New Beer Weekend #187

Greetings fellow beer nerds! Just got back from a day and a half in Boston. Despite living only two hours from there, we pretty much never go as tourists, so we decided to spend a day and change downtown. Cold, but a good time with the family. Now it's time for beer!

Tonight's beer comes courtesy of @Coronaeus who has sent me more amazing beers than I can count in NBW BIF related shenanigans. This one is Barrel Aged Rat Queen, a BBA Imperial Stout from Barncat Artisan Ales.

4.16/5 rDev +0.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.25
Deep brown / black pour appearance with ample, attractive tan head that receded to a thin ring and spotty cap. From afar, the aroma is mostly rich, chocolate malts but up close the bourbon barrel booziness takes a larger role. Taken together, the appearance and aroma make for a very enticing beer.

Taste is very similar to the nose, with hints of bourbon, chocolate & molasses. The alcohol is not hidden with this one, it's clear about half a second into your first sip that this is a heavy hitter. Feel might be the highlight of the beer. Really thick and chewy with wonderful alcohol warming on the long finish.

Overall, really enjoyable beer. Thank you, Peter!

 

NBS #2. Glasstown Brewing Co.'s 10th anniversary IPA. It's hopped with Talus and HBC 1019 and the yeast is Conan. Now, my favorite Glasstown IPA is 856 - one of the better West Coast IPAs regularly available in New Jersey. But this 10th Anniversary IPA shows so much more deft touch. It's a very sophisticated taste for two hops. And it's very tasty! Glasstown should give this recipe its own name and brew it regularly. It's seriously good!

It pours a hazy, honey-amber color with a big, fluffy, bright white head and thick, clinging lacing inside the glass. A nice big aroma of candied orange, peach, melon, sweet cream, and shaved coconut. The nose reminds me of a tropical punch. The taste is rather unusual in a good way. There is a firm malt base with earthy, woodsy notes and resinous pine. Above is the sweetness of peach, clementine, ripe melon, and just a hint of coconut. The hop bill of Talus and HBC 1019 is inspired and indicative of Glasstown's brewing sophistication. The mouth feel is luxurious for 6.8% ABV. Overall, this is a top shelf American IPA. It's a great example of local craft brewing. Glasstown should be proud of this ale!

4.35/5 rDev 0%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

Happy Birthday, NBS!

 

Thanks for the South Jersey love as always @MacMalt that one is so deep into South Jersey I have never visited it. Their beer used to be around here more frequently but I haven't seen in a while.

It is almost like all the NJ breweries are really finding their own little spot in the state, and its really neat. Hopefully it leads these places to sustained success in each of their areas.

 

Good Evening and Happy NEW BEER SUNDAY, 19th Anniversary
Thanks as always @ChicagoJ for keeping the clock alive
We may be at Wrigley to see some music in September (just hoping)
Today we were at the Harris Hill Ski jump, an annual event now 102 continuous years !
Great jumpers and great crowd!
Todays offering for this celebration is from Stoneman Brewing, a small shares brewery.
Wobbly

Wheatwine | 10% ABV
Stoneman Brewery in Colrain, Massachusetts

Reviewed by SABERG from Massachusetts

4.16/5 rDev 0% | Average: 4.16
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Poured from this years release 500 ml bottle, into the test glass.
A - Pours a slightly hazy, auburn color. Gentle carbonation, steadliy feeds a ring clinging to the perimiter.
S - A bit of clove, banana, dry white toast. Add some vanilla, and hints of toffee
T - All the aromatics, plus a lovely rich crusty bread underlayement, A bit of red pepper and anise
M - Full bodied, alcohol well hidden, sweet finish
O - A rich and deep offering, full grain expression, well hidden 10%, with complexity to be explored

 

I've not seen them since

 

Imperial Stout BA Series #10, Woodstock, Illinois.

3.74/5 rDev 0%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
A thick and oily looking pour yields a small tan head. Snot locker says chocolate, crackers and a booze. Taste buds agree, also get some spice. It felt thin, some seem to linger, this one didn't.

.......I guess its the graham cracker that was off putting......

 

Im glad you enjoyed it. Sadly, Barncat closed up shop a couple months back. The two guys behind it always kept say jobs, from what I’ve heard and the economics of it were getting harder to justify. They made some really good beers.

Cheers!

