New Beer Weekend #264

FWIW you summed up my stance on Bitburger perfectly, especially that bitterness piece. It’s promising but never hits home to me on the hops.

 

Hey NBW Warriors,
I am getting into another Zebulon Artisan Ales historical brews. This one is an East India Porter (Circa 1840) made with pale, brown and black malts. Aged in oak barrels with Brett for a year. Hopped with East Kent Goldings, IBU is calculated to be 140. Far more porter was sent to India than Pale Ale. In speaking with the brewer Mike Karnowski, he baked his own brown malts as he is unable to obtain them commercially.

Onto the review:

4.19/5 rDev +12.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4.25

Picked up a 2024 500 ml bottle from the Zebulon taproom 2-8-25 for $12. Consumed for review 8-9-25. Cold stored since purchase.

Beer started a slow lava flow of foam upon bottle opening. Slow pour produced ginormous head very similar to the Belgian Pale Ales and Tripels.

Nose is an interesting mix of roasted brown and black malts and a kiss of Brett.

Taste is a heavily roasted malt base that i am getting notes of chocolate. Brett impartation is very subtle and barely perceptible. Finish is heavily hopped and with the general heavy roast leaves a very abrasive finish; 9/10 on my bitterness scale.

Mouthfeel is foamy as the Brett is still very active.

Overall, a very interesting historical beer to try. I dig heavy roasted stouts, so this is right up my alley! Nicely done by Brewer Mike Karnowski!

 

Almighty Julius by Tree House


4.49/5 rDev +2.3%
look: 4.75 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5

Brewers notes: Julius, a trend-breaking IPA and flagship in our line-up, is a beer we hold in deep reverie, a paragon we approach with awe and respect with each passing turn on the brewhouse. Without Julius there is no Tree House, and without Tree House there is no Julius. We are deeply grateful to it for bestowing upon us the cherished opportunity to pursue creative endeavors beyond our wildest dreams So, with the utmost care, behold Almighty Julius, a Triple IPA rendition of our benchmark! The Almighty is crafted with paramount attention to detail and admiration for what came before it. It builds upon our past by encompassing years of toil, representing the legacy we wish to leave behind and the magic we aspire to continue as long as we are able. Most importantly, we craft it to live up to the goodwill you have granted us since our earliest days. The Julius family is a cornerstone to our endeavors at Tree House, endeavors that have seen us through hardship, friendship, life, and business in ways we could not have imagined starting out. We can't fathom a better way to celebrate eleven fortunate years than with this progressive beer representing the Tree House spirit at its core. We hope you enjoy it in good health and good spirits, and we thank you for your fervent support of our brewery.

Chilled pint can poured into a teku , deep murky orange liquid , capped with one finger of off white creamy foam , good retention, spotty lacings

Aroma is citrus, orange , tangerine

Taste is bubblegum, earthy orange

Smooth mouthfeel, gentle hop kiss on the finish , slight booziness on the 9.4% abv , no burn

Good beer

 

Happy new beer weekend to you all, nice busy Friday evening with some nice looking beers shared so far. I didn’t have anything new last weekend but I’m back this week.

I’ve been trying to be more intentional with my new beer purchases and only buying if I really want to try something that is new to me. Last night I went shopping and found a new one that I wanted to try, also a new to me NJ brewery.

A lot, or maybe even all, of their beers are movie inspired, this one’s is obvious, and pays homage to one of the attacks in NJ that inspired Jaws. This one in Matawan Creek, I posted a picture of what you see when you open the box at the bottom of this post, pretty neat story and homage to someone who lost their life trying to save another, had no idea. Good quick read…

Anyway, I love the trend of more AAL and Light Lagers from craft breweries so I had to buy this one to support this continuing trend, also it is super fresh, canned less than two weeks ago.

Alternate Ending - Amity Beer (American Lager)



Pours very light in color, pale straw; clarity is there with just the slightest look of chill haze, though it persists; white head that leaves some nice initial pour lacing; persistent light opaque head.

Nose is hoppy; lightly biting herbal in nature, malt just smells good, like fresh fields of grain; while still maintaining a lightness and steering clear of say Helles land.

