New Beer Sunday (week 559)

Good morning @utopiajane @cavedave @JackHorzempa @drtth @jRocco2021 and the rest of the NBS crew.

This week I was able to check out some of the beers flowing from the Empire State, and it has been a while since I revisited some of the offerings from ST. Did anyone else notice how expansive their beers have been lately? I was impressed by the variety of formulations and packaging formats they have in stores nowadays, and the creativity of their brand.

I never really considered ST a hop-dominant brewery. Sure, they have always had their Gemini, Unearthly, 2X, etc. But that never seemed to really dominate their offerings, but was more complimentary to their exotic flavored beers. I was lucky enough to pick up one of their "pack o' pales" and it seems to put an exclusive focus on their hop-forward beers (as the name suggests) and I wanted to dive into the "live" beer.

"Live" as a concept is not new, as you know plenty of folks in the NE area and beyond have been making unfiltered pale ales for years (or even decades). However, for Southern Tier this "raw" approach had me intrigued. An uber-fresh and unfiltered pale ale with a nice dose of dry-hopping? Sign me up!

My pour came out a deep hazy amber, with two and a half inches of foam on it (poured directly into a shaker pint). There was no floaties to be seen, but a definite haze in the beer.

My favorite aspect of it was the aroma which I could actually smell while pouring the beer into the glass. The explosion of hop oils was apparent from the beginning.

It was a rather light-bodied beer that seemed to be heavy on the aroma and flavor, which would be typical for the "session" style. The fact that it is unfiltered I believe helps this beer rather than hurts it. Without that extra "juiciness" it would be rather threadbare - but that extra rawness in it makes it a tasty brew.

 

Happy NBS, everyone, and thank you @utopiajane for the great review to start the ball rolling today.

We just started getting Ballast Point here in our corner of Iowa. The bottle shops posted annouincements a while back, and the product started hitting the shelves only recently. The selection on most of the stores was about what you'd expect: sixers of Sculpin and its variations, Calico, V@S, etc., priced at or around $15 per. So I was rather surprised when I spotted Indra Kunindra in the cooler at one of the shops for the reasonable (bomber) price of $7.99. I had been dying to try this ever since I first read about it, so here we are. Some of these flavored / spiced beers carry a descriptor that leaves you wondering, "Where is the (fill in the blank)?" Well, not this one. Everything is up-front and in-your-face.



Review:

A - Pours the color of dark coffee with deep brown highlights and a fluffy tan head that lingers for a couple of minutes before settling. Very nice in appearance.

S - Nothing subtle about this. It's curry and coconut all the way. The aroma smacks you in the face as soon as you pop the cap.

T/F - This reminds me of the soup they serve at a local Thai restaurant, with its variety of south Asian spices and its substantial mouthfeel. Curry and coconut are again predominant on the palate, with notes of kaffir lime and some lemongrass-y tartness. Lingering finish with some hop bitterness and peppery spice from the cayenne.

O - The spiciness tends to overshadow the character of the beer itself, but it does deliver on its promise. It's a novelty for sure, but one you might enjoy if you like Asian cuisine.

I sampled this on its own, then tried it alongside a dish of spicy split lentil curry. It seems to pair nicely with spicy food. I might even be persuaded to give this a go with some Cincinnati-style chili. I do wish it were offered in a smaller format, though, as I can't see myself drinking a whole lot of this at one time for any reason whatsoever.

3.67/5  rDev -3.2%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.75 |  overall: 3.75

Chok dee!

 

are there any other bomber-only beers of theirs that are now in 4packs as well?

 

Good morning & Happy New (unintentionally aged) Beer Sunday.

Thank you utopiajane!

Put this one off way too long to the point that its 2-½ years old: Stone Russian Imperial Stout w/ Espresso (2013). Unearthed this one on Saturday and saved it for today. Not fair to Stone to review this and rate it based on its age, but I still wanted to try it and see what was left coffee-wise after 24 months plus in hiding.



A: Black with a tan head. It poured thick with little carbonation. Pretty much covers it. Looks exactly the way I like IS’s to look

A: Roasted chocolate. Some espresso as well. Also catching some soy sauce or sesame in there as well but it's not unpleasant.

T/M: Dark fruits. Tastes sweet. Not much coffee to taste at this point but heavy on the chocolate. There is some coffee bitterness on the finish as well as some hop bitterness. Medium to full body and syrupy. Some alcohol there but not overwhelming. Even with a low coffee profile it’s very appealing.

