New Beer Weekend #290

This is perhaps my favorite coffee stout. I really think the coffee comes through nicely along with that slightly sweet note just as you mention, and it all fills out this normal-octane brew. The only quibble I'd have with your review is the part about the feel being thin, I think it is quite nice for the beer. But I'm not going to challenge you to a duel or anything

 

Insight Pale Ale! 5.5%
A bit of a "Westie" and I like it. Hops 1st then malts. Not gorgeous looking but the tastes and feel make up for it. Tongue-drying zesty lingering finish. My rating numbers added up to 4.0

 

Well, I'm late to this weekend party. Doubly so when you consider this probably is my first Beer Weekend and there have been some 290.

The beer I just had is named after the Bavarian brewer often known as the "Father of the Pilsner." Who is he?

Answer: Josef Groll. (I'm sure someone on this thread knew the answer, but I didn't.)

The brew, Groll, is from Hammerton, a Mom 'n Pop shop in the middle of London with a taproom/brewery and a separate pub, both in the Borough of Islington. By American standards, the hops are tame; but it went well with my modest meal.

 

And plenty of New Beer Sundays as well. Come back & see us again!

 

Happy NBS one and all! We even have new blood joining us and that is very cool.
This month, being Celluary, is when we pull out the forgotten or buried beers in our collection, be it fridge, box in the basement or a root cellar.

I really try not to let lower ABV beers languish because they generally don’t hold up well. Especially ones that have additives.

Today I met an exception to that general rule-

Stranger Than Chocolate and Coconut. Canned 12/22/2020.
Wasn’t going to rate it but as I wasn’t expecting to enjoy it, thought it might help someone still sitting on one.
The pour is crazy carbonated, full 2” of light brown head that leaves sheets of lacing. The liquid itself is coffee brown with deep mahogany highlights when backlit.
The taste is still very much what I think they intended; the base porter shines through the Mounds candy bar represented by “natural” flavors. (Yes, quotes; truly natural flavors I would think have fallen off more than these might have. But I know nothing)
The feel is light, lighter than the flavors suggest but keeping with the ABV.
OA, natural flavors or not, it’s a toasty porter that is a shame to be retired.

 

You picked a great one to start with

 

Good Super Bowl Sunday afternoon, New Beer Swiggers and commentators. For the past few months, our in-town brewery, Autodidact Beer, has been pumping out DIPAs featuring Southern Hemisphere hops. I've gotten tired of them. So I was excited to see a new release this week hopped with Citra, Mosaic, and Motueka. While the latter is from New Zealand, I never tire of it. Reptile is a "collaboration" between Autodidact and The Liquor Outlet in Boonton, which is my favorite beer store. It was released at Noon on Friday and by 5:00 p.m., the cans at the brewery were sold out. I don't know how many were shipped to The Liquor Outlet. There were only 3 packs left in the cooler when I grabbed mine.

Reptile pours an opaque, dense, muddy pastel tangerine color with a finger cap of fluffy, bright white foam and thick, sudsy lacing. A big, fruity nose with lemon peel, lime zest, tangerine, and sweet stone fruit. The taste really pops. Auto has coaxed a lot of flavor from the Citra, Mosaic, and Motueka hops. It opens with tart lemon and lime, balanced by sweeter tropical notes of tangerine and pineapple, along with stone fruit. Beneath is a firm malt base that adds additional sweetness. The hops produce moderate bitterness throughout but without the strong burn that has characterized recent Auto DIPAs. The flavors are big and bold. This ale is full-bodied and creamy with a pleasant level of carbonation, and it doesn't drink like 8.8% ABV. Overall, Reptile is a terrific DIPA with big, bold flavor and an excellent mouth feel!

4.43/5 rDev 0%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Next up is something completely different. Cheers!

 

It has great coffee flavor, and I'd be happy to drink it again.

 

I've always danced around this one as there was really no word of mouth about Thin Man, and Trial By Wombat never had much of a following by East Coast BAs that I've seen. Canned in early December, the end result is I enjoyed this IPA and drank it quickly



Trial By Wombat
Hazy IPA | 7% ABV
Thin Man Brewery in Buffalo, New York

Reviewed by beerdedking from Pennsylvania

4.16/5 rDev +0.2% | Average: 4.15
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
I've seen this beer on shelves for years, but did not partake. Righting a wrong, this is a pretty darn good hazy IPA that showcases the best attributes of Galaxy hops. Looks like pineapple juice and also tastes very much like pineapple juice with a dry, resinous, and bitter finish. Supporting notes of mango, peach, and orange juices are available. I would gladly drink this one fresh anytime, it really shines.