 

Skydance Colorblast Quadruple IPA w/ Necroton & Alora Hops. 10.2% ABV; 4.44 overall


Pours a hazy gold with a thumb of eggshell colored head. Sheets of lacing & good head retention

S: Loads of citrus, tropical fruits as well

T: Oranges, green melons, guavas, passion fruit up front. More green melon, passionfruit & tangerine as this beer warms up, some pineapple as well, a touch papaya as well. Finishes with tropical fruitiness, a little pineapple, plus a kiss of lime

MF: Medium/chewy body, low carbonation, lovely balance

Another great IPA from these guys, super drinkability; ABV is well hidden

 

Happy NBS!

Having a very tasty beer from Weldwerks (CO).

https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/38773/258081/?ba=Wasatch#lists

Cheers!

 

Rigor Mortis ABt, by Dieu du Ciel.
Bottle says Abbey-Style Brown Ale. BA has it as a Quad. Picked up for $3.99 (?), maybe $4.99 down in Richmond, Va. Not feeling the Quad, more the Belgian Strong Dark. Almost a Barleywine taste. Not as refined as last night's Chimay Blue.
But hey, not complaining. This is a really good cold night sipper. Wish I'd bought some more. At 10.5%, need to slow down. As with most Belgians, or Belgian- styles, ABV is well subsumed.

 

Poured into a 13 Oz Teku glass canned on 2/01/24. Pours an attractive hazy orange with 2 finger sticky white head that leaves thin streaks of lace with excellent retention. 4.5

Aroma is mango, tangerine, passionfruit, and apricot. 4.5

Taste follows it is Mango Treat mango stands out, tangerine, passionfruit, and apricot 4.5

Mouthfeel is above average, soft gentle almost creamy carbonation, not sticky or dry, and at 8.3% ABV very easy drinking. 4.5

Overall this is very nice. The mango is not over the top. I really enjoyed it. 4.5

 

I'm nothing if not a glutton for punishment.

This one was bottled on 31 Dec 2015 at 1333 according to the label.



St. Klippenstein from Allagash. It's a BDSA here, but the label listing of ingredients reads Imperial Stout to me. No style indicated on the label. Either way, it's 11% ABV and barrel aged, so maybe it's held up.

It pours as near black as it gets. Can maybe coax a little deep red tint at the edge. Brief flush of fairly large bubbles. There's a ring after it settles down and oily fine bubbles drape the glass nicely.

Bourbon and vanilla take center stage on the smell. Backing that up is a heavy base of roasted malts. There's a mild spicy note that I think is clove but could be licorice/anise.

The taste is quite smooth. It hits as a whole rather than building layers. The bourbon, slight vanilla sweetness, a bit of oaky pheolics and a nice malt base all seem to arrive together. As it goes down, there's chocolate notes, more woodiness, a cola-like taste, and finally a small bit of spice at the end in that clove/anise ballpark but not clear to me which. Kinda leans to the licorice side. There's a very slight hint of oxidation.

It's mildly carbonated at best, fairly dry, no bitterness. Smooth and silky. A little chocolate chalkiness.

Overall, it's still good but it has probably fallen off a bit. It's super smooth and mellow. It reads Belgian imperial stout to me and I can not see where it could overlap with BSDA. In my opinion, it completely lacks the dark fruit flavors I'd expect in a BSDA. It isn't super-complex and is quite straightforward. I don't think it's typical for those flavors to fade with time - I usually find them stronger and more prune-like with age, actually. As it sits, a low 4 score for me regardless of style. Gauging strictly as a BSDA, I'd have to knock it down.

 

And finally my new beer choice for Sunday, a classic of all classics, I am really really excited to open this beer tonight. @ovaltine you got me thinking I really should revisit this when you posted it a few months back and then @cjgiant your side by side and "pine on pine on pine" description in some post sealed the deal. I had this beer once in my early days but barleywines scared me, they still do; but all those "pines" in that review, I had to. So on this Sunday night in February I sit and sip on the one and only...

Sierra Nevada - Bigfoot (American Barleywine 9.5%)



A beautiful looking beer; clear and a beautiful super ruby hued color, big fluffy off-white head that leaves some sticky lacing, above average retention, giving it a swirl revives a thick creamy cap that lingers and subsequently laces as it settles.

The nose is well; heavenly its pine and sap heavy but there are floral undertones that make it smell like a pine tree potpourri, malt presence is there, caramelized and melding with toasty qualities.

The taste is sticky and pine heavy, white pine needles in hop form, but so much better; they meld with the malt and give this a caramelized and sappy flavor all at once with just a hint of toastiness in the aftertaste.

Big beer; high medium, super smooth on the palette, its carbonation is so smooth and creamy as it coats the whole tongue with all the aforementioned pine and sap; which comes off as very resin heavy now in feel, big bitterness on the finish, a hint of alcohol but nothing off putting; it is there to remind you to beware of drinking to fast.

