New Beer Sunday (Week 681)

New beer #6.

99 Problems but a Peach Ain’t One - Larimer Beer Co
Sour Ale - 5.2% abv
Canned 12/22/17
Purchased for $2.99 at Whole Foods
Score: 4.02 (+4.1% rDev)



L - 1/2 finger sparkling white head atop a pale transparent yellow body.

S - peaches! Very sweet smelling.

T - tart peaches, biscuity malt. A little ginger. No bitterness, mildly sour, moderately sweet, no booziness.

F - light body and high carb.

O - Thinking this would be a great summer crusher if I could find cheap 12-packs. Very similar to DFH Festina Peche, albeit a bit lighter and slightly cheaper.

 

Howdy NBS! I have three new beers to share with the thread today. No real commonality between them, but they're all on the low ABV side. Let's get right to the reviewing with my first one, Toppling Goliath's Dorothy's New World Lager.



I honestly had no idea what to expect going into this one, but I did spoil the surprise a little bit by looking it up on this site to check the ABV, because I couldn't find it on the can anywhere. I think the words "new world lager" automatically made me think of, I dunno... a pilsner-ish beer with some of those new-fangled German hops like Mandarina Bavaria or Huell Melon. Turns out this is a Cali Common/"steam beer" style lager. Weird. Last newer example of this style I've had would probably be Otter Creek's Steampipe, though that was fairly hoppy for a Cali Common. Let's see what this one has in store!

Pours an insanely cloudy, nearly totally-opaque bright golden color with a nice head of bone-white foam that leaves behind streaks and webs of lace as it fades to about two fingers in my glass. Not sure I really like the overly-cloudy appearance here, but I guess they could've been going for the whole "hefetrüb" / "kellerbier"-esque thing some breweries have been peddling recently.

The nose is rather nondescript, in my opinion. I don't think all beers should necessarily have to jump out of the glass, but this seems like it's really only got some light notes of wheaty, pilsner or crackery malt with some overt citrus (lemon, light sweet orange peel) tones along with some apricot marmalade and slight dusty yeast. Pretty simple, but not too special.

Flavor profile is a tad more on the leafy/herbal bitter-ish hop side of things, with a slight medicinal twang, doughy and crackery malts trading off in the mid-palate and some very subtle stone fruit mingling with mild citrus peel essence. Pretty refreshing stuff; probably great for warmer days, as it doesn't have much complexity but it's just drinkable enough to be included in a Spring or Summer session.

A tad heavier bodied than I'd like, probably owing to the proteins and yeast in suspension. Wish this were slightly cleaned up... maybe not totally filtered, though. I'd like to say this would be good in multiples but it just does not go down easily enough. In some ways, it sorta reminds me of a less herbal/earthy (as well as less-lemony) Sam Adams Summer or something. Probably won't return to this too hastily, but I also wouldn't pass it up if given to me (should mention that this actually was given to me by my brewing and drinking buddy, Pat; thanks man!). Take from that what you will.

Just discovered an awesome band from the UK called Conjurer. They're on an excellent label I also just discovered recently called Holy Roar... punishing, crushing sludge/death/doom/crust punk with a varied sound and consistent writing. So heavy! Immediately ordered a shirt and a copy of the CD direct from the band when I first listened this morning.



https://conjureruk.bandcamp.com/

 

Ommegang pale sour ale
Appearance..pours a cloudy gold orange color
Body..Medium about with just above average carbonation
Aroma..citrus,lemon,lime, orange, and citrus peels.
Taste.. very similar to aroma with the mixed citrus being very forward followed by some yeast and sugar. This was definitely in the middle as far as not too tart or sour but just very light and easy to drink.
Overall.. the fact that it wasn't too tart,sour,or sweet really worked and this way all the flavors were easy to identify and enjoy. Really nice offering from ommegang that I would get again

 

Happy Sunday everyone! Today’s New Beer is “Ryeway From Heaven” from Revolution Brewing, Chicago. A rye ale aged 12 months in American Rye Whiskey Barrels:

At 58 degrees it pours a deep ruby brown with excellent clarity; fast fizzy cap that vanished immediately leaving no head and almost non-existent ring; no lace; heavy, thick legs. 4.25