 

Bentonville Brewing's Helles Lager ( Munich Style ) 4.8% ABV, 4.22 overall

Pours an effervescent gold with 2 fingers ivory colored head. Below average head retention & average lacing

S: Bready, crackery with some herbal & grassy notes. Perfumy notes once warmed up

T: Follows the nose, some lemon & dryness as well up front. Grassy, dry with some herbal & floral hop notes as this beer warms up. Finishes dry with crackery notes & a little grassyness & citrus

MF: Medium body, soft carbonation, nice balance

Superb drinkability, true to the style

 

NBS #2. Holidays on Broad St., an American Porter with chocolate and peppermint bark from Varitage Beer Works in Bloomfield, NJ. I had a pour on draught at the brewery yesterday but I like it better from the can. I let it warm for a little over an hour before pouring. This brew is a collaboration with Holsten's, very well-known ice cream parlor and restaurant in Bloomfield that was immortalized as the location of the last scene of The Sopranos series (see below).

It pours a dark mahogany with cola hues and sports a large, creamy, light khaki head and sheen of lacing insider the glass. A pleasant nose with roasted malt, freshly-brewed coffee, tobacco smoke, and just a whiff of peppermint. The taste follows although the chocolate and peppermint bark are more pronounced than in the smell, which is a nice touch. The coffee is fresh and acidic and it has really nice roasted malt base with some char that provides balancing bitterness. I had a pour on draught at the brewery but like it better from the can. The mouth feel is also richer from the can than on draught. It is gently carbonated and the 7.5% ABV gives it good substance. Overall, this Porter has grown on me. The peppermint bark is subtle and adds an interesting note to what is a solid American Porter.

3.96/5 rDev +5.9%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4



Cheers and enjoy the Super Bowl!

 

Look: pour is clear straw, bubbly white head, spotty lacing
Smell: cracker, piney, black pepper, light citrus
Taste: black pepper, pine, melon, peach, grapefruit, tangerine, citrus zest
Feel: med light body, mod carbo, citrus zest bitter tingle
Overall: 6% abv. Pine, pepper and melon came thru first. The other citrus flavors came into play in the 2nd half but lightly. Citrus zest and pepper linger on the palate. Picked up a sixer so I got 5 more to go. Right now, she's a 3.75 so we'll see if the other 5 can move the needle for me. Good starter brew for Super Bowl Sunday. Cheers!

3.75/5 rDev -6.9%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75

 

Just got back from a 5-hr drive seeing the grandchildren in upstate NY. On the way up we stopped at Fidens for lunch. I had this beer on draft and it was so amazing I knew I had to bring some home. Although at the brewery they served it from a hand pump, the head was even better than from the can.

4.54/5 rDev 0%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.5
Purchased cold from at the brewery 2-days ago and kept cold until served. Poured to a Nonic from 16oz can stamped “02/02/25”
The body is completely opaque. I think even if the glass was ¼”/6mm thick you could not see through it. Color is a milky straw similar to SRM 3, but SRM probably does not apply to such a hazy body. The head was nice with micro bubbles and lasted a good 5-minutes. Lacing however was below medium.
There is an incredible citrus aroma in this beer. Sweet pineapple, grapefruit and rind, some apricot.
The taste is similar in the front with a bitter, cleaning finish. Plenty of rind and grapefruit. Hop bitterness at the end is great.
The mouthfeel is about as thick and tongue coating as any beer. But the carbonation keeps up with it without being in the way.
Probably the best beer I have had so far in 2026.

 

I don't believe they have bottled or distributed it in years. A very good representation of one of my favorite styles.

 

Hey BAs! I picked up a sixer of SN’s Springfest IPA and figured I’d give it a go:



Canned 1/13/26. Pours pale gold with excellent clarity; tight white head with many rocks; OK cap Retention; solid ring with some soapy lacing. Slightly spicy hop nose. Mild bitter lemongrass hops; bready malt base. Clean crisp feel; light body; moderate minus carbonation. Overall, an easy drinking IPA; a perfect lawnmower beer; not too watery with some hop flavor.

