New Beer Weekend #102

First up for today is Juicy, by Hill Farmstead, and it's freaking fantastic.

4.47/5 rDev -0.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Bottled on February 14, 2020. Pours a vibrant golden color with a finger of medium density white head that receded to a thin ring. Aroma is excellent. A combination of wine barrels, orange, lemon and miscellaneous tropical fruits burst from the glass. Maybe a little bit of tart funk, but it definitely takes a back seat.

On the tongue, the funk is much more present. The taste leads with wine barrel / oak funk. Mid palate I get some tropical notes, along with wildflowers. I don't believe any dandelions are in this beer, but to me it tastes like they are. On the very long finish, the funk has more of an earthy feel. Surprisingly full body. Well carbonated and smooth, despite a bit of acidity.

Overall, this is an excellent beer. Complex and layered in a way I don't often see. The barrels really add to the experience. An excellent example of what happens when skill and patience combine.

 

Pivovara Medvedgrad brewery in Croatia
Zlatni Medvjed (Golden Bear), Czech Pilsner, unfiltered

I had this bottle in a fridge for about a month, I was wondering how fresh tasting it was going to be. Well:

16.9 oz bottle, no date code
Look: lite gold slightly yellowish body. just a little hazy in the body. Nice tall fine head that lasts a while leaving plenty of lacing.
Smell: smells good. Grain, zesty mixture of lemon, herbal, floral
Taste: Grain, cracker with a mixture of lemon, herbal, floral, earthy and grass. This is good almost a 4.25/5 for flavor. slightly sweet at first, slightly bitter on the finish. A good mixture and balance of flavors.
Feel: Is good, not thin for a 4.4% ABV beer, has a little carbonation in it.

This bottle smells and tastes fresh. Easy drinking beer, A nice slightly lighter body for fast drink in hot weather. 4.09+/5
https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/18223/128244/

 

Bonus edition of NBW takes me to the cellar, for the last Wild I have from Half Acre's now shuttered wild program, which also impacted Keeping Together.

Half Acre Cliffs



Bottle Notes: Mixed Culture Foeder Beer, bottled 8/10/20, 5.8% ABV, 16.907 fluid ounces, brewed and bottled by Half Acre Beer Company, Chicago, IL. (Reviewer note - at their OG facility). Refrigerated at the brewery and at home since the purchase.

Cliffs is a sensory fusion of hops, our house culture, and time in our French oak foeder. Crafter with approachability in mind, this beer is a staple in our lineup, and one that harmoniously integrates the best elements of our Wyld Cove.

Appearance: Multiple pours into a chalice. Golden light straw clear base, white head dissipates quickly, heavy carbonation at first subsides to a consistent light flow throughout. 4.25

Aroma: Lays down the funks, nice tart lemon and white grape bursts from the bottle and sustained throughout. Getting oak, a bit grassy. Very nice. 4.75

Taste: Consistent with the aroma, a nice funky tart funky grape and lemon strong and very pleasurable. Barrel adds depth, balances nicely. Just a delight. 4.5

Mouthfeel: Light fizzy carbonation sustained throughout, adding depth to the feathery light body. Very easy drinking, balanced, tart and dry, hops adds a nice offsetting bitterness to the sweet fruit flavors. Clean finish. 4.75

Overall: Really great offering, only regret is not trying this earlier so I would have bought more. Very balanced offering, aroma and taste strong and subtle in one fell swoop. Just a nice relaxing wild ale to enjoy on this Summer Day. Perhaps 2 years is the sweet spot, if you have a bottle stashed now is a great time to enjoy. 4.5

Going to check out what HA and KT has left available, so I don't suffer any further regrets like I have now drinking my last wild ale from Lee McComb's excellent program.

Beer Accompaniment: Some Velvet Morning

 

Here's a new offering from BBCo.

https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/33136/611519/




16 ounce can.
Canned 062022.
Two weeks old.

Moderate to vigorous pour yields a 1.5 inch white head over a quite bright, straw colored body with lacing.

Nose of Noble hops and malt.

Taste of malt sweetness and Noble hops with a finish of slight hop bitterness.

Good mouthfeel for the style.

Overall, a pretty good job from BBCo; nice and refreshing.
Come and get it!

Cheers!

 

@ChicagoJ, speaking of Keeping Together, I'm busting out this bottle of Dreaming of a Common Language for my next new beer. My first beer this morning was fantastic, but if past experiences hold, this is likely to be great as well.

