New Beer Weekend #163

I'm having a Sour Sunday and started off with some brews from Little Fish:

https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/41563/398239/?ba=bluejacket74#lists



And then one from Fonta Flora:

https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/33145/588045/?ba=bluejacket74#lists



Should have some more new brews later. Cheers!

 

Away Days - Fresh Hop Deadline Day American Pale Ale

16oz can served in a footed pilsner glass. Can is dated 08/24/2023. Bought it yesterday at Chuck's Hop Shop.

Pours clear yellow with a medium head, maybe a finger thick. Moderate active carbonation. Smell is fresh hop resin, lemon and honeysuckle.

Taste is lemon zest, lemon rind, delicate floral sweetness, late and strong hop resin / citrus rind bitterness. Light breadiness.

Mouthfeel is light, smooth. Overall, quite nice.

 

Cleansing my palate with another anniversary release from Rushing Duck, the aptly named "Eleven." It's brewed with agave nectar and hopped in the whirlpool with Riwaka and then dry hopped with Citra, Galaxy, and more Riwaka. At 8% it seems almost sessionable compared to other RD anniversary IPA releases (one of which clocked in at 17%!).

It pours an opaque, dirty lemon color with a half finger, creamy, bright white cap and a thick film of lacing. It has a huge, vibrant, fruity nose with grapefruit, lemon, lime, and a tantalizing hint of sweetness from the agave. Given its hop bill I don't know where it gets the tart bitterness but it's really good! The agave provides just enough sweetness to balance the tart bitterness of the citrus. It's clean and very easy to drink. The mouth feel is excellent: lite and crisp with pleasant carbonation. Overall, Eleven is a delight to drink. Lots of flavor and a strong, clean bitterness throughout.

4.3/5 rDev 0%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

The third new release is a spectacular BA version of Ded Moroz, Rushing Duck's Russian Imperial Stout. I was drinking an 8 oz. pour yesterday when a yellow jacket committed suicide in the glass (a good death if ever there was one). I was blown away by this variant and will review it later. Cheers, NBW!

 

I would buy this in a second if I saw it (didn't even know about it until your review though, so yay ). Don't know why its that difficult for this brewery to do something like this regularly anymore? It even has a classic-ish looking Boston Beer Company label.

 

American Solera I Can See My House From Here Coolship Hefeweizen, 4.6% ABV; 3.9 overall

Pours a very hazed orange with 3 fingers of cream colored head. No real lacing or head retention, some mango pulp

S: Mangoes in abundance, grassiness & bubble gum

T: Mango, a little pineapple, grassiness & peppery spice up front. More mangoes, a touch of sweet orange & little dryness as this beer warms up. Finishes a little dry with sweet mango & some grassyness & peppery yeast

MF: Medium body, dialed back carbonation

Doesn't really have any wild or sour tendencies. pretty much a Mango Hefe, drinkable, especially during the dog days of Summer. I'm not super wild about mango, but it works here

 

Tributary - Kolsch

12oz skinny can served in a little dimpled mug. Can is dated 07/21/23. Received from @WunderLlama in a surprise attack possibly associated with NBS BIF #17.

Pours a clear orange-amber with a small, short-lived head that leaves a very thin ring around the glass, moderate carbonation. Smell is very mild, somewhat bready, maybe a bit of an earthy tone. A little bit of doughy/yeasty stuff in the aroma as well.

Taste is more intense than the aroma or style would suggest. A blast of citrus and honeysuckle riding on a bready wave. Light, refreshing overall flavor with just a bit of bitterness in the aftertaste to bring you back for more.

Mouthfeel is light and airy. Overall, nice beer.

 

Hi again NBWers.

Fox Farm - Refulent



This is a west coast and looks the part.

Nose is punchy and lively: mostly hops dominating. Piney and resinous.

Taste is clean and approachable. Clean malt bill plays underneath the very sharp hop character. It’s not bitter to my palate. But it certainly is west coast-y.

Tasty stuff. My primary issue is that the finish quite short. Or rather it’s sort of predictable and… plain? Good enough though.

I’m reminded again that the rating system here doesn’t account for finish so my reservations are into the wind.

4.06/5 rDev -2.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4

 

Next up, my wife and I are splitting Mornin’ Delight from Toppling Goliath.



Pours a deep dark brown with a very limited mocha head that dissipates to a thin ring fairly quickly. Thick appearance. No lacing.

The aroma is strong and pleasant. Lots of maple, milky coffee, vanilla. It smells like it is going to be sweet.

The aroma didn’t lie. Sweet maple up front. Sweet milky coffee follows. Sweet, slightly boozy finish. There is a nice stout underneath that undergirds the sweet flavourings.

