New Beer Weekend #289 (for @cavedave!)

Greetings! Heartening to see all the remembrances here, my condolences to those of you who were close to Dave. Will be keeping him in mind when I start dipping into my cellar again next month.

Contributing a modest (or if I'm being less generous, mediocre) amber as my offering this weekend - cheers!

3.67/5 rDev +8.9%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75

Poured from a 350mL can into a Duralex tumbler.

Clear crimson body with coral highlights and a low stand of cosmic latte foam. Average retention; fine, sandy lacing.

Gently floral aroma with some caramel malt and bubblegum in the mix.

Light malt complexity on the palate with red currants, toast, and burnt sugar. Low bitterness with a clean, grassy, not-quite-earthy hop presence. Finishes medium to medium-dry finish, perhaps with some residual esters.

Medium-light bodied but chewy with some light astringency.

A decent albeit restrained take on the style.

 

Chouffe Light / Lite 4%

I thought I'd expand from my previous post about the Trinity beer and keep things going. This beer seems to have a big variety of subtle name variations and the BA entry/entries for it are a bit of a mess as a result. @beergoot - I just put in a change request if you want to give it a look.

Best before date is Feb 2026. Talk about a close one! Looks like I have to drink the entire four pack today to get my money's worth.

Despite the best before date, there’s magic in this one for me. I wish the Trinity beer had this character (even though I liked that beer too).

Pretty golden yellow. Nice head. Light (and soft) body but not a very light taste. The main identifying character is a strong lemon/lime quality, and there’s some spiciness. Tiny touch of black licorice, but maybe I'm crazy. Westmalle Extra is possibly my current gold standard for such beers, but I’m loving this one. This is the most enjoyable Belgian import I’ve had in a long time, but I also appreciate “lighter” versions of beers (YMMV).

 

I just mentioned last week to @Shanex that I wondered if this was available in the US. Thank you for answering said wondering because I haven’t seen it but will look around in the coming shopping trips.

 

I must confess I could hardly be considered a companion of cavedave but I knew the handle and always enjoyed his posts. I could tell he was all about the beer and as many have said, he did it in a very positive manner without being pretentious. Love to see it. So this one is for him. I expended most of my mental energy reviewing this beer and further elaborating here seems redundant but let’s just say this continues to be an exemplary rye barrel-aged imperial stout expression. Cheers!!

 

Next up for me on this NBW stouturday is another Speedway Stout variant:

Speedway Grand Prix MMXXV Dutch Apple Pie Edition | AleSmith Brewing Company | BeerAdvocate





For me this is the best of the 3 Grand Prix MMXXV variants I've had so far, and the last one will be next. Cheers again!

 

In tribute to @cavedave
Luce Line Odd Man Rush DDH Hazy IPA 7.5%
Citra /\ Cashmere /\ Vista

4.13/5 rDev -3.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4
On tap at the brewery and from a 16 oz can as well into a pint glass.
L: Pours a hazed light grayish yellow with a thin white head that quickly recedes to edge foam, low carbo, medium broken random lacing, sediment chunks when poured from the can.
S: Light citrus, melon, sweet caramel malts, a bit floral.
T: Melon, peach, mango, pine resin, sweet malts, a hint of oats, wheat, a touch of yeast, dandelion. melon and resin linger. It is full-flavored.
F: Smooth & affably creamy medium to med-heavy bodied mouthfeel with a medium length moderately drying finish. Lightly chalky at the end.
O: A slightly bold tasting Hazy that is fruit-forward and is mildly robust. Fantastic feel with a glowing bitter finish. On tap there were no sediment chunks. It is excellent in its style.

 

Unfortunately I have no stouts at home to honor CaveDave with. My wife just picked up Foam Brewer's Tranquil Pils for herself, but I stole one so I could do a NBW.

3.83/5 rDev -4.7%
look: 4.75 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Purchased cold from a local store today and kept cold until served. Poured to a non-traditional pils glass from 16oz can stamped “12/10/25 MERRY TRANQMAS!”
The body is clear, and a very light straw color (SRM 1). A heavy rising of nucleation bubbles is visible throughout the session. The ultra-white head puts on a topography display and lacing is generous. Some foam greater than .08”/2mm thick stays on the surface to the end.
I don’t think I can give a good aroma evaluation with my current head cold, but I do sense sweet hay.
The taste is crisp yet sweet if those two can coexist. Hop character is definitely there. So is a mild black pepper effect.
The mouthfeel is medium, thick for a Pilsner really, but that's not a bad thing here. The carbonation is mild despite the large head on the pour.
Very drinkable with a more pronounced body than most Pilsners.

 

This one didn't go well for me. I'm still not sure why I bought it as I don't particularly like coconut. Oh well. Might be back with another tomorrow.

Amherst Brewing Toasted Coconut Cream Coffee Porter
6% American Porter



Pours pitch black with a three-finger brown head that sticks around for quite some time.

Aromas of coconut dominate, with little else present. Hints of malted chocolate and cocoa along with that particular sweetness of a cookies and creme candy bar.

