New Beer Sunday (Week 697)

Back home from a mini brewery tour of St. Paul, and ready for round 2 on here for NBS, but not my 2nd new beer of the day.

I wasn't planning on having this beer tonight, but as I was bringing it in with the rest of my stuff, the can sprung a leak. So, here's the beer I'm having now, thanks to the leak in the can.


Java Oats from Barrel Theory Brewing in St. Paul.

My friends and I got the last 3 crawlers of it from the brewery tonight - sorry.

It is a very good and tasty coffee beer. Nice rich, bold, powerful flavor. The only downside is it is a bit watery feeling to me.

4.07/5 rDev -5.6%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

This beer pours pitch black with a 2 finger tan head. The head retention is average and there's some lacing on the glass.
The nose is quite rich with coffee aromas - well according to the label, espresso. I don't really drink coffee, and don't know the difference. The nose is quite pleasing.
Taste - is mellow for a fraction of a second, then the espresso kicks in - HARD. Rich, deep, powerful are good words for the flavor.
Body is fairly light, and, in a way, a bit watery. A lot less body than the flavor and nose would suggest.
A very good beer, but just a bit light bodied is my only gripe.

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Well, that's likely it for tonight. See you all next week for the next New Beer Sunday!!!

and, of course, throughout the week for WBAYDN.

 

Glad you reviewed this one. It was my favorite beer from that mixed pack and your review reminds me that I stashed one away last year, and that I should revisit it soon. Thanks!

 

Imperial Runaway Models

This one pours beyond hazy! it looks like a yeast sample!

The beer it self is pretty good but not in the same family as many of the heavy hitters

 

I’ve got one more new one- Wicked Weed’s Coolcumber-



This is an odd bird, but I really enjoyed it. It probably helps that I really like cucumbers, basil and juniper berries (at least how they taste in gin). That being said, if any of those ingredients aren’t your thing, you may not like it as much as I did.

4.19/5 rDev +10.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4.25

Canned 5.31.18 and consumed today

Look- opaque golden liquid with a 1/2 finger foamy white head and spotty lacing

Smell- starts with sweet bready malt and mild green apple-like fruity esters along with a woody and earthy, almost sage-like melange. If I try hard, i can get some basil and juniper, but I don't think i would have identified them if they weren't on the beer's label. Not getting any cucumber, though. Regardless, it's really unique and enjoyable.

Taste- Starts similar to the nose with the sweet bready malt and fruity esters, but I'm also getting distinct cucumber and basil along with a woody and piney note.

Feel- medium light body with a slightly sweet finish; the woody piney taste of the juniper lingers in the finish as well

Overall- great golden ale w/additions that work really well and provide a unique drinking experience

 

Another new arrival on Friday.

https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/32893/317442/



Moderate to vigorous pour yields a full one inch tan head over an almost black body with very little lacing. Nose of chocolate, fudge, and malted milk. Taste mirrors nose with alternating flavors of a milk stout and Russian Imperial Stout. Some coffee notes appear in the aroma and flavor upon warming. Fudge is predominant after further warming. Good feel for a milk stout and overall, a nice fudgesicle beer right here. Cheers!

4.06/5 rDev 0%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4

 

Anyone who has seen my posts on here in the past can probably tell that I'm a sucker for nostalgic beers: those that evoke memories of certain places or people, and that one of my favourite nostalgic targets is the island on which I grew up, my moms garden, the forests surrounding us, etc.
Well, today continues that theme.
My parents house (and the house I spent most of my childhood in) is in a mildly swampy section of the woods at the base of a hill before you get to the beach. Stinging nettles, cedar trees, and salal are the three plants that really define our property. As a kid, one of my favourite summertime activities was to fashion a sword out of a branch or a sprig of ocean spray and go 'nettle whacking' with my neighbour. We'd blaze paths through the endless seas of green leaves, pretending they were orcs or rats (from Redwall) or whatever else our fanciful imaginations could come up with (yes, I was a pretty dorky kid). The fact that they could fight back made it that much more engaging and fun. And I've definitely got some... less pleasant memories of when it went wrong and I fell into a patch or something. Anyway, as I got older, I learned that nettles, if harvested correctly so as to avoid the venom on their little hairs that will 'sting' you are actually pretty tasty. I'd make tea out of them, or crush them to counteract their hairs/venom and have them in salads.
So when I saw that Machine House made a Stinging Nettle ale, of course I had to pick it up. I guess it's an amber base that they then add nettles to.
Not terribly surprisingly, I had to add this one to the database.



