New Beer Weekend #103

Sadly my limit is low and always has been @cjgiant. I’m a beer loving lightweight but seriously the offer stands if I’m available I’m buying you your first Tonewood. Oaklyn, their original spot still has cask pours and has become a mixed ferm brewing/canning/bottling spot.

 

Wife went to the local Euro market to shop for my son's upcoming 9th birthday party -- Polish themed. I asked her to pick me up a kvass if she saw one. She did, and I regret it.

Ochakovskiy Kvass.

2L plastic bottle served in a tulip. There are three lines etched into the bottle: 02.09.21, 02.09.22P10, and 17:57:45. I would *guess* this means it was bottled February 2021 and was best by February 2022. Also interesting, the label doesn't seem to mention abv at all -- from the labeling, I would assume it's a soda.

Pours dark brown, very little head or carbonation. Smell is grainy and musty (like...wet sweepings?), a little bit of ashiness, maybe some dark bread crust aroma. There is something super familiar about this smell that I just can't place.

Taste is sweet, like really sweet. Running toward sweetened grape juice and prunes maybe. Graininess is there, kind of.

Mouthfeel is medium, slick, smooth. Overall...I'm really, really not enjoying this. I'm dumping most of this glass and the rest of this bottle.

 

I knew I remembered you loving cask

 

Except that's a Puffin!

Yeah, but in a MLB ball park, that 30 pack would've cost about $300.

 

Hi folks. I read several reviews for this beer earlier in the year, and I feel several said the beer was mediocre, so I avoided it. Spotted a 12 pack for just $7.99 yesterday so I grabbed it.



DFH - Blue Hen Pilsener

It's good. I like it quite a bit. I'm having it after a Bitburger and there's some phenolic presence as it finishes but otherwise it's pretty true to style. Medium malt body, good bit of hop bitterness and spice on the finish. Not sure why there are phenols now but maybe that's just juxtaposed against how clean Bitburger is. In any event, it's a tasty little pilsener and not a bad showing at all from DFH. I quite like this, and would considering grabbing it (in summer) again.

 

I dumped out that last beer and opened this much better beer-adjacent substance I received from @WunderLlama.

Trillium - Twice the Daily Serving: Raspberry, Strawberry, Blueberry, Blackberry.

16oz can served in a footed pilsner glass. Can is dated 05/02/22.

Pours a thick, slurry-like purple-blue with a very small head that fades to a very small ring. Lots of fine carbonation struggling its way slowly to the surface. Smell is tart, fruity, and dominated by strawberry.

Taste is mixed berry fruit smoothie. It's not dominated by strawberry, if anything the blueberry is most noticeable, but it's a mix. Just a bit more than general fruity tartness.

Mouthfeel is thick but smooth, so pulpy doesn't describe it but it's moving in that direction. Overall, very tasty, but not what I would reach for when I wanted a beer -- this is my typical reaction to this style. But, it is very tasty, and sometimes this is what I want to reach for.

Thanks, Maynard! Mrs snaotheus and I are enjoying this.

 

This beer is now 2 months old and in all likelihood that is why is to not hazy now. It you were able to drink this beer a couple of weeks after canning you likely would have a differing experience as regards appearance.

As one reviewer described this beer: "Beer poured a cloudy golden...".

Cheers!

 

Plus you got to watch the Phillies win!

In exciting (too exciting ) fashion in the bottom of the ninth.

Cheers!

 

I attended a bottle share event and one fellow brought a couple of bottle of Kvass to share. I believe that was the first time I saw beer in plastic (soda like) bottles. I had a very similar experience as you but fortunately I only accepted one pour and I requested that pour to be very small. It may be unfair to 'paint with a broad brush' but after that one (small) experience I decided to never drink Kvass ever again.

 

It looks like a film left by the beer, but I think the plastic is actually dyed just a little bit brown -- maybe to slightly evoke the sense of a brown glass bottle?

That gif is perfect for my experience.

 

Happy Saturday, NBW. It’s a perfect day at the lake, and the perfect day to drink this beer from my friend @BBThunderbolt and NBW BIF #15.





4.1/5 rDev +7.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
by ovaltine from Indiana

Pours a golden straw color with the slightest bit of suspended haze and a foamy white head that is fairly resilient. The nose is full of a heaping helping of fresh cut grass courtesy of the noble hops, leaping from the can as soon as it’s cracked open.