As with all the Keeping Together beers I've had the pleasure of enjoying, this comes courtesy of @FBarber

Result of a very gentle pour was a bright, translucent yellow beer with half a finger of fizzy, short-lived white head. Aroma is clementine, Fruit Stripe gum, and a nice earthy funk. The taste is even more tropical than the nose. Lemongrass, orange, herbs and general grassy notes are followed by just the right amount of lightly hoppy bite. Tartness is discreet. Very well balanced and nuanced. Crisp, clean and lively. Another very well done Keeping Together beer. 4.26

 

Good afternoon NBW
I held back on a four pack and bought a single...

Founder's Mango Magnifico

12oz bottled 5/27/22 poured into a snifter at fridge temp 10% ABV 10 IBU per label. The beer pours mostly bright medium amber with khaki colored head. The head recedes to a thin ring and island. Slight lacing. The aroma is mild with sweet and spicy notes. The taste is semisweet up front with a fairly quick 180 to moderate pepper heat. The mango and habanero are each well represented IMO. Negligible bitterness. The mouthfeel is medium bodied with just less that average carbonation and a mostly dry finish. ABV seems to hide well behind the lingering pepper flavor and heat. Overall, very good. It can't be easy to find the balance for a beer like this and this execution is as good as I've encountered.

Folks can say what they want about this beer, but I'm in a beer desert here in Southern Indiana and I will take anything well executed and distributed. Especially if it is not an IPA or ridiculously sweet stout. No brewery or brewpub has this kind of craftsmanship with 150 miles of me.

That's enough of a rant. I'll have a few more beers today, although they won't new. Cheers all!

 

Brewing Projekt Two Bit Lager, 5.35% ABV. Pours clear golden, with a 2.5 finger head that left no lacing. Malty nose, taste follows, faint bitterness. Decent mouthfeel if a bit overcarbonated, overall excellent. For a lager.

3.9/5 rDev 0%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4

I hardly ever drink lagers, but this is pretty decent. I'd take this over any macro. The name is deceiving, sure didn't cost two bits.

 

Good to see that's in distribution. Funny thing, I'm from Wisconsin but never heard of a Kringle until the beer came out. Probably had them but never knew what they were called, because the smell was familiar.

 

Have a good Monday holiday NBW. Checked out from the hotel at 11. Went to chop suey books until after stone opened.







Food truck is bomb at Stone. Got beer cheese pretzel bites and chicken tinga nachos for apps. My empty stomach nausea is gone now lol. I am getting a smash burger next. Julia getting the tinga tacos. Chicken is tender as hell on the nachos


Stone Smokin' with The Gnomies. Awesome quad. Raisin, plum, cherry, fig, apricot, pear, red apple, grape, peppercorn, clove, wood smoke, caramel, brown sugar, toasted bread, light banana/bubblegum, herbal, grass, and yeast earthiness. Medium herbal bitter and spicy yeast finish. Medium carb and med full body. Balanced creamy/bready malt and sticky hop mouthfeel. Long drying bitter/spicy finish, no cloying/astringent. Light increasing warmth is 10.3%. Smooth sipper with great yeast complexity and mellow complimenting smoked malt presence. Spot on base style. 4.1


Cheers

 

Good morning from the 50th State, and Happy Independence Day BAs! My new to me beer this morning is Firestone Walker’s “Melon Conspiracy”, a NEIPA brewed with Germany’s Melon hop and Mosaic:



Canned 5/3/22. Pours a thin hazy deep gold verging on opaque minus with good clarity under tight white head; poor cap retention leaves an island of micro dots and thin ring; some spotty lacing. Nose is pineapple, honey dew and mango. Taste is green melon, pineapple and mango; no bitterness; firm malt base (not sweet). Light body; moderate minus carbonation; no warmth from 6% abv; no astringency. Overall this beer tastes very good; yet another “Hazy Lite”…barely hazy and a thin watery body; an NEIPA in name only (which is fine by me); even the Mosaic plays nice with the Melon hops (no off putting aromas or tastes); my score is somewhat low because the beer is missing half the style criteria; nevertheless, a tasty summer pounder worthy of revisiting.

3.75 | 3.75 | 4.25 | 3.75 | 4.0
Score: 4.0 rDev 0. First review.


The sun is showing itself so I’ll grab another beer and start my rounds…Cheers y’all!

 

Ever since me and Julia met we've been going to a shit ton of breweries. I doubt I went to much more than 5 when I was in Michigan on untappd, so the rest of the count is with her in the last 20 months.