As soon as I opened the cap on this one it gave indication that it was going to start gushing. Thankfully it maxed out at a little foam cap on top of the bottle, but man this head wants to be Peyton Manning-esque.
Even with a relatively gentle pour, the glass was only about 20% liquid beer by the time it was full and threatening to spill over the sides. My last experience with Machine House also yielded a Beldar and Prymaat sized head, so I'm starting to notice a pattern. Once we worked past that initial speed bump, it condensed into a still foamy sticky cap of dirty white, with sticky 3D lacing. The body is a murky deep amber.

The nose was a mix of sweet grains and a spicy vegetal note that was clearly influenced by the nettles. While I liked the nettle aspects, the initial sweet core (it became less pronounced over time) didn't really work for me, and clashed somewhat with the earthy vegetation present around it.

Thankfully as I began to sip, the pronounced sweet notes were nowhere to be found. Dulled flavours of earthy grainy malts and earthy spicy hops are masterfully bridged with the spicy vegetal nettle presence. Progressing to the finish, some hops begin to emerge, and blend the nettle notes with more earthy and bitter notes. As it drifts further into the rearview I do get a ghostly afterimage of some of the sweetness initially noted on the nose, but by this point it serves more as a welcome balance and is actually quite nice, along with a continued presence of the earthy hops. Stripping this layer away with the lacquer of time (even counted just in seconds here), the final aftertaste is 100% undeniably straight nettle. And I am super into that. Others may be less so.

Body was a little on the thin side, but the carbonation striked a fine middle balance, making this one I could see myself revisiting on a warm day later on this summer, and in particular I'd like to bring a couple sometime when I go visit my folks to really complete the circle.
I've enjoyed both the offerings I've had from this brewery and eagerly look forward to trying more from them. They really are an under the radar gem, specifically if one is looking for less brash continental style ales.
Cheers y'all, hope you've got something tasty going on as well!





Congrats to @RedhawkPoke , and have fun @JBowenGeorgia on your continental journey!!

 

Good evening, NBS! I'm trying to sneak in under the wire here as it has been a strangely busy day.

But firstly, thanks to @cjgiant for starting us off, and best wishes for a quick recovery. I've actually spent the majority of the week with a cold, so I both empathize and sympathize. Spring and summer colds are not my favorite. I work in one of these newfangled open office arrangements, which is miserable in many ways - one of those ways involves the quick and easy spread of germs. I spend quite a lot more of my time being sick than I would like these days. I'd just have kids if that were my plan.

I'm going to breeze through a few check-ins here, just in the interest of time and fearing missing the closure time of this thread.

My first beer of the day was a local one from one of the better makers of IPAs - Black Stack:



DDH 755 is quite a lot dryer than the base (Local 755) - the juice and fruit are still very pleasantly present though and the beer is quite well-executed overall. I picked up a four pack this afternoon to tide me over before a bit of travel this week - no regrets!

My second beer of the day was not quite such a happy experience - this was a Dragon's Milk variant, which happens to not be so unexpected in it's variability:



Cherry chocolate, admittedly, is not one of my favorite combinations of adjuncts - but this beer just barely dodges medicinal, and is sadly lacking in the chocolate that I had hoped it might have. There have not been many Dragon's Milk variants yet that I have really enjoyed... I just keep trying.

Beer #3 was, similarly, a less than awesome experience - which surprises me very little, as we're discussing a Ska beer:



One thing that very much came as a surprise to me is that no other reviewers seem to have described this as a smoky beer. Welp - I'll take that bullet and stand alone... this beer is smoky and dry, and what is going on with that. What cream ale is intended to comprise those qualities? I've probably never heard of it, because I've never intentionally bought it. Also, why is this beer waxed? It's fairly low in ABV, so why would you age it? Never mind that I've aged it - I picked it up in Denver while I was there for GABF, and just haven't drank mine because... well, it didn't interest me. Why did I buy this thing? It's a bit creamy and very sweet, but yuck - that dry smokiness is not doing it for me.

