New Beer Weekend #171

I had a plan for today’s NBW, then I saw this beer sitting all alone on my local grocery store’s shelves - and it is pretty fresh (bottled 9/19/23, drink within 90 days).

I am an MBC fanboy bigly, so I pivoted, and the pivot impacts beers #1 AND #2 today, plus tomorrow’s single beer - plus next weekend’s beers. As the label says in pic #2, ripples indeed.





4.27/5 rDev +3.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
Pours slightly unfiltered golden color and sports a fluffy oatmeal colored head that laces the glass in thick veins and caps the beer for the entire ride. Gorgeous WCIPA.

The nose is REALLY dank as you pop open the bottle and as it settles in the glass, tart tangerine notes come forward first, with ripe berries following and some melon and pear mixed in as well - and maybe some coconut?

Definitely coconut, at the back of the palate, courtesy of the Sabro hops. That’s a hop varietal that gets very mixed reviews by beer nerds in my experience, but I enjoy it in moderation, and that’s its place here, smoothing out the tart tangerine flavors along with the delicious berry flavors and the pear notes. Very nice.

The mouthfeel is medium and very dry, making for a very drinkable WCIPA. MBC is the shizzle for my beer nerd palate on the hoppy side of things.

 

Finished off another beer log today… my tasting notes from this morning’s ho hum breakfast beer - Swamp Head’s Nightshade Porter:






I wouldn’t turn it down, but I wouldn’t buy it…Cheers!

 

I threw a few Auroras in your box as that brewery took over the canal Seven Story location.
Good review!

 

Alright back from a full day of errands, lots of new beer releases all around me, and shopping set for tomorrow.

Red Rock - Amber Ale


Canned 8.4.23

Purchased from the grocer for about $2

Poured at fridge temp into a dimple mug

Pours a hazy reddish amber with a generous foamy tan head. 4

Big spiced cascade hops, some doughy dark bread, light caramel. 4

Taste is very hop forward for the kind of ambers/reds I'm used to. Once that herbal and spicy hop mutes a bit, dark bread followed by some caramel and soft bitterness. 4

Body is full, with moderate carbo, and has a lingering hop oil mouthcoating that is actually fantastic. 4.25

Overall a great hopped up amber I could easily drink a pitcher of (and not get plastered). 4

Cheers friends!

 

Howdy new beer friends, back for more new beers as always...it has been a long week of settling back into our home and moving things around, etc. Today Mrs. Phisher drove to Baltimore for her cousins wedding so much like you @Coronaeus I've been watching two crazy boys all day, special times; but now that we're close to bed I couldn't be happier to settle into quiet time with a beer.

I was pretty excited when I saw a new to me irish nitro stout, I know we've commented on our love of nitro @NorsemanOne and this one did not dissapoint. This one is my new go to so long as I continue to find it. I highly recommend anyone who likes Irish Stouts to try this beer it is great!

Sullivan's Brewing - Black Marble Stout (Irish Dry Stout 5%)



Pours the black, big sustaining and creamy nitro head, good nitro dance as the head formed; light brown in color, well above average retention and lacing; even compared to other nitro beers.

The nose is toasty and bittersweet, burnt toast and a dark roast coffee bite; give the impression a chocolate somewhere in there to.

Taste is big on the roast; bitter dark roast coffee, dark chocolate and burnt toast, the aftertaste has a light ash like smoke to it.

Light body, smooth low carbonation; a nice bitter bite on the finish, dries out noticeably. It has the same little sour twang like note I get from Guiness but to a much lesser degree.

A really awesome Irish nitro stout, big big roast with creamy feel and dry bitter finish, sign me up for more of these. I will continue to buy from time to time in hopes of making sure this one doesn't disappear.

I got some cool beers from my pops, who again went back to Galicia in Spain for work. For those of you that remember my initial Galicia post, posts #2 and #3 are coming this weekend or next. Oh, he also brought back two German lagers I'm pretty pumped for them.

Be well tonight and I look forward to reading your beers and joining the fun again tomorrow.

 

#2, I believe I purchased this four years ago. I need to reduce my cellar ….. become need to reduce my cellar. So let’s tackle this English barleywine.





4.57/5 rDev +15.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
Pours a hazy brown with literally no head beyond a bit of light tan suds. This looks like a cask beer in this old beer nerd’s opinion.

The nose is crammed with oak, toffee, and caramel aromas, which is exactly what I was expecting. This entire process thus far has ignited my salivary glands because I’m expecting that delicious English barleywine style beer to shine forth.

My expectations are met and exceeded, with lots of oak and bourbon notes leading to creamy caramel and toffee notes mid-palate, and a smidge of stone fruit at the very back of the palate. I could drink a keg of this.

The mouthfeel is aligned with a cask beer, with a rich, creamy mouthfeel that masks all of the 13.7% ABV heft of this beer. I wish I’d bought a case of this magnificent barleywine.

 

I almost grabbed a Lunch the other day, hadn't seen it in a while so I assumed it was fresh. Sadly I checked and it was bottled in January

It is pretty fresh usually around these parts and is definitely due for a revisit.