O: Espresso remaining or not, this is a great stout. While the coffee I’m sure has faded from 2013 it was still there in the nose and the tale end of each sip. Still a “sipper” as bigger gulps brings a blast of bitterness and acidity. This is one that needs some time to work through 22oz. Alcohol is pretty well hidden which is nice for this early in the morning. Pretty phenomenal imperial stout on its own so I wish I had tried it back in 2013 or even 2014 when the coffee may have been more of a factor.

If I were to rate it would end up a 4.37 per the BA rating scale, which is pretty much in line with the AVG. Not much else to say about this other than I’d be happy to grab one if they re-release.

Enjoy your Sunday's all.

 

Unearthly is supposed to be in 4 packs but I haven't seen it yet. Believe it was the 3rd they moved into smaller format.

 

Mornin' all!

@utopiajane great start to a beautiful day and a really nice choice for the starting beer of the day. As always your reviews and comments are spot on and well worth reading.

Otherwise, today is a depressing day--temperatures in the upper 50s and sunny skies everywhere with not a threat of rain to be seen and... leaves, leaves, leaves everywhere.... On the ground, on the roof, and...in the gutters, all the gutters. (Looks as though I'm in for some unavoidable ladder climbing today. )

Expecting to be back with a new beer this evening and given the first choice of the day from our host I suspect it will probably be a harvest ale from a brewery I've not sampled in far too long. (But not the one chosen by @Sixpoint )

Cheers, all!

 

Good morning BAs and thank you Maria for finally getting us started. Remember, the early bird gets worms (or something like that!). And another joke of a clinical parasitologist falls flat. Anyway, it's a beautiful frost covered day here in NW PA as the sun tries to burn through the late cloud cover and reflects off our icy sheath - I bet if our hibiscus were sentient it'd be happy I dragged it inside last night. As would the herps, they don't really care as long as I feed them - often.

Today's breakfast brew is coffee-laden and bourbon-barrel aged:



It's pretty nice but doesn't justify the price:

Bottle marked 1745 A at 42 degrees into hand washed and dried snifter, allowed to warm to 50 degrees
$ 22.99/25.4 oz bottle at Consumer Beverage, Lancaster, NY
Aroma primarily of coffee
Head small (< two cm, aggressive pour), light brown, frothy/fizzy, gone before I could focus the camera, leaving no ring and only a few floating bubbles
Lacing none
Body dark brown, opaque, effervescent
Flavor coffee followed instantly by a mild bourbon flavor; no hops, no alcohol, no diacetyl
Palate medium, slightly creamy, soft carbonation

Appearance 3.5, Aroma 4, Flavor 4.25, Palate 4.25, Overall 4. Rating 4.1, Average 4.13, rDev -0.7

Wow, I rarely come so close to the average - seems I either can't smell or taste the nuances others notice. But this time I found a decent beer from Brooklyn Brewing. In the ten years my beer database covers I've had 14 brews from Brooklyn Brewing and the only two that have been good, IMHO, are the two I've reviewed since I joined BA - Chocolate Stout and Intensify. I've rated both at 4.1, but at 90.5 cents/fl oz I'll never intentionally drink Intensify again, unless I've not paying attention when desperately seeking sustenance in a bottle store. That means that Intensify costs me $11.50/glass to drink in the privacy of my kitchen. It's good, but not that good.

Prosit! Bob

 

Oh! That beer surely was delicious!

 

6.8% alcohol. 100+ IBU (they claim). Brewed in Oregon.

1.82/5 rDev -49.2%
look: 2 | smell: 1.25 | taste: 2 | feel: 2 | overall: 2

Caldera’s Hopportunity Knocks has a think, off-white head, some sheet lacing, and an opaque orange appearance, with tight bubble streams. The aroma is of old, turned, over-ripe fruit or rancid spinach, with some underlying stale caramel candy. Taste is of sugary, faintly moldy bread, and low-level bitterness (100+ IBU...really?). Mouthfeel is watery and Hopportunity Knocks finishes wet and unpleasant. Avoid.

RJT

 

I have to agree with your final assessment on this one. I found it to be subtly complex and balanced and have often thought of grabbing it again, but that price tag!!

 

Actually, the last year I worked, insomnia was a problem. I'd show up at the lab between 0230 - 0300 and get to spend time with the 11-7 shift. Micro reports were ready for the docs prior to 0700 when they made their rounds, rather than post 1100 before (and after) I bailed. It was kind of an issue for the rest of management since I was gone before they had their afternoon meetings but xin loi! The docs were pleasantly surprised to have results in a timely manner and I got to bond with third shift after years of only being there for only first and second shift. Life is what you make it! Prosit!

