lovely tropical elements and a beautiful piney dry bite
Is this NBS #899 @ChicagoJ ? or was it @FBarber who was keeping that clock ticking.
Cheers all

Vermont Hop Project: Nugget Nugget Nugget

IPA - New England | 5.9% ABV
Mount Holly Beer Co. in Belmont, Vermont

4.09/5 rDev +1.7% | Average: 4.02
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4
by SABERG from Massachusetts

Poured from a 16 oz can, dated 05/09/22 into the test glass
A - Bright, lemonade color, a bit hazy, active carbonation feeds a white pillowy cap.
S - Papaya, and pine in a constant dance, a touch of pineapple and lemongrass as well.
T - Lovely and delicate grain, pilsner and wheat, hops add that pineapple, papaya, white pepper, pine.
M - Light in body, crisp carbonation, start is surpisingly dry, (I like that) then a move toward tropical fruit sweet, a rapid piney dry bitterness is the final wave. Linger has a beautiful piney thread.
O - A very good, offering, the grain base is simple, the hops are pleasant change. The fact that the offerings ingredients are local to New England is a fun aspect. I like the easy drinking aspect, at 5.5% and not a meal lke some other IPA's, adds to my enjoyment

 

Maple Baltic Porter

I really like this one. A gentle twist on a Baltic Porter.

16 oz can into a Teku.
Deep brown, abundant khaki head. The foam settles to a solid, filmy cap.
Smell has an understated maple meets wood note on top of the normal Baltic Porter notes: roast, caramel, and a complex vinous fruit note.
Flavor follows the nose well. Again, the maple sweetness is mild. And the wood note is a most delicate addition.
Mouthfeel is medium and fairly slick. Moderate carbonation.
3.79/5 rDev -5.3%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.75

 

Men's cologne and medicine cabinet are unique descriptors. They remind me of a famous English wine writer describing a South African Pinotage as smelling of nail polish and shower curtain- straight out of that medicine cabinet and in the bathroom including the shower. And Pinotage does indeed often display these aromatics. They say it's the ancient volcanic soil. By the way I liked your review quite a bit. Humor and accuracy are great to be able to use in tandem..

 

Hello New Beer Weekend!!!

A bit late to the party, as usual lately, so I'll dive right in to my new beer. This is a beer I had forgotten about in my fridge. It was so kindly sent to me by @woemad in a previous NBS BIF.

Sorry it took me so long to get to it.


Golden Bearded Goat - The can says it's a Kveik Ale - Iron Goat Brewing/Lumberbeard Brewing- 7.8% ABV

Yeah, this is good. This kind of style can be aged, so it's ok it got away from me. Funky, wild, floral, tart, and a bit sweet. This is really hitting the spot this late morning, and I'm so thankful he sent it to me to try. Thank you!!!!


Review:
https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/59549/543362/



3.96/5 rDev 0%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
by Victory_Sabre1973 from Minnesota

This beer pours a murky golden color. The head is 2 finger, white, frothy/fluffy looking. The retention is decent, and there's good lacing on the glass as the head dissipates.
The nose isn't too strong, but I do get hints of a wild/funky aroma from the yeast used.
There's a wild funky flavor up front, slightly earthy and floral. Tartness then hits, and lingers, but I also get a slight hint of sweetness.
Crisp body. Clean feeling. Full body.
Quite delicious. I had forgotten about this in my fridge, but, based on what I see, can be aged.


I might be back for another later. At least it's finally nice outside, and I can walk to Back Shed Brewing, and not freeze my rear off, or get rained on. They do have some new beers there I haven't tried yet.
Cheers all!

 

A well crafted Schwarzbier is underrated and pretty rare

 

It is indeed a joyous New Beer Sunday #899. I'm looking forward to enjoying this edition and enjoying a special beer for the #900 iteration next Sunday.

My third and final planned dark lager today, this one from Germany.

Brauerei Heller-Trum / Schlenkerla - Aecht Schlenkerla Rauchbier Urbock



Bottle Notes: 16.9 oz, 6.5% ABV, no date code or reference. Schlenkerla The Classic Smokebeer. Brewed and bottled by Brauerei Heller-Trum, Bamberg Germany, Imported by B, United International Inc., Oxford, Connecticut. Purchased refrigerated at The Beer Temple for $5.50 including tax.