This beer is an amazingly big hoppy and subsequently malty beer, quite drinkable for its heft and it has all the flavors I love in an IPA. This is a real treat to sip on and I'm very glad you all, BA collectively, prompted me to finally try this beer again.

---------------------------

Have a wonderful week everyone, can't wait to be back next week. Cheers

 

Drinking this very good, very boozie American Barleywine. New for this weekend!

 

So, for this auspicious date in NBS history I chose a BA Wee Heavy that @Coronaeus sent to me in an NBW (NBS?) a few years ago in a BIF or LIF and was saving for such an occasion.


This is seriously good stuff!
Poured breakfast blend coffee - appropriate for a scotch ale.
Aroma is still lost to my sense of smell. Stupid Covid.
The taste, malty and full of malty goodness and a touch of bourbon. A fair amount of dark fruit esters with some vanilla and very light caramel. Almost light in flavors for a BA beer but dang, so tasty!
The feel is appropriate for the style; not really viscous but not thin in the least. In fact, it's so quaffable that I finished the bomber before I knew it. Which brings us back to taste - I could hardly tell the alcohol in this, just so easy to drink. Might be dangerous!

 

Joy and I are having dinner with James tonight in Phoenix at a Polish/Ukraine restaurant called All Pierogi Kitchen.

I’m so happy I could cry.

This first beer is my first Ukrainian beer called Svitle, which is a Pale Euro Lager. This will pair well with the metric crap ton of pierogis I just ordered.





3.71/5 rDev +18.9%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
Pours a mostly clear straw color with a fluffy white head that provides a surprising amount of lacing. Beautiful beer. The nose features grassy hop notes and cereal grains.

The grassy hop flavors are more pronounced on the taste, and work really well with the cereal grain flavors. Nicely balanced, with a crisp mouthfeel, this is a pretty decent Pale Euro Lager.

 

This is a lovely and mellow beer. Cheers!
New Belgium/Four Roses Oakspire Bourbon Barrel Ale 9% ABV
4.19/5 rDev +8%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
12 oz bottle enjoy by 06 Oct 24 into a tulip glass.
L: SRM 9 Pours medium rust colored clear caramel with a thin eggshell white head that moves to edge foam, fine steady carbonation bubbles, medium random lacing.
S: Malts, a hint of barrel wood, toffee, raisins, plum, a light note of brown bread, sun-dried leather.
T: Toffee, vanilla, caramelized malts, light bourbon, traces of rum, a bit woody, lightly pale, dark fruits, raisin bread, a suggestion of grains, a little bit sweet, has dark fruits bitterness, light candy sugar, distant tannins with warming, a fruit bread aftertaste and a medium linger.
F: A lightly brisk start then a simple standard feel that has a medium-long smooth finish that is gently drying.
O: Lightly sweet, bready & woody. Not challenging to drink and is very mellow. Incredible taste and bouquet. This is a well refined ale I find to be very pleasing and close to an aperitif. IMHO it is outstanding in its style.

 

#2, this Polish Baltic Porter is a beer I’ve had my eye on at my local for a while, so I’m really happy to try this with my boy.

But first, a shot of dinner.



And the beer.



4.35/5 rDev +11.5%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
Pours a clear mahogany brown color and settles as nearly black in the glass with a creamy tan head that provides a significant amount of lacing. Beautiful Baltic Porter.

The nose features loads of roasty malts, some dark chocolate, and a bit of stone fruit. The taste follows has a more pronounced roasty char and dark chocolate flavor profile, and the stone fruit, here as plums, is a fitting back of the palate finish on this delicious beer.

The mouthfeel is full and creamy, on point for this beer. What a delightful beer this is.

 

Everything looks great, washed down with a World-Class Baltic Porter!

 

Prairie Artisian Ales Mint Condish Stout with Cocoa Nibs, Vanilla & Peppermint & Coffee flavors, 8.0% ABV; 3.88 Overall

Pours a thick-ish & effervescent mahogany with a pinky of mocha colored flavor. Minimal head retention & even less lacing

S: Peppermint, coffee, not much else

T: Follows the nose, vanilla notes as well, plus mocha flavors up front. Coffee, mint & vanilla as this beer warms up, some dryness, dark chocolate notes also. Finishes with vanilla, mint, cola & coffee notes

MF: Medium body, somewhat assertive carbonation

Solid stout that is pretty drinkable, was hoping for a little more from this one, just the same. I would've bucked up the ABV a few more points maybe