New Beer Sunday (Week 718)

Brouwerij de Molen - Rook & Vuur

This is a smoked beer with chili peppers bottled in 2012. I bought it as part of my annual barley wine indulgence fest. The beers I have for this are below (with the current beer in the second group pic).




I've already consumed a good portion of these in the last few weeks. Today, I decided to make a marinade for a flank steak with: half a bottle of Brouwerij de Molen Rook & Vuur, Worcestershire sauce, olive oil, balsamic vinegar, salt, pepper, sugar, garlic, soy sauce, and steak sauce. In other words, a nectar of the Gods. I accidentally spilled a quarter of the marinade on the kitchen floor. Idiot! I'm already an idiot before spilling anything though, since I'm using a super expensive, really old beer I never had before as a marinade. I never said I was smart.




That leaves half the beer for me and NBS. The carbonation is off the charts. Taste is oxidation, some smoked malt, no pepper heat, and the lingering impact of a great stout-ish malt profile. The beer is a great old treat. Wish I had another half a bottle.

 

Excited for two new NBS entries today. The beers are very dissimilar but I'm hoping they're both top-shelf! The first up is a seasonally-apropos brown ale from To Øl called Santas Secret...



This is an 8% imperial coffee brown ale brewed with cinnamon and cardamom. It has an amusing "subtitle" of sorts, as well: Mochaccino Messiah Double Shot. Crazy Danes...

Awesome color to this one; a deep burnished copper/brown hue with some solid clarity to it even when not held up to direct light (as you can see toward the bottom of my glass). Two whole fingers of lace set up with a nice khaki color. Excellent legs and superior lacing here as well. Definitely one of my favorite pours lately... pushes every single button near-perfectly. Top marks!

I've had a somewhat similar beer recently (guess it was probably a couple months ago, actually... time flies!) in Finback's Latte stout, which you can find my review of here. It's a stout with cardamom, coffee and coconut, so there are definitely some comparable elements going on. I recall fearing that the cardamom would take over, but feeling happy to be proved wrong. Not sure why, but I had better expectations here despite having had some cardamom-bombs before. My fears were once again allayed, as this mostly has roasty notes and some bright cinnamon in the nose, though the pungent, anise-like and vaguely-fruity cardamom does punch through at times. The nose here is honestly a bit muted, but could be the fact that I'm getting over a mild cold right now affecting it.

Slightly less body than I want in a strong brown, but the lighter roast coffee and distinct cinnamon-toffee flavor profile is pretty complex and interesting for what it's worth. A bit of woodiness, anise, caramel and light brown malt roastiness to balance. Low carbonation with a slick and tongue-coating aspect. Earthier and somewhat chewier when the whole can is poured into my glass... more tongue-buckling spice, though, as well. Perhaps a bit too much cinnamon when all's said and done. Bitter, almost astringent finish, but still quite drinkable. Definitely doesn't taste like 8% ABV. I'll probably follow this up with a good ol' Bell's Best Brown though, to cleanse the palate while I do laundry and get ready to open my second beer, a newly-distributed hoppy one from Toppling Goliath...



This is just absolutely awesome heavy metal with death metal elements. These guys started as an old-school death metal band on their debut, transitioned to a more experimental form with progressive rock/heavy metal/doom/psychedelic stylings on their sophomore LP, and now have come into their own on this new album. I can't get enough of their addicting sound. If you like the classic solos of 70s rock bands, the proggy synth jamming of the late 70s/early 80s and can deal with harsher vocals... give this a shot. You won't be disappointed!

 

We're getting our first real snow in years. I figure a smoke beer might help warm it up a bit. This is my first visit to the style according to my Beer Advocate profile.

Smoke beer as defined by Beer Advocate:

"When malt is kilned over an open flame, the smoke flavor becomes infused into the beer, leaving a taste that can vary from dense campfire, to slight wisps of smoke. Any style of beer can be smoked; the goal is to reach a balance between the style’s character and the smoky properties. Originating in Germany as Rauchbier, this style is open to interpretation by U.S. craft brewers. Classic base styles include German-style Marzen/Oktoberfest, German-style Bock, German-style Dunkel, Vienna-style Lager and more. Smoke flavors dissipate over time."



Jopen + The Monarchy's Gratzer.

Pours a lighty turbid, foggy orange with a finger of white foam that retains well. Aroma is smoky oak, with toasty, nutty malts behind. It has a very distinct campfire-like smell. Flavor profile is smoky, but less so than the aroma. Smoke is heavy at the start and then receeds and shows off wheat and toasty, nutty, earthy malts behind. Mouth feel is rather still, only forming a light crisp edge at the finish. It has a medium thickness. Overall, big smoky notes, particularly in the aroma, give this beer its identity. It drinks a little robust than the 4% ABV would suggest.

Score: 4 | 4 | 4.25 | 4 | 4 | BA Score: 4.1 | rDev: +16.8%

 

Free Will Chocolate Orange Ralphius

Well, BAs, I was right about the Eagles raising my blood pressure. Let’s see if this 16.6% BBA Russian Imperial Stout helps any.

It pours a rich, dark-chocolate brown with a soupy finger of khaki-colored head. It dissipates to leave a wisp across the top and thin sheets of lacing.

Chocolate, alcohol, ripe orange flesh, and a hint of vanilla from the bourbon all show in the nose.

