New Beer Weekend #247

Hello all. I thought I’d get an early start on participation this weekend. This was from late last night as I watched the Habs/Sens game on PVR. One more win for ‘Les Glorieux’ to clinch their spot in the playoffs. Hopefully they go from having a 98% chance of making it this morning to 100% tonight against the Leafs and their five man defence corps (sorry @jonphisher!).

This is Hazy Rapids NEIPA from Ganaraska Brewing Company of Port Hope, Ontario. Sadly, this beer follows the pattern I’ve noticed locally that when you see a beer labeled as NEIPA, it’s generally a lacklustre or middling version of the style.



The beer pours a lightly hazy straw gold with a fairly moderate head that dissipates within a few minutes. The appearance is less substantial than the best examples of the style and has me making certain not to get my hopes up too much. .

The aroma is strong from the crack of the can. Lots of pleasant tropical fruit like mango and guava with some peach and nectarine in there as well. The smell is the best part of this beer. Hopes up slightly.

The taste is a bit of a let down from the promise of the aroma. The flavours mentioned that hit the nose strongly are present, but are thin and fleeting giving the beer a fairly weak character. Early expectations are being realized.

The light body of the beer compounds the issue by making the beer feel a little more watery than expected or desired.

In short, the beer is adequate. Not something I’d bother to re-visit, but nevertheless not something I’d turn down if offered again.

A couple words about the brewery itself. I was in the area to meet with a client, and had some time to drop in quickly afterwards. The brewery is located in old downtown Port Hope, which is a lovely town along the 401 about an hour east of Toronto. The brewery’s located close to the Ganaraska River. When I visited, the place was hopping with patrons and the smell of the food being served was enticing. This was at about 2:30 PM on a Thursday afternoon. It was nice to see it doing such brisk business mid-afternoon on a week day. I’ll make a point of returning to have a meal and a beer. I grabbed a few cans during my short stop and look forward to trying in particular the German style Pilsner, Maibock and Marzen that are in my fridge.

Cheers!

 

Hello BAs! I had this beer ystrdy to celebrate a tedious job being finished and unfortunately it was a disappointing RIS. My tip: Skip it. It's a whack job of a beer.


Surly Darkness Chocolate Limoncello 2024 RIS
Reviewed by LesDewitt4beer from Minnesota
3.33/5 rDev +4.7%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.25
16 oz can mfrg date 11/6/24 into a snifter.
L: SRM 40 pours jet black with a pillowy & rocky 2" creamy dark khaki head that has very good retention, very fine steady carbo, head recedes to heavy scattered froth, medium-heavy chunky loose lacing.
S: Dark chocolate, an unknown industrial aroma, a metallic note, lemon zest, light alcohol with warming.
T: Basically like liqueur filled chocolates. First candy sweetness then lemon zest, lemon concentrate, then dark cocoa and bitter dark chocolate, dark fruits, toasted malts. Sweet on the lips, bitter in the mouth. Has a very long lemon zest and resinous finish that lingers. The taste does a 180 degree turn in the center from lemon to cacao.
F: Fairly smooth straight ahead average medium-heavy to heavy mouthfeel with a dynamic center and a long lightly drying finish. It is gently warming.
O: Overpriced and kind of messy. IMHO the lemon puree is distracting flavor-wise and isn't even needed. The base beer is fine. This beer is kind of loose tasting and its aroma isn't very pleasing. It looks better than it is. Okay to good but I won't buy it again.

 

I really have to get my passport so we can meet up and visit some of these breweries @Coronaeus. Getting a passport was on my to do list last summer; now it’s on this summers list.

As per tonight’s game; I just hope it’s a good one. I know the energy will be very high so it will be enjoyable to watch. Still hoping for a win to stay atop the Atlantic.

Hoping to find some new beer to join you all later today.

 

Thanks for the flavor wheel image. I will use it!

 

Any time my friend. I’m actually trying to convince my oldest friend to take some time off this summer so that we can go on a bit of a road trip together and visit some breweries on the way. Neither of us have ever been to New Jersey, so it’s definitely a possibility if our schedules can be coordinated.

Despite their recent winning streak, the Habs have been really getting sluggish starts and falling behind every game. Unfortunately, Ottawa was able to really exploit that last night. I have a feeling we might see a similar script tonight…

 

Good to see you back in the threads!

