New Beer Weekend #127

Was fortuitous I went with a light Saison this morning with the afternoon introduction of a Four Day New Beer Weekend/Sunday! Only have eight new to me beers on hand, so if next weekend is also a four day extravaganza, will be hitting the beer stores very soon.

Our four selections this weekend are locals, only one heavy on the ABV side. This Pilsner is the oldest "drink fresh" style I have on hand from Chicago's premier Suburban Brewery (sadly out of Metra reach for a visit).

Roaring Table Brewing Company RTB Pils



Can Notes: 16 oz canned 8/31/22. Purchased refrigerated at Beer on the Wall for $3.50 11/28/22, refrigerated until now. Brewed and canned by Roaring Table Brewing, Lake Zurich, Illinois. 4.9% ABV, Hops: Saphir, Hallertauer, Tettnanger.

This racy lager is powered by all German everything: malt, \hops, and yeast - but we made it our own with a huge whirlpool addition that saturates the beer with noble hop goodness. Crisp and satisfying, this is the beer the brewers at RTB want at the end of a long day!

Appearance: Clear light straw blonde base, medium persistent carbonation, lovely white creamy soapy head leaves spotty lacing over multiple pours into a narrow tall pilsner glass. 3.75

Aroma: Noble hops bold and pleasant, lemongrass, salty cracker backing. Love it. 4.5

Taste: Consistent with the aroma, hops really shine here, tradition Pilsner take, salt present but balanced, cracker, light pepper. Grass aroma not present. 4.25

Mouthfeel: Very light and easy drinking, a bit dry, body propped up by persistent carbonation, clean finish. Feel this is the only area nearly 4 months impacted (lack of crispness, though still held up very well). 4.0

Overall: We are blessed in Chicago for several brewers producing fine straight away Pilsners, and this is no exception. Held up well over time, really digging the strong and pleasant aroma and flavors, looking for more down the road, but then again this is a Roaring Table offering. Prost! 4.25

 

This beer is for you at @ovaltine and all of you that received snow...no snow here just true cold. I have a habit of walking at night when we get nights like this; stopping by the woods and listening to the trees talk when they crackle from the cold is a magical sound...

Another beer courtesy of @NorsemanOne; I was really excited to try this one when I saw it.

I know another guy that sends nice glassware too @FBarber

Wasatch Brewery - Snow Bank (5% amber lager)



Pours a slightly brown leaning amber, mostly clear; off white head with ok staying power, nice film lingers most of the session.

Nose is lightly malty with a slightly toasted grain like character to it, it has a a light floral note.

Taste is malt forward; a grainy bread slightly toasted, light caramelization; earthy to very lightly floral hops on the finish.

Light body; malty and dry, not heavy; a bright yet smooth carbonation that ends with a noticeable bitterness on the finish.

This beer is very fun and enjoyable for me; it is malt forward but super drinkable the hops are a nice surprise, right at the point of noticeable, very balanced. A great beer.

Well that's it for me tonight beer-wise; I'm hoping to see you all tomorrow night. Enjoy the holiday weekend everyone. See you next new beer!

 

You guys (and others) are making me feel good about my decision to not buy the more expensive versions, especially considering I was thinking what y’all have concluded - how much better could it be than the exceptional base version? Thanks

 

Wiseacre Strizzle Bier IPA, 6.2% ABV; 3.81 overall

Pours an effervescent copper with 2 fingers of sand colored head. Nice lacing & above average head retention

S: Cakey, piney, fades a bit as this warms

T: Follows the nose, dry with woody hops & a little caramel up front. More pine & dryness as this beer warms, a touch of cakeyness & caramel, plus more woodyness. Finishes piney with caramel & brown bread

MF: Medium body, restrained carbonation, alright balance. Carbonation picks up as this beer warms up

Drinks fairly easy, makes me think; Little Brother to SN Celebration

MF: Medium body, fairly firm carbonation

 

Fremont - Affinity, foeder-aged golden sour with viognier grapes

500ml bottle split between a pair of curvy Fremont glasses. If there's a date on the bottle, I don't see it, but I bought it September of last year.

Pours somewhat hazy, kind of a dark straw color, with very little head, slow carbonation that builds up a ring a little while after the pour. Smell is kind of stone-fruit tart, funky, oaky, greens and green grapes (and maybe stems).

Taste is interesting. It's dry, but very grape juicy -- like unripe green grapes or something. Moderate funk, and a fairly strong woodiness. I still get a little bit of a stone fruit tartness.

Mouthfeel is super dry, leading to cotton mouth, but not super light, which is an interesting juxtaposition. Overall...I'm really enjoying it.

 

Ale Apothecary - Connor. American wild ale aged in wine barrels with marionberries and bottle conditioned with honey.

750ml corked/caged bottle. Batch 2.10.21. Served in a slightly tulippy wineglass.

Pours dark purple, looks pretty still. Fairly clear (but I left about an inch in the bottle). Smell is tart, berry jam.

Taste is very tart, very dry. Lots of berry, but no sweetness. A little bit of wood. Almost a red grape tartness.

Mouthfeel is very light and very dry, a little cottonmouth-inducing. Overall, it's a good beer, but it's very intense.

 

Hippy Sippy

9.3% stout by Fat Head's

Poured from a twelve ounce can, the body is a very dark brown with a nice initial head. Light lacing during the tasting.

Aroma of chocolate, dark roast coffee, dark fruit (fig?) and a sweet grain. Very enjoyable nose.

Taste follows nose and adds a touch of hops to balance. Flavors really expanded as the beer warmed up. Chocolate and coffe merge nicely and mask the ABV.

Good mouthfeel. Creamy. Nice carbonation.

