New Beer Weekend #284

Merry Christmas and thanks to @ChicagoJ for the start of a holiday new beer weekend
...straffe hendrik xmas blend
...murky brownish ruby appearance with a thin but lasting head
...medium carbonation that has a little bit of a bite along with a slightly over average body
...aroma is interesting and complex. Dried fruit, fruit cake(in a good way)malt, brown sugar and an odd but pleasant perfume floral element
...taste is very identical to aroma. Sweet to a degree but a dry spice part as well as dried fruit and fruit cake.
...overall its a really nice well done beer. Couldn't have more than one but thats just due to it dense flavor

 

Thanks for the start @ChicagoJ hopefully everyone who celebrates had a good day with family and or friends. Im looking forward to adding a few new reviews this weekend.

 

@GreenBayBA shared a bottle of that with us a few weeks ago and it was very good. Thinking it was my favorite of the night and he brought out some flat out excellent beers.
Cheers!

 

Hello New Beer Weekend!!!

I wasn't going to have another tonight, but I saw the virtual bar has opened once again (and I skipped the last one), I decided to join in the fun this Christmas Day. It will be one and done tonight, but I'll be back tomorrow for more.
Time for my beer

Salem's Lot - Inbound Brewing - Minneapolis, MN - Helles Lager - 5.0%

Wow, this beer is crazy good. I am somewhat on the inside on the retail level, and I have to wonder how they make such a great beer that is under $10 for a 4 pack of 16oz cans. How? The flavor is amazing, and I'll be getting more of this beer tomorrow at work (assuming we have any left after Christmas Eve).

Review:
https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/45230/770893/

4.11/5 rDev +1.2%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25
From a 16oz can. Canned on 10/16/2025

This is a nice clear looking beer in the glass that has a golden color to it. There's a 1 finger white head to this beer that has great head retention and there's a bit of lacing on the glass.
The nose is a malty gran aroma. There's honey like notes to it. There's bread/biscuit notes to it. All notes are pleasing to my nose.
The beer kicks off with a huge floral hit that my nose didn't tell me was there. Holy cow, it's huge and lingering on my taste buds. The malty qualities do show up toward the back with a nice bread sweetness. There's honey notes in this beer.
Jeez, the body is quite full feeling for the style in a damn good way. It clings and lingers in a great way. Smooth.
Wow, I am totally amazed with this beer. Even more so being somewhat of an insider in the industry, and knowing the price point. How did they make this beer and keep it under $10 at retail as a 4 pack? I will get more from work for sure.

See you all tomorrow after work for more new beers. Cheers to all that enter the virtual NBW bar.

 

Short and Stout!

Today’s new beer is not too short but it is stout: Von C Double Haul Stout.

Von C Brewing is a small, local brewery (to me) that has been open for four years and to my great joy during my recent visit they had a two-keg system set up for serving beer via beer engines (hand pumps):



The two beers they had on tap with these beer engines were:

“Fishin’ Credits (Beer Engine Pour) Mild - Dark

3.9% ABV Norristown, PA

Our English dark mild ale was designed around all English ingredients. This is a malt focused beer with a mix of roasted and toasted malts to create an easy drinking, low abv beer. Aromas of raisin and toffee with subdued flavors of dark fruit and molasses. Poured using a classic beer engine.”

And:

“Double Haul (Beer Engine Pour) Stout - American

5.2% ABV Norristown, PA

This well balanced American stout features a variety of dark and roasted malts to provide a smooth, clean flavor with enough body and bitterness to keep you coming back for more.”

One a previous visit to Von C I had the Dark Mild and I discussed it in a past NBW post:

https://www.beeradvocate.com/community/threads/new-beer-weekend-181.675757/#post-7904445

The Double Haul Stout is new to me and I was anxious to give it a try.

Served in a Von C pint glass:

Appearance:

Very dark brown approaching black with a khaki-colored head.

Aroma:

There is a pleasing combination of dark malt aroma (e.g., a hint of dark chocolate, mild roasitness, etc.) but also some hop aroma as well (tiny hints of citrus and pine).

Taste:

The flavor follows the nose with the combination of dark malt flavors with hop flavors in the background. There is a moderate bitterness.

Mouthfeel:

Medium bodied, a smooth/luscious mouthfeel and a dry finish.

Overall:

This beer is very good - excellent! And I greatly enjoyed the mouthfeel which was accentuated via being served by the hand pump (beer engine). I also appreciated that the beer was served cool vs. cold. Even though it was not a high gravity (i.e., high ABV) beer, it sorta reminded me of Victory Storm King which is a hoppy Russian Imperial Stout.

I am quite happy that another local craft taproom has a beer engine to join others in my area (e.g., Forest & Main, Troubles End). Plus the local craft beer bars that have beer engines.