 

Like Maria, I am an insomniac. Also, like her, I've learned that it's better to get up and do something, anything, rather than trying to return to sleep. I've read books, done the laundry, cooked meals, you name it. So that explains why I was on WBAYDN at 7:30 or so, and why I'm on NBS at 10:00.
Today is more of a November day, sunny and in the 40s. Pretty much all the leaves are down, so I'm ready to start raking. I've tried different ways of taking care of leaves, and what works best for me is to wait until they're all down and bust my ass for the day.
On my way home from work last Friday, I stopped at Tully's. They always have beers I want to try, Among the beers I picked up was Double Bastard in the Rye. It is a very nice beer.
It poured a turbid, rust color, with no head. Not the prettiest beer.
Aroma and taste more than made up for its appearance. Boozy, caramel, spicy (tickle your nose spicy). Some oak, some vanilla.
A very smooth beer. Maybe the rye whiskey barrels tempered the hops. Whatever, I enjoyed the hell out of it. Would never guess it's 12.7% ABV.

Sophie is 12 years old today, so I put her in the picture.

 

Hey guys! Only my 2nd NBS post so be gentle if I screw up too badly here. Just posted this review for my first BA Narwhal.

L: 4.5 S: 4 T: 4 F: 4.5
Overall 4

Poured 2015 version into a stout glass.

Pours a near jet black, no light gets through. Nice, light tan, foamy head forms well with great retention.

Nose is a bit on the light side. I pick up the roasty malt but not much at all in the way of barrel or booze. Nothing bad, just nothing overly compelling there.

Flavor is right on, nice full body. My main complaint is I am not getting a lot from the barrel. It definitely comes through soft and well rounded with just a touch of boozy heat. Malt profile is nice but nothing overly roasty, chocolately, coffee etc. prevails. The flavors all are very subtle. It's not cloying and is definitely very easy to drink - wouldn't call it "a sipper".

Carbonation level is great - tight and enough that with even a modestly rough rough pour it still has a solid amount of carb left. Lifts it off the palate well and adds a slight and necessary bittering component to lend to the balance. It's got a nice body. Its viscosity isn't something I'd call thin or thick, somewhere right in the middle. Very drinkable but without a thin characteristic present in a lot of imperial stouts, barrel aged or not.

It's good, it's not what I'd call great. Very enjoyable but the price is a bit steep and I think I prefer something like Dragon's Milk or even VA's own Dark Hollow*.



Just realized I haven't reviewed Dark Hollow on here and it's one of my favorite VA beers. I'll likely do that in a week or two when I make chili - Dark Hollow is the beer I use for that. Cheers!

 

I will be back later on today with a new brew.

Cheers!

 

Hoppin' Frog Barrel Aged Naked Evil BBW

described as Belgian Style, Barley Wine Style... for starters, some disclaimers.

1. i don't really rate beers at least not in the scientific sense my BA brethren & sistren do.
2. this bottle was a gift several years back.
3. i already had a BCBW earlier.
4. i don't regularly participate, i drink a lot of the same ole & am terrible about waiting til Sunday (designated times) to open something new.

disclaimers aside but factored in, i had sort of been waiting for an appropriate time to open this. i'm not much of a Barley Wine *****. add its size, (intimidating), and the decision of when's "appropriate" was never.

could be the sharp contrast being not far behind the BCBW, but at least thus far, this is excellent. it doesn't strike me nearly as heavy, cloying or as my grandmother would say, 'ropy', as other barley wines i've imbibed. it's candied rather than syrupy. lots of soft fruit, the whole arrangement is sort leisure. i generally find BWs, for a lack of better words, assertive - this isn't.

i'm no authority on the category, i have no idea if "Belgian style" is a descriptor that indicates other Belgian or Belgian *style * barley wines would be similar? or if it's all just Frog's wording. i also get the impression that maybe they mean that as : Belgian in style / yeast + Barley Wine in style ; like each are style imitations to a degree but not exactly, the actual definition, on purpose. or maybe i've had enough strong beer that i'm over-analyzing it. yeah, that's it.

lastly, really not sure what age has done for this, whether negative or positive. can't really imagine it having been more delightful, so i'm just going to go with now was appropriate & i picked the perfect moment to open & enjoy.

maybe later but so far the weather doesn't look like i thought the news indicated. i see some clouds but a good percentage of blue. opening this was an integral part of my whole plan to pitch a tent in the living room & camp out all day against a cold, rainy backdrop.