New Beer Weekend #257

Good Sunday afternoon, New Beer Swiggers and commentators. While I generally enjoy hot, humid weather, this afternoon is over-the-top so I'll join you from the cool, dry confines of MacMalt's Elbow Room. Our hometown brewery, Autodidact Beer, had several new releases this weekend, including a hazy DIPA collaboration with RAR Brewing in Maryland called Viridian Dream. It was canned this past Wednesday and released on Thursday. They only canned 38 cases so I bought a pack just before closing on Thursday, and I'm very glad I did. It is the perfect hot weather hazy - hopped with Citra, Simcoe, and Motueka.

t pours an opaque, dirty, grassy lemon color with a full finger cap of fluffy, bright white foam and thick, long-lasting lacing. Big lemon, lime, and grapefruit on the nose, along with berry and passion fruit. Very fragrant. The taste follows with initial tart citrus and pine sap. As it warms a bit I am really enjoying the lemon and lime from the Motueka. The taste develops with notes of white wine, modest red berry, pineapple, and just a hint of oaty sweetness. There is a sharp, biting bitterness throughout. The flavors are bold and blend very well. Its mouth feel is a little liter and crisper than the typical Autodidact DIPA with more carbonation. And it drinks so easily for 8.2% ABV. It is an ideal cooler for a hot, humid late June day.

I wish this weren't a collaboration because I'd love to see it brewed again.

4.35/5 rDev +0.5%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

This will be my only new beer review post today so I wish you all a great week. Cheers, NBW!

 

Last night my wife and I were sitting on our patio, enjoying the cool air and the lingering smells of the day's rain. (Even for Portland, this rain is kind of late for this end of the year.) I opened a New Beer that I didn't expect to review, but it was interesting enough that I decided to take a few notes while Mrs. vurt worked on a crochet project.



Bale Breaker I Love My State Parks IPA

Look:
The body is blonde-yellow with excellent clarity. The head of fluffy white foam dissipates to a collar and thin skin which lasts to the bottom of the glass. Nice lacing.

Smell:
The nose leads with a tasty foundation of soft and slightly toasty malt. This foundation is embedded with plenty of sweet mango and pineapple, and a touch of pine. There's also an undertow of citrus, mostly grapefruit with a squeeze of tangerine.

Taste:
The first impression is moderately sweet malt with a mix of citrus and pineapple gummi bears and a hint of strawberry. The beer loses a bit of sweetness through the middle, but the citrus persists. The long finish is quite interesting. It offers malt with a shake of oregano and a zesty hit of earthy pepper. The trailing bitterness is equal parts pine and grapefruit pith. Slight citrus burn at the very end.

Feel:
Light-medium body with finely-textured carbonation. High drinkability.

Overall:
Bale Breaker's I Love My State Parks IPA starts off as a particularly well-made WCIPA, with clean malt backing up a mouth-watering array of citrus, tropical fruit, and berry flavor. It finishes with an unexpected but complementary herb and spicy character to go with the ongoing citrus. Good malt throughout, and not too sweet. Really nice beer, and it supports a worthy entity. Good stuff.

 

My new beer is from Sierra Nevada, Peachy Little Thing.

4.08/5 rDev +1.5%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Picked up a single at the Mills River location cooler on 6-3-25 for $2.75. Canned on 5-5-25; consumed 6-22-25.

Beer poured a chilled gold with a very nice long lasting white head.

Nose is very nice, peach forward with the hop burst almost making it smell like a jolly rancher.

Taste follows the nose as the pale malt base melds well with the peach forward hoping. Hopping is good and lends a good balance; bitterness is 5/10 on my scale.

Mouthfeel is soft and both smooth and refreshing.

Overall, an easy drinker.

 

Good afternoon all!
“Beers at the Bridge” was Friday night and I had a couple new beers but didn’t get photos as I was pouring beer as fast as I could
The event is Gravel Bottom’s and because they are so small they can’t brew enough beer for the festival; so Railtown helps out by sending some.
Their flagship IPA (Shady Side) was about the safest take on the style I think I have ever had. Just enough hop flavor to be classified as an IPA, and nothing stood out.
I’ll have to research the other two as the names have slipped my mind.
However, yesterday we spent the day outside and it was hot, humid and windy. By the time our shifts were over, we got home at around 7:00, showered, and went to Hop Hog in Lowell for dinner.
They had beer so I tried a couple - Smokey the Beer was labeled as a smoked Grodzskie
and I like a good smoked beer, so I tried it.

Had on tap at the Lowell location, not sure where it was brewed.
It was delivered to the table a grey tinted straw color with a minimal head.
The taste had a brief taste of smoked something and then it was gone. The rest of the beer was refreshing (it was very hot today!) and the flavor was almost a metallic Pilsner type thing. Truly curious.
The feel is light and crisp, perfect for slamming if one desired to.
OA, I may or may not try it again, just to see if I was “off” or something.
The next one didn’t inspire either, so hoping it was just me.
Cheers, I’ll be back soon

 

Happy NBS!