 

Voodoo Brewing Voodoo Love Child Oak BA Tripel, 9.5% ABV. Aroma is grape, raspberry, with oak and a bit of funk. Taste follows, slightly sweet, faintly tart, faintly bitter. Decent mouthfeel, leaning towards heavy on carbonation. Overall excellent.

3.91/5 rDev -0.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.75

Thanks to @Ozzylizard for sharing this excellent Tripel in a LIF box associated with the Stout/Barleywine BIF.

 

Barrel Theory Resin Tomb

Appearance: Mostly clear yellow-gold, ok head.

Smell: Moderate citrus aroma, hint of dank.

Taste: Mild to moderate sweetness then a pretty good hit of citrus bitterness. A little malt body comes through. Medium-light body, finishes with a nice citrus bitterness and dryness.

Overall: A pretty solid west coast style IPA from a brewery that normally does NEIPA's. Not a super tongue bruiser but a nicely bitter and easy drinking IPA.

 

Hello New Beer Weekend!!!

Done with work for the week, and time for a beer. I decided to go to Bad Habit Brewing in St Joseph, MN for one.

Distracted by Fun - American IPA - 7%

The aroma and flavor are different beasts. The aroma is full on tropical, and the flavor is pine/dank. Quite interesting beer, and I really like it.

Review:
https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/42984/741250/
3.96/5 rDev 0%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
On tap at the brewery.
This beer is mostly clear looking in the glass, with just a faint haze to it. The color is a nice golden shade. The head is quite frothy looking and white in color. Some super sticky looking lacing on the glass.
The aroma is a great hot of hops. There's a ton of tropical notes in here. Not really getting any pine hops.
Taste - ok, where did the tropical go? The beer has a nice hit of pine from the hops. There's also a good dank hit here in the beer and an earthy tone. There is a bit of tropical and more of a melon flavor to it that adds a hint of sweetness to the beer.
The body has a nice depth. The feeling from the hops does linger in my throat and I am burping hops a bit.
I am really enjoying this IPA. Very well made.

I will be home in a bit for more new beers. Cheers all.

 

Had a couple good Bruery stouturday brews today, hope the pics show up since my Imgur is still acting weird:

Abuelita’s Super Especial | The Bruery | BeerAdvocate

https://i.imgur.com/v0nxKCb.jpeg

Minty Scoops | The Bruery | BeerAdvocate



https://i.imgur.com/nU1GbJc.jpeg

Cheers everyone! Plan on having another couple new brews tomorrow.

 

Finally digging into a 12-can variety pack I got from Half Time last week.
This is Lighting from Mortalis Brewing.

4.24/5 rDev -1.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
Arrived in a package from Half Time pretty much at ambient temperature. Refrigerated immeadiatly and until served. Poured from a 16 oz undated to a bulbous, tulip-like glass.
The body is a milky light straw, approximately SRM 2.5. The head is quite white and the lacing is on the low side of medium.
Citrus and floral hit the nose. There is a background of funk, but it is not distracting.
Taste starts as sweet citrus but alcohol ism pretty prominent in the middle for a 6.5 ABV. The finish is very dry and bitter, almost puckeringly so. And that sensation lasts for a good 20 seconds or more.
The mouthfeel is medium creamy and the carbonation is about right.
An interesting beer. I like a dry bitter finish, but this is so prominent that it's probably not for everyone.

 

Well, I'm home now, and am excited to try this one.

Light Lager - Summit Brewing - St. Paul, MN - 3.8%

You get what you would expect in this beer - a light lager, but it does have a good amount of flavor for the style. Happy with this beer.

Review:
https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/467/740139/
3.67/5 rDev +0.8%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
From a 12oz can. Enjoy by 08/22/25

This beer is a nice clear golden color. The beer has a nice stream of carbonation bubbles rising in the glass. The head is a 2 finger white head with great retention and some lacing on the glass.
The aroma is a nice full bodied grain/cereal aroma. I am shocked because it is pretty much the same as the regular lager.
The flavor is a bit light, but this is something I expected. There's cereal and grain notes in the beer. There's somewhat of a watery flavor in here.
Light and clean body. Somewhat watery feeling.
If you want a tasty light lager, you're in the right place with this beer.

