New Beer Sunday (week 627)

Good morning New BSers! Maria, thanks for the start and the info about the new Saranac release; unfortunately, we don't see Saranac in my neck of the woods so maybe someday ...

For me, today's New Breakfast Beer is:




Purchased at U Pick 6, Erie, PA. Another store that is too cheap to give you an itemized bill.
An undated (2017 vintage) 750mL capped bottle at 42 degrees into a hand washed and dried Jester King snifter.
Aroma – a mixture of very faint cherry with bourbon
Head – large (Maximum 4.2 cm, semi-aggressive pour), very light pink, frothy but dense, average retention diminishing to a three to six mm frothy ring composed of tiny and small bubbles. A partial layer having a fried egg-like appearance is also present.
Lacing – none. Just some weak drag marks from the ring.
Body – Orange with a pink cast, clear. Some initial slight effervescence which quickly died.
Flavor – Odd. Starts out with some sweet cherry followed by just a hint of maple and no bourbon or woodiness. After the third swallow, a slight bourbon/wood taste begins to accumulate on my palate. No alcohol, no trace of hops, no malt, no diacetyl.
Palate – medium to full, creamy, soft carbonation

This beer is by no means unpleasant – it just seems to lack direction. Is it a Kriek beer? If so, why age it in bourbon barrels. It’s certainly not a stout, something Founders does remarkably well. It seems to me to be an experimental beer that didn’t come out quite as planned, but what the hell, we’ve invested the time and money, somebody will buy it.

Appearance 3.75, Aroma 4, Flavor 3.5, Palate 4, Overall 3.5. Rating 3.69, rDev -7.8%

 

Thought provoking as always Maria, and you've given me a new category, exemplary beers.

Here's mine . . .



Score 4.14
look: 3.75 | aroma: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25

Clear light gold color with voluminous, lasting fine white cap and classic lacing.

Aroma is, Good Lord, it's Pilsner. Or at least what I call one. Rich malt without sweet undertones, just solid malt. Hops are floral, spicy and sharp. Pardon me while I adjust my seat, must be upright to taste this.

Taste is a malty blow to the palate softened by a delicate touch of spicy hops. I get a mouthful of utter complexity reduced to simplicity. Like a perfectly executed forward pass with all the power it needs delivered with grace, style and discipline. One thing I like, really like, about this style is it has to be done right because errors, even minor ones, stick out like raisins on a bun. This one delivers. Malt remains constant to the finish where flavor is handed off to the hops which assert a firm bitterness that lingers in the aftertaste. Very palate cleansing and rewarding.

Like a beautiful woman in a simple black dress this one makes you pause. Brewed just three weeks ago this arrived fresh within my reach. Mama Mia, where are my keys, I'm going back to buy any left on the shelves.

 

Thanks utopiajane for getting this started.

Cheers!

 

Part of a Unibroue sampler pack I picked up.
I think this has been misclassified here in Ba as a fruit beer and really it is a wit. Took several minutes of waiting for the voluminous, somewhat coarse head to reduce enough to get the contents into the the pint glass that could have been easily contained in a weizen style glass.

Medium amber in color and only slightly cloudy but the first thing I noticed was the green apple aroma explode with the cap lifting. The apple tartness worked well with the typical flavors and Unibroue signature. Medium body, clean finish, easy abv and screw-top bottle (wait! what!) make it a good summer party drinking beer that I would gladly have again.

 

Been a while since I've had any sort of boxed beer from Firestone Walker...

This here's their American brown ale, aged in Heaven Hill bourbon barrels...

13.2% abv, featuring... *drumroll* ...Bravo hops...

Let it sit out a bit before opening it up; poured into my large snifter...

Appropriately translucent pour and dark brown body; finger of ecru foam persisted as a faint haze, dropped maybe a mote or two behind inside the glass...

Aromas of bourbon hit the nose first, vanilla-like, suffused with sweet chewy fruit and molasses-sweetened bread impressions...

The flavors are potent... a cloak of sweet bourbon wrapped around dates and soaked into warm brown bread, flashes of dark orange citrus and candied fruits; tiny hints of earthy spice, very mild bitterness, moderate sweetness...

Medium-light feel with airy vapors of booze and wood, smooth but with some tingle, subdued carbonation...

This was real nice. Right up my alley...

Cheers, NBS - here's to new beer in your glass...

 

Greetings friends,
Wow!! Thanks Maria. My best friend from long ago is in town, visiting friends, a recently grieving brother in law, showing off his new wife Theresa (a real Cajun), speaking all things New Orleans, and settling me back to knowing that good friends are the best gift of all. We grilled rib-eyes, ate salad from the greens out back, drank Guinness and anything else that couldn't hide! I was best friends with Doug's older brother in high school and visited him in New Orleans fairly often back in the 70s. I dropped him off at Lompoc Federal for being too friendly with a sleazy federal guy having to cover his ass. The ton of weed was a problem. I then drove non-stop from San Diego to New Orleans. Chuck was crazy always, riding his Kansas state trooper Indian at 17, smart as a whip but way way different. I parked his van in my barn, cared for his wonderful dog Argus for two years- my Dad paid for my trip out and back. He was released for exemplary behavior and for his teaching construction skills to the inmates. Doug always appreciated that my Dad would do what his Dad wouldn't. Anyway, I told Doug last night that he and his brother were just like their Dad and that's why they hate each other. Chuck was involved in a diving accident in The Gulf, working for Exxon- he is/was an underwater construction genius- got the bends and slowly recovered never to be the same person again. It fucked up his brain for sure. He later fell off of a ship, smashing his head, proving that he was too tough to die, but becoming forever distant as a result. He sued for several million, won, and it still doesn't matter. Oh, well.
I love New Orleans, the northern most town in the Caribbean, nasty and fun, history just at every step! We're taking a train down soon. Like the old days.
Today's beer is- hair of the dog- Southern Barrel Damn Yankee IPA 6% from Bluffton, South Carolina right there at Charleston and ritzy once again. This brew is a nod to the hazy craze and it is hazy, turbid like creek water, but aromatic like "gin" flowers, herbal, medicinal, very earthy for sure. This beer looks like grapefruit juice in the glass. It is orange and murky, tossing a fine meringue-like head which wiggles as you sip. Beautiful lacing coats the sip lines, drying like sea foam inside the glass This beer is not nice to look at, but it is bitter and does have an attitude. Damn Yankee is an interesting version of the turbuid/turgid style so popular these days, and it's tasty enough, but somewhat shallow, blunted, and a beer that overall doesn't please my total palate. It is well made, is very hoppy and dry, but I'd rather have a Sierra Nevada Pale Ale over this on any day. I have a Durham made Pils from Full Steam (Pay Check) later that seems to fit in with a nicely growing trend of old world lager/pils. Cheers.

