New Beer Sunday (week 601)

Just got back from a walk in the neighborhood and I'm ready anytime now for summer to be over. Temps are only around 90 today but the humidity is stupid high...

Today's new beer is one from the Stone 20th anniversary encore series - the Unapologetic DIPA.

I found the aroma to be too subdued but it has some nice flavor combinations with peach, apricot, mango. Nice and juicy with just a touch of sweetness. Highly drinkable and another nice IPA from Stone.





https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/147/241991/?ba=richj1970#review

 

Turned out very well!

I chatted with our guest a bit over breakfast and he remembered the online location where he found the base recipe he started from to give it his personal twist.

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/...illed-breakfast-pizza-with-sausage-gravy.html

The link has a few details about process, etc. that I didn't include in my description.

Enjoy!

 

That sounds like a variety pack I would greatly enjoy. I'll have to make an effort to cross the state line and find it.

 

Love the art for that beer!

 

So I'm not going to give a huge explanation in detail for this beer, but I will say that the taste is great (the Citra hops are really up front) and it has a touch of the "traditional" Stone taste that runs together really well.

It's kind of like Stone's take on a 3 Floyds Pale Ale (which I love) to me, but just bigger and bolder

I'll have to drink this whole bomber, but it's a winner so far

 

Yes and no, Downingtown is an hour drive, but I feel bad enough putting him on a Sly Fox hunt, and Neshaminy Creek. It's not everywhere out my dads way.

 

Good afternoon NBS! After a long night at the virtual bar, I have made it to NBS with at least one new beer. I am glad I have a light beer for today after a late night and a light brunch.


This beer pours a little lighter and a tad more yellow than the above picture shows. I was hoping to get a nice shot of a frothy head for a last pic, but what you see is about the high point of the head for this beer. It is a sour beer, so this isn't overly concerning.

As I go into take a sniff, I see the the results of a nucleated glass throwing bubbles to the surface in a nice semi-circle, but nothing holds. The nose is lime and the ocean, which I believe the brewer was shooting for. The thought of an earthy spice floats past quickly as the sea breeze carries the salt and lime deeper into my nose.

The expectation the nose leads you to believe are fulfilled by the taste of this beer. Lime tartness in the forefront, with a nice salinity level less than sea water, but about what I like to get my water to before throwing in some pasta. Given the brewer, I might have expected the tartness to be a little stronger or last longer, but it does fade and allows the crackery malt co-star to have a part of the final scene.



This beer is Dogfish Head's Sea Quench Ale, a beer that is a "hybrid" of three styles, added in succession (Kolsch, Gose, Berlinerweiss), but I can let you listen to Sam tell you what the brewers were thinking:


This beer is definitely more in your face than their quality peach Berlinerweiss Festina Peche. I have not had a Gose or Kolsch by Dogfish so I can give no comparison there. However I do see DFH did a Festina Peche with Lemon, Lime, and Salt at one point, I wonder if this is something that grew out of that one-off.

I would argue (and you could perhaps surmise from my description) this beer is more Gose that Berliner than Kolsch. In fact, though the process, techniques, and ingredients for a Kolsch might have been a part of this beer - I'm not sure once you start adding flavors and layers you can maintain the impression of the starting beer in the final product.

Regardless, this was an enjoyable beer, and one I will buy again. I like the fact the end taste pushes aside the opening flavors to give a little refreshment to the palate after the excitement of those sour notes.

 

NBS entry #2 or NGLBS #2 if you prefer.



From a mix pack. Best by 11/03/16

Great Lakes Dortmunder Gold

Great Lakes Brewing Co.
Dortmunder / Export Lager / 5.80% ABV

4.17/5 rDev +2.2% | Avg: 4.08
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25

L- Living up to it's name the beer pours a beautiful clear gold. You can read through this beer. The head is 2 fingers of fluffy white foam. Retention is good and the beer has legs. Even after a fair amount of time their is still a ring and large central island.

S- The nose starts out with the spicy hop aroma. There is a light whiff of sulfur from time to time, but it isn't strong enough to be offputting and is acceptable within the style. There is breadiness detectable in the nose is more that of biscuits or fresh italian bread. Its a good strong nose for a lager.

T- On the palate you get the spicy hops and bready malts fighting for dominance up front with the malts winning out at the back of the palate. The beer finishes just slightly sweet.