Very good no shenanigans stout. I’ll get at least another four pack,

 

forgot to post here last night.

The Veil - Pallbearer Reserve Melange

24 month Willett aged imperial stout and 24 month apple brandy aged imperial stout. rich milk chocolate plays with caramel apple for a semi-sweet and decadent beer. thick mouthfeel. this was the best veil BA IS i’ve tried so far.

4.5, 4.5, 4.75, 4.75, 4.75
4.68
-0.6%


cheers!!

 

one more from last night.

Hill Farmstead - Samuel b3 (08/27/2020)

beautiful pour. white wine, oak, lemons, hay. it has that soapy, dusty HF signature wine barrel on the nose and taste. slightly tart but overall, very smooth and easy drinking for such a complex ale. as it warmed up, it wasn’t too far off from sipping a glass of white wine. a bit more carbonation obviously. HF are masters of the saison (or “Farmstead” ale) and i was glad to finally try one of their upper echelon beers (although for what it took to get this i don’t mind sticking with easier-to-land bottles like vera mae or BA dorothy).

4.75, 4.75, 4.75, 4.5, 4.75
4.73
+0.6%


cheers!!

 

A Merry Christmas to us all

In last weekend’s online Holiday Beer tasting thread I discussed with another BA Penn Brewery St. Nickolaus Bock Bier. I made mention that there were a lot of ‘twist and turns’ in the ownership of Penn Brewery since it was founded by Tom Pastorius in 1986. Because of all the ‘dynamics’ I stopped drinking beers from Penn since I had no idea who/when/how these beers were being produced. I stated that maybe I should give them another shot and as fortune would have it there were bottles of St. Nicholaus Bock Bier in the singles section of my local Wegman’s supermarket so I purchased one bottle as part of a mix-a-six. To the best of my recollection, I have never had this beer before.

Below is how this beer is detailed on the brewery’s website:

“St. Nikolaus Bock

Our Holiday/European-style Bock beer. A very rich, strong, malty lager, dark ruby in color with notes of chocolate and roasted malts.

Details:

St. Nikolaus Bock

Style: Winter Bock Bier

Alcohol content: 6.5% ABV

Availability: Seasonal - Holiday Beer (November - January)

Packaging Formats: Six-pack, 12-pack, 24-pack, draft

Specs:

St. Nikolaus Bock

OG/plato: 15

FG/plato: 3.5

IBUs: 25

Hops: Perle

Malt: Two-row, Munich, Chocolate, Carahell, Caramel, Carafa”

Well, it sure reads like a tasty beer. Let’s see how it actually tastes.

Served in my Sly Fox Bock Fest Willie Becher glass:

Appearance

Dark mahogany colored with a khaki colored head.

Aroma

The aroma is all about dark malt aromas – some chocolate and toasted dark bread.

Taste

The flavor follows the nose with some chocolate and toasted dark bread flavors but there is a hint of roastiness as well. There is a semi-sweet aspect to this beer. A low bitterness from the hops.

Mouthfeel

Light - medium bodied with a dry finish.

Overall

I think this beer is good – very good. An enjoyable beer for the Christmas season. Ho ho ho!

Cheers!

@KOP_Beer_OUtlet @rotsaruch @RobH

 

I think I'm gonna join you in trying Old Fitz this weekend, and may join you on the 30-year as well.

So many choices for a beer nerd to consider - and I absolutely love it!

 

That looks FANTASTIC, Jack. Well done.

 

This morning’s (early) Christmas present to myself is BCBS Reserve 30th Anniversary Stout 2022. Others have already posted the particulars, so let’s go!



Bottled 7/26/22. Poured at 52°. Thin fizzy dark tan head vanishes immediately leaving a thin ring at best, small pockets of micro-dots floating but no real cap retention; black body with ruby edges; bands of soapy lace, thick legs sheet the glass on swirl. Sweet bourbon nose with boozy exhale; as beer warms - spicy toasted fruited chocolate Babka. Entry is bourbon; bittersweet dark chocolate followed by sweet toffee candy; as beer warms, sugary dark fruit - plums and raisins; caramel candy with notes of oak and vanilla on backend. Full minus body; silky smooth feel; not at all adjuncty; alcohol burn on tip of tongue; full mouth warmth from 14.4% abv; light carbonation; dry barrel finish. Overall the beer starts out boozy bourbon, but as the beer warms there are layers of dark fruit and caramel candied apple sweetness on top of the chocolate base; long bourbon linger.

4.25 | 4.5 | 4.5 | 4.5 | 4.5
Score: 4.49 rDev -0.7%


Is this beer 3x price-wise worthy than OG BCBS? I’m leaning towards maybe…the OG is great this year and I’ve bought more bottles; the 30th Anniversary has layers of subtle base and bourbon barrel flavors, that once the beer warms up, surprises and contributes to the overall; however, at $34.99 you are paying a big premium to join in the discussion. My take? I’m happy with the beer, and thankful to have had the opportunity to experience the differences. Cheers to GI and 30years of outstanding BBA Stouts!

 

I have been anticipating this moment since I heard this beer was going to be released. This picture was taken under conditions similar to the surface of dwarf plant Pluto. This work of brewing art at its absolute pinnacle features a light almond brown foamy top that was immediately blown away by the arctic blast winds. The color is black, with a faint vision of almond brown. The smell features brown sugar, vanilla, almond, caramel, and bourbon. Absolutely wonderful. The taste is incredible. Caramel, vanilla, date, brown sugar, pancake, bourbon, and raisin. The mouthfeel is thick, smooth, creamy, and full, with medium carbonation. Overall, this is the best barleywine I have ever experienced. I wish I could share a bottle with @scream.

 

Cheers to you and sharing with @scream
he would have loved it!