New Beer Sunday (week 491)

This Weeks New Beer Sunday- Urthel Samaranth

Ruiselede, Belgium
Style- Quadrupel
11.0% ABV

Did some research on this beer from a book I got recently that it is considered a Belgian Barley Wine and production had been moved to La Trappe. I really hate these blasted rubber corks. It is so hard to remove. I did notice that La Trappe also uses these type of corks. I poured this beer into my trusty Chimay chalice and produced a 1/2 finger head that disappeared quite quickly. A fair amount of carbonation that also disappeared in a matter of minutes. Looks like a typical Belgian Quad to me, dark dank brown with no light penetration. Aroma I got was of dark fruits, raisins, plums. Taste was quite similar to the aroma dark fruits, sweet with a slight alcohol burn in the back of the throat. Very nice beer after dinner.

 

Dave welcome back and I am happy to see you drinking beer once more. I have had a most pleasant week here in upstate New York. The sun is shining the birds are singing and I am drinking as much beer as I possibly can. Cheers NBS!

Today I have a beer that is made with champagne yeast. Brooklyn black OPs. According to what I read it is not so common to use this kind of yeast in american beer except to kick start a stalled fermentation. The beligans of course have always used it and the type of beer is called Bier de Champagne. It is not a recognized style in the 2008 BJCP so brooklyn writes a blurb on their website that is tongue in cheek where they say that this beer does not actually exist. I actually swore when I tasted this beer - it was that good. "sonamabitch!"

Happy Russian Imperial Stout Sunday

http://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/45/40149/

I am playing soundgarden all day.

 

Howdy, doodies and doodettes

Ambiance...


Cloudy, grey, and relatively cool this weekend. My first of two new beers for the day.

I'm gonna call this one my "new beer for the weekend," as I couldn't help but crack a couple yesterday morning...

Well, I'm doing the same this morning, but making it official with a review ...

I'm talking about Flying Dog's Single Hop Citra IIPA

I appreciate beers that tell you the hops used. I also really like beers that feature a particular hop. They've really helped me identify and understand hop profile flavors and aromas.

I really dig Citra hops.

The only other real honest-to-goodness Citra DIPA I had was...

Citra Showers from Noble Ale Works, and that was like the Pliny of Citra, as far as I'm concerned

--> Zombie Dust is a Citra-predominant ale, too, no?

Similarly, FD has really nailed this one here. Tight and crisp, with all the juicy fruits and citric elements you want in a Citra ale, packing a solid abv wallop at 10% - beware the drinkability! It's lean and mean...

DIPA fans, Citra fans, pale ale fans, BAs in general - it's good 'un!

Cheers!

 

No pic yet. But I'll be opening a growler of Cinder Block Hop Maven #2.

 

Drinking this Russian Imperial Stout for the first time.


It's good, it's coffee, coffee, and more coffee bitterness. It's also packing a punch @ 12%! Sharing it with the pretty young lady in my avatar while get ready to go furniture shopping. Enjoying new beer, good company, and good tunes today Cheers!

 

Hello NBSers! Just returned yesterday from a short vacation down in Virginia, visiting family & some fascinating historic sites. Also went to see "Dawn of the Planet of The Apes" - pretty good movie! I only had time to pick up one six pick while down there, and that beer is chilling right now. But I have a new beer from a new brewery (new to me, at least) right here in CT - Overshores Simpel Belgian Style Small Beer. I picked this up just before I left town, and I'm glad I did.

I have to say that I am unfamiliar with the "Simpel Belgian Style Small Beer", so I was really looking forward to trying it. When I tried to find this style on the internet, all I got was the BA review of this beer. The Brewer says it's the 'most basic' of it's brews, light with a lot of hops. I agree.

The pour gives you a cloudy brew with a thin head. The aroma is fairly muted, with a bit of hoppyness wafting up. As I tasted it, the bitterness from the hops is start to finish, with slight citrus notes in the background. It does finish up very clean, with no bitter aftertaste. The low ABV (4%) makes it a perfect midday beer. I had it with my lunch of Ritz crackers and Cabot's extra sharp cheddar, and it was great complement - a simple beer for a simple lunch!

 

Hey what's going on?!

It's been a pretty good weekend no complaints. I am however running out of NEW beers to try (the horror), but more is coming to the door step soon. I got a BBQ to prep and prepare for with a couple coming over shortly. Lamb and beef kabobs been marinating (the lamb in honey and mint, oregano, lemon, rosemary from my garden, the beef with classic soy, worcestire, garlic from the garden... I have so much garlic I am in love...) to go on soon, but I got some choppin to do of peppers and onions from the farmers market.

I also had a major tech problem with my phone for a screen replacement which took no joke, 2 hours of troubleshooting. Yikes! man those little screws are tiny, who knew there were so many in your phone!

Why every day is practically new beer day for our hero! So what's new for today on NBS?!

Saranac Our Legacy IPA - Matt Brewing Company


Saranac - Legacy IPA by imbibehour, on Flickr

Review here, or just read below: http://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/99/96250/?ba=smakawhat

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look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.25 | Final score 3.48

Poured from the bottle into a Spiegelau IPA glass.

A pale amber, cloudy bright orange and brass colored, with some lemon yellow hues. Slightly hazy, but makes with a thick rocking three finger off white head. Lots of swiss cheese bubbles and retention, with some bacteria and scattered like lacing. Looking kind of West coast here, very nice.

A real solid simple hop front. Hints of tea herbs and pine notes, maybe some decent tropical juiced goodness as well, but big aromatics. Juicy hinting and leafy green. Faint caramel malt notes in the background, and some brown sugar.