F- The mouthfeel is smooth and not quite oily. Carbonation after the initial pour is on the lighter side of medium.

O- This is a really great example of the Dortmunder style lager that meets every point in the style guidlines. It's the kind of beer you buy and drink while watching the game before you realize it it's gone. Wish it was readily available in Vermont.

 

Good afternoon NBS followers. Thank you to Maria to the great start as always. If I drag on a little this afternoon it's because I've been pretty much running on empty since 4:00am Friday. Had to attend a Black tie affair on Friday evening that well lasted into Saturday morning. I really hate big affairs that don't have good or at least passable beer. Made the early trip Saturday to Trillium for the Headroom release and traveled home to make another dinner affair Saturday evening. Needless to say no beer at all here but some passible Red Wines but the main course Ravioli were fantastic. Figs caramelized in a brown butter sauce with crispy prosciutto over a really nice cheese ravioli. And as if two late nights weren't enough we were up early today to kayak on the Merrimack River with some friends the sights were great with 2 eagle sightings with so many other birds it was hard to keep track
So this will bring me to my New Beer for this Headroom from Trillium.

Not sure where to start but this beer pours a very opaque yellow orange color. Yes this is where the term juice bomb comes from. Looks almost like a glass of orange juice.
The nose is fruited with pineapple and mango coming to the front for me but there are a lot more subtle overtones hiding in the background.
The taste is smooth. Not overpowering in anyway Lots of fruit in the front with a nice bitterness in the back. I don't find any one fruit over powering the others this is a great blend of many different flavors. This is a fantastic blending of hops!
The mouthfeel is thick and almost chewy but nothing less than I expect from a beer of this class.
Overall this is a great DIPA perhaps in a class of it's own. How do I rate this beer. I've yet to rate any beer a perfect 5 and well this won't be my first. I think this beer is great and perhaps on or above the level of Dinner from MBC. But since I have both fresh in my fridge right now I think for my own peace of mind it is time to do a side by side tasting. I already know they look nothing alike. But as far as the nose and taste I think for my own piece of mind I need both beers together. So today is the day. and I will report back later with my findings.

 

Just had this again recently (on tap), and initially was thinking it was a little too sweet. The I got into the glass, and started enjoying the bread notes and malt sweetness. I really did enjoy the beer and its sweetness, but if I wanted to pick nits, I wish the spicy notes you mentioned had a little more presence than what I was getting.

 

Really enjoyed the North Fork DooLittle review - well done!

 

So I have to admit, when I first heard of this brewery starting up in the long-run inn, run by THAT family, I rolled my eyes. It didn't help that I abhor musicals and everything related to them. I pretty much figured it was a known but fading brand trying to hop on the craft beer train for one last attempt at revival.
All of that said, I am extremely happy with everything I have tried from them and this is no exception. Nice and hoppy, clean tasting, great head, clear gold color, great aroma.
Lesson learned, any new beer/brewery may be great despite your prejudices.

 

Good afternoon NBS! It's another hot one in the DC area, which is why I can't bring myself to get on the fest/pumpkin beer train just yet. Instead, I'm sticking with a refreshing summer beer: Little Flowers, a Saison from Hardywood Park Craft Brewert in Richmond.



Appearance: light golden, a little cloudy, with a fluffy three finger head that sticks around for awhile.

Aroma: Hay, lemon zest, and a little funkiness.

Taste: a burst of citrus like lemon, white grapes and orange zest hits you up front, with the barnyard farmhouse taste from the Brett bringing up the rear - not enough to make it super funky, but enough to remind you its a saison. There is an initial sourness as well that fades as it warms.

Mouthfeel: light and effervescent with above average carbonation.

Overall: a light a refreshing saison that's great for a hot summer day. Not too funky and not too fruity. Cheers!

 

I know what your saying. I would have liked them to linger a bit further into the finish. Still really enjoyable regardless.