Having a pretty tasty/juicy NEIPA from Outer Range (CO).

https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/47922/590401/?ba=Wasatch#lists

Cheers!

 

Good evening NBW
I always get excited when I see a trending beer here in Kentuckiana .

Pabst Light

25oz can stamped 09SEP25 poured into a Pabst chalice at fridge temp 4.2% ABV, 3.5 carbs 98 calories per 12 oz serving and made by Pabst Brewing Company St. Louis, MO. The beer pours bright pale yellow with nearly white head. The head recedes to a thin ring and island. Excellent for the style and excellent lacing for a light beer. The aroma is mild light beer with a hint of malt. The taste is semisweet pale malt, minimal hop flavor or bitterness and minimal vegetable oil / corny flavor. The feel is thin bodied, highly carbonated and mostly dry. The lagering seems complete with minimal off flavors. Overall, very good light beer.

Cheers all!

PS: Just realized this is my 2250th review. Fitting that it's a blue collar beer...

 

I'm reasonably sure this beer is called Breakside + JoyRx Children's Cancer Association. (Even after checking the Breakside website and their Instagram, it was kind of hard to tell.)



I can say with greater certainty that it is the first beer in their new "Beers That Benefit" series with nonprofits in the Pacific Northwest.

The beer is a very attractive deep gold color with school bus yellow highlights. The head of pale cream-colored foam recedes to a patchy shell which lasts to the bottom of the glass and leaves copious lacing. The nose is mostly overripe tropical fruit with notes of green grapes and then citrus with light diesel. The flavor is much more fruity than malty, although a light grainy character manages to show through. The fruit is predominantly mango and papaya nectar, with a little apricot and a steady undercurrent of old-school unsweetened grapefruit juice. The finish is lime zest, grape skins, and crackery malt. There's also a citrus bitterness that seems mild on the first sip and markedly more formidable on the last.

Overall, it's another quality WCIPA from my favorite brewery in Portland.

 

Well, we got driven off Lake of the Woods yet again. I am now enjoying a beer that probably has never been consumed here at the most northern point in the lower 48.

Comm Ave - Trillium Brewing - Canton, MA -- NEIPA - 8.2%

2 out of the 3 of us like it. Delicious as hell.

Review:
https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/43481/500137/
4.28/5 rDev 0%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.25
From a 16oz can, canned on 06/02/2025

This is a juicy looking beer. Even though my glass at the resort isn't the best, it looks murky as hell. It is an orange color. The head is 1 finger and white colored with no lacing.
I was smelling a hop bomb while pouring the beer. Up close I get a ton of pineapple, mango, and grapefruit. It is strong and pleasing.
What I was getting in the nose doesn't translate as much into the taste. I am getting a ton of cantaloupe and honeydew. Wow. How did the nose and the flavor converge so much? If I am getting the mango, pineapple and grapefruit, it is so minimal. Hops are so damn strange sometimes. Slight bitterness on the back
The body is off the charts smooth and juicy. Soft. Creamy. Full.
Wow. This beer is amazing. Their reputation is earned.

We sadly are done fishing for the day. Relax and enjoy this beer.

 

It’s hot up here in the great - not so white - north. With the Humidex it was about 36 degrees Celsius earlier this afternoon in Toronto. Rather hot for my liking, though I gather it’s worse in some parts south of the border. The humidity has been brutal.

I went on a quick beer run to grab some stuff to bring with me to Montreal. I’m taking the family to visit my oldest friend who is a fellow beer lover. He is pretty restricted in his likes. Pale ales, IPAs and light lagers in the 4-6.5 ABV range. That’s it, that’s all!

I made it out to Blood Brothers and grabbed a few things to bring, including this one that is new to me. It’s a one-off collaboration with the band Metallica. I’m not really a fan of the band, but do like Blood Brothers’s beers.

This is, Blood Brothers x Metallica Until it Sips Pale Ale.





Pours a cloudy straw gold with ample head that dissipates slowly as the beer is enjoyed. Significant lacing.

The aroma is gentle. Slight lemongrass/verbena notes off the top. A little light malt in behind. Very muted.

Taste follows. Light. Hints of lemon, a wisp of tropical fruit. Light malt. Quite light overall.

The body is bordering on thin. It’s fine for this beer, as the light flavours lend themselves to a lighter body. Great for the heavy weather.

Solid, enjoyable pale ale from a good brewery. Apparently the collaboration is in support of a Metallica charity. I like it even more now.

Cheers.

 

Stonecloud Brewing Hop Fuzz Smash IPA, 6.0% ABV; 3.78 overall

Pours a bright & effervescent gold with a thumb+ of cream-colored head. Good head retention & lacing

S: Some citrus, some breadyness, not its strong point to be sure

T: Tangerine, green melons, a little dryness, hints of apricot as well up front. More dryness, green melons & tangerine as this beer warms up, a little bready sweetness & apricot too. Finishes dry with green melon & apricot

MF: Medium body, moderate carbonation, pretty good balance

Had much higher hops for this, drinks easy enough, but nothing to brag on

 

You’re a beer friend of the highest order and I know that from experience

Our next three days are forecasted to be 100, 102, and 99; not including humidity heat index and I want to cry.

