New Beer Weekend #300

Alltech's Kentucky Bourbon Barrel Cocoa Porter, 8.0% ABV; 3.74 overall

Pours an effervescent chestnut/mahogany with 2 fingers of tan head. Average head retention & lacing

S: Cocoa, iron & brown sugar & coffee late. Then cinnamon & sassafras very late

T: Follows the nose, a little vanilla & faint coffee up front, dryness. Roastyness surfaces once warmed up, faint cola & Bourbon notes, cocoa & cinnamon? Finishes with Brown sugar, oak & sassafras

MF: Medium body, firm carbonation, a bit of booze & barrel bite

Barrel is there, but could've helped more... Once warmer this opened up a bit; not sure I would buy again, but a step up from the flagship beer IMHO

 

Hot tub time 47 F out there

 

God bless antibiotics, guessing this is a sign you’re feeling better and back to normal self, or close to it.

 

Amber Ale from Old Credit Brewing Co.

From a 473ml can dated BB 02 July 2026. Poured into a pint glass. A one finger fine tan head on a clear dark copper. The head soon diminished to a thin layer. Minimal lacing

Caramel malts with a hint of floral hops in the nose. The taste follows the nose. Some fruit. Finishes dryer and very mildly bitter.

A medium light/body lightly carbonated. Overall a solid Red Ale. Smooth and well balanced.

3.76/5 rDev +20.1%
look: 3.25 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75

 

I had no idea that Old Credit was canning! The maybe joined the 21st century! Or, I just haven’t paid any attention for the last decade or two…

I’ve always found this to be a strange brewery. They’ve been around since the early 90s. They make 3-4 different beers, all in styles that have never been sexy. I’ve always found the quality of the beer to be middling, and always to have a candy sugar aroma (from the cap on the bottles). They appear to be open more often now, but they used to be open limited hours on weekends. I’ve always wondered how they stay afloat as I’ve never met anyone that drinks their beer.

I’m guessing they could teach a lot of people how to successfully run a small craft brewery!

Cheers!

 

Final new beer of the weekend.

Return of the Lake Erie Monster - Great Lakes Brewing - Cleveland, OH - Imperial IPA - 9.5%

Wow, this beer is a total dud. There's not offensive flavors here, there's just almost no flavor. I was expecting so much more, and this beer isn't even old. Not impressed at all.

Review:
https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/73/696785/]
3.07/5 rDev -23.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 2.75 | overall: 3
From a 12oz can. Best by July 31, 2026

This beer is nice and clear looking. It has a beautiful golden color to it. The beer has a nice level of carbonation with a steady stream of carbonation bubbles rising to the top of the glass. There's a 2 finger slightly off white head that has decent head retention and some sticky looking lacing on the glass.
The aroma is a bit of a let down. It is quite mild smelling. I am getting some floral notes in the nose, but not much. I also get a faint earthy aroma.
The flavor is a lot like the nose: a let down. Up front this beer is super malty. I am getting a lot of biscuit in the flavor. The hops come into play on the back. There's some floral elements to the hops and a slight bitterness. The only strong flavor was the malt that started it off.
The body just seems light for a double IPA. It isn't really clingy or sticky. Minimal bitterness.
This beer is really a total let down. I was expecting a lot from it, and got so little.

See you all next weekend when the virtual bar opens for business once again. Cheers all!

 

Cheers all. I really enjoyed that opening post by Tim (from Ajax, by way of California ). 2020 seems like half a lifetime ago. My thoughts - beer thoughts - turn to getting involved more on this site and in particular, this group and its associated BIF. I look back fondly at being welcomed in to the BIF as a foreign interloper to whom boxes of beer cost the sender’s a fair bit more to send. It was glorious for a few years around that time. Lots of fun banter on the threads and great beer shared. Sadly, the border baddies caught up to us and I had to step back. I miss it, but console myself with the fact that in 2026, I can get world class beer locally all the time. I miss the new exotic beers too, but the thread banter mostly.

Speaking of world class beer, I enjoyed this beer from a local world class brewery last night with my favourite local Hakka take-out. This if Godspeed Nishi West Coast Pils.



This one poured a bright straw gold with ample, pillowy head that stuck around as it slowly diminished until I’d finished the beer.