Bourbon/whiskey nose with lite caramel candy coated apple aromas; sweet, yet whiskey centric. 4.5





Semi sweet caramel up front; whiskey, toffee and a bit of sugary raisins; finish is mostly caramel/bourbon ball candy sweetness; no hop bitterness or boozy flavors. 4.75

Mouthfeel is thick (but not syrupy or adjuncty), full, velvety smooth; lite carbonation; creamy yet a dry tongue coating; warming face flushing; it feels so warm and slightly chewy - I want more with each sip. 4.75

Overall, exactly what I want in a big beer; love the Sugar Babies/caramel candy tempered dryness that is pleasing; not too much barrel wood or rye, which often for me when combined make an otherwise tasty beer too dry and tongue depressors like in the finish; intead, the barrel, booze and rye are mild and the palate soft, not harsh; lightly warming but amazingly not boozy for 13.8%; sweet yet nowhere near cloying; full and not corn syrupy so - another winner from Revolution; Well done! 4.75

Thank you @Number1Framer for this tasty brew. I wish we got Revolution in Florida. Cheers Sunday gang!

 

New Blissful Union Sunday




4.15/5 rDev -2.6%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

Poured gently from a 2017 16.9oz bottle into a tulip glass.

It is a light gold color and predominantly clear. A bright white dishsoap like head settled into a soapy ring around the glass.

The nose is pretty bright and zesty with a tart green apple, green grape, and lemon. Also a decent amount of wood and mustiness over top of fresh grains.

The flavors kind of threw me. For all of the white wine character in the aroma, I get a red wine flavor. Having reread the label, this appears to be the case as it was fermented in red wine barrels. Oddly none of the darker fruit comes through in the nose though for me. There is a very sour red grape/dates and balsamic vinaigrette taste. The tart green apple is still there and it has a decent amount of oak flavor. It is a little puckering, but it is not too sharp/acidic. A deep wheat and barley flavor lingers along with the red wine barrel.

It is still pretty easy drinking even with the amount of sourness it offers. It is crisp and lively up front with a moderate amount of carbonation, and has an oats like fluffy texture to give it some body.

In my experience I have found about 9 of every 10 collaborations to be average to poor, but this one was pretty well done. I like the aroma a little more than the flavor, but I would drink it again.

 

Greetings fellow NBSers! A sunny, pleasant day here in the Fourth Corner, where it 49 degrees at 12:17. We had a pretty gentle winter here on the shores of the Salish Sea, but I think we've even said goodbye to that, as trees are blooming and the early flowers start to poke up though the earth. The first bout of our roller derby season was last night, and I provided my usual stunning services. Lots of new girls this year, so lots of new names and faces for me to learn.

First up, is an OK little Pale Ale from Sisters OR: https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/17960/106994/

 

Greetings all and thanks to Cjgiant for leading us in. I don't follow college basketball but I did once find myself in Vegas during March Madness and won $10 betting on Pittsburgh. I excitedly called my brother to tell him about it since he's a big fantasy sports/gambling guy, and he couldn't understand why I even bothered to wait in line to place such a paltry bet. It was enough to make a game I otherwise didn't care about interesting and that was good enough for me

Speaking of mutated goats, I've got a strange one this week that was left at my house by a friend: Founders DKML, their 14.2% ABV Imperial Malt Liquor aged in bourbon barrels. It's tough to come up with something surprising in this age of Dry Hopped Fruited Barrel Aged Lactose Sours but I'd say they managed to do so here.






First off, this beer looks like a million bucks in the glass. It's a slightly opaque golden amber with a huge, tightly packed head of the tiniest damn bubbles that subsides to a thick ring and leaves lacing for days. The nose is bursting with raisins, dates, cherries and sweet malt with maybe just a whiff of booze. There is some bourbon in there but it's bourbon as filtered through a sweet baked good - like a bourbon version of rum cake. Or perhaps like a Manhattan with extra Luxardo cherries.

Taste follows the nose with a pronounced but pleasant sweetness and even stronger notes of dried fruits. There's definitely a little heat but it's very mild for a beer of this ABV (I have a high tolerance for boozy beers so if you don't, YMMV). And the bourbon note is definitely suggestive of a cherry heavy Manhattan now. It's very thick, chewy, and round in the mouth and leaves a pleasnt lingering reminder of all those tastes in the mouth for a good while after the swallow. It doesn't feel heavy though, and you're excited for the next sip in short order.