I go to jazz Fest often enough, love New Orleans and my friend Doug is a big time Mardis Gras crew guy. He's leaving tomorrow to get back on Fat Tuesday. Of all of the people that I wish that I had seen, Professor Longhair is number one. Amongst legends he is a legend.

 

Last Call! LAST CALL!! LAST CALL!!!!

Today is the last day to sign up for NBS BIF #5: We're Gonna Need a Bigger Porch. When NBS locks down in the morning, I;ll start working on the pairings. If you're on the fence, well, jump off and get on the boat! Details over here: https://www.beeradvocate.com/community/threads/nbs-bif-5-sign-up-thread.489857/

 

Happy New Baby Sunday, NBS!!! That's right, it finally happened. Due to some concerns, Mrs. Brau was induced Friday afternoon. Dad, yours truly, rushed to the hospital with Thing #1 and her Auntie forgetting nearly every precautionary item and plan of attack in order to pick up mom's car, and say our good-byes for the night. Now the fun begins…

Armed with experience and over confidence for our second, we tread into what we assumed would be an exceptionally quick delivery after #1’s easy and induced labor. It's true what they say about when you “Assume” things. Fast forward 13.5 hours and the insatiable pain and intensity begins. Epidural didn't work... again! Just as with our first, Mrs. Brau now suffers through it all, but luckily only had to push for a few minutes which naturally seemed like hours. Out comes little dude, and to my disbelief and terror, motionless with the umbilical cord wrapped 4 times around his neck. Mom and dad instantly are flooded with inexplicable emotions, as a battalion of nurses and doctors rush to the poor squirts aid. Suddenly… a cry. Smiles and back pats exchanged between the staff allow for relief and tears of joy for the Brau’s. He's OK and perfect in every way. 7 lb. 10oz. Blonde hair, dark blue eyes. 21” long and beautiful baby boy.



Sunday morning, and here we are. The relatives have all met their new little miracle, and our daughter finally got to meet her new brother and is already unconditionally in love.



For our first beer to celebrate our growing family, a fitting birthday cake in a bottle, thoughtfully gifted by my brother and and sister in law, and second time professional aunt and uncle:

Rogue Double Chocolate Stout



A: Pours a pitch black motor oil looking substance. Highly viscous with a wonderful and smooth creamy tan head. Granted, that's as far as I can take it with the hospital paper cups, except that it does leave a nice lace.

A: Smells a bit like German chocolate cake with a hint of cherries and a somewhat noticeable alcohol presence.

T: Taste follows with chocolate, toasted almonds, extra roasty malts, burnt toast, dark fruits, and some alcohol again.

F: In one word; decadent. In more than one word; smooth, rich, velvety, creamy, full bodied, again with the alcohol warmth.

O: This is a great stout, and even greater under the circumstances. With the alcohol presence dialed down, this might be an exceptional chocolate stout.

Cheers everyone, and I will see you all soon! A happy, healthy and exhausted family of Brau's are just about ready to go home.

 

Congratulations!!!!!

And what dedication to NBS (squared)

Lovely little one and so glad to see everyone is doing fine. Cheers to the whole family!!

 

Congratulations Phil and family. Everyones healthy and happy. Fantastic. May be time for a another "special delivery" - bottle or can this time!

 

Thanks for sharing. Wha a great read. And who can argue with Professor Longhair?

 

Wow, CONGRATS!!! What a blessing! And I'll drink to Mrs. Brau. Having been at a few births in my time, I'm of the firm conviction that if men were the ones to birth, we'd be extinct.
Women are the stronger sex.

 

Thanks for the great kickoff! Is this the Irish Sampler or something else? I'm curious which styles it recommends mixing.

 

Congrats on the new arrival!
He's a good-looking boy.

 

A nice start, Maria.
Work precludes a beer for me today, so I want to see a lot of beers from the NBS crew.

 

Congratulations on the birth of your son, may he be healthy and your family be happy.

 

Congrats to you and your family, Brau. Best wishes for all. Def. a unique way to kick off NBS(squared).

 

Great post man, my best to you and yours.

 

Terrapin Single Origin Coffee Brown Ale - Kenya (Ndaroni)
American Brown Ale - 6.1% ABV



4.14/5 rDev +2%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

12oz bottle poured into a snifter. This is the third beer that I've tried in the next Terrapin single origin coffee series. The first series was with coffee stouts featuring coffee from distinct origins around the world. The second series that this beer is part of is four different coffee brown ales.

Pours a dark brown color with light tan head. The tasting notes on the bottle is marzipan, slightly tart. The nose and taste are dominated by the sweet caramel malts, brown sugar and coffee. The taste also features a nice lingering burnt sugar sweetness with some roastiness from the coffee in the finish.