The aroma is citrus dominant, with a particular fruit difficult to pinpoint. There is some light cereal there as well and the slightest hint of piney resin.

Taste follows closely. Lots of traditional IPA notes (citrus, pine, and bitter kick). The beer is most definitely a lager though with a crisp light finish that blends the bitter with a little lightly toasted grain.

Body is light and the beer has a nice effervescence.

As always a great beer from Godspeed. I bought two and drank both in quick succession with my spicy Hakka plate.

As fortune would have it, a friend met through BA many years ago is driving up to Toronto with his son today. He’s bringing beer from trades I made that he has kept at his place for a couple years now. Other than a couple tough to get l bottles of lambic, I don’t remember what he has. I’ll be sharing the haul in that thread. It will be like Christmas!

Cheers all, and… Go Habs Go!

 

Joining @Victory_Sabre1973 in trying this new Hammerheart beer, Lil Hesty. I think it's solid, but didn't like it as much as he did.


Appearance: Slightly hazy orange, big head.

Smell: Rye note?, a little pine.

Taste: Mild sweetness, then a mix of some spicy rye and bitter pine. Medium bodied. Finishes with lasting bitterness.

Overall: When I saw the announcement of this beer by Hammerheart I thought it was an April Fool’s joke. Turns out it was real and it’s a solid IPA. Tastes like it has a rye base to me but that might just be the mix of hops used.

 

The 4 pack I bought is just inside BB date (11 months in the can), and i thought it tasted plenty fresh. A really fresh find would be outstanding!

 

What a full-flavored Session IPA !! It's about as piney as SN Celebration. I found a hint of tobacco leaf in the taste as well as rye. Pretty hefty for a session beer. Cheers!

 

I was totally shocked how good it was @Mdog and @LesDewitt4beer . It hit so good, and was so much better than the double IPA I had today. It just hit things so well for me. They don't have a taproom, but I'd gladly make the drive to Ely, MN if they did.

 

This is my first encounter with this brewer. I got the can at my local LCBO where a few "strays" are showing up. I liked the beer. I noticed that my rating was quite a bit higher than most, but there haven't been many recent reviews, so maybe something is up with this brewer. One to watch maybe.

 

Thanks @Beersnake for opening New Beer Weekend #300. I'm happy to be a part of this huge milestone in BA history. I'm going to cheat a little and include 2 brews from Oct 2019 that I had for the first time along with 2 from 2020 that also blew me away. My first Heady Topper and BBC It's Complicated Being A Wizard in Oct 2019. In 2020, King Sue and Attacus Atlas by Parish Brewing. I still drink these brews (when I can get them) except Attacus Atlas. Haven't seen it in about 3 years and it's one of my all-time favorites too.



4.44/5 rDev +5.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Look: clear golden with a thick fluffy white head, lively carbo bubbles rising, long lasting head, left heavy lacing rings

Smell: pine, resin, berries

Taste: berries, pine, grapefruit, apricot, resin

Feel: med body, mod carbo, dry sticky finish and bitter

Overall: 8.2% abv. This is an excellent brew. Berries and apricot are the dominant fruit flavors. Pine and resin coat the tongue for a dry sticky finish. Pleasant bitterness is fantastic too. Absolutely love this addition to the Torpedo family and would love to see it sold by itself. Cheers!

 

Definitely plan on trying to watch as much of the Hab’s series as I can. Nothing matches the spoils of so many games every day during the first round.

Now beer talk…

Tonewood just released a beer for the craft brewers conference, a west coast pilsner…a “style” I tend to enjoy trying. I’m hoping to grab one on tap or a four pack.

But my question to you or others? Does anyone else try to use untapped to guide purchases sometimes? It is nowhere near as trustworthy as BA and that’s the problem for me. This new one from them, has so not may reviews but they contradict one another…”soft” was one review, then “crisp and super clean” by another, I’d gamble on the last comment but not the first one.

 

When I saw "Cherry Liquor" on the label I was a bit put off, but I found the beer to be actually pretty good.