I'm sort of surprised to say that I really like this beer! If I didn't know what it was I think I'd guess it was a barleywine or maybe a type of Belgian ale I wasn't familiar with. Getting about 2/3rds of the way into the glass, it does start to wear out its welcome just a little bit because the sweetness amps up as it warms, but still a nice beer overall and an impressive effort for such a whacky concept.

Cheers!!!

 

Greetings, fellow NBSers,

After a mostly cold and blustery week that nevertheless saw temperatures rising bit by bit, this weekend has been gorgeous in the largest city between Seattle and Minneapolis. Right now it's a clear 47°, with a high of 58° predicted.

I dealt with insomnia that kept me awake until around 4AM, so I decided to sleep in, forgetting about the time change. It suddenly occurred to me that my dinner choice ("Tandooried Pork Chops", a recipe I've never done before) was going to need about 7 1/2 hours in a slow cooker, so I burst out of bed like a chicken with it's head cut off. The mayhem didn't end there, as I found I was out of ground coriander and cayenne, so I roared up to the "natural market" that is about 5 blocks up the South Hill. While there I grabbed some beers for my target in the current NBS BIF (about 104oz worth). Now dinner is slowly cooking and I've had my morning coffee.

Today I'm segueing from coffee to a coffee beer, which I haven't yet reviewed. I'll be back with that. In the meantime, here's a beer I had during the week that was new to me, courtesy of @bl00:

https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/24300/315604/?ba=woemad#review
My first from Evil Twin. Very drinkable stuff, but not nearly as complex as I expected it to be, given the various adjuncts. Incredibly smooth drinking for something so high in alcohol. Not one sign of the 13%abv. Session this and they'll be fishing you out of the sewers, but it went down so damn easy! Thanks, Dan!

I'll be back with that first beer of the day, and perhaps a hint or two for my BIF target.

 

Happy NBS! Hope everyone is well. The engineers at Chevy sure made changing the headlight lamp on a 2009 Malibu easy, once you spend an hour to remove the plastic bumper cover. I'm thankful for the YouTube videos that helped me out and saved me some money from having someone else do it.

I picked up DFH Oaked Aged Vanilla WWS about a month ago. I decided after completing my car maintenance task, that this would be a great afternoon to enjoy it. The color is as black as coal with a 1.5 finger tan colored head. Thin ring remains and lacing coats a portion of my glass. The aroma fills the air with a sweet chocolate, brownie like with hints of vanilla and wood. The flavor is semi sweet with notes of roasted malt, mocha, and chocolate brownie with some vanilla frosting. Some warming from the alcohol in the finish. Absolute joy to sip on. Rich and creamy with a thick mouthfeel. Decent amount of carbonation for a barrel aged beer. This was sublime and a nice dessert beer.

 

Alright, here's my second one of the day. This is a totally different brew than the unfiltered lager I had before, though it somewhat-amusingly looks kind of similar in my glass.

Lamplighter Brewing Co.'s Astral Weeks



Cool idea for a beer, and Lamplighter has been fairly impressive lately, in my opinion. This is a small beer fermented with Brett yeast and aged in Chardonnay barrels. That's a lot of work for such a limited release. Let's see if it turned out worthwhile for them!

Pours a straw-yellow/golden color with a rather thin and moderated head of white foam. Fairly clear surface with an island of isolated bubbles on top. Tiered drippy lace sticks to the inside of my glass as the head fades. Nice but very by-the-books.

The nose is where things get interesting, which is probably obvious if you know how Brett + barrel aging tends to go. Superb funkiness right upfront; rustic, almost cheesy with some cranberry and raspberry notes. Hay, blackcurrant jam and light tropical fruit coming out as it warms up to cellar temp.

Profile is more funk with delightful, playful tannic notes, more dark berry jam-like flavors coming to the fore, and a slight hop bite toward the finish... earthy and leafy. I could see some newer hops like Loral or Idaho 7 working really well with this kind of beer, so I wonder what they used. Very light, airy malt backbone, but it's actually there and supports the rustic Brett pretty well.

