New Beer Sunday (Week 666)

Found this appropriate beer in the cellar, been there two years but at 12%, guess it aged well. Its not a new beer for me but never reviewed it so here goes. Devil Dancer, triple IPA , who is going to come out with a quad? Pours a ruby hue with one finger head that leaves quickly with spotty lacing left behind, smells malty, with Carmel and sweet fruit, taste follows with a bite from the hops and the alcohol is very prominent. Two years did nothing to hide the ABV and this is one big beer. Complex and enjoyable but would not seek it out the next release.

 

Greetings NBS 666 revelers
I didn't think it would be a hard task to come up with something special for today with 3 Floyds distribution here. Turns out, I was traded a perfectly unholy starter by a coworker after his return from South Dakota. Here we go...

The review: 3.83
12oz undated bottle poured into a Duvel tulip glass at fridge temp 6.66% ABV. The beer pours dense black with mocha brown head. The aroma is milk sugar and slight roast. The taste is straightforward textbook milk stout. It starts smooth with a bit of roast and then finishes with vanilla and roasty bitterness cancelling each other out. Mouthfeel is medium to thin bodied, adequately carbonated and slightly sweet in the finish. Overall, nice but not great. The vanilla listed on the label can only be found by looking deeply and could have more to do with power of suggestion than presence.

I'll be back after catching up on everyone else's posts. Enjoy the new beer in your glass folks!

 

Peoples porter,dark rust brown color,medium carbonation and just a bit thin. Aroma is malt,dried fruit,coffee and bitter cocoa. Taste is identical,not sweet with a bitter dry cocoa finish. Not top tier but still a porter I would have again

 

What’s up BA? Visited some family over the weekend so getting a late start to NBS. I didn’t really plan well for the 666 thing...

Today’s new beer comes to me thanks to a LIF box from @larryi86. A collaboration between Tired Hands and Stillwater Artisans - Seeds and Stems.

Excellent DIPA. I don’t have much experience with hemp seeds, but this is very well done. A positive rDev which means I definately enjoyed it.!



Poured from 16 oz can dated 11/01/2017

A: Very cloudy burnt orange with dense 1-2 finger white head. Lasting retention and moderate lacing.

S: Orange, pineapple, green mango, and honeydew melons. Subtle oak notes in the back.

T: Tropical citrus with pineapple, green mango, oranges, honeydew and passion fruit. Hints of pine nuts and walnuts. Kind of reminds me of an orange juice smoothie.

M: Medium body with average carbonation. Finish is slightly dry and lightly bitter.

O: Very unique and enjoyable DIPA. Thanks to @larryi86 for giving me the chance to try it.

 

Great post. Glad to see someone choose the same beer as me.

 

I took down all the lights and sacrificed my dog, Yoda.

Well...I actually did neither of those things, but I thought about it. Maybe I'll just have another beer instead. The Duvel rewards inebriation, right?

 

With the college kid safety back on the ground at school and our assessment of her well-being positive, I turn towards a different assessment.

Not sure if my beer karma inching away from 666 was a good or bad omen but since lightening has not struck from the clear skies I will place it in the good column.

Being a late GoT adopter, the Ommegang theme did not strike a chord with me. But those last few episodes were impressive and the pure evil was undeniable as was this beer for today's theme.

L - Straw colored, with a large, white head that recedes to an uneven layer that coats rather than laces but is replenished by tipping the glass.
S - Classic cloves and coriander but with a cut/wet grass that adds to the complexity.
T - Pretty standard, following the smells, thought there may be more.
F - Full with a softness created by the carbonation that is not there gives way to a relentless spiciness
O - A kick tradition to the curb, take-no-prisoners version on the style that works. Stoke the fire and bundle up.

Composite score 3.68 which feels a little lower than how I feel about it

 

Great to see this one on NBS! Oddstory is actually in Chattanooga (closer to you, I'm assuming) and they are making some interesting stuff.

 

That elicited a hearty guffaw!

 

Wow, this is pretty creepy. I don't come by here very often but it seems like the (hell?) stars aligned for this New Beer Sunday post. I just got back to NJ after a Hellish (just kidding but i had to...it was actually pretty smooth) 5.2 hour drive from Massachusetts visiting my family and my hometown (Duxbury...small south shore town near Plymouth). It was a beautiful weekend. I did a bit of birding with my future father in-law in Lakeville/Middleboro area, looking for a very rare Tufted Duck (they hail from Europe). We struck out, but spotted a bunch of bufflehead, grouse, etc. Biriding is slowly becoming a new hobby of mine.

ANYWAY, sorry for rambling. When I got back I picked up some Epitome by Carton Brewing. It's an imperial black ale weighing in @ 10.3% ABV. I gotta say, I'm usually not a huge fan of Black IPA/Cascadian Black Ale or whatever you want to call it. I'd usually just opt for a stout....but since it's Carton I knew it would be okay at worst. The best one I've had is (was? I think they stopped making it) Firestone-Walker Wookey Jack.