The taste, like the nose, is really nicely malty but also very light; dried grain and straw, a light sweetness, somewhere between herbal and grassy hops; it has the perfect amount of hops that says American but it’s also restrained and doesn’t inhibit drinkability.

Body is light; but you can feel this great malt presence, ever so slightly effervescent in carbonation; awesome little bit of tongue coating hops; light but very firm bitterness that cuts through and finishes off a light sweetness; clean on the finish.

This beer is a winner, it manages to be so light and drinkable pack with malt depth and the right amount of hops; toeing the line between overdone and not present. A beer I would recommend and gladly buy again.

That’s probably it for me new beer wise this weekend. We’re off to Vermont next weekend after our last day of camp, hopefully a new beer or two will be shared. May be too busy with the traveling piece but who knows.

—————

Story upon opening box…

 

Humble Sea Helles, with @Beersnake, waiting for @2beerdogs and @Resistance88 ...

 

What?!?!?!?!?!

Three of my favorite BAs all in one place at one time, please give us a recap and have a great time all of you.

 

Good evening NBW
Trying out the new SN Oktoberfest


12oz can PKGD 071525 poured into a mug at fridge temp 6% ABV. The beer pours bright light golden amber with light khaki head. The head recedes to an uneven ring and scattered bubbles. Minimal lacing. The aroma is malt forward, bready with a hint of floral hop. The taste is semisweet malty, not caramel with more floral hop notes. Mild bitterness. The feel is thin to medium bodied with average carbonation and a mostly dry finish. Cleanly lagered. Overall, very good.

Good stuff. I'll be buying more before this disappear.

 

The Oktoberfest curse, I always end up with a stockpile by fall, cause like you said...if I don't buy 'em now some will be gone before I really want them in a month or two.

 

Now with both @2beerdogs and @Beersnake, waiting for @Resistance88

 

Why do I feel mildly offended by this post? Whatever it is, I’ll likely get over it.

Though maybe @ChicagoJ can help me figure it out

 

Three of my favorites…my list of favorites runs deep. You know I love you and @ChicagoJ just as much

 

it’s just nice to hear it once in a while

 

Still waiting for @Resistance88...@beersnake providing all the beer for me and @2beerdogs so far

 

Wooly pig black lager courtesy @Blogjackets
.. almost solid black appearance with a thick lasting off white head.
...below average carbonation with about a medium body which all added up to a nice feel
...aroma is dry drak chocolate, malt, mild smoke which builds and becomes much stronger and comes.
....taste dark chocolate, smoke,earthy and malt.
...overall my description isn't doing this justice as its an excellent attempt at the style

 

What’s the beautiful array of color on that roll?

 

Mixed peppers,onions and chicken sausage. Haven't made it in years but it came out fairly well

 

Made our way to Liberty today. It is awesomely quiet here and there's no light pollution to speak of. I'm hoping for a good night's sleep - realizing I'm not a youngster anymore. Packing and unpacking the Atlas in the same day did me in! But this is one of my favorite places to be. Small pond, lots of mid-sized bass, Lake St. George Brewing literally around the corner.

Tonight I'm having:



Sorry about the picture. Figured showing the beer is more important than the label. Barreled Souls Purple Rain. A 6% sour ale with cherry, blackberry, and vanilla.

Pours a kinda rusty brown color with no appreciable head. Little ring of microbubbles on the edge. It's a bit murky.

Smells fruity, obviously. A mild melange of cherry and blackberry with just a wee bit of vanilla. So far, so good - it would have been easy to go over the top with this.

The taste is lively but surprisingly sweet - dark/sweet cherry sweet. Fruit-driven tartness comes through clearly. The cherry is there just enough to notice without the cough syrup thing that can happen. The blackberry is fantastic - very fresh with a nice bite. The vanilla is suitably restrained and mellows out the fruitiness. I get a little black tea taste. The base beer is present as a little crackery malt.

The sweetness keeps this from being totally refreshing - its not syrupy or sticky but it weighs things down just a little. Prickly carbonation.

Overall the flavors make this work and they are judiciously applied. The tartness is from the fruit and its fairly mild. Overall a good beet, probably in the 3.8 range.