What will be next? Not sure yet. Be back in a bit with another beer.

 

Hi All,
Starting with hops...


Project X: Free Fall
Stamped with a genesis date of 03/04/25.
Well, before I can even talk about the appearance, the nose jumped out upon the top of the can. So I’m starting there. This bad boy fills the nose with a gloriously pungent mix of tropical, citrus, and some green resiny notes. It’s really bright, green, and juicy. The initial pop carried peach, hence pineapple, citrus, zest, and green grass.
The flavor doesn’t quite follow. The intensity of the nose has kind of a smooth delivery of a citrus, dominant tropical punch. Notes of pineapple and mango chime in, and there’s a slightly herbal note to the bitterness.
Mouth is OK for style doesn’t have the fluffiness that one would hope for hazing
Overall A pretty good beer. Once it was poured the initial fluff dropped down to a thin film and left very scattered lacing. But the color is not the most appealing. I would describe it as a slightly dull, opaque Kearns pear nectar in color.
3.83/5 rDev 0%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.75

 

I haven't had or come across many new to me beers lately. I have just been sticking with old stand buys...but was at Great Heights Brewing this afternoon, and wouldn't you know it they have a new IPA.

Night Gardener IPA, 6.2% ABV

IPA with Strata and Comet hops.



Pours a clear pale yellow color. A small white head forms buy quickly recedes, with no lace left behind.
Aroma of grapefruit, citrus, lemon, a bit of generic passion fruit (or what I would call that) in the nose. Simple but spot on and enjoyable.
Taste wise, again that grapefruit citrus character up front. The passion fruit salad flavor as well. Like most Great Heights IPA's I get a woody flavor, and even a cooked veggie character..DMS? Bitterness lingers on.
A medium body that is well carbonated. There is a resin like stickiness here, but could be cleaner for my tastes. Even with a few perceived flaws on my end, its still a perfectly fine IPA to drink.

The "woody" hops character is a little to apparent for me this time, which for some reason I always get with many of their IPA's. Along with some light veggie DMS character. Neither completely ruins this, but is enough so that it is not on the upper tier. While certainly not bad, Great Heights makes better.

Overall score is 3.69, sold B score for me.
https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/50326/741269/?ba=champ103#lists

 

Enjoyed this one yesterday evening..

Fremont - Coconut & Coffee






Notes:
P black w/ a sm tan cap; quick to med recession
N med bold to bold; reminiscent of Rusty Nail, choc, booze, nuttiness, coffee, licorice, lots going on here- inviting
T a bit different from nose, smooth cocoa, nutty coffee, light coconut, a bit grassy in the fin, nicely balanced and cohesive, light booze/barrel, ever so slightly warming
Mf really smooth, light to mod creamy, med to med full bodied, soft-med to med carb
O was hoping for more coconut (as I always am), but a solid offering nonetheless, great nose, tasty profile, good drinkability for style/ abv

Cheers!

 

All right, next up is a beer from Falling Knife Brewing in Minneapolis, MN.

Gimme The Aux - American Pale Ale - 5.8%

We got distribution of their beers a couple weeks back. Hearing about the tragic passing of Tom Berg the owner/brewer really inspired me to try the beers we've gotten. I've been quite happy and impressed with all 3 I've tried. I am glad we brought them into the store, and will raise my glass to his life. Rest in peace Tom.

Review:
https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/57539/741272/
3.75/5 rDev 0%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.75
From a 16oz can. Canned on 03/14/2025

This is a clear looking beer and golden in color. There's a good deal of tiny carbonation bubbles rising in the glass. There's a 2 finger fluffy looking white head. The head retention is decent, and there's a nice bit of lacing on the glass.
The aroma is light. I am getting some hop notes. There's a grain hint to the nose. There's slight floral elements here.
Taste - I get a nice biscuit hit right away. This is quite pleasing and tasty. The middle goes towards a slight honey-like sweetness. The finish is the hops. I get some dankness to them and a bit of melon.
The body is crisp, clean, and clear. Nice hint of carbonation hitting my throat.
Tasty and easy drinking beer. Delicious, though the aroma is light.


I think there will be one more today. Cheers to you all.