So this has been a mixed Sunday for beers.

Likewise, this has been a mixed week - a very nice share yesterday evening, but a very stressful week of work, projects, and vacation planning... and why should vacation planning be stressful? That just doesn't seem right to me.

Coming up: I'm taking a vacation in Boston this week. I'll be there Wednesday though very early Sunday (no joke - flying home at like 6am). I'll be visiting both Trillium locations, Tree House, Night Shift, and whatever else happens along. This is likely a long shot - but if any BAs would like to meet up for a beer, get in touch! I'm always happy to tick a handshake and I have minimal plans on this trip. I've also posted an in-person trade, so let me know if you'd like to trade, or do a small share - I'm down for both!

Cheers, guys - have a great week to come!

 

Happy CANtinuing New 4th Hands of July Beer Sunday (Week 697)!

This has worked out better than planned! Lotsa tasty beers to speed the plow on this insanely hot & humid weekend. I am toughing it out as I do not like paying for A/C, so I am beer-cooled & air-cooled with the occasional water-cooled sneaking in.

Oh, for Swim Call & a dive in the ocean … It's a real thing! We would station Gunner's Mates (GMs) with rifles in case of sharks & if you were confident in yer swimming skills, you mustered up, crossed yer arms over yer chest & launched into The Great Deep Sink! Deep end o' the pool? Child's play! You were inna arms of King Neptune with Davy Jones' Locker wide open & ready to receive. We had our SAR swimmer(s) in with us, also, plus a cadre of looky-loos with preservers, vests, et al at the ready so it was pretty nice. I always took part, but man, was I spent when they hauled us back aboard! Exhausting. I would eat chow & rack out afterwards.

This brings us to:
https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/27870/133247/?ba=woodychandler#review
,
https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/27870/207798/?ba=woodychandler#review
& finally,
https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/27870/134374/?ba=woodychandler#review


Wot's next? I'd like to sleep, but MacBeth hath murdered sleep! I shall sleep no more (II.ii.35-37)!

 

I tend to be fairly wary of cliches like that, but holy cow I learned just how accurate that one was. Living in west Texas and feeling 125 degrees with about zero humidity compared to a year or so later being in St Louis with humidity in the upper nineties, with the temperatures approaching the same... it is truly night and day. I'm not a huge fan of either of those extremes (for various reasons: the locales in which I experienced them included), which is yet another reason why I'm so grateful to be located where I am. Middle of the road humidity, middle of the road overall temperatures... I'll take it.

No kidding. Isn't HotD kind of (in)famous for 'intentionally' under/uncarbonated beers?

Man I spent the first part of my day watching the Ms win a brisk 1-0 game against the Royals, and after his no-hitter in Toronto, I half expected Paxton to throw a perfecto on Canada day. I really wanted to go to the game, but had to content myself with watching it online. Wasn't quite the historical event of a perfect game, but 8 innings, 2 hits, 0 runs, with 11 strikeouts? I'll take it.

And my axe!

(or at least agreeance)

 

So true.

 

Well Hello Late Night NBS.
Moved on to a few other nice offerings over at the Bruery.

Blush DIPA by Offshoot (basically the Briery's IPA division).

Appearance is a bit off putting at first. Looks like a smashed watermelon left a puddle on the ground.
Smell more than makes up for it. Smooth pithy notes blend seamlessly with mildly sweet grapes. Surprisingly tasty nose.
Flavor begins like the nose, then a little more malt comes through, followed by a lingering bitterness.
Mouthfeel is like most "hazies."
Overall, she's a bit ugly, but smells great, and drinks well. Turn off the lights and enjoy.

3.75/5 rDev 0%
look: 2.75 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75

Pie Happy an Old Ale by the Bruery

This one really hits on what they were going for, apple pie in a glass.
Copper to brown in hue. Slight head almost immediately disappears.
Smell is a sumptuous meandering through the Macintosh apples and cinnamon, with a hint of vanilla and maybe nutmeg.
The flavors follow suit with the apples coming through as almost fortified or reduced into a more meaty, rich version of an old ale blended with apple pie filling. Quite tasty.
Mouthfeel is medium and carbonation is very light.
Overall, this is something I'd like available each year. It'd be a great fall release.

4.08/5 rDev 0%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4

Both quite good, and very unique.

 

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