 

I was in Lubeck, Germany in June 1970. It was cold, raining, and the four of us had nowhere to stay- every place was full. We finally knocked on this one door of a nice looking bed and breakfast. The very nice lady said she had no rooms and one American (me), one Canadian, one very nice Japanese girl, and one Scottish lass were downcast. We tried to make a plan when the "very nice lady" said, "Well, I have one small room with no beds". We all said we'll take it at once. We laid out our sleeping beds and began to settle in We were very tired and had walked for miles. About 15 minutes later there's a knock at the door and the lady has a tray of sandwiches, strong tea, and a bottle of port. We had been transported by an angel. The next morning she would take no money,

 

I really enjoyed this brew tonight. Cheers!
West O Coco Chocolate Stout 6% ABV
4.03/5 rDev +2.3%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
12 oz can canned 7/12/23 into a tulip glass.
L: Pours black with a 1/4" khaki puffy head that goes to a thick skin then recedes to edge foam, low carbonation, medium skeletal lacing.
S: Light chocolate, dark roasted caramel malts, vanilla. With warming prunes & more dark fruit aromas emerge.
T: Taste follows aroma with notes of dark fruits, brown bread crust, a touch of coffee, light char, dark berries, a note of citrus, zest, background grains. It is moderately sweet and has a lightly floral finish with a gently bitter linger.
F: Fairly smooth medium heavy body leaning more towards medium with a medium length lightly dry finish.
O: Very tasty and quite easy drinking. There are no challenging tastes and cocoa is light. Very well balanced and finishes nicely. It is simple and is very good in its style.

 

@jonphisher description and review had my mouth watering even as I was drinking this excellent DIPA

Red Rock - Super Ape


No canning date - (new as of 10.26.23)

Purchased from the dabc for $4

Poured at fridge temp into my fake Pretentious glass(hey it helps me enjoy aroma more, and therefore the beer more, so it's staying! )

Pours a duller hazy orange (pure Neipa) with an off-white dense and foamy head. 4.25

Lots of ripe tangerine, vanilla sweetness, mango and pineapple. Tropical hops are Similar to POG juice. 4.25

Tropical hop bitters, creamy smoothie like mixed fruits, like alcohol. 4

Creamy, full, fairly soft carbo, 8.2% is well made with no hint of burn or ethanol. 4.25

Overall this might be my new favorite IPA from RR, closely contending with Fukiphīno. 4.25

As a friend on Untappd comically said 'Nintendo is gonna sue'

Cheers friends

 

Hit it on the head. Consistent and clear smoke, but not in a heavy handed way.

 

Ok, I'm back with something perfect to celebrate a great day with courtesy of @beergoot thanks Dave! This is a gem





The name dropping of the barrels used in this blend is jaw dropping, 10 different bourbons, ryes, and whiskeys aged for 24-30 months. This one announces its thicccness on the pour with a uniquely viscous sounding glug. A thin rim of a head forms after almost a full minute of looking flat.

The flavors are intense and concentrated. Semi-sweet chocolate notes are abundant and have a strong edge of molasses, which I'm loving. I also caramel candies, brownie batter, and light dark fruits. Oh, and the barrels! Soooo much brown liquor plus earthy vanilla and leathery oak. Damn good stout!

 

Took advantage of the unseasonably warm day and did outside stuff that may or may not have "needed" doing, but I mowed up a bunch of leaves and at least the back yard indicates possible human habitation of the property.

In the glass next to what's left of a pumpkin autopsy:



Hop Butcher For The World Minted. I have never seen a beer from this brewery, so it was an impulse buy. Canned in November last year...ok...I've had waaaay older, so let's see what's up with this 10.5% Stout. I did preview the score - appears to be a love/hate thing going on.

Pours darn near black, about 3/4 inch of light chocolate foam. Looks nice, actually. Head fizzles out to nothing in a couple minutes.

Smell....well, Andes Candies chocolate/mint hotel room mints. It's not incredibly strong, but it's not easily mistaken, either. Ok...maybe I dropped the pillow mints into a cup of hotel coffee - actually a light, pleasant coffee aroma works in. Some toast, toffee or caramel, cocoa, and a light non-mint herbal note...like green basil?

The taste covers all of the above - much richer than the smell suggest. But guess what - where I can't particularly find it in the smell, the stout base flavor comes through pretty well. There's a decent charred bitterness, the coffee amps up just a little bit. In the aromatics, besides the mint, I do get a fairly strong green herbal taste. Theres quite a bit of sweetness. The mint is in my opinion peppermint. Actually, we grow a chocolate peppermint variety and make tea with it - its weaker than this beer, but the same flavors.

Feel - not highly carbonated. Fairly sticky, but not syrup. Bitter enough. The peppermint and the alcohol make it warming.

I kinda like it, but don't need another one. I can't say it's badly made - its exactly what it says it is. I think somehow it lands around a 3.8 to 4.0. It's well made, it delivers on the intent.

 

Wow. Does it qualify for entry in the Sweetest Beer Thread?

 

Thanks! Trilobites, fish, turtle poop, and mystery mammal bone piece are fossils while the others are a bleached turtle shell and corals we found. The coolest things we have are the hundreds of 5 to 20 million year old shark teeth we find in Maryland.

 

Looking forward to that moon as soon as it rises over here.

That's so cool! We have a handful of trilobites found here in Delta, UT. Actually took the kiddos to Thanksgiving Point Dinosaur Museum today and saw a ton (membership makes it a weekly venture, 15 min down the road)

Thoroughly enjoyed this one.

Offset Bier - Table Bier


no canning date

Purchased from the brewery cooler for $1.67

Poured at fridge temp into a nonic glass

Pours a pale unfiltered golden with a bright white head that is quite persistent. 4

Grainy, light malt sweetness on the nose. Clean. 4

Some soft citrus, mixed grains, floral hoppy bite and finish. 4

Very soft and easy drinking, silky mineral water feel and refreshingly dry finish. 4

Overall a excellent crusher I definitely need more of, and flavor punched far higher than it's class. 4