Description from the can:
"We don't have many rules at Carton Brewing and those we have we made up for ourselves. In general though, we strive for drinkability through balance and harmonization of flavors. But even self-imposed rules are meant to be broken. With Epitome we decided to embrace the teenage metalhead in each of us and get discordant with a seriously hoppy, high gravity, black ale. The only notions accepted were to make it bigger, bolder, hotter & faster. A Beast. The ABV had to push past 10, the black had to be "none more," and the hops had to be American and piled on like a double bass drum kicking faster and harder. Drink Epitome because things worth doing are worth over doing."



Review:
Canned 11/16/17. 16oz can poured into a tulip glass, Epitome pours pitch black in color, completely opaque with a khaki colored head that takes a very long time to settle. Aroma is remarkably citrus-hop forward. Usually with these kinds of beers the aroma is a bit muddled due to the higher roasted malt base. This one is an exception. If I had to smell this blind-folded I'd think it was a regular west coast DIPA. Citrus and floral hop aroma. Taste is very similar to the aroma, actually. Lots of citrus hops including grapefruit, orange and a bit of mango even. I'm searching for the roasted malt and it barely pulls through at the end, which is okay by me because this style always seems to be more roast than hops. Slightly dry finish. Never would've guessed 10.3% ABV, the burn is barely noticeable. Overall it is an exceptioanlly excellent Black IPA errr, I mean Imperial Black Ale that drinks wonderfully. This one knocked Wookey Jack as my top Imperial Black Ale Thingy that I've ever had. Another great beer from Carton!

Obligatory bird pics (no, I didn't take this....that damn Tufted Duck is elusive!)

[H/T animalspot.net]

Here is a photo of that Duck we couldn't find. Oh well, at least someone spotted it and nabbed a somewhat-clear photo of him with a Lesser Scaup (they're fun to watch too!). His "tuft" isn't very big but hey, it's still really cool if you ask me...

[H/T Jamie Glydon via eBird.org]

Obligatory New Beer Sunday #666 song:


Cheers everyone!!

 

Deftones Phantom Bride IPA for my first new beer this Sunday. Just kinda meh. Nothing really stands out to me with this one. Think I might have gotten an old one, couldn't find a date. I'll give it another try sometime.

 

The tree and lights are up and it's time for a beer while my better half gets the ornaments out. We don't get Westbrook in Nashville, unfortunately, but @mattflippin was nice enough to mule this one up from GA this week:

Citrus Redacted, an Imperial IPA, Westbrook Brewing Co, Mt. Pleasant, SC


Serious floaties in this one, but not unexpected.



I liked the look of this one, mainly due to the great head retention. A hazy but not turbid yellow-golden color. Some decent sized floaties in the glass. A normal pour produced a thick and long-lasting off white head with great lacing in the glass. Moderately strong aromas - mainly citrus as expected. Orange, grapefruit, and a bit of lime with the slightest hint of resin. The taste followed for the most part - bitter grapefruit, some orange, and also lime. Not much else. The lime was a surprise and may just be my palate. The ABV was well-hidden. Slightly more than medium-body which fit for an 8.5% beer. Overall, a nice beer that looked like a NEIPA and tasted like an assertively bitter old-school citrus IPA. Cheers BAs!

 

I'm finally back with a beer from a brewery who's name tells us where we are all going (especially @Lingenbrau after that desecration of such a sacred idol). Up now, Straight to Ale's 5th Anniversary offering - a Belgian quad:


I realized as this photo burned its pixels into my screen that it would've been awesome if @Buck89 had been able to bring me Straight to Ale's 6th anniversary beer.

The beer comes out of the darkness a little lighter than it's container, though it swirls in the glass and re-darkens. I think I can see a little bit of the blood of the damned in the deep brown body. There is a thin medium to dark tan ring that protects the edges of the void after a medium bubbled head sizzles away.

The nose is also dark - fruits that is, raisins and figs, there's a definite fig newton like aspect here. The rotting souls within do give off an interesting tart note - as if the bones being ground are similar to that of the grapes that are stomped to make wine. The devil is deceiving me a little with his words on the side of the bottle, "candy-like nose;" I can see a little molasses maybe being candy-like, but the tart tang indicate at best an sugary orange hard candy.

Consuming this beer is like consuming the Styx, with a fairly thick, full feel that clings a tad to avoid the depths of my throat. One would not have expected the end of the river to have such sweetness - maybe the remnants of the goodness that was shed from the souls that made this journey. There is a little twang here that has me thinking the sweetness could be more devilish deception, but it's nearly as obvious as the nose. Maybe Satan is hiding the rotting flesh with a shroud of candied dark fruits.

It's a good thing I have some angel food cake to pair with this dessert beer. This is a little on the sweet side, and the extra sweetness allowed me to see through the devil's ruse and avoid his clutches with this offering.

 

More than anything.

"...he said boisterously."

I hope those are easier to find than that duck . Sounds exactly up my alley.