Boys and I start outdoor camp tomorrow with a heat bang, but we’ll survive. We always do, shade, pools and water and hope the AC at home keeps kicking

 

You got this beer on my radar of curiosity now…

 

Well, IMGur isn't cooperating so maybe I'll switch to some other method.

Splurged on the first fresh swordfish of the year that we've seen and did it up on the grill. Fresh makes sooooo much difference with this fish!

Tonight's beer after a hot day in the garden is Schilling's Especial. It says on the can this is a Mexican style lager which I think makes it an American lager here. 5 % ABV.

It pours crystal clear pale gold with a huge white foamy head. The head eventually falls to a thin cap that covers the surface and there's even a wee bit of lacing.

The smell is mostly corn. There's a bit of biscuity malt, not much in the way of hops.

The taste follows. Corn, sweet, biscuits malt, barely any bitterness. Acutually a bit more than a hint of hops - floral and grassy with a little cumulative spice after a few sips.

Feel is light, fairly lively carbonation and it's definitely hitting the post-Hades garden refresher button.

A simple, uncomplicated beer that's hitting right in this moment. Perfectly drinkable plain old beer. Thinking 3.6 or so on the scale.

So two days in the garden. Tired and sweaty but feeling better than I have in a while. One thing that happens is I play music in my head. I got stuck on two classic American albums - The Band's Songs From Big Pink and The Dead' American Beauty - Broke Down Palace specifically. With all the progressive and intricate shit I dig, it's strange what gets stuck on the mental jukebox when ya slow down. @cavedave - funny old world, ain't it?

 

Just added two beers to the DB, one I rated the other not, the Golden Beeraucrat from Railtown was, for a blonde ale, really good. Far more flavor than most blondes that I've tried, Of course, I've not tried many.
The other I added I managed to get a photo of
(It was dinner that night) but didn't rate as I fear I got a pour from a barrel that was tapped too far back, and for whatever reason rye IPAs tend to fall off as they age (which ticks me off as that caused Founder's to stop packaging Red's Rye.)
In any case, whenever I see one on tap, I must try it as Red's rye, for a time, was my favorite beer)
Sadly, that "bite" that is all but missing and the flavors almost muted, most definitely not a premier rye IPA.

 

Probably the last review of NBW. I have to thank @falloutsnow for it.

When Someone Asks If You're A God - Triptych Brewing - Savoy, Il - 16.3%.

Wow. So much flavor here. So much chocolate, caramel, toffee, dark fruit, and more. I am so honored you sent it to me, and I can enjoy it here at the top of the lower 48.

Review:
https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/30967/679628/
4.34/5 rDev -3.1%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.25
From a 12oz bottle. Don't see a date on the bottle.

This is a pitch black looking beer, and looked thick while pouring it. There's no clarity and the minimal tan head dissipated fast. No lacing on the glass.
Holy hell! So much chocolate, caramel, toffee, and dark fruit on the nose. Some vanilla notes of oak also hit my nose.
Damn, the flavor is like the nose, plus more. I get some much caramel in here. Chocolate, toffee, and dark fruit. There's a bit of graham cracker flavor in this beer.
Fudge, this beer doesn't have any burn in it. It is so thick and smooth. Very full bodied.
Wow. This is so damn delicious.

I do have a couple of more new ones here, but will probably save them for tomorrow cheers all.

 

This is 2 New Beer Weekends in a row that Pabst Light has made an appearance.

Not gonna lie: it's on my radar now too.

 

American Solera Cryodome West Coast Style DIPA with Citra Cryo & Peacharine Hops, 8.2% ABV; 3.93 overall

Pours an ever so slightly hazed gold with a thumb of beige head. Drops bright, pretty good head retention & better lacing

S: Orchard fruit & breadyness

T: Dry, grassy, with peach notes, oranges & a little grapefruit up front. More peach notes, along with white grapes & pomelo once this beer warms up, some dryness as well, a little pine too. Finishes a kittle dry, piney with pomelo & green melon

MF: Medim body, fairly firm carbonation, good balance

Solid DIPA, was hoping for a little more here

 

How many Pabst Lights will show up next weekend?

 

I have on vivid memory of the first time I had swordfish, visiting my family in Connecticut. A food experience that stuck with me for some reason. I’m honestly not sure if I ever had it again since then. Shame on me I guess; I’ll message you for cooking tips when the time is right.

 

The prior beers were all from prior days, but all during NBW, so tonight's beer, at long last, is an imperial stout.
This is courtesy of @Resistance88 - my Speedway fix guy, and one from just over the lake from me but for whatever reason they don't distribute here.

I really like Speedway Stout, Alesmith and Binny’s collaborated on this one and I am happy to have been able to try it.
The coffee forward malty goodness that is Speedway with bourbon as an accent. Very smooth, very good. Not 100% sure it’s better than the original, but it is very good.
The feel seems thinner than the original, but I suspect that is my imagination.
OA, another outstanding stout from Alesmith.
Cheers!