New Beer Weekend #162

Thanks @Roguer for the opening . This is not your grandfathers nor your fathers beer …

Miami Vice melted sno cone by Southern grist

4.2/5 rDev 0%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25


It as a Fruited Kettle Sour
BA describes the style as a wildly popular and modern American beer style, Fruited Kettle Sours are brewed using the "kettle sour" process, wherein lactobacillus is pitched directly into the kettle to sour the wort. Once the desired PH level ("sourness") is achieved, the wort is boiled to stop the process (kill off the bacteria) and then hopped and fermented as normal. Fruit (juice, purée, whole, zest, etc.) is then added after primary fermentation or maturation, but some brewers may add fruit during fermentation or barrel-aging too. Color, aroma, flavor, and sourness will differ greatly based on the brewer's intent, fruits being used, and other ingredients, but many examples share a tart, fruity, crisp, and refreshing experience.

Smoothie Style Sour Ale with lactose, strawberry puree, pineapple puree, and cream of coconut

Can poured into pint glass results in a milky yellow liquid , three finger foam cap that quickly fades to a ring

Aroma is sweet tart , smells like a tangy strawberry pina colada

Taste is tangy pina colada with strawberry undertones

Full Mouthfeel is tart , sweet , full of coconut flakes , milky ,

Interesting “beer”, it’s a tart pina colada.. not a traditional beer

 

Thanks for the kick off @Roguer , and hope you are feeling better. I am looking forward to two tree new to me Treehouse beers for next weekend, assuming this thread gets three or four days (Friday - Monday or Saturday - Monday) to celebrate Labour Day Weekend.

Some of us also continue to celebrate New Beer Sunday within this thread, with New Beer Sunday #966 tomorrow.

I have two from a SW Michigan Brewery provided by an awesome NW Indiana beer advocate Jake, known here as @brewskis . My selection for this late morning,

Wax Wings Firme



Can Notes: Received courtesy of Jake known as @brewskis on Beer Advocate. 16 oz can, 5.1% ABV. No can date, but release date of April 27, 2023 per social media. Refrigerated upon returning home until opening. Mexican Lager, brewed and packaged by Wax Wings Brewing Company, Kalamazoo, Michigan.

Appearance: Multiple pours after the initial approximate half can very slow pour into a tall slender pilsner glass. Substantial white head lingers leaving clumpy lacing, clear straw golden base, medium to heavy carbonation the first several minutes before tapering off. 4.25

Aroma: Nice lager yeast aroma leads, salt and pepper cracker follow along with buttered corn on the cob. Drawing me in, classic flavor done well. 4.25

Taste: Getting a grain alcohol front and center, the aroma flavors pushed to the back. After my second full pour, getting the sweet corn sans the butter noted front of center with plenty of salt, the latter more of a defect of my palate in terms of select styles. Getting lemongrass, mineral water. Enjoying, 3.5

Mouthfeel: Drinks stronger than the listed ABV, could be part of morning on my end. Creamy buttery feel, would say light to medium body. Carbonation sustained, gentle on mouthfeel. Getting a salty corn on the cob on the finish, leans dry and with a neutral bitter/sweet balance throughout. 3.75

Overall: I'm enjoying this beer overall. Not the first style I turned to, and enjoyed from start to finish outside of the initial grain alcohol on first sip/gulp. Nice beer to enjoy on a summer day, clean and refreshing. 3.75

Thanks again Jake! Looking forward to a Triple IPA tomorrow from this brewery, with IPAs a style they are more known. Cheers!

 

Thanks @Roguer for kicking us off this weekend.

Last Friday I visited New Glarus, so here's a couple of new beers to me:
Enigma 23

Appearance: Dark Brown with a thin head.

Smell: Some wood first, then funky acidic, maybe a hint of cherry.

Taste: Tart beer, with some brown sugar and sour cherry in the background and finish.

Overall: Picked up a single at the brewery. I'm not usually a tart/sour beer guy but I'm willing to try and tick a style. It's an interesting beer but not one I'll revisit.

30th Anniversary Quadrupel

Appearance: Dark brown, good head.

Smell: Rich, dark fruit.

Taste: Sweet, really big raisin flavor, dark caramel, combined sweet and earthy finish. Medium-heavy body,

Overall: Picked up a 4 pack at the source in New Glarus. A nice quad, big raisiny sweetness with earthy hop notes for balance. I'm putting 1 away in the cellar for future reference. Congrats on 30 years!

 

It’s about time!?!

Von C Brewing is a small, local brewery (to me) that has been open for several years and I have enjoyed drinking many types of Pilsners there but recently they brewed their first ever German Pilsner:

“Fräulein Pilsner - German

5.3% ABV Norristown, PA

Fräulein is our first German style pils. Brewed with 100% Weyermann pilsner malt to establish a clean a crisp base malt character with notes of honey and crackers. Highly attenuated with a touch of grain sweetness. Saaz and Perle hops were used to give this refreshing beer a floral and spicy aroma.”