 

4.4/5 rDev +3%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5

Look: deep amber, lively carbo bubbles, creamy off-white head was long lasting, excellent lacing

Smell: rye, pine, grapefruit

Taste: rye, pine, grapefruit, resin

Feel: med body, moderate carbo, dry sticky finish with good bitterness

Overall: 6.2% abv. Drank two 12-ounce cans for this review. Rye and pine right out of the gate on the smell and taste. Just that combo with the bitterness was very nice but once my tastebuds adjusted the grapefruit and resin came through. The second beer was better than the first and elevated to a higher level. I'm very impressed and even more so that it's only 6.2%. If this were available in 6 or 12 packs, I would load up.

 

Good afternoon BAs! Notwithstanding the low 80s outside, I’m starting with a non BA imperial stout this afternoon - Arkane Aleworks’ “Four Fngers And…Salted Caramel & Pistachios” TBBW (2025):



Poured at 53.4°. Black with ruby edges; good clarity under quick/dark tan head; some spots of lace; thin ring; medium legs on swirl. Caramel fudge; stone fruit nose. Taste is salty caramel; nutty; sweet chocolate; dark cherries. Medium plus body; silky smooth feel; light carbonation; no warmth from 10% ABV. Overall delicious; not adjunkie; a sneaky easy drinking, non-barrel aged, impy stout.

4.25 | 4.5 | 4.75 | 4.5 | 4.5
Score: 4.59 rDev +7%

Another variant from the 4 Fingers And series that I would gladly drink again.

 

Happy 300th weekend of new beers and great company! I didn't join BA until 2021 and wasn't drinking anything in 2020. My family and I were very fortunate to avoid pretty much all of the negative aspects of the pandemic, and spending time with them instead of commuting hours a day was wonderful. And, most importantly, with finances back in order thanks to cost savings of doing nothing plus fed stimulus, I was back on the beer wagon in 2021.

Great to see the addition coming along, @jonphisher! Looks like it will nicely complement the house and give you that much needed extra space without overpowering the lot or the existing style.

Today's new beer is a lovely dopplebock from Maine. I need to make my way up there at some point as their brew list is right up my alley. Currently they have a bitter, oatmeal stout, dark mild, and brown ale: https://bunkerbrewingco.com/beers-1.

Bunker Brewing's Quiver
7.3% Dopplebock



Pours a slightly cloudy medium amber with a one-finger off white head that dissipates quickly.

Aromas of caramel, toffee, slight brown sugar, slight peppery hops, and some light fruit.

The taste is similar but more robust: caramel, toffee, and brown sugar mix with toasted brown bread and roast grains. Finishes with burnt brown sugar, slight earthy hop bitterness, and some alcohol.

Medium body with moderate carb. Smooth feel. Finishes sweet but not sticky.

Overall, very enjoyable dopplebock. Really well done.

 

As I promised yesterday, I saved a new-to-me stout for today. This is Wisteria from Tox Brewing, a 12% stout with Maple syrup and coffee.
Brewery's notes-
Say hello to breakfast! This imperial breakfast stout starts with a thick base and meticulously chosen dark malts and flaked adjuncts. It was first made with Jon's home-roasted coffee and Mike's own homemade, Grade A Very Dark maple syrup from his trees and sugar maple trees around his neighborhood. Since making our commercial transition we handpicked local maple syrup that meets our standards and carefully selected raw coffee beans that we roast in house. It was important for us to keep control over these variables in order to keep the foundation of what has made this one of our favorite beers to make each year.
Read on below, but stop to admire the coolest beer head I have seen in a while.

4.52/5 rDev +6.1%
look: 4.75 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
Purchased cold at the brewery 2-days ago and kept cold until slightly warmed for the pour. Poured from a 16oz can dated 12/01/25 to a Snifter/Goblet style glass.
The pour steam is completely black as is the captured body. The head is 1in/25mm, brown and contains a large range of bubble sizes, the largest of which burst randomly. This amazing head fades absolutely nothing within minutes. No lacing, but the oily body coats the glass on tilt and takes its time falling back.
The aroma is coffee forward, with no maple to be sensed.
The taste is opposite, very strongly Maple syrup but the coffee is there on the finish.
The mouthfeel is sticky, as expected with such a Maple content.. Carbonation was medium at the start, fading to barely anything as the session continued.
I’m not one for sweet stouts, but this one impresses me. The coffee back-bone is fantastic.