New Beer Weekend #191

Poured into a 16 oz Nordic pint glass canned on 2/01/24. Pours an attractive hazy orange with a finger plus sticky white head that leaves plenty of webby lace with excellent retention. 4.25

Aroma is mandarin, mango, lemon, peach, and apricot. 4

Taste follows mandarin, mango, peach, lemon, and apricot. 4

Mouthfeel is above average, soft gentle carbonation, not sticky or dry, and at 7% bigger in body and flavor, but still very approachable. 4.5

Overall I would say worth a shot for sure. I wish I saw this a month ago. 4

 

@jonphisher @beergoot @Whyteboar
I'd agree that Foreign Extra Stout is at the top of the Guinness pyramid for me, though I haven't had it in a number of years. Might be time to rectify that.

Pulling from quite a few years of drinking for this ranking: Foreign Extra, Extra (I've had both the original and Canadian but don't recall any difference from memory), draught, 0.0. I will say, though, that I've had many an imperial pint of draught in the UK and I'd rank that much higher as long as it isnt the extra cold version. The above list in packaged only to keep things consistent. For nitro cans of draught style, I prefer Sullivan's, then Murphy's, and then Guinness.

 

I think I’m with you in your draught can preference as well; Sullivan’s is really really good IMO.

 

Yazoo Brewing Belgian Blonde Ale




Light gold color with moderate white cap that doesn't hang around.

Aroma of mild grain and lightly spicy hops. A little more hop than grain but a balance is there.

I get some varied flavors that weave together like strands of a rope. Grain not as prominent as in the nose and is overtaken by ripe fruit notes such as pear, apple and even a touch of peach. Everything works together from start to finish with a mildly citrus like aftertaste.

Light texture with balancing carbonation.

Overall I find it Belgian-esque, I can pick up some charicteristics of the Belgian style and probably would've said that even if the brewer had chosen a different name. Even though it weighs in at 6.1% and is brewed with Belgian candy sugar it really strikes me as a table style brew.

 

Before I jump in, want to congratulate and wish @ovaltine a happy 34th anniversary!

Top of the morning to ya and welcome to a Saint Patrick Edition of New Beer Sunday #995. We are five away from #1000 due on Sunday, April 20th. Hope you can all join us on for a special Sunday event.

Returning with my second Fremont offering I wish I could share with my brother. The Fremont 2018 Coffee Cinnamon B Bomb was my personal Best in Show at 2019 FOBAB. I didn't like the coconut version as much, though that is an adjunct I typically like. This one is has no adjuncts, so hopefully I will like it the way it was meant to be when it was first formulated.

Fremont Brewing 2023 B-Bomb (Bourbon Abominable Winter Ale)



Bottle Notes: Purchased at Khoury's Fine Wine & Spirits in Las Vegas, Nevada on 1/14/24 for $32.45. 22 oz bottled in 2023 with no notable month or date. 2023 Limited Release. 22 oz, 14.7% ABV. Fremont Brewing, Seattle, Washington. Purchased at store temperature, refrigerated about 10 days until returning home, than refrigerated until opening today. Imperial Winter Ale aged in Bourbon Barrels. World Beer Cup 2012 Bronze Award for Woo, and Barrel-Aged Strong Beer.

Down & Dirty: 2=Row Pale, Crrustal-120, Munich, Roast Barley, Carafa-2, and Chocolate malts with Columbus, Willamette, and US Goldings hops, and yeast and water.

Allow this bottle to gather dust through 2024 & beyond.

This year's release of B-Bomb is aged in 8-12 year-old American Oak bourbon barrels and is a blend of 9, 12, and 24-month old barrel aged Winter Ale. B-Bomb achieves distinct oak, cacao, leather, toffee, and dark coffee notes from its extended barrel aging and barrel blending. Each barrel contributes a different note, and combining each barrel to create a coherent tone is a distinct art and true pleasure. Please do enjoy this unique barrel-aged ale today but know that B-Bomb will aged gracefully for at least another 5 years. Don't Be Afraid To be Abominable.