The noble hop flavors are forward and scintillating, with a nice bit of bready malt sweetness for balance. The mouthfeel is crisp and clean, per the style.

This is another one of those “this is a beer drinker’s beer” beers that I enjoy so much - just perfect to sit on the deck and enjoy on a perfect summer day.

 

Mountains Walking Junegrass IPA, 6.5%ABV; 3.85 overall

Pours a bright & effervescent gold with a thumb of pearl colored head. Above average head retention & lacing

S: Grassy, citrussy

T: Follows the nose, some bready notes, green melon up front. Grassy & piney bitterness as this warms, a little lime & grapefruit too, plus dryness. Finishes pretty dry with lime, grassyness & a little grapefruit

MF: Medium body, fairly firm carbonation that levels out to crisp. Good balance

A solid, no muss, no fuss IPA that drinks very easy

 

Blackburn Heartland Haze Pale Ale.



Pours a slightly hazy light gold with a substantial head that dissipates slowly leaving ample lovely lacing.

The first aromatic impression of this beer is that of a macro lager. Little grassy hop presence. Sweet malty notes. That is about it.

Taste follows. Grassy. Corn-y. Quick finish.

Crisp and refreshing but lacking in flavour.

If you ever wondered how a craft brewery might make a pale ale that tastes like a macro lager, this is the beer for you. The name, the pine trees on the label, the fact that it calls itself a pale ale all served to confuse me. Meh.

 

I bought a couple of generic 200ml Stange glasses in anticipation of next weekend’s Kölsch tasting.

Since sometimes I see a Stange as the recommended glassware for a gose, I decided to use one today.

And, I discovered that it is not the most graceful thing to pour from a 12 oz. can into that narrow ~2” opening! So, after losing some beer dribbling down the outside, I poured a little more vigorously than I intended to with a gose, which had no more dribbling, but resulted in a towering head that overflowed a bit.

I need to work on my would-be Köbes skills before next weekend!

This week, a gose.

Summit Patio Perfection Gose
ABV: 5.0%
IBU: 22

From the brewer:
“This new limited edition brew is Summit’s first-ever packaged gose-style ale. This refreshing style is known for its smooth, malt body; zesty, salty flavors and light, effervescent finish. Our version also is brewed with experimental agents to add extra tang and a brand new hop variety, Adeena, for a unique floral and spicy hop note. It’s a perfectly balanced beverage for relaxing, summer evenings.
…
With crisp, tart flavors of lime and sea salt and a unique floral hop aroma, it will bring you to a summery escape any time.”

Hazy pale yellow, moderate carbonation, topped with a tall stark white head from a semi-gentle : semi-vigorous pour (see above). The head recedes at a moderate pace, developing airy voids and an uneven surface. Nice-looking lacing.

The aroma is a tart lime, some bread, some spice. After going back and re-reading the brewer’s description, and after a few sips, I do detect some floral notes, at least subliminally.

The initial taste is smooth and bready with a touch of salt. The lime begins in the middle and carries through to the aftertaste, but it is as subtle as tart line can be expected to be. The middle flavors blend well with the bread, salty lime, very slightly tart and a touch of spice. At the half-way point, and even more toward the end, as the beer warms a bit, the saltiness becomes obvious, and the tart lime is also at least a bit more apparent.

This is a very tasty and refreshing beer, but I was anticipating a gose to have a bit more tartness.

The mouth feel is very smooth and creamy, good carbonation feel.

Overall, enjoyable, well-done, and refreshing, if a bit timid on the tartness.

L: 4.0 | S: 3.75 | T: 4.0 | F: 4.0 | O: 3.75 | Rating: 3.89

 

Hellbent's Kolsch

12oz can served in a wineglass. Can is dated 06/06/22. Got it from a local CSA.

Pours a hazy pale gold with a slight orangish tinge. Head is about a centimeter tall at pour, settles into a lumpy thick skin. Smell is soft, grainy, a hint of something in the vicinity of plantains, maybe a slight peppery aroma.

Taste is more assertive. Clear grassy hops. Spiciness is a little stronger and more herbal. Fruitiness tones down a little. Slightly bready.

Mouthfeel is light, clean, almost fluffy. Overall, not bad.