New Beer Weekend #298

Not from me, probably from GreenBayman

 

Great Divide Chocolate Peanut Butter Yeti Imp Stout, 9.5% ABV; 4.33 overall

Pours an effervescent chestnut/mahogany with one finger of tan head. Good head retention & insane lacing

S: Peanut butter & chocolate, a little roastyness

T: Follows the nose, charred grain, caramel & woody hops also up front. Milk Chocolate, peanuts, roasted grain & dryness along with woody hops & just a little pine once warmed up. Finishes with some dryness, roasty peanuts, some milk chocolate & little bit of woody hops & caramel. Finishes roasty, with a little Baker's Chocolate & woody hops

MF: Medium body, fairly firm carbonation, a little booze warmth, the bitter components of this beer really help balance this out

This exceeded my expectations; peanut butter is tricky & I think they threaded the needle well on this one

 

Historically, most of Living Häus' labels have been abstract designs, primarily black-and-white with some accent colors. Nice looking and distinctive, yes, but it can be hard to tell their beers apart on the shelf.

Lately, they've been introducing more cans like these. Same limited color palette as their older labels, but with really well rendered illustrations of animals.

 

For my nightcap I pulled out the highest ABV (I think) beer in my cellar that I had never reviewed up to this point. Turns out “Big Arker” has a big brother (or sister, what do I know?) and it’s ingeniously named “Huge Arker”

I’d almost walked right past it because it looked so much like the smaller version. But I noticed it and here we are.

The pour is coffee black, oddly light in color, not quite stout black. The beige head made it to a quarter inch and left no lacing.
Not excellent, but not too unusual for a big barrel aged stout.
The taste is bourbon forward imperial stout (they claim it is a Russian Imperial Stout but no.) no hops, no roast, just miles of malty goodness. Interestingly, it isn’t sweet at all which is often the case with no hard or harsh edge to prevent it. Oddly one dimensional, which is almost impressive.
The feel is fairly solid, no viscosity to speak of and far to easy to quaff.
OA, a nice, high octane imperial stout from Anderson Valley, but not quite what I hoped for.

I don’t know why (my powers of observation obviously suck) but until tonight I had thought that Anderson Valley was a Michigan brewery.
Ah well.
Hopefully you all had an amazing day!
This will likely be the last one for me tonight, though there is a pastry stout that might be good for dessert.
Cheers!

 

Canned (9) days ago and total resiny sickness. Definitely stopping for more of this shah at Jungle Jim's in Ohio tomorrow AM on the way back to the East Coast!! @meanmutt





!!

 

An Anderson Valley beer that's 15.5%?!

That's kind of insane. And I am interested.

 

Good evening NBW
Been too busy for new beer with kids in town for Easter and other plans. Changing that now with this one I've been looking forward to.

Rye Torpedo
12oz can stamped PKGD 021126 poured into a tulip pint glass at fridge temp 6.2% ABV. The beer pours bright light copper tinted amber with khaki colored head. The head recedes to a thin cap and leaves a web of lacing behind on the glass. The aroma is mild with rye and caramel malt with additional notes of citrus. The taste is bittersweet rye malt over pine and citrus. Moderately strong bitterness. The feel is thin to medium bodied with average carbonation and a mostly dry finish. Overall, good rye IPA, but doesn't hit as hard as Ruthless or some of the other old school recipes.

I'll still buy several mix packs. They had me in mind when they put this most recent pack together. Cheers all!

 

Going back to back here

Dual Torpedo

12oz can stamped PKGD 021226 poured into a tulip pint glass at fridge temp 8.2% ABV. The beer pours bright light golden amber with off white head. The head recedes to a thin cap and leaves plenty of lacing. The aroma is mild with sweet caramel malt and candied citrus. The taste is bittersweet caramel malt with big orange, grapefruit and pine flavors before moderately strong final bitterness. The feel is medium bodied with average carbonation and a mostly dry finish. Lots of sticky hop resin feel on this one. Overall, excellent IIPA.

This one is everything I hoped it would be. Cheers all!

