New Beer Weekend #253

Well, there goes that theory.

I discussed this beer in a past NBW thread (March 21, 2025) for a beer canned 2/18/25:

"Aroma:

There is an intriguing combination of floral, citrus and herbal hop aromas with some bready malt aroma as well.

Taste:

The flavor follows the nose with the combination of floral, citrus and herbal hop flavors but there is something additional here that presents a subtle impression of sweetness (candy like?). There is also some bready malt flavor. This beer has a moderate bitterness."



This beer was not "insipid" for my palate.

Either a situation of differing batches or differing palates.

Isn't beer appreciation fun!?!

Cheers!

 

Last weekend I had my first ever bahn mi, but with chili chicken at a craft beer bar in Philly: Local 44. I asked the server: "What is a Bahn Mi?" and he stated "It's sorta like a Vietnamese Hoagie..." and before he finished I said "I take it!". It was very tasty.

And to keep things beer related it paired well with my Forest & Main Best Bitter that was served via cask (beer engine).

Cheers to Bahn Mi and beer!!!

 

I would have been happy to have had the same experience!

 

That is a good point.

Years ago I would attend wine tasting events in the city (Philly) and the person who organized these events would ask the women to not wear perfume to these tasting events so the aromas would not be distracting to the tastings of the wine. As far as I recall the women would comply with this request.

Cheers!

 

Thanks!

Yes to no distractions for me — no TV, no podcasts, no music outside of instrumental jazz/classic — and TRIPLE yes to no extra smells. I usually unplug any air fresheners in the house when it's time to review a beer.

The outdoors thing is interesting to me b/c I've got friends who go both ways — some hate smelling beer/whisk[e]y outdoors, others prefer it. For me, I often start judging a beer's aroma indoors, then I walk outside with my beer to smell it in the open air to see if there's any differences or to avoid whatever smells might be going on in my house. Between the two different environments, I can usually get a handle on the beer's aroma, and unless there's a fire in the area, I feel like I get more from smelling the beer outdoors vs. indoors. That's a very individual thing, though, and like I say, you're not the first I've heard say they don't like trying to smell a beer outdoors. I get it.

 

I have totally forgotten about cigarette smoke since that has been eliminated in the US. It kinda sucks this is still going on in Europe.

Cheers!

 

That shadow board could certainly be taken that way, plus, old school that was Chief Stripes, but I guess we had Army envy

 

I'll just say this, Houston has the best bahn mi in the country, outside of Vietnam you ain't getting a better one. Most people think of Houston as a steak, bbq or Tex-Mex place. For me it has always been great Vietnamese first, and street tacos second.

 

Music doesn't bother me

 

All of those food choices sound great to me.

Plus they all go well with beer!!

Cheers!

 

Things escalated over here. Avery Quintikki which is an imperial blonde ale with pineapple, coconut, orange, and nutmeg aged in rum barrels. This is a sessionable 16.2%.

I always enjoyed these crazy and usually very boozy Avery gold foil barrel aged beers. This was the last one I had on hand.

 

Have a good NBW. Have a good Saturday night here. Slept in a bit this evening but finished Paved Paradise by Henry Grabar and it was 4.25/5. Started Ingredients by George Zaidan and it's really good, but not what I expected. More of a look at things like processed food and natural poisons like Cassava and Castor beans. Thought it was more about food science in the cooking aspect, but still interesting.

Went on the usual Cook Out run last night. Got a Huge burger with bacon, cheese, and everything and it was massive and delicious. Will do again, but the Big Double is better bun/topping/meat ratios.



New Realm Mango Ride. Got at aldi, but I will have to check out their Brewery in VA soon. 11/6/24 can dating. Fantastic head retention and lacing. Aromas of fresh mango, wheat, citrus zest, light vanilla. Taste follows with fresh mango, citrus peel/zest, wood, peppercorn; light pine, wheat, cracker, herbal, floral, grass. Light-medium pine, herbal, spicy bitter finish. Medium-high carbonation and light body; very crisp, clean, refreshing, nearly bone dry finish. Light grainy malt and sticky hop mouthfeel. Slight lingering note of mango juice flavors and vanilla. Zero warming 4% ABV. Flavors felt too watered down vs the nose, and mouthfeel was similar in texture, but this is a enjoyable summer style fruit wheat beer. 3.78/5


Cheers

 

Oh yeah, and I just like to brag about the Vietnamese around here...I love all the regional foods everywhere I have been. Whether or not Houston "has the best Vietnamese in the country" is obliviously a bit biased on my part, but I don't think many people realize how ingrained it is around here. When people talk about "Houston food" they should be talking about the great Vietnamese places all over the city first. I didn't realize how ingrained it was until I moved down here, and now its my favorite ha.

 

Approach them all with caution

 

Good evening NBW!
Back tonight with another one I picked up while in Colorado for a wedding. Didn’t get a chance to hit my favorite places, (Coaltrain’s for one) but Patriots is very close to where I was staying so I was mostly limited to there.
It’s actually a good bottle shop, not huge but they try hard.
Anyway, this is one I picked up without researching and it is probably good I didn’t as I wouldn’t have bought it had I known what it was.
And then I wouldn’t have had this very interesting (and tasty) beer.
Or rather ale, they specifically said ale-

The pour is golden amber with an ivory colored head that reaches 1 cm in height.
The taste is layered; it starts (for me at least) with the sense of red wine aged in whiskey barrels and the malty base of the ale comes in next. The malts are almost sweet tasting, or perhaps that’s in comparison to what came before. The bready base holds its own even when you want the wine soaked whiskey to return.
The feel is lightly viscous, right where I expect a barrel aged beer to be.
OA, this one is interesting and I am glad I picked up a 4 pack so I can try to dial in what I’m tasting.
Back tomorrow, have a great evening!

 

Numbers-wise that is where they have settled & came back to. Every Houstonian that has an opinion on BBQ ( Texas) & Vietnamese that I have listened to has proven accurate; so far