Appearance: Poured about half the bottle into a thin GI BCBS snifter. Nice dark rich creamy tan head lingers for a few minutes before leaving a razor thin cover over the very dark near black base, with a stronger creamy buildup around the rim. 4.5

Aroma: Took a few minutes to get through the bottle wax nonsense, then 10 more minutes of waiting to get to near proper temperature. Milk chocolate, raisins and plums. caramel. Not very strong, OK. 3.25

Taste: Sweet, chocolate fudge my primary takes after first try and giving it a few more minutes. Getting very sweet bourbon, like Jim Beam with a bunch of sugar poured in. More so than the Fremont Cuvee yesterday. Chocolate chips you dump into cookie batter. Lots of sweetness. Lost the minimal complexity in the aroma along the way 3.25

Mouthfeel: Feels much easier than the listed ABV, at least about a quarter of the way in, thought the booze hit me somewhat strong at about the 40% mark. Perhaps the sweet chocolate and bourbon is impacting my perception. Sweet cocoa and faint roast malt cannot hold off the chocolate and sweet bourbon. Chocolate chip finish, like on pancakes when you (OK perhaps when I) was kid. 3.5

Overall: This version is more consistent with my take on the coconut variant, though even less to my liking. Would really like to do a side by side with the 2018 Coffee Cinnamon I rated as the FOBAB 2019 Best In Show to determine whether the large difference in perception was due to the actual beer, or whether changes in my palate and or preferences has me where I am at today. Not worth the high bottle price tag, or dealing with the wax bottle for that matter. A good beer, but not a repeat unless possibly if offered at a share or festival. Perhaps my high expectations are impacting my perception, but I do my best to be accurate. Boozy and sweet. Full stop. 3.5

Now I really wish I shared this with my brother, who appreciates sweetness more than me and just to get his take to see how it lines up with my experience. Still seeking Fremont in the future, especially after my Saturday pour which I guess I should have lined up for "Prime Time" Sunday.

See you next week with two Chicago pours with local ties beyond the brewery.

 

Poured into a 16 oz tulip glass canned on 9/15/2023. Pours a very dark brown with a finger brown head that leaves some thick streaks of lace with nice retention. 4.25

Aroma is faint coffee, vanilla, cocoa nibs, and toffee. 4

Taste follows coffee is the lead, but not overly roasty. Vanilla, cocoa, and toffee lend a hand. 4

Mouthfeel is a little above average, not sticky or dry, soft gentle carbonation, and at 7.9% not a ton of flavor, but easy going down. 4

Overall nothing stands out as good, but still a pleasant breakfast stout. 4

 

I’m just a little envious of your draught pulls of imperial stout in the UK. Not sure we get that (from Guinness anyway) in the states. Imperial is a different level from Foreign Extra, which seems to be a curiosity level from a bygone era. It’s still a thing though.

 

Super busy day yesterday, but today I'm settled in to my normal weekend routine of catching up on work, watching soccer and enjoying some beer.

First up is Barrel Aged 4D (Fourth Dementia) from Kuhnhenn. I received this along with several other excellent Kuhnhenn beers in the first BIF I participated in back in 2019. I've lost count of the number of great beers I've been able to try solely due to my BIF participation. The generosity of this community continues to amaze.


4.32/5 rDev -5.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.25
2018 vintage

In the glass, this is fairly unremarkable, but the actual pour out of the bottle makes up for it. There's a beautiful red tint that adds a certain brilliance to this as it pours out of the bottle. In the glass it disappears and just becomes a meh dark brown with a little bit of head, but man was the pour itself attractive.

Molasses lead the way on the nose, with some faint fig like notes lurking underneath. It's very rich smelling, but in the best possible way. Perhaps rethinking my decision to enjoy this in the morning vs. evening, but there's never a wrong time to drink good beer, right?

Raisins & figs are more prominent on the tongue than the nose, particularly early in my first few sips. Caramel and toffee start to take a more prominent role with subsequent sips, emerging even more on the long finish. Wonderful subtle alcohol warming, and this coats the mouth very nicely.

Overall, this is excellent.

 

Good morning NBS/nbw and thanks @DoctorZombies for hosting this week
Todays offering is from Brewery at Four Star Farms, a well executed Kolsch style
The attention to detail shows through
Enjoy your St Patricks day all.