 

Another Living Häus beer, with matching glassware:



Living Häus Marley

16-ounce can purchased at Noble Hop Bierhaus in Hillsboro, OR. No date stamp. Enjoyed in a small Becher glass.

The body is a pale and slightly hazy yellow-gold. The head is bright white and looks thick but doesn't last very long and doesn't generate much lacing. The nose is vivid with tangerines, and also offers some nice pine and woody notes. The flavor, like the nose, has some big sweet tangerine notes. There's plenty of pink grapefruit too, with a low but insistent bitterness. The middle offers pineapple, pine, lime zest, Honeycomb cereal and a mild creamy character I'm not a fan of. Finishes with melon, grapefruit pith, and respectable bitterness. The body is light, the carbonation soft. A pleasant if rather unremarkable IPA. I wish it had more of the bite and ferocity suggested by the snarling black cat on the label.

 

That's one that didn't wow me, but would love to try it again, my goalposts may have shifted

 

Cheers to @timmy2b for this Superbowl Squares 2026 payout!

Strangebird Austere 6 Belgian Golden Ale, 5.3% ABV; 4.12 overall

Pours an effervescent & slightly hazed gold with a sliver/pinky of ivory colored head. Average head retention & lacing

S: Juicy Fruit Gum, pears, melon, cloves once warmer

T: Pears, lemons, band aids, faint cloves & white grape up front. Pears, cloves, a touch of yeast & rubberband once warmed up, a little dryness & white grape too. Finishes with a little honey, pear, white pepper, yeast & melon

MF: Medium body, delicate carbonation

Has the chops of a from the Continent Belgian Blonde, drinks very easy

 

Rated it 3.75 overall had 750 ml to pick apart. Just seemed like too much barrel back then. Now, who knows?

 

Happy Easter NBS, (zombie jesus day!) I finished the Five Families by Selwyn Raab last night and posted up my review on goodreads. 6/5 world class book. I started The Shock Doctrine by Naomi Klein briefly before I passed out last night, but I am really looking forward to this. I loved her book Doppelganger, which is a really engaging memoir about being a political activist in Canada, but she has an opponent that looks like her, and thusly a lot of confusion about "who said what" was some crazy media speculation as a result. Another Red vs Blue overview, if you catch my drift. (I gave it 4.5/5) The Shock Doctrine is published in 2007, but will resonate today even harder. Private businesses made trillions in the market dip in 2021, the pandemic economy overview will have fit into the book quite seamlessly. Private Equity will continue ruining the beer industry, that housing bubble needs to burst... I am always on board for a new economics book!

Julia made a big ass half pork loin in the instant pot last night, but I was too tired to eat, so I get to have it today for easter dinner! We are going to Outback tomorrow for our 2nd anniversary with a bunch of gift cards from holidays. Here are some more kitten pics for your enjoyment:


Another BIF beer from @Ozzylizard. Saint Arnold Bourbon Barrel French press, 11/23/2020 bottling. This had a lot of yeast/protein chunks on the bottom. Poor head retention and no lacing. Aromas of big nutty dark roasted coffee, chocolate, cocoa, caramel, brown sugar, brown bread, bourbon, toasted oak; light smoke, char, dark fruit, coconut, molasses, pepper, yeast earth. Slight booze, but rich aromas. Taste follows with big nutty dark roasted coffee, chocolate, cocoa, toffee, caramel, brown sugar, brown bread, bourbon, toasted oak; light smoke, char, dark fruit, coconut, molasses, herbal, pepper, pine, and yeast earth. Light-medium pine/herbal bitterness and bourbon/oak tannin spiciness on the finish. Medium carbonation and medium-plus body; balanced creamy/bready malt, sticky hop, and bourbon/oak tannins in the mouthfeel. Lingering spicy alcohol dryness with no cloying/acrid/astringent flavors. Very smooth and a bit boozy on the barrel, lingering warmth of 9.9% after the finish. Still a great amount of coffee presence after 5 years, bourbon integration and and complexity is big. 4.13/5


Cheers

 

4.6/5 rDev +12.5%

look: 4.75 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.5

Poured from a 16 ounce can dated 3-12-26 into a snifter at refrigerator temperature.