The taste is similar, with coconut as the prima donna and primo uomo, completely overshadowing the supporting cast. There's some milk and malted chocolate at the front of the sip, roast coffee at the middle and especially near the finish, and some toasted brown bread that builds to the finish. The finish saves the beer with a nice hit of roast and earth bitterness along with some char to cleanse all that coconut. As it warms, though, toasted coconut comes through on the aftertaste, bring us right back to the start.

Oh but that feel! Full bodied, thick, smooth, luxurious. Just enough carb to keep lively, but it still coats the mouth like velvet.

Overall, hmm. Looks great, feels absolutely wonderful, but lacks any substance or depth of aroma and taste.

 

Bourbon County - Vanilla Rye Stout (2024) - Goose Island
14%abv

@cavedave, alas we do part
Beer brought us near
You with love in your heart
I with a stout for good cheer.
Now you forage the undiscovered country
Thus I do gape into the depths of malt
May our paths meet yet in lands of mystery.
- @SLeffler27 20260131



A shiny black viscous abyss permits a thin, black walnut cream to gather above. Within a minute the blanket becomes a ring that sends up shooting stars of lace only to slowly fall with a generous film that produces no legs.

Alcohol fueled vapor carries strong vanilla and brownie batter. Plumb pudding and roasted malt follow, as maple syrup brings it to a crescendo.

Charred malt and baker’s chocolate add bitterness to keep the sweetness below expectations. Rye whiskey and crisp brownie crust close the show.

Full bodied with a chewy texture of rubber. Alcohol has nice warmth, jus5 shy of hot, while carbonation prickles throughout. Ample sugar buildup on the lips.

A nice choice for a bitterly cold and snowy afternoon. Probably equally enjoyable as a dessert late at night deep in a summer forest with bugs chirping.



And now for a skilled poet to close it out…

Beer
BY GEORGE ARNOLD
Here,
With my beer
I sit,
While golden moments flit:
Alas!
They pass
Unheeded by:
And, as they fly,
I,
Being dry,
Sit, idly sipping here
My beer.
O, finer far
Than fame, or riches, are
The graceful smoke-wreaths of this free cigar!
Why
Should I
Weep, wail, or sigh?
What if luck has passed me by?
What if my hopes are dead,—
My pleasures fled?
Have I not still
My fill
Of right good cheer,—
Cigars and beer?
Go, whining youth,
Forsooth!
Go, weep and wail,
Sigh and grow pale,
Weave melancholy rhymes
On the old times,
Whose joys like shadowy ghosts appear,—
But leave me to my beer!
Gold is dross,—
Love is loss,—
So, if I gulp my sorrows down,
Or see them drown
In foamy draughts of old nut-brown,
Then do I wear the crown,
Without the cross!

 

Hello BAdvocates. I didn’t drink a beer yesterday so couldn’t participate in the @cavedave Memorial WBAYDN so I popped open a new-to-me Dubbel brewed by Greens Gluten Free Ales to toast in his honor.

Onto my review;
Best Before Oct 3 2030 poured at 50 degrees.

Look: Deep dark brownish-red with a medium beige head that has solid retention and leaves fine lacing. 4.25
Smell: Some malt and fruit sweetness with a bit of yeast. 3.75
Taste: Excellent. A beautiful balance between sweet fruits and delicious yeast. Brown sugar and just a bit of alcohol are also present. 4.5
Feel: High in the mouth with medium carbonation. Nice smoother bubbles. Easily quaffable. 4.5
Overall: This is a substantial improvement over the only Green’s brew I’ve had. Their Discovery/Amber Ale is a putrid mess but this Dubbel is fine drinker. Definitely glad to have pulled the trigger and purchased it.


@cavedave was a frequent contributor in the pun thread. I’ll definitely miss his humor and way with words.

Cheers to Dave!

 

Well written as always, love it.

 

I can't even write a decent limerick, let alone a poem. But maybe inspiration will strike. If so, I apologize now.

 

Foliage Autumn Lager
American Lager | 5% ABV
Enegren Brewing Company in Moorpark, California

Reviewed by beerdedking from Pennsylvania

4.27/5 rDev +3.9% | Average: 4.11
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25
I interpreted this lager as an American take on a Vienna. Looks and malts lead me in this direction. Whatever the case, this was excellent. Broad flavors abound here with toffee, caramel, and graham cracker bearing the malt banner while a fairly significant earthy and bitter hop bite comes in the finish destroying any cloying factors. This is how I want my lager, and Enegren delivered in spades. Highly recommend. The best offering from these guys I've tried, and all are good



Thanks to @Nugganooch for this absolute gem

Also, and most importantly cheers and salutations to our BA brother @cavedave

 

Tree of Life Aged on Port Barrel
Treehouse

4.75/5 rDev +5.1%
look: 4.75 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.75
Drinking at the brewery.
Pours a very dark mahogany with a very thin head.
Smell dominated by port.
Nice smooth silky mouth feel.
Complex balanced taste of barley wine balanced by port.
Really nice.

 

New brew to me. Started citrusy and piney. Half way thru it leans more piney. Citrus is a nice accent. Med body with moderate carbo. Dry finish. Moderate bitterness. Flavors saturate the tongue and linger. Great brew! Cheers