New Beer Weekend #183

Back for one more...Smog City/Pizza Port firing on all cylinders here - cheers!

4.29/5 rDev +4.9%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25

Collaboration with Pizza Port. Packaged on December 22, 2023 - enjoyed on January 21, 2024 - poured from a pint can into my Dogfish Head shaped pint glass.

Golden yellow to amber gradient, lightly cloudy, tall dense white cap; fluffy lacing, excellent retention.

Beguiling aroma suffused with tropical fruit (passion fruit, mango, etc.) and lower notes of cara cara orange alongside some floral and herbal hints.

Papaya, candied ginger, toasted sugar, watermelon, strawberry, and orange on the palate entry. Moderately bitter throughout with a dry faintly earthy finish. Wonderful showcase of hops (Iowa 7, Motueka, Citra).

Medium bodied, lightly creamy/oily but crisp and refreshing.

As good as just about any of Pizza Port's seasonal Swami's variants in terms of hop presence/synergy, with a touch more body as well - very pleased with this one.

 

Well, it’s been a day. Below freezing for well over a week but the sun came out today and I got out and shoveled a lot of snow.
So a beer is needed:

(have to use Imgur as discord isn’t working for me)
This is the first and only stout from Kuhnhenn I’ve seen in west Michigan so I had to get it:
Poured stout black with a dense beige color head that left copious sheets of lacing.
The taste is very reminiscent of the elements of cream brûlée, aside from the egg yolks. Lots of burnt sugar and sweet lactose, cocoa and coffee, vanilla and malt notes. It all sounds super sweet but really isn’t. But my tastes are different from yours I’m pretty sure. Still, very good beer.
The lactose makes it slightly viscous, very smooth. Could be a good sipping beer or slammed.
Cheers all! Back later.

 

Bomba Iberian lager.
...ultra clear light gold appearance with a lasting white head.
..medium carbonation with about a medium body.
...aroma is yeast upfront with yeasty white rolls, brown and white rice and cereal.
..taste is almost identical to aroma with there being some grape juice like sweetness showing up.
...overall its a very flavor packed beer and at 4%its very crushable

 

Happy NBS!

Having a very tasty brew (Odd13) (CO), juicy AF, diesel like, 9.8%.

https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/32514/259673/?ba=Wasatch#lists

Cheers!

 

Son and I dug into 'cellar' for a J.W. Lees Harvest Ale Autumn Limited Edition English Barleywine. Bottled in 2011. Rated a 3.98 from me:

Poured from an aged bottle from 2011 in 2024. Beer held on to some carbonation. Poured murky brown in color. Nose is slightly tobacco, with hints of dried fruit, maybe raisins. Taste was also dried fruit with a hint of tobacco on backend. Everso boozy taste and slight warmth down throat.

 

We finally have winter in Northern Indiana, with 15” or so of snow on the ground since last week and -2 Deg forecasted overnight. That’s actually a good thing, because if we don’t have snow and cold now, we’ll have mosquitoes the size of helicopters this summer.

I don’t like helicopter-sized mosquitoes.

So working through grilled chicken in all this snow and cold, a single for me tonight. This is Psychedelic Cat Grass from Short’s Brewing out of Michigan.





4.44/5 rDev +6.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
Pours an unfiltered orange color with a fluffy white head that provides significant lacing and provides a cap that won’t relent as you drink the beer - literally sticks around with an 1/8” sticking to atop the body of the beer.

The nose is all about dank citrus aromas, with grapefruit, mango, and pineapple most prominent. The hop bill in this beer is Citra, Mosaic, and Amarillo which happen to be probably my three favorite hops, so I like where this is heading.

The taste follows the nose, with big, dank mango, pineapple, and grapefruit flavors complemented by a crackery malt flavor that balances the delightful bitterness (85 IBU’s). Absolutely delicious.

The mouthfeel is bright and very dry, perfect for this WCDIPA. I picked this up because it hits my beer nerd sweet spot, and it didn’t disappoint.

 

Social Project Brewing Ocean Views Imperial West Coast IPA, 8.3% ABV; 3.95 overall

Pours an effervescent gold with one finger+ of eggshell colored head. Good lacing & above average head retention, slight hazing as the can is drained

S: Green melon & a little citrus, plus breadyness, fades a little once warm

T: Follows the nose, also some pomelo & dryness up front. More green melon, dryness & pomelo as this warms up, plus a little pine & lime. Finishes dry with grapefruit & green melon, plus some white grape

MF: Medium body, fairly firm carbonation, good balance

Easy to drink, flavor profile is a little less aggressive than I hoped for

 

Social Project Fluffhead Imperial Stout w/Marshmallow & Peanut Butter, 9.2% ABV; 4.11 overall

Pours an effervescent mahogany with a pinky of caramel colored head. Some head retention & lacing

S: Peanuts, vanilla & cocoa

T: Dark chocolate, peanuts, dryness & a touch of roastyness up front. Roasted peanuts, cocoa & a little roasted grain, plus marshmallows once this beer has warmed up. Finishes dry with some peanuts, but mostly vanilla & dark chocolate

MF: Medium body, fairly firm carbonation

Beers with peanuts or peanut butter are not something I usually love, this one isn't bad, but still seems a little forced, but chocolate & marshmallow start to dominate towards to the end, which is okay by me

 

This one drank more like a Brown Ale (Ale yeast in use) than a Porter but I'm not complaining. Nitro Porter by Bravo Brewing Co. of scenic Pascoag, R.I. Cheers.