Stone travelogue. Great tipa. Red grapefruit, tangerine, lemon, peach, pear, pineapple, apricot, mango, honeydew melon, berries, citrus peel/rind, wood, peppercorn, pine, wheat, biscuit dough, herbal, floral, grass, yeast earth. Large sized pine/rind bitter finish. Medium carb and medium full body. Balanced creamy/bready malt and sticky/resinous hop mouthfeel. Long resinous drying finish with very mild lingering astringency. Increasing warmth of 10.7% and slight booze after the finish. Huge Amarillo showcase with loral and Mosaic in the background. Very aggressive west coast style and not overly sweet for the abv. Very well made as expected of stone for a one off.4


Cheers

 

Lakefront, Bierzeit Kölsch, 4.5% ABV
I bought a 6 pack of this,12oz bottles, best by 13oct22
Look: Transparent yellowish gold, ok head that leaves some lacing.
Smell: bread, floral, herbal, white grape
taste: Follows the nose. plus a hint of lemon citrus. smooth, just slightly sweet overall, with just a hint of bitter on the very end.
Feel is ok.
I am not going to rate this one with numbers now. I will later after I can compare it others in the Kolsch tasting. Well maybe since I might be outta town at the cabin/island that weekend. (no internet/cell phones there) . But I will give it a 3.87/5 now. 5 bottles left.
https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/741/598310/

 

This is an excellent beer right here: Humble Forager Foggy Footpath ddh Double IPA 8.1% ABV. Citra Cryo, Mosaic, El Dorado Cryo. Brewed by Fair State for HF. Cheers!! and happy 4th!
4.23/5 rDev +3.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4
by LesDewitt4beer from Minnesota
16oz can canned March 24, 2022 into a Spiegelau IPA glass.
L: Pours medium hazy orange gold color w/a 2.5" off white foamy head w/a cap, very good retention then to a skin, low carbonation, random sticky lacing.
S: Mango, light pineapple, orange, citrus zest, alcohol fairly fast as the beer warms.
T: Sweet orange, pineapple, light berries, melon, mango, papaya, citrus zest, sweet caramelized malts, a hint of breadiness, light alcohol as the beer warms. It is gently tart & sharp w/some bitterness lingering.
F: Gently crisp then caressingly soft medium heavy mouthfeel w/a wet, medium-length, clean & drying finish.
O: A full flavored fruity, soft and buoyant ddh double IPA. Lightly sweet with firm attention to hops. It is outstanding in it's style.

 

Stone san Diego pale ale. Julia said it was too bitter to finish, so she gave me it lol. Great west coast pale ale. Aromas and flavors of big grapefruit, orange, pear, red apple, red berries, apricot, wood, citrus peel/rind, peppercorn, pine, cracker, bread, herbal, floral, grass. Good sized pine/rind bitter finish. Balanced bready malt and sticky/resinous hop mouthfeel. Long resin drying finish with mild astringency. Smooth but pretty aggressive. Unique hop profile makes me think of loral and enigma. Really enjoyable. Very dank and earthy hops. 4


Cheers

 

Okay, I blame @FBarber for stoking an interest in Czech Pils and BA in general for making me aware of European beer and how good it can be.
The problem with getting familiar with Czech Style Pilsners is not knowing what makes them different from, say, German or New Zealand Pilsners. So now I find myself drinking every Pils that I can find so I can figure it out. Not that this has always been helpful, but hey, more beer, right?

Poured crystal clear light amber and topped with a rocky white head that leaves almost no lacing. Very active carbonation lasted throughout.
The aroma was faint for me, but I do get floral hops and a touch of biscuit malts.
The taste is very good, excellent even. Ayinger does a very fine Pils. Based in mild biscuit malts which is surrounded by aforementioned floral hops and spices, not pepper but not sure what it is. There is a fine bitterness that leads to a very refreshing bite at the swallow.
The feel, with the carbonation, just makes this far more quaffable than many beers. Just ideal.
Good beer, I think I need to drink it more often.

 

D9 - Carnaval sour ale with passion fruit. From @superspak.

Tall skinny 12oz can, don't see a date.

Clear light yellow, no lasting head. Smell is tart, fruity, like lemons for me.

Taste is tart and vaguely fruity, reminds me of lemonade with something added. Wouldn't recognize the passion fruit if not labeled.

Mouthfeel is thin and a little sticky. Overall, a pretty good kettle sour!

 

And now you will see just how far the rabbit hole goes…

 

Stone can I get a drink runner please? Great imperial berliner. Aromas are super bretty barnyard peppery funk with some mint and woody notes. Taste is tart/sour lemon, lime, peach, green apple, white grape, hay, straw, wood, grass, mint, peppercorn, wood, wheat, bread, lacto, Brett funk. Medium tart/sour/tangy fruit and fairly spicy Brett finish. Medium plus carb, medium body, and fairly crisp finishing. Balanced bready/grainy malt, sticky hops, lactic acid, and fruit tang/tannic mouthfeel. Drying acid/tannic finish with no pucker/astringency. Mild warmth of 8%. Smooth sipper. Was not expecting as big of a Brett profile in the nose but there is a lot of wild complexity and nice fruit presence. Very well made for the style. 4


Cheers