It seems that in the Philly area the most popularly brewed version of a Pilsner is German Pilsner and I wonder why it took so long for Von C to brew one. Maybe they thought there were already too many brands of German Pilsner in the area?

Well, IMO German Pilsners are sorta like Jello: There is always room for German Pilsner.

Fräulein was served via a Lukr side-pull faucet. The first pint was served in a Pilsner glass (see below). That beer was so good I decided to order a second pint but I suppose they were out of clean Pilsner glasses so this second beer was served Czech style in a dimpled mug with an underlet pour (also see below).

Appearance:

Straw yellow with a white head.

Aroma:

There is a combination of bready malt and herbal/spicy hop aroma; very enticing.

Taste:

The flavor follows the nose with a combination of bready malt and herbal/spicy flavors. There is a firm bitterness.

Mouthfeel:

Medium bodied, a very smooth mouthfeel and a dry finish.

Overall:

This beer is very good - excellent! This beer is very nicely balanced between the malt and hop flavors.

This Von C German Pilsner is ‘right there’ with the other fine German Pilsners brewed locally (e.g., Sterling Pig, Human Robot, Sly Fox,…).

Prost!

@rotsaruch @KOP_Beer_OUtlet @RobH @ESHBG

 

Hmm, sounds like there is some perceptible diacetyl in that beer?

Cheers!

 

4.69/5 rDev +13.8%

look: 4.75 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.75

Poured from a 16 ounce can dated 5-12-23 into a snifter.

Look- Medium gold, mildly hazy, frothy white head, above average head retention and lacing.

Smell- Pine resin, dank, mango, clementine, between medium and high strength of scent.

Taste- Pine resin, clementine, earthy, mango, mildly boozy, high strength of flavor.

Feel- Between medium and full body, average carbonation, moderately mouth warming, highly bitter, moderately creamy.

Overall- Appearance was a very nice medium gold with mild haze. Bouquet was a great mix of pine resin, citrus and dankness. Flavor was very vibrant and a wonderful balance of pine resin, citrus, dank, mango and booze. Feel was more substantial than expected with a nice amount of creaminess and high bitterness. Overall this beer provided an outstanding drinking experience. This was a fantastic example of a West Coast Triple IPA.

 

I’ve got a new one from new-ish brewery here in Toronto today. This is Blonde Ale from Goldenfield Brewery.



Pours a bright golden yellow with a very light head that dissipates to a barely perceptible film on the top of the beer. The beer appears to lack carbonation, or at least that is what I notice from the pour.

The nose is difficult to pick up. There is a light sweet apple note. Some candy sugar. Nothing else really.

There is a kick of that sugar on the tongue with the first sip. It follows through to swallow. Thankfully that apple note in the smell isn’t present in the mouth. There is a little very light malt in the background. Otherwise, this is quite bland.

The body is moderate. This really lacks the needed carbonation leaving an almost syrupy texture to the beer.

I love giving new breweries a try, and look forward to trying more from this place. That said, this tastes old, poorly canned and poorly made to my taste. I’m hopeful the amber and IPA I have are better.

Cheers!

 

Is there a canned on date on the can?

Cheers!

 

There is not. The place opened in April/May and the Blonde was one of their initial offerings. I wouldn’t doubt that this was from that first batch.

 

Hope everyone is having a good weekend thus far. I've been looking forward to today's new beer all summer.

Today we have Edelfest Lager from Jack's Abby, their 12th Anniversary beer from July. They pulled out all the stops with their new pilot system for this one. From the can:
Pilsner, Munich, and Carahell malts; Mittlefreuh and Hersbrucker hops; triple decocted, coolship, open fermented, horizontal lagered, and krausened.

I'm a bit blown away by this one. I know I've been big on JA in recent NBWs (and let's be real, I'm a sucker for any good beer), but this one is truly outstanding. Huge mistake only picking up a single.

Jack's Abby Edelfest Lager
4.8% (can) 5.4% (website) "summer fest lager"

Pours a bright orange-gold with a two-finger off-white head that dissipates to a persistent coating refreshed from a seemingly inexhaustible supply of fine carbonation precipitated from the bottom of the glass.

Aromas of bread dough with an underlying malt sweetness and a big mixture from the noble hops: herbal and resinous, floral and lavender, and a slight citrus.

At the beginning of the sip, I get an initial kick of caramel and brown bread. This quickly expands to a wider range of malt-based flavors: buttered bread, bread with honey, slight cracker, slight toffee, biscuit, with more caramel near the finish as it warms. Then noble hops come through with floral and herbal notes, and a big kick of orange citrus from the Hersbrucker. On the finish, the hop flavors and bitterness linger and mingle with the malt; none seem to be in a hurry to leave. Finish is semi-dry.