4.01/5 rDev 0% | Average: 4.01
look: 3.75 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75

A 12-oz. pour at the brewery. Nitro created a very creamy, long-lasting beige head as expected. Clear reddish-brown body with bright red highlights.

Bready malt and mild floral hops greet the nose with roasted malt translating to chocolate and faint coffee.

Between neutral and semi-sweet with medium low bitterness and mild hop flavor. Malt forward with mild roasted character; dark bread, toast and dough. Dark chocolate builds (coffee remains faint) just before the semi-dry finish. Bready malt and chocolate linger a while.

Medium-light bodied with nitro-boosted carbonation, very smooth and balanced. Alcohole is well hidden. Not a typical Porter, light in color and body. The mild coffee is a plus for me.

 

Hello again denizens of NBS! Back for my nightcap.

Well, every BA Imperial Stout is amazing. This one is good, but not really good.
The pour was promising, stout black with a tall light brown head. Sparse lacing.
The flavor started out, well muddled. It improved a bit as it warmed. Started with dark fruit that was a bit overripe and badly brewed coffee. I generally expect a “sharp” edge with rye, but no dice here.
Never got the rye aspect, and have no idea what kind of barrel it was aged in but I’d guess bourbon, and not for long. It ended up okay with a better brewed coffee flavor and non overripe dark fruits, a touch of chocolate maybe.
The feel was slightly viscous, not BA level, but not bad.
OA, I like the rye bite in beer more often than not, but this one didn’t have it. Don’t think I’ll be getting more.
Cheers!

 

Not gonna do a full blown review, but this Stonecloud Cellar Snuggles APA is holding up well despite the fact it is about 8 months old. 5.5% ABV; The Chinook Hops are still shining through



Snap rating, about a 3.75

 

You could visit, I could take you there
I could also ship you another box within a box...


Sticky Beans, by Ever Grain

16oz can served in a tulip. Don't see a date on the can. Got it from @Braunmeister_1943.

Pours black, thick, with about a half centimeter even, dense, dark khaki cap. Smell is rich coffee, slightly chocolatey sweetness.

Taste is right in the same vein -- sweetened dark roast coffee, creamy and rich.

Mouthfeel is thick, bordering on syrupy. Overall, nice, as long as you're looking for a big sweet stout.

 

Welcome to late night edition of New Beer Sunday #987. Out with brother, so hit and run here after a day of hiking and nice family dinner.

Tenaya Creek Zombie Creek



Brewery Notes: Imperial Double New England Hazy 8.1% ABV. $8 16 oz draft.

Appearance: Hazy orange juice base, bright white head leaves significant head. Looks great. 4.5

Aroma: Citrus, mango, pineapple. Nice 4.00

Taste: Really well blended haze, ice citrus lemon, pineapple mango. Right down the middle 250 yard drive. 4.25

Mouthfeel: Nice mouthfeel, faint garb, drinks nice and easy, medium plus creamy body. Bitterness well done, nice pine citrus. 4.25

Overall: This is an excellent haze, will definitely be one I look forward to ordering later this trip. 4.25

 

Never had a chance to have any fifty on this series on draft. Glad the worm has turned.

Fifty Fifty Eclipse Honeycomb 2023



Silver Stamp Notes: BBA Imperial Stout with Honeycomb. 11.2% ABV, $9, 12 oz draft out of Truckee, CA.

Appearance: 9 oz draft in a small snifter, pitch black base, fine tan lacing, bubbly cover over the base. 4.25

Aroma: Let this warm up a bit, very nice honey complementing the nice roast malt base. Near the 15 minute mark, bourbon emerges nicely. Hitting all my highlights. 4.5

Taste: Consistent with the aroma notes. Always love Fifty/Fifty honey BA offerings. Honey roast malt blend hits the spot. Bourbon smooth as silk, really digging all of this. As usual with Fifty/Fifty. 4.5

Mouthfeel: Smooth, medium body. No carbonation. Sweet overall between the honey and base, but the roast malt and bourbon holds it together. Honey bourbon finish. 4.0

Overall: If you love bourbon, honey and a solid stout, buy now and later. If not, I feel bad for you. 4.25