 

Greetings fellow NBSers! A cloudy morning here in the Fourth Corner, and it looks like our recent hot (in relative terms) stretch has snapped. Had a pretty interesting week; Tuesday I went with some friends to a county park that isn't always accessible, due to the road leading up to it being a private logging road. In Canyon Lake park: http://www.whatcomcounty.us/1967/Canyon-Lake-Community-Forest is a stand of the largest old-growth trees left in the state. We didn't hike up there, instead opting for the easier walk around the lake. After we left we swung by one of favorite area breweries, the North fork Brewery, Pizzeria, Beer Shrine and Wedding Chapel, where the brewery gave us some tastes of upcoming projects. The highlight, however, was a glass (OK, two glasses) of DooLittle. A sour that was fermented with native Deming WA bugs. No exaggeration, this beer stood with all the best sours I've tasted, from all the top breweries. In the world. It spent 2-1/2 years in barrel until it met Eric's standards. Eric has been doing a great job with his sour program, and another treat was Grope for Luna, a grape sour, aged in wine barrels.

On Thursday I got out of town a bit. My work does Camp Boundary for the employees every year. I didn't go for a 3-day camp, but chose a day trip, to a state park in the San Juan Islands: http://parks.state.wa.us/594/Sucia-Island . It was lovely warm and sunny day, and adventures and beers were had. Yesterday, the roller derby league I volunteer with held a free, outdoor bout, and i provided my usual security services. And today, I'm here with NBS homies!

First up on the beer horizon, is a Lacto sour from the border town of Blaine (fun fact, the name of the sports teams at the Blaine schools is The Borderites): https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/45649/246708/ . A nice little brew that would pair well with some local oysters.

Be back in a bit!

 

In retrospect, I should have given that beer a higher score. Maybe even a whole point. It was phenomenal.

 

Happy NBS. I had this beer this morning, but am just getting around to posting about it.

A dark amber and orange with a big 3 finger sand colored head. Good retention that dies to a thin collar. Spotty lacing decorates my glass. The aroma is quite citrusy with grapefruit, oranges, along with some sweet honey and caramel. The hops stand out with grapefruit, and orange flavor that mellows with the honey sweetness. The finish is bitter pine and grapefruit. Medium body with ample carbonation that is bitter and dry. Solid IIPA and it reminds me of local Tyranena's Citra IIPA.

 

New Marzen Sunday (week 601)

Greetings fellow NBSers from on the ridge in Mid Hud Val, NY. Well, today was another crazy day at work that has left me incredibly tired, also incredibly gratified, and incredibly realistic. Tired because August is supposed to be a quiet month at work, and instead today was one of the top ten most busy Sundays in the history of the recycle center. Gratified because it has become obvious that the recycle center has upwards of 200 new customers since last year at this time, and because those customers loaded me up today with appreciation and 'thanks from the garden' that included 20+ lbs; of tomatoes (some of which I shared with folks I love) and multiple pounds of beans, zucchini, and cucumbers. Realistic because I have come to understand this summer that I don't have the physical ability any more to do the job properly and safely when it is this busy, and likely will be forced to retire come spring (or sooner).

So, here's to retirement, which thankfully a life of hard work has left me the ability to choose. I only wish I had a better beer in my glass right now. I love Jack's Abby's bottom fermented takes on styles traditionally brewed with ale yeast, and their house lager kicks fucking ass. This beer, Copper Legend, is a disappointment, and I do not recommend it. It is not full of aroma, not full of flavor, not a good representative of the style, and is a complete meh beer. Read the harsh truth, and a -19% rdev, here

https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/26520/72867/?ba=cavedave#review



Hope you have a Great American Beer in your glass. Cheers!

 

I was super excited to try their beers and have yet to be disappointed. That said, I still avoided the IPA because since because they mainly brew lagers I figured it was just an excuse to get money from hop heads. Good to know (not that I had any doubts) that I am a prejudiced, judgmental dick

 

Good afternoon NBS, hope everyone is doing well! Just got off home from New York, almost 3 hours on the road, time to relax with some from fresh IPAs (have way too many to review today, but I will do my best to get the reviews up). First up is Trillium Pier thanks @CanConPhilly.

4.3/5 rDev 0%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5

Thank you CanConPhilly for this
16 oz can, dated 8/18/16, poured into a teku

A- Super hazy golden orange with a two finger white head.

S- Citrus/citrus zest, some sweet oranges, some tropical, a little floral and earthy.

T- Citrus zest, zippy citrus, wheat, earthy/slightly resiny finish, floral, some sweeter tropical fruits.

M- Smooth, medium body.

O- A tasty hoppy wheat ale, really more of a IPA.

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