Appearance- Pale gold, white creamy head, very slightly hazy, slightly above average head retention, above average lacing.

Aroma- Pine resin, clementine, dank, high strength of scent.

Flavor- Pine resin, grapefruit, clementine, high strength of flavor.

Mouthfeel- Medium body, average carbonation, highly creamy, moderately mouth warming, highly bitter, mildly mouth coating, mildly dry finish, moderately prickly.

Overall- Pale gold and very slightly hazy with slightly above average head retention and above average lacing. The bouquet was a classic WCIPA mix of pine resin, citrus and dank notes with a high strength. The flavor followed the nose with high intensity as well. The mouthfeel consisted of medium body, high bitterness, moderate prickliness and a mildly dry finish that kept me needing my next sip. Overall, this was a fantastic WCDIPA that excelled in all categories.

 

4Hands Brewing Co. Rockmelon Hazy IPA with Cantaloupe, 6.5% ABV; 4.01 overall

Pours a hazed yellow /gold finger of cream-colored head. Average-ish head retention & lacing

S: Yes, Cantaloupe, Peaches, all fade a little once warmer. Some watermelon, coconut & pineapple very late

T: Follows the nose, a bit of lime & green melon as well up front. I am getting a little strawberry as this beer warms up along with cantaloupe, dryness, lime, grassy notes & some berries

MF: Medium body, slight carbonation, decent balance, some detected acidity

Super easy to drink & delivers on the flavor, mouthfeel/body was the major drag on this beer

 

When Someone Asks If You're A God...
Triptych Brewing ~ Savoy, IL

Imperial Stout aged in bourbon barrels blended with imperial stout aged in rum barrels with cocoa nibs, marshmallow, vanilla beans & natural flavors.

This Sunday sipper was made possible by first-rate BA @falloutsnow . A lot going on with this one and at the 16.3% ABV it's a thicc boy with a bit of warming spice in the finish.

Loads of fudgy chocolate with dark dried fruits, vanilla paste, cherry cordial, dark rum, caramel nougat, and some toasted oak. Vinous at times. There is some real nice interplay between the Rum notes and the marshmallow keeping each other somewhat in check here. Leans on the sweeter side but very nicely balanced overall. This seems on par with some of the Other Half and Prairie cookie dessert stouts in that it actually is well executed.

 

One more New Beer for the weekend. A great big barrel-aged nightcap.



Fort George Tropical Tomb
(Collaboration with Ruse Brewing of Portland, OR. Barrel-aged imperial stout with coconut, pineapple, lime leaf, and Thai chili)

Look:
Thick black body which transmits no light except at the edges. Burnt umber highlights. It is capped with a short-lived head of dark brown foam. And once the foam is gone, it doesn't return. No surface, no ring, no lacing.

Smell:
The nose almost prepares you for the massive sweetness to come. Dark chocolate, bourbon, a good amount of coconut, hints of butterscotch and coffee, dark earth. The lime leaf is tangy with a sweet edge and it cuts through like a David Gilmour guitar solo.

Taste:
The flavor starts off incredibly sweet, like chocolate syrup thinned with bourbon and a squeeze of lime. The chocolate (but not the sweetness) recedes briefly in the middle, giving other flavors a chance to come through. Pineapple appears underneath the lime, along with marshmallows, graham crackers, and cotton candy. At first, the Thai chili is more felt than tasted, a soft flare of heat that lingers at the finish. As the beer warms, the chili contributes a mild fruity and earthy flavor. There's plenty of bourbon flavor from end to end.

Feel:
The body is medium-heavy with a silky texture. Carbonation is subdued, but gets the job done. There's some alcohol warmth but less than you might expect from a 14.7% stout. It is easily outshined by the chili heat.

Overall:
Tropical Tomb is one of those big Fort George barrel-aged stouts which suffers from massive sweetness. It has a gratifying amount of barrel character, and the lime and chili are excellent features which really set this beer apart. But that sweetness is just too much for me.