Palate comes as a bit of a shocker. Very wet bodied, with a watery finish. Bit chalky hop bitterness and minimal sweetness that doesn't carry through. Hop aromatics come to match a bit but with not as much depth hinting from the nose. Leafy tea action seems to hit more towards English style, and the bitterness while chalky isn't as large or pungent. Very fleeting finish as well.

Overall this looked real promising but while drinkable and seems to hint at something really good coming, it only ends up being more disappointing in the end.
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Kind of a bit unfortunate, this seemed at first to have much more potential than typical Saranac brews, I was hoping for more. Has some wonderful qualities but overall I can't see myself wanting to have another one of these again.

 

No pic, no problem. But, please, PLEASE tell us about the beer you are enjoying. I want to imagine drinking it myself.

 

Glad to see you back on NBS as a participant instead of a spectator, Dave!

 

@cavedave Thank you for your intro and talking about how we must take care of Mother Earth. Last time I checked, we only have one planet to live on, so we need to really think about what we are doing to her. Nice to have you back!

Yo ho, here we go!
Lagunitas Little Sumpin Extra is just another outstanding beer. Wheat ale, check. Tropical hops, check. Sweet and bitter, check. Hits the right spots on my palate. Enjoy the pineapple, mango, and citrus and teh wheaty boy with nice sweet honey malts. Reminds me of cross between Little Sumpin and Sucks. Delicious!

 

Growing up in eastern Washington in the 1980s, Soundgarden was the first of the Seattle bands of the "grunge" period I actually heard of, though it was several years before I actually heard their music, cuz if it wasn't pop or country, you didn't hear it on local radio.

 

It was lunch time so I had to make something to drink with my next new beer. Goose Island Juliet is a delicious Wild Ale that is perfect on a warm summer day. Notes of sour blackberry and cherry are the main focus. Some oak comes in with hints of wine that make it a real pleasure to drink. It has a good amount of sour, but is not so much to slow me down while I drink it. Lunch was a simple whole wheat tortilla, pizza sauce, whole milk mozzarella, and some sauteed green peppers and onions made in a pan.

 

I need to learn how to make onions and green peppers in a pan. I don't have a garden and it's so annoying to have to go to the store and buy them

 

Reissdorf Kolsch , this is my first German Kolsch and all I can say is wow excellent beer. Very refreshing, full of flavor and aroma. A perfect summer beer.

 

New Scotch Ale Sunday
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Greetings NBS faithful! Hope this message finds you doing well and enjoying a fine American Ale in your glass. Weather in Central OH has been overcast and chilly. I wouldn't normally think of trying a Scotch Ale in late July but given the weather, it was a perfect fit. A good but not great example. Needed to set it back for a few months.

Hope you all have an awesome NBS!

Peace, love, and malty-ness,

Matt



3.5/5 rDev -9.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.5

Aroma: Moderate burnt candied sugar notes up front. Low fruity esters of plum and raisin persist. Esters become more prominent as the beer warms with dark cherry notes and fig. No hop aroma. Clean fermentation character.

Appearance: Deep brick red pour with a low off white head. Moderate head retention. Appears still in the glass.

Flavor: Dark bready malt character up front. Firm earthy bitterness provides the counterpoint. Low peppery alcohol fusels help add to the sensation of dryness. Balance is nearly even with the dark bread malts, peppery fusels, and earthy hop bitterness forming a well-knit profile. Finish is clean and dry. Aftertaste lingers faintly of the peppery fusels.

Mouthfeel: Medium bodied with high carbonation. No alcohol heat.

Overall impression: A sipping Scotch Ale that is firmly bitter. I was surprised at the bitterness due to prior reviews I read. Maybe I had a fresh sample. I would decrease the carbonation and decrease the fusels to allow the rich malt character to shine. Enjoyable but probably needs some age on it.

Serving type: bottle

 

Hello fellow NBSers,
Welcome back to beer @cavedave, glad to see you made it thru. To start things off on this nice slightly overcast day here in CT I decided to go heaven & hell. While I have 120 min. On it's own I've never tried Wws. Together seems like drinking paint thinner. Very hot !! I believe I should age the Wws a little more since it is dated 01/25/14. Either way a good start to my afternoon. I'm getting ready to go meet my parents for dinner at a local beer & burger joint in CT, Plan B. First time there and I hear they have a killer craft selection. I'll get back to you on it later.

 

$1 per ounce New Beer Sunday
After 10 hours in the car yesterday with the kids (anyone else part of that shit show on I 77 in Virginia Sat.?), cutting my hay field (aka the yard), and having my washer die today, I decided it was time to crack open one of the big dogs.


Smells very strongly of slightly burned brown sugar, wood, and bourbon. Taste like cocoa powder, chocolate, brown sugar, expresso beans, bourbon, oak, molasses, and dark roasted malts. Coming from a bourbon guy, it is a little too strong on the back end. A lot of burn in the aftertaste. Almost more whisky or even rum like. Strange. It takes away from the outstanding flavor a bit. Don't get me wrong though. I think this stout is just a hair away from KBS territory. It is like a great movie with an ending you just aren't sure about. This beer is one of the more perplexing I have had. A fantastic beer, but somewhat difficult to get through. Not too heavy either. Maybe I am not up for a big beer today, but it is a sipper for sure. Overall 4.25 http://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/1432/45764/?ba=WesMantooth

 

Matt- you didn't seem to mention whose Scotch Ale it was.

 

Westbrook Brandy Old Time. Belgian-style dark ale aged in Apple Brandy barrels for 18 months. Paired with Dutch cheese "Grand Ewe" 100% Sheep's milk, aged for a year. Flavors of toffee, raisins, figs, dates, prunes, wood, Brandy, candi sugar, plum jam/preserves. The only downfall is that it's pretty much completely flat. This beer is very good, sweet, complex and 11% ABV. It needs at least a tiny amount of carbonation. Cheers!