New Beer Weekend #136

Imprint Beer Co. -- Mild Enthusiasm
English dark mild
ABV: 4.3%; pouring temperature: 45.7 ℉; canning info: 01/26/23 WILD FOR MILD
Source: Tavour



3.94/5 rDev +3.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4

Dark brown body, clear with the pour, opaque in the glass; huge, soft and thickly spongy head, bone-white color. Big roasted malt nose; light cocoa and toffee. Mild milk chocolate flavor with elements of cocoa; light residual bitterness that seems more from grain husk than hops. Medium-body; smooth; light residual slipperiness; a little sweet, a little dry with the overall mouthfeel.

A very nice and flavorful dark mild. The beer is nitro infused. Personally, I'd rather try a non-nitro version of the beer. Regardless, this pleasant, easy drinking dark ale hits the spot.

...this is a great beer to ease into after a few hours at the gym this morning...

 

Finback - Every Night

Double New England IPA with Meridian, Mosaic and Simcoe hops, from America (8%).



Pours a hazy, bright orange coloration with a medium, fluffy head. Smells of light biscuity malt and tropical, citrus, berry hops, with notes of passion fruit, grapefruit and boysenberry, as well as just a hint of dankness.

Taste is an excellent balance of light biscuity malt and fruity, juicy, slightly spicy, dank and piney hops, with tropical, citrus and berry notes of passion fruit, mango, grapefruit, boysenberry and blueberry, as well as hints of spicy weed and pine. Finishes with a medium bitterness and some passion fruit, grapefruit and spicy weed lingering in the aftertaste. Soft mouthfeel with a medium body and carbonation.

While too many NEIPAs make Jack a dull boy, having this after long break really made me realize how much I missed them. Of course it helps that this one is truly excellent and exactly after my own taste, reminding me of why I love Cloudwater beers so much. It's got that great mix of fruity, juicy and dank, slightly piney notes going on, while finishing with a good bitterness, almost like a NE/WC IPA crossover.

Very expressive and well-defined topical, citrus and berry notes, I#ve never gotten so much passion fruit from a beer that did not contain Galaxy/Strata hops before, while I also really like those berry notes from Mosaic and Meridian.

 

Firestone Walker Brewing Co. -- Daisy's Favorite
Imperial blonde ale aged in gin barrels
ABV: 12.7%; pouring temperature: 45.5 ℉; bottling info: 2022 No. 1
Source: n/a



3.9/5 rDev -3.7%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.75

Murky, honey orange body; nice, thick head, white and densely foamy. Boozy, spicy peach aroma; suggestion of anise; botanicals. Caramel sweetness interlaced with modest phenolic qualities; fruity esters and honey; modest overall bitterness; dried apricot and orange zest. Thick and chewy mouthfeel; sticky residual sugars.

An interesting beer that seems a bit raw and unrefined. It's not bad and does present some gin-inspired aspects, but just seems a bit rough overall.

 

Ārpus Brewing Co. - Peach x Apricot x Mango x Strawberry x Lemon x Maple Smoothie Sour Ale

Smoothie Sour with peach, apricot, mango, strawberry, lemon and maple syrup, from Latvia (5%).



Pours an opaque, beige coloration, with a tiny, fizzy head that lingers as spiderweb bubbles. Smell is a little dominated by sweet maple syrup, with hints of lemon, mango and peach coming through as well though.

Taste is a great balance of heavy maple syrup and distinct notes of lemon, mango and peach, with hints of strawberry as well. Finishes with a light sweetness and tartness, as well as some maple syrup, mango and lemon lingering in the aftertaste. Thick mouthfeel with a medium body and no carbonation.

I wasn't really sure what to expect from this one, but all in all it came as very pleasant surprise to me. While it's just a tad too heavy on the maple syrup to me, it still doesn't feel too sweet, being balanced nicely by the tart lemon and mango notes, while accents of peach and strawberry come through as well.

Mouthfeel is thick and heavy, just as I would expect. Overall, this makes for an excellent Smoothie/Pastry Sour that manages a great balance of sweet and tart notes, with distinct fruity accents and excellent body and mouthfeel.

 

...damn, my walk from the gym (Peterson Space Force Base) back to my home on the westside -- well, I'd need at least two of those for my journey...luckily the new gym bag has room for a few bottles (might rehydrate with three of what you're holding) plus I already carry my Swiss Army knife bottle opener...



...I'm up for empirical feasibility studies later this year...

 

Jackie O's Brewpub - Anvil Chorus

Imperial Stout aged in Bourbon barrels for 16 months, from America (14.1%).



Pours a pitch-black coloration with a tiny, fizzy head that soon fades away. Smells of slightly roasted, caramel malt and strong notes of chocolate and dark fruit, with raisin and fig standing out, as well as a distinct bourbon presence and hints of vanilla, honey and oak.

Taste is a good balance of slightly roasted, caramel malt, strong chocolate and dark fruit, with notes of raisin, fig, plum and dates, as well as some vanilla, brown sugar and honey, with hints of licorice and musty oak. Finishes sweet and boozy, with some bourbon, chocolate, dark fruit and honey lingering in the aftertaste, Full mouthfeel with a rich body and light carbonation.

While there certainly is quite a rich bourbon presence to this, it's perhaps a bit too rich, leaving a sharp, boozy aftertaste, while also feeling a bit too sweet for my personal taste, I would have wished for a bit more roast and bitterness here, to balance out those sweet brown sugar, vanilla and honey notes. While the slightly roasted malts and hints of licorice and oak prevent this from becoming quite too cloying.

I think this makes for quite a rich BA Imperial Stout with a distinct Bourbon presence that is just not quite to my personal taste though. I enjoyed it well-enough, but would not certainly not purchase another, especially at the price point.

 

...my identity has been stolen already thanks to DoD and commercial data breaches let alone what data miners already have plus the info from old phone book white pages, so...besides, if you've ever personally interacted with actual BA members such as @superspak, @Todd, or @GreenBayBA - well, those characters may be dicier than the non-members...and, seriously, I always thought @lordofthewiens eyes appeared set too close together when we hooked up (or maybe I'm PTSDing from @jkblr)...any way, lord knows what they think of me...

...regardless, I should be able to find some mostly bicycle trail routes to PSFB from my home, so early morning ride to the base, push some weights around, sit my fat, naked ass in the dry sauna for 20 - 30 minutes, and then pedal home - that would be a fine time of beer calorie manipulation - I mentioned somewhere else on BA about how convenient those water cages on my bicycle hold beer - er, sports drinks - just fine...