Aecht Schlenkerla Rauchbier Urbock is the complex sibling of the classic Maerzen Smokebeer. Exactly like the classic, all its barley malts are kilned and smoked by burning beechwood logs in the Schlenkeria maltings. Its higher smokemalt concentration and the longer maturation in the 14th century beer cellars underneath Bamberg create a taste profile of most intense smokiness beautifully balanced with a deep malt sweetness. As one of the last traditionally made smoked beers, Aecht Schlenkerla Rauchbier is a passenger in the "Ark of Taste" by SlowFood.

Appearance: Multiple pours into a standard shaker pint glass. Clear dark brown base nominal carbonation. Soapy full head leaves spotty clumpy lacing. Looks good. 4.25

Aroma: Smoked Polish sausage, wonderful. Not getting much beyond despite several attempts. Works well for me, but may not work for all. 4.0

Taste: Much broader taste than the nose indicates. Heavy dose of smoked malts and sausage, getting the sweet roast malt flavor behind it which comes together well. Dark rye bread, a bit of brown sugar behind it as well. Wonderful blend of harsh and sweet, turns sweeter as I work through the half way juncture. Really strong and pleasant flavor overall. 4.5

Mouthfeel: Medium, smooth and creamy body, nominal carbonation. Sweet with light bitterness impacting to a point. Drinks very light and easy in terms of ABV, much lower than expected. Clean finish. 4.75

Overall: This is a very well crafted smoke beer, one of the best I've tried. Wonderfull in all aspects, the aroma, taste and mouthfeel providing a perfect blend of smoke and sweet, bold aromas and taste, really enjoyable mouthfeel. Not sure many, if any, can top this one. World Class! 4.75

Hope your beer is as enjoyable as this one. Cheers!

 

Hoping for a nice lazy day, starting with 3 Sheep Three Putt.
4.38/5 rDev +4%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.25
by larryi86 from Delaware

16 oz can poured into a teku

A- Black with a two finger mocha head

S- Bourbon, chocolate, vanilla, some pecans, roasted malts, touch of oak.

T- Chocolate, bourbon, oak, some vanilla, touch of pecans, roasted malts, hints of dark fruits.

M- Smooth, medium to full body.

O- A well done stout with nice balance.

Cheers!

 

Back again, but not from Back Shed, but something from my fridge.



Snösmältning - Hammerheart Brewing - Smoked Lager - 7.1% ABV

Yes, I copied and pasted the name from the database. All I can say about this one is DAMN! Smoke, heat from peppers, malts, and hops all work together to produce an amazing beer that blew me away. I will miss this brewery, and hope that the owners can pull off their plans to restart in the iron range of northern Minnesota. Yes, I will drive to get their beers, if necessary.

Review:
https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/31326/599058/

4.43/5 rDev +5.5%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
by Victory_Sabre1973 from Minnesota

Rest in peace Hammerheart.
Clear amber pour with a 3 finger slightly off white head. The head retention is quite decent, and there's a good amount of lacing on the glass.
The nose reminds me of a camp fire. The smoke smell is pleasing, but not too strong - not that I don't like a "too strong" smoke smell from a beer. There's also a hint of sweetness in the aroma.
Taste - Up front I get a malty biscuit flavor, which has a slight sweetness to it. The smoke then hits, and is very pleasing. There's a pepper heat that also hits, that isn't overpowering. Finally, a bitterness from the hops that rounds out this beer. All flavors work well together and compliment each other.
The body is full, The flavors from the smoke, and pepper, and hops linger in my throat in a pleasing way that feels really good.
This is an amazing beer. I love smoked beers, and they really did an amazing job with this one.


Maybe I'll make it to Back Shed, for another. Who knows.

 

Good afternoon NBW
I have to work nights this week, so I'm having a daycap before a nap and work

De Dolle Oerbier
11.6 ounce bottled April 2021 poured into a tulip glass at fridge temp 9% ABV. The beer pours opaque medium brown with light brown head. The head recedes to a thin cap and leaves no lacing. The aroma is moderate in strength featuring raspberry, cherry, clove and brown sugar. The taste is semisweet burnt sugar caramel, with additional notes of raspberry and cherry before a mildly earthy, mildly bitter finish. The mouthfeel is medium bodied with just above average carbonation and a mostly dry finish. No trace of the ABV in the aroma or taste. Overall, very good.

Thankfully, this beer has not turned tart at 13 months old as I didn't know it undergoes a second fermentation with yeast and lactic acid producing bacteria. Proof, I suppose, that the online vendor from which it was purchased does actually keep their beer cold.

Cheers all and enjoy your Sunday!

 

Whoa! That IS a bit old! Glad it was still drinkable. That's actually a 3 way collaboration between Golden Handle Project (where I picked it up), Iron Goat and Lumberbeard. I think Golden Handle still brews and cans it.