 

I decided last week to finally crack this one open for today's NBS. It not only fits today's theme but was also from the NBS #5 BIF courtesy of @ovaltine

Pours black with a finger of tan head.
Smell definitely lives up to it's name, lots of darkness going on here. Dark chocolate, roasted malts, coffee, and fruits dominate.
Taste is very similar to the nose, dark chocolate, prunes, roated malt, coffee, some vanilla and tobacco.
Full bodied but not overly chewy.
Overall a wonderful beer I am grateful to have tried.

 

Checking in with a little more wicked dark beer, and then it's back to binge watching Marvel's The Punisher.



Evil Twin's Even More JCS.

Pours a filthy motor oil black with two fingers of dark caramel head. Head retention is okay with no lacing left behind. Aroma is dark and rich notes of toasted and roasted malts with an emphasis on the latter. A little dark coffee and vanilla bean at the back. Flavor profile is toasted and roasted malts with sweet vanilla beans swelling up behind the dark malts. A chocolaty, dark roast of coffee finishes the beer well. Mouth feel is thick and filling with a hearty, grainy, semi-velvety texture. Overall, a stout with a huge, filling presence, and yet never feels jumbled or over-done in the flavor profile.

Score: 4.5 | 4.25 | 4.5 | 4.5 | 4.5 | BA Score: 4.44 | rDev: -0.4%

 

Theme not withstanding, their 5th anniversary is way better beer!

 

Back with another from @larryi86 ‘s LIF box.

Tired Hands - Five Leaves (v)

Another winner! Nice blend of citrus and sweet. Very well done!



Poured from 16 oz can with unreadable date but looks to be something in 10/2017.

A: Cloudy yellow tending towards orange with generous 3-4 finger white head. Lasting retention and lots of sticky lacing.

S: Tangerines, lemons, and bright citrus. Subtle sweetness.

T: Bold tangerine and passion fruit combined with some honey or palm sugar.

M: Medium to light body with average carbonation. Finish is a little sweet.

O: Another unique but outstanding DIPA from Tired Hands. Thanks to @larryi86 for the chance to try it.

 

Condolences @Lingenbrau
Good to see you over here @GreenBayBA

New Beer #2
We all know who the Devil really is...










The inventor of the shaker pint and ABINBEV

The review:
12oz throwback bottle bb 2/16/18 poured into a shaker pint at fridge temp 6.1% ABV. The beer pours bright with a deep reddish amber color and short lived khaki head. The head recedes quickly but leaves a paper thin cap and some lacing. The aroma is negligible but is sweet malt based. The taste is rich toasted malt at first transitioning to a slightly bitter yet not completely dry finish. Mouthfeel is thin to medium bodied, well carbonated and finishes with just a touch of butter. They had me until then. Overall, far better than the rest of the Bud family, but not great.

I'll be honest friends, I dipped into this 6 pack once for a quick, cheap dinner beer and thought they might really have something. It's very different to dissect a beer for review. I didn't notice the butter until I really got into it. Damn it, that one is my deal breaker. Really pisses me off when "craft" brewers leave beer unfinished and try to sell it to me. Rant over. Cheers!

 

Good evening...greetings from the Casa LeRose. Great kickoff to the theme week by @lordofthewiens . I do enjoy the theme days, but am not terribly clever when it comes to participating. Our pastor delved into Revelations last week, and my thoughts during the sermon went through various stages of WTF. As an ex-Catholic during my mis-spent youth we never actually got to read the Bible for ourselves and Revelations was essentially conveniently ignored. I like my religion with some balance and perspective, self-reflection, and few complications.

So a good Tuurkey day here. We cooked, everybody who showed up ate and enjoyed. I am not a huge fan of the turkey. I enjoy almost all of the acoutremonts, and today got to enjoy my favorite thing in the Thanksgiving Leftover Sammich...like the ultimate everything pizza...

Now...on to the beer. The last in a wonderful box from @cavedave....



Now...on to the beer. The last in a wonderful box from @cavedave....



Now...on to the beer. The last in a wonderful box from @cavedave....



This is Rushing Duck Barrel-aged Blend Part IV. My final brew from a porch bomb exchange with @cavedave from quite a while ago. Since this beer is retired, you could say it has been resurrected fir this edition of NBS.

Holy mother of God is this stuff amazing! Obviously not a looker, and not all that carbonated, but does it leave an oil slick down the sides of the tulip or what? Cherry, plum, bourbon, sweet tobacco, toffee, brown bread, that Belgian candi sugar almost molasses stuff, then light oak and vanilla. The taste is an absolute riot. It is an assault and it has that flavor morphing thing happening where no sip is the same as the last. I dig that... Slightly spicy alcohol, but not really announcing the 12%. It runs the gamut...warm, bitter, spicy, sweet, fruity, herbal with everybody kinda taking turns at the lead. Yet not in conflict. Low carbonation, fairly drying. Thick, not syrupy, with a bold finish. Not for the faint if heart, but holy shit is this dynamite.

I think it is a good thing for me that Rushing Duck isn't across the street...everything Rushing Duck in that box of joy was absolutely delicious.

Wait...do I have a Duvel tulip???