A fine but relatively high carb provides some bite at the beginning of the glass but this mellows out as the carb continues to replenish the head. Smooth and frothy feel, medium-light bodied.

This is a fantastic lager. While not a traditional fall festbier, this "summer fest lager" as JA calls it checks the boxes that I want out of a festbier: easy drinking but more flavorful than a pilsner or helles. What I wasn't expecting was the depth of flavor. I didn't think a festbier could have a quality I associate with a fine wine or big, dark beer: a seeming deluge of flavors that evolve throughout the sip and as the drink warms and oxidizes.

 

Poured into a 13 oz Snulip at the source on draft. Pours a milky hazy yellow with a half finger sticky white head, that leaves thin streaks of lace with excellent retention. 5

Aroma cantaloupe, tangerine, guava, peach, a hint of coconut, and apricot. 4.5

Taste follows cantaloupe, tangerine, guava, peach, a little coconut, and apricot well balanced and very tasty. 4.5

Mouthfeel is above medium, soft gentle almost creamy carbonation, not sticky or dry, and at 8% it is very easy going down and has plenty of flavor. 4.75

Overall this is exceptional in my opinion and a must try for sure. 4.75

 

Thanks for starting @Roguer. I like seeing your beer pictures with your Mise en place. Always trying to figure out what you're cooking when you don't mention it.

Today I have another from Tox Brewing, although like most Tox retail purchases these days, this one was brewed at Twelve Percent. Training Wings and American Pale Ale (hazy).

Here is what the brewery says-
Slimmed down version of our flagship IPA Angel Wings, with all the flavor! Light and Hoppy. Drinkable without sacrificing flavor. Bursting with citrus flavors as well as Grapefruit, Mango, Peach and Melon.

3.94/5 rDev -1.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4
Purchased cold from a store cooler.
Poured from a 16oz stamped 23178 (not European, but backwards US dating...huh) to a Nonic glass at fridge temp.
The body is light yellow/orange (lighter than the pic indicates) and quite hazy yet clean looking (no floaties). A 2.5-inch ultra-white head of small even-sized bubbles sits on top. Lacing is good throughout the session but not amazing.
The aroma is strong mango with a little lemon mixed in.
The taste is more sweetened grapefruit in the front with a bitter/dry finish. There is only a hint of alcohol after the swallow.
The mouthfeel is medium to light for a hazy. Carbonation is about right.
Overall a tasty mid-ABV hazy ale.

 

From this text and the appearance of the beer in the photo is seems like this beer is oxidized.

In the absence of a bottled on date my guess is that this beer is too old?

Cheers!

 

608 Brewing and Hex Meadery Pleased Bees braggot. Courtesy of @azuelke. Dark purple prune juice color. A slight white foam ring is at its north face. The smell is delightful honey, pear, prune, mulberry, lingonberry, dragon fruit, and carrot. The taste is not too sweet honey, plum, grape, pear, prune, dates, fig, and graham cracker. A delicious combination. The mouthfeel is thick. It is like an ice cream shake. Very rich. Very full. Smooth. Creamy. Lucious. This is the nectar of the gods. This beer exceeds all my expectations. For a style that is dear to me. When I fall in battle, I expect Valkyries will revive me for the journey to Valhalla, with a taste of this divine concoction.

 

Good afternoon NBW
Another beer I picked up in Ft Wayne last weekend. New Oberpfalz Brewing German Style Pils


12oz bottled 20 APR 2023 poured into a becher glass at fridge temp, no ABV listed on label. The beer pours hefe-hazy in a soft gold with nearly white head. The head recedes to a thin ring and single layer of bubbles. Slight lacing. The aroma is slightly skunky with floral and grassy hops before pilsner malt. The taste is bittersweet pilsner malt with grassy hop notes and crisp, moderate closing bitterness. Barely a hint of skunk, but it's there. The mouthfeel is thin to medium bodied with average carbonation and a mostly dry finish. Overall, very good.

Cheers all!

 

Luppolo - Onda Pilsner, self-described "west coast pilsner"

16oz can served in a footed pilsner glass. Can is not dated. Bought it at the brewery two weeks ago.

Pours clear light yellow with a nearly one finger head and a pretty noticeable amount of carbonation. Smell is citrus hop notes and fresh cut grass, some lemon, a little bit of a doughy biscuit note in the background.

Taste is stronger on the lemon, some grapefruit, a little bit of honeysuckle, the doughy biscuit note is maybe still lurking around in there somewhere. Bitterness lingers and builds.

Mouthfeel is light, smooth, maybe a touch on the watery side. Overall, it's pretty good.