Perhaps this is a bit too thin-bodied and watery for its own good, however. Carbonation is pretty bracing and intense, as Brett beers tend to be, and I definitely think this level of CO2 adds a bit of perceived body to this one, but the feel is a little weak. Perhaps they wanted to do a smaller beer in these barrels before committing to something bigger and more intense that could come out less-than-desirable? Perhaps I'm overthinking it, of course, as well. Long story short, this could probably be a little better, but this is the first Brett fermented beer I've had from LBCO, and it has convinced me that their delicate and nuanced house Brett strain is worth looking into in the future. Cheers! Back soon with my final entry... a new spiced wheat beer from my hometown!

 

Good afternoon, and happy New Brett Sunday! The morning hike got postponed due to a family members unfortunate inability to handle their alcoholic endeavors from the night before. All well, the forest isn't going anywhere any time soon (I hope). Time for my new beer while I wait for them to get their shit together.

Crooked Stave
Colorado Wild Sage- Brett Saison with White Sage and Lemongrass





Wild Sage pours a mesmerizing semi transparent yellow. It glows in the sunlight, and its wispy white cap decides to take nothing away from it's golden beauty as it descends back into the body below.

As advertised, sage, lemongrass, and brett funk are made well known, but a perfect balance of the trio is distributed equally. The sage and brett couldn't play off each other better, and the funky hay can't help but make me think of new french oak.

The fresh ingredients play seamlessly into the flavor. The brett is subdued making this a gentle and satiable amount. The sage and lemongrass only enhance the flavors, none being too abundant or intrusive. A light cracked wheat and lime juice give the perfect refreshing finish.

It seems to have the minimal amount of carbonation possible, yet it's still light and dry enough to make it so very drinkable. Funk is mild, and there is no tartness. Balanced and smooth, the sage and lemongrass make this remarkably refreshing.

On a warm, cloudless day like today, I can't think of a better beer to enjoy while out in the yard getting my hands dirty embracing the coming of spring. It's drinkability is exactly what is needed with the sun on my back, shovel in hands. I think I'll be reaching for a few more of these today.

After my official review, I gave Wild Sage a rating of 4.2 with an rDev of+3.4%.

Cheers everyone, and I will see you all soon.

 

New beer #7. This is likely it for me.

2xSmash - Southern Tier
DIPA - 8.1% abv
Score: 3.69 (-8.9% rDev)



L - massive, billowing head atop a translucent orange body.

S - pine, citrus, booze. Traditional ipa smell.

T - piney start. Some citrus mixed in but mostly pine. Caramel malt. Very sweet and moderately boozy. Moderate bitterness.

F - medium body and feel.

O - Very traditional. Not really tasting the mosaic influence here. Perhaps its old, but there’s no date on the can.

 

My impressions of this one match yours to a T- fantastic nose, but very artificial tasting.

 

Boulevard Manhattan Cask Imperial Stout, 13.6% ABV, 28 IBU. Pours black and nearly flat with only a few bubbles around the rim, which is as expected for a still beer. Aroma is whiskey, vanilla, and dark fruit. Taste follows, very whiskey forward, slight sweetness, very little bitterness. Interesting mouthfeel without the carbonation. Overall near-outstanding. The cork was more difficult to remove since carbonation pressure was about zero, and when the cork came out there was the slightest hiss vs. a loud pop. I stoppered the remainder, but really would not have had to.

 

NBS entry #2



Excavator

Big Ditch Brewing Company
American Brown Ale / 5.80% ABV

3.79/5 rDev -1% | Score: 3.83
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.75

canned 12/15/17

L- The beer pours dark brown, almost black. The head is a good 3 fingers of tan foam. As the head recedes some legs of lace are sporadically left behind.
S- The nose is of modest intensity and consisting of a cross between chocolate and root beer. That said it isn't overly sweet, just the impression it leaves behind.
T- On the palate it's a pretty typical brown ale. It's pretty well balanced. There are notes of chocolate that fade behind a soft hop presence. Bitterness after 4 months in the can is on the lighter side.
F- Mouthfeel is on the lighter side of medium. Carbonation is moderate. The beer finishes lightly dry making it an easy drinker.
O- This is pretty standard fair for a brown ale. Good enough to drink without hesitation, but not a stand out to seek.