4.25 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 4.0
Score: 4.02 rDev -0.2%


Kinda like a weak kneed sister to the hoppier SN IPA portfolio that I love and stock in my daily drinking fridge. I’d gladly drink again, but would not buy it again unless it was on sale (oops, it was on sale today for $11.99…at that price I will pass in the future…)…

Cheers y’all!

 

February is Stout Month at Fort George Brewery and Public House in Astoria, OR. Every year they brew up a gang of stouts to celebrate the darkest month of the year. Big stouts. Little stouts. Dry and sweet, plain and heavily laden with extra flavors. Something for every stout fan.

Right now the Beaverton outpost of Loyal Legion has a bunch of these new, one-off, draft-only Fort George stouts on tap. It's a New Beer target-rich environment on this rainy Sunday afternoon.

I'm starting with Over/Underberg, a dry stout with "Underberg-inspired botanicals." (The Fort George website mentions "mint leaves, grapefruit and orange peel, cloves, juniper berries, cinnamon sticks, star anise, Angelica root and gentian root.")



Strong backlighting shows a clear red-brown body with red-amber highlights. The nitro tap creates a creamy head of tan foam that lasts to the bottom of the glass. No lacing, though.

The nose is full of roasted malt with hints of dark chocolate and freshly ground coffee. There's no sign of the elaborate botanical payload, but I'll keep checking as the beer warms.

The taste is very much the same. Dark roasted malt, toasted wheat bread (not quite burnt, but close), black coffee, unsweetened cocoa powder. Very dry. Moderate bitterness and mild roast malt acidity through the middle. Finishes with a flare of coffee and a lasting undertone of dark chocolate. I am actively searching for botanicals and coming up almost empty-handed. Is that a trace of licorice on the breath? A speck of citrus peel? A dot of cloves maybe 5 or 6 molecules across? Shrug.

The body is light-medium with creamy texture and a subtle astringency in the finish. Mellow carbonation like the softest rain.

I'm a little conflicted about rating this one. It is a tasty and well-made dry stout. No question about that. But it doesn't really deliver what it promises.

Update: The last sips had a definite licorice/bitter herbs character. Follow-on burps confirmed the botanical presence. So Over/Underberg is not a total washout. But jeez, if you're gonna go to the trouble of adding flavors to a beer, why not make 'em a little easier to find?

 

New Imperial Stout from a local brewery. I applaud them for trying something like this, and the maple comes through nicely, but otherwise doesn’t meet the standards of a great Imperial Stout



3.88/5 rDev 0%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.75
Drinking out of a small goblet.
Pours a clear almost black with a medium brown head.
Smells of roasted malts, but not as intense as most imperial stouts.
Good mouth feel.
Nice strong taste of dark malt. The maple nicely comes through.
The imperial stouts taste doesn’t come through as strongly as I would expect.
Nice beer, but falls somewhat short of expectations

 

Dovetail Brewing's Holiday Bock BA 6.9%ABV
My very first Dovetail beer courtesy of @falloutsnow I really wanted to love this Holiday Bock given this brewery's prowess however there is an odd sour honey malt type note to it that I am just not so sure what to make of. Not anything near the class or crisp cleanliness of Enegrens Christmas Bock that I am most accustomed with...

That said is still a nice drink that I am thankful for the opportunity to have been able to sample for sure. Cheers

 

Trapistes Rochefort Triple Extra, 8.1% ABV; 4.24 overall

Bottle BBD seems to be May 2027

Pours a slightly hazed gold with a thumb+ of ivory colored head. Great head retention, lacing is so-so

S: Grassyness, pears, white grapes, perfumy hops late

T: Follows the nose, subtle green melon & citrus notes, some white pepper as well up front. Subtle pineapple comes through along with pear, white grape, grassyness & white pepper as this beer warms up, some clove notes as well, catching some herbal hops too. Finishes with pear, green melon, & a little phenolic character

MF: Medim body, subtle carbonation

Solid take on the style, I wanted to hops to pop more & more malt character, drinks easy for the ABV

 

Today's beer is Barbarian, a barrel-aged from Warrior Brewing out of Duluth, Mn, a sessionable 12%er in the "I think I'll just have one" economy size. This was purchased in Duluth in 2021.
Great appearance, dark, murky, tan head and a bit of spotty lacing.
Snot machine detects some baker’s cocoa and some candy. Tastes buds get some chocolate, toffee and the booze is just noticeable. A bit on the thin side, but coats the mouth. A solid beer.


Probably the 1st wax-capped beer that didn't leave me swearing for 10 minutes!