Crisp Lines

Kölsch | 5% ABV
The Brewery at Four Star Farms in Northfield, Massachusetts

Reviewed by SABERG from Massachusetts

4.1/5 rDev +5.7% | Average: 3.88
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Poured from a 16 oz can packaged this week, purchased at the brewery.
A - Pours a beautiful light straw gold, gentle and determined carbonation feed a thin white cap.
S - A bit of citrus and pine, with a lovely biscuit malt thread. Add a kiss of sulphur.
T - A bit of peppery hop, again with a noble hop element, touch of lemongrass, white pepper. Baguette crust
M - Light on the palate, borders on the sweet side, then a mineral wave and nice bitter snap moves the needle.
Dry finish with a bit of that sulphur reapearing
O - A very good, and quite drinkable Kolsch style.

 

All right, time for a beer. This beer is thanks to the generous trade I did with @turfy .


IPA - Marble Brewing - Albuquerque, NM - 6.8% ABV

Ok, in spite of my rating being way lower than the average here, I really like this beer. If I'm burping hops I am liking it. The aroma is mango forward and pineapple on the back to me. The flavor is pineapple forward and mango on the back. It seems weird, but that's what I get off it. I am thankful I got to try it, and thankful it was sent to me.

Review:
https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/16963/43181/
3.73/5 rDev -7.9%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.75
From a can - Best by 04/02/24

Murky hazy straw colored pouring beer. The head that formed was a 1 finger white and frothy looking head. Head retention isn't the greatest, and there's a bit of lacing on the glass.
The aroma is tropical, and I caught a whiff of it while pouring the beer. Up close I get a lot of mango in here, and it's a sweeter smelling mango. I also get some hints of pineapple, but it is light.
Taste - Well, the taste is opposite of the aroma. The pineapple is the main flavor in this beer and it's backed up by a touch of mango. There's a pleasing bitterness in this beer.
There's a nice pop or crisp feeling to this beer. Nice decent body, though it isn't soft feeling.
I am burping hops as I finish up this review and this is a pleasing thing to me. I do like this beer, and am glad I got a chance to try it.

I am supposed to go out later today, so I'll see if I can pluck off one more new beer before then. Cheers!

 

That is a kolsch that looks the part too, nice picture.

 

Happy anniversary to Mr. and Mrs. O!

 

I too would be envious of that but alas it is not the case. You've swapped the word order from my post...imperial pints, not pints of imperial. Still, though, fresh Guinness on tap that hasn't spent several weeks in a boat is at another level than what we get over here.

 

I find myself in the same position as yesterday: drinking beer and watching basketball.
Today's new beer is Second Fiddle, a wonderful DIPA from Fiddlehead Brewing Company.
The beer is a gold color, slight haze, Thick white head, persistent, with a good amount of sticky lace.
Aroma of citrus and pine.
Taste of grapefruit and lemon up front, followed by pine. The pine lingers on my palate for a time.
Nicely hopped.
A seriously good beer.

 

I just had a few sips of Mrs Phishers Fiddlehead IPA the other night. It has quite a bit of modern hop presence to it; this one sounds more like I remember it tasting but I haven’t had it in ages. Maybe a revisit is in order…

 

Gnarly Barley Catahoula Common/Steam Beer
Beer


Pours a pale light gold color with lasting white cap and good lacing.

Aroma of sweet grain and sharp/floral hops.

Taste on entry is medium malt that's clean, tasty and very satisfying. Hops kick in at about mid palate and laste through the crisp, dry finish and pleasant aftertaste. This Common Beer is brewed with Cascade Hops which give it a familiar, old timey taste that brings back a lot of scent and palate memories for me.

I could go on for paragraphs and every thing I say would be positive. I like California Common beers and I'm glad to find this one in our distribution area.

 

Lupulin BA Cinnamon Coffee Shop Assault Vehicle Imperial Pastry Stout, 10.5% ABV. Pours black with a ring of brown bubbles that left a film on the glass. Aroma is bourbon, coffee, chocolate, and cinnamon. Taste is strong coffee and cinnamon, chocolate, bourbon, quite sweet, slightly bitter, no burn. Mouthfeel OK with light carbonation. Overall world-class.

4.56/5 rDev 0%
look: 4 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4.5

Not cloying, but they could turn the sweetness knob down a notch. Really nice coffee without the bitterness.