 

I'm returning with a second new brew, as I ride heard on the NBS BIF thread. If you're not up too speed on the BIF, our theme this time is NBS BIF #007-The Spy Who Beered Me. https://www.beeradvocate.com/community/threads/nbs-bif-007-the-spy-who-beered-me.561259/ Lots of fun Bond hints happening there, with @WesMantooth doing yeomans work in the 007 hints.

https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/47868/329827/

 

That is a completely badass bottle.

 

New Russ. Imp. Stout Sunday (Week 681)

Greetings fellow NBSers from on the ridge in Mid Hud Val, NY. Beauty day here, sunny and cool. Moving slow today, the acoustic quartet got together last night and many beers, etc., were consumed. Made it to town, but wasn't up for the road trip to visit a new brewery I'd planned, especially as I found out it is open Mondays. Tomorrow.

Not much into college sports, but I will relate to you the funny and true story that the school I attended, New Paltz University, was chosen #1 party school in the nation (1970?) by Time Magazine, something the large counter culture attending took pride in. That same year our soccer team did very well, largely as a result of our star, a striker enrolled from an Asian country, a barely five foot tall, cannon-for-a-leg man named Bob Hippie. Too funny.

Black Hog, out of Connecticut, has a real touch with darker offerings, and any of you who may have commented about lack of brown ales should be on the lookout for ones from these guys. This is a RIS of pridigious alcoholity, 11+% ABV, Leaves A Mark Stout. Stock photo


A light/med. aroma featuring dry cocoa and chocolate malt balls with lightest coffee hints, even lighter roasty bitter.

Full side of med. strength taste, and it's all the flavors of the aroma, but in opposite intensity. Now coffee and roast are strong components of the taste. Very dark roast coffee, and all degrees of roasty bitter, with malted milk balls just able to balance things to a delicious barrage of goodness.

Med. for style in all respects, with a deep and bitter finish that is remarkably clean for how strongly it lingers.

Alcohol is dangerously well hidden in this baby, and as palate acclimates there is a creaminess to it. Really bright and flavorful stout that I am digging a lot, and I believe you will too. Highly recommended.

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

 

Another great open by @cjgiant and one I could write a dissertation on. I live in an over-inflated vortex of expectations here in Aggieland, where Texas A&M football fans want a national title so badly they forget they haven't played for a conference title in 20 years. And, of course, there's my Dallas Cowboys, whose fan base is stuck in either the 1970s or 1990s and think each regular-season win means a return to the glory days is eminent.

As for beer and expectations, here's one in a series that's never lived up in my opinion, but hope springs eternal:

Saint Arnold's Divine Reserve No. 18, an American imperial stout with Belgian candi syrup and three months "resting" on vanilla beans

At 13.4% ABV this one's pretty big, but fortunately Saint Arnold sells it in standard 6-packs. Twelves ounces is most welcome over the 22 oz.-plus bomber possibility.

The aroma is sharp raisin/licorice up front with some bitter coffee. As it warms it has a pinch of chocolate sweetness. The flavor is similar but with way more bitterness up front — not sure if it's all dark malt or some hops or even some alcohol "heat" adding to it, but it reminds me of the "black IPA" and definitely the green West Coast style RIS. The mouthfeel is very nice, still full of carbonation and plenty of weight so that each sip is a mouthful.

There's enough chocolate flavor in the background to suggest this beer will age wonderfully. If my "cellar" wasn't already close to full, I'd buy another six-pack — that's how sure it seems. Whatever I do with this beer, I won't be drinking another until next winter or even the winter of 2019-20. It feels like it could age 5-plus years no problem. It's much greener than 2017 Narwhal IMO.

The review:
https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/337/328949/?ba=Premo88#review
4.01 (-0.5% rDev)

Best news about this brew: It's infused some faith for me in Saint Arnold's Divine Reserve series. I've only tried a handful in the series, and each one frankly has sucked. This beer does not suck.

Cheers, NBSers!

 

Congratulations, Craig! I think this is UVA's year. As a consolation I'll take the Tar Heels winning 2 of 3 from Duke. I wish the Cavs great success in the Dance and hope for an outstanding showing by the ACC (and a win or two by my beloved Bison)!