Cheers!

@rotsaruch @KOP_Beer_OUtlet @RobH @Kubishark

 

I was so happy to share it with as many of this thread's premier contributors as I could! Now we just need @Resistance88 to weigh in when the time is right!

 

It’s a matter of taste, isn’t it? A question of lust. Yellow funky fruit forward NEIPA, Genessee Cream Ale, exquisite Belgian Strongs, etc.,.
What floats YOUR boat?

Me? Creativity. Regardless of ‘style’, gimme something: Big, Extreme, walla walla bing bang. And , an Anniversary Brew HAS to bring a treat, right?

So.,.I got here, from Alkmaar, The Netherlands, Moersleutel Beer Engineers’ 9 Years Anniversary Celebration: ‘Confronting Suitors’ Barrel Aged Imperial Stout.

Lemme tell ya bout it..,.

44 cl silver & brown can. 14% abv. It’s a 50/50 blend of a killa base Stout aged in maple syrup barrel, with an equal mix of the Stout aged in 11 year Sazerac rye whisky barrel.

The brew pours thick and deep brown, a spew of sponge bob foam floats to the rim of my Teku glass. 2 full fingers worth.

Nose is loud! Screams maple syrup, toffee, leather, enticing and bewitching ethanol vapors waft up, hits betwern eyes and chin.

Taste is a bold lick of bourbon barrel, coated in maple syrup, Heath bar, dry cacao, vanilla bean, light hops, dates, swooning booze. Yeah, it’s adult candy store stuff, for sure. But classy. Long sticky sweet finish that breaks down like a slow teenage back seat French kiss.,. it does.,. delicious.,. mmmm. Great oily lace, legs for daze.,.

Mouth is thick & lush. Tongue coating. Gurgling carbonation. Appropriate. Lava lamp. Backhoe.

Overall, for a fan of dense Big dessert Stout that isn’t loaded up with adjuncts, this is barrel majick alchemy for the he-dog.

Ingredients: Water, Barley Malt, Rye, Spelt, Wheat, Oats, Hops, Yeast. No added sugar. No animals harmed. I’m a fan.,. Talk.,.

 

Thanks for starting this thread. Wish my Aldi would step up their beer game, pretty sure their marketing peeps say " this is what a Mid-South College town will drink. "

 

Great minds think alike...

 

Love it, still have a pump, but no delusions of ever actively putting it to use My brewing days are over

 

Straffe Hendrik Xmas Blend Quad, 11.0% ABV; 4.35 overall

2022 Bottle pours a chill hazed auburn/chestnut with one finger+ of tight tan head. Below average head retention & above average lacing

S: Faint bubblegum, figs. Green banana, oranges & apple peel once warm

T: Figs, raisins, treacle, a little brown sugar, orange peel, cinnamon & black/tart cherry up front. Cherry booze, some green apple/banana, toffee & trace amounts of phenols & juicy fruit once this beer is warm, plus candied pineapple & oranges. Finishes with oranges, a little cinnamon, phenols, green banana & dark cherry & a kiss of booze

MF: Medium body, fairly firm carbonation, warming enough, some acidic notes on the fringes. A little sticky once warm

Quad on the verge of greatness, would happily buy this again. A winter delight that is too easy to drink

 

Trader Joes I like, anyone looking to open one in NWA will face summary execution ( Prove me wrong Walmart ).

 

I’ve had 3 new beers tonight and due to circumstances I’m presenting them in reverse order.
The third is an imperial stout that I pulled out of the cellar so I could participate in the ISIL thread and happily discovered that I hadn’t reviewed it yet. The first one I shared with my SAN group and the second was sent to a friend.
One left, but this seemed like an ideal beer for the day.

From a 4 pack I bought when fresh. The pour is still top notch; stout black with a light brown head that left copious amounts of lacing, 2 years on.
The taste has chicory notes, or nuts and coffee. Lots of chocolate but no discernible hazelnut. Still very tasty.
The feel is lightly viscous, nice for the style.
OA, probably better fresh, but still quite good, just less sweet.
Be back soon with the other two.
Cheers

 

The next one is a beer that was sent to me by @DIM and today was the perfect day to open it and give it a try.

The pour is strong coffee brown with no head whatsoever. Being what it is, that’s no surprise.
The aroma, which I can rarely comment on, is that of a very strong plum and fig liquor.
The taste is subdued by the massive malt bill, but plums are present in the sip, dates and figs followed, and the alcohol burn finishes off the swallow. These are broad brush strokes, there is a lot more going on but these are the highlights.
The feel is more viscous than I expected from the taste; liquor tends to be thinner than what this is.
OA, it’s very good and I look forward to having a small shot of it many times in the future.
Cheers all, and happy Christmas!!’

 

Dang...