The body is full, not syrupy.

This is really good. My tolerance for sweet stouts has waned, as has my interest in them. This is on the cusp of being too sweet for me, but isn’t. I’d likely not revisit, but am very glad to have had it.

 

I can’t wait till fall and we get the mixed pack with all the old labels and voted on beers!!

 

Finishing my Sour Sunday with these 2 brews, first a good local one from Pretentious Barrel House:

https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/50646/669483/?ba=bluejacket74#lists



And then a local-ish one from Hoof Hearted:

https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/30179/552913/?ba=bluejacket74#lists



If NBW continues tomorrow for the holiday weekend then I might have another new beer or 2 then. Cheers and have a great week!

 

Yes it was me and I'm so glad you liked it! I love this Saison and it's one of many great ones that Forest and Main make. Cheers!

 

Another one and done for me today, I visited the brewery a couple of weeks ago and picked up the beer (and glassware), and I had the base beer on tap and it was delicious, so I’m excited to try this.





4.35/5 rDev +10.1%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
Pours a rich mahogany brown color that is clear and supports a substantial tan colored head that provides ample lacing. Beautiful beer.

The nose features the peanut butter aroma up front and it smells delicious, complemented by roasty malts, berries, and some honey sweetness. Wow.

That peanut butter flavor is up front as well, but it’s not too strong, with a bit of tartness from the berries and the honey keeping it in check and allowing the roasty malt flavors to provide a smooth finish. This is really well done.

The mouthfeel is medium and finishes very clean, on point for the style and this particular beer.Very glad I picked up a 4-pack of this, because it’s excellent, IMHO.

 

My appreciation for Boston Ale approaches irrational. I absolutely LOVE that beer.

 

It was a 1.5l bottle of 3 Fonteinen no label, had "Gaston 1958" in white wax crayon written on it. Brewery Christmas party with the importers present.
Taste was moving from Lambic toward more ripe summer fuits, round in body limited carbonation, enough acidity to clean things up. These were brought to the holiday gathering by the European rep, sourced at the brewery. Confirmed with photos

Cheers

 

Temporal - Infinite Syzygy, BA barleywine

330ml bottle served in a little Hoppin Frog snulip. Don't see a date, but it's release 20/(infinity symbol).

Pours a dark, murky, muddy brown-black with a small head. Looks thick, syrupy. Smell is molasses, booze, a little char or burnt sugar.

Taste is booze up front, stewed plums, reduced red wine, burnt toffee. Reminds me a bit of burnt sticky toffee pudding somewhere in there.

Mouthfeel is not as thick as it looks, but it is pretty thick. Sticky. Not chewy, though. Overall...it's not bad, it's not great.

 

Ship bottom, a local brewery..pale lager.
....clear pale gold appearance with a slight but lasting head.
....around medium carbonation with about the same for the body which overall added up to a nice feel.
...aroma is a nice mix of cereal upfront t followed by grain,yeasty grainy bread crust. Perhaps a bit of earthy buckwheat honey in the background.
..taste has a very mild sweetness that builds and lingers in the aftertaste. Keeping it from being a too sweet is the dry grainy cereal.
...overall for a relatively inexpensive local beer I thought it was excellent. Teddy thought so as well

 

Let's see if we stay on a winning streak with OEC:



This is OEC Le Pils. The label says to commemorate the 50th Le Man's grand prix, but I think maybe it's just artwork. The web site has a different story The important bits are Czech Pils and Carapils malts, dry hopped for five days with Mistral and Strisselspalt, Loral for bittering. Cool open fermentation with "classic pilsner yeast".

It pours a pale, very slightly hazy straw yellow with a healthy white foam that's at least three fingers. Falls to a huge island with a thick ring. Live color is lighter than the picture suggests.

Aroma says I'm gonna dig this. Straightforward smell of bready, crackery malts. A little sweetness. Fresh lemony citrus and a strong floral component. The hop aromas aren't intense, but they are bright and fresh.

Taste follows - this is a very nicely made pilsner. Slightly sweet, biscuits and crackers. There is a slight bitterness that comes in early and hangs throughout. The hops layer on with citrusy lemon and orange I didn't find in the smell. Floral and herbal component is a nice accent floating on top, I'm guessing this is thanks to the Strisselspalt hops. I seem to remember this hop can impart soapiness when in excess - no soap here. There is a bit of pepper that comes and goes.

The feel is lighter than I expected. I've found OEC beers that use decoction to have a bit more body, but this one is light. Moderately carbonated. The bitterness provides just enough counterpoint to all the brighter elements.

Easy 4.0 - 4.2 here. A very drinkable, well executed beer. I feel it's old school with a modern tweak. Very happy with this one.