Big chocolate fudge brownie dominates the taste. There’s also some sweet orange, as well as bourbon with hints of toffee, vanilla and almond. There’s a kiss of tobacco, too. Alcohol burn heats up the finish, mingling with the rich chocolate and light orange.

It’s full bodied and very creamy with modest carbonation.

There’s crazy big chocolate in this one — and not really enough orange to balance against it. It probably didn’t help that I opened this after Bourbon County Midnight Orange, which has an absolute explosion of orange. This is much less polished, but is still very good.

 

New beer #6. Thanks @FlintB !

Blood Orange + Cranberry Nothing but the Funk - Brewery Vivant
American Wild - 6.7% abv
2017 bottle
Score: 4.08 (-0.2% rDev)



Review:
https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/24678/314768/?ba=CanConPhilly#review

Synopsis:
A mild sour. Acidity is near 7, and the sourness is kept in check. I’m enjoying the cranberry flavor, and it feels right to drink this a few days after turkey day. I liked the other Vivant sours better, but this is still very tasty. Thanks again Brian!

 

Going to do something similar with new beer #2 of the day which is Serpent Bite by Orpheus Brewing. BA calls it a Belgium Saison the can calls it a dry hopped sour ale.

Appearance: Straw colored almost hazy yellow or golden

Aroma: Funky citrus, berries maybe? The berries could be leftover from that cranberry beer I just drank...

Taste: Immediate tartness. Alcohol is not well hidden even at this lowish ABV. This is a trend I have noticed from this brewery. There is almost a slight astringent taste but it is mostly tart citrus and other fruit flavor

Mouthfeel: Dry and light with a bit of bite

Overall: This is a drinkable beer but it isn't something I would seek out again although I would drink it for free. I like parts of the flavor but that astringent alcohol underlying everything else really bugs me. I wonder if this is intentional because it has been noticeable in every beer I have drank from this brewery. It bothered me less in an 11% DIPA than a ~6% sour though. I have another new sour from this brewery I might open next to see if the same flavor lurks around. Drinking this I guess the ABV is much higher than it is. I finished that last beer in like 5 minutes this one might take me 20. Not a session beer at all.

3.59/5 rDev -8.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.5

 

Hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving. I will be sitting this one out. My brutal schedule has left me exhausted and with an oncoming cold. I will probably knock back a few but dont have the right mindset for a review. Cheers all!

 

Oh wow...

It's a lager. It was always a lager but the label made it all the way through proofing before we caught the mistake and corrected it to read Lager.

Graphics supplied the wrong bottle graphics to the web guy and he assumed "ale" when entering specs on the website.

Thanks for catching that and sorry for the mistake. It will be fixed tomorrow.

 

Terrapin gamma ray
..semi clear amber color
..medium body with medium carbonation that dissipates quickly
...aroma is honey and banana upfront with malt,floral and spice following
. ...taste is honey covered bananas forward. It's a bit sweet that feels like its honey not malt
...wasn't sure I was going to like it but it was really good. The honeyed banana and spice worked very well togethor

 

Jack your beer looks gorgeous — sounds like you nailed the juicy NEIPA style...I’ve had a ton of luck w the Juicy Bits recipe myself over the past year....it’s my go to and I’ve dialed the grain bill up and down a few times for a range of ABVs. Brewed an all Galaxy version the day after Thanksgiving for my first of the fall brewing season...hit all my numbers but unfortunately I forgot to add the flaked oats. We’ll see if there’s a noticeable difference. Cheers!

 

Happy Sunday NBS players. A pretty nice fall day here on the island. Sunny with temps in the 50's. Sure beat the record cold we had Thursday and the god damn monsoon we had last night. Doing my typical Sunday with mindless football and relaxing. Back to the grind with work tomorrow but I only have three weeks till I hit another and my last week of vacation time.

Once again, I gots a couple of new beers today but we'll see how many I able to get to. One of the beer stores that I frequent just caught some Hair Of The Dog offerings off of ny distro. I had a bottle of Adam yesterday. This is Doggie Claws, a barley wine style ale. The brew checks in at 11.5% abv, and no apparent bottle date but a vintage tag on the label of 2018 and is pegged as a holiday beer. It's also bottle conditioned.

Pours and ugly dirty brown/burgundy color and a fast almost non-existent head. The nose is big and aggressive with booze and candied fruits. The drinking carries right over from the nose. Booze as all hell, it really hit through out the whole sip. A rather clean and smooth flow that finishes nicely bitter and hoppy. The more I consume the more the flavor notes come out. I'm getting big notes of dark candied fruits with raisins, figs, plums and apples. Additional notes of tannin/leather, caramel, brown sugar, black tea, and burnt toast. Full bodied and perhaps a tad hot right now. It has a rather thick feel to it with subtle stick that lingers the flavors well after each sip.

Overall, a very enjoyable beer. This is a big beer that doesn't hold back. Goes perfectly with the cold weather. I'm in the low 4's here players,

 

Many thanks @lordofthewiens for the great start! Hoping everyone enjoyed a relaxing holiday and have plenty of fun things planned for the coming month of December.

First contribution today is an AAL from Alvarado Street, Cherish the Day.

L: Pours bright white golden with 1 finger of low density head with moderate retention and left no lacing.

S: Bright mostly grainy nose, hints of lemon hiding underneath.

T: Follow the nose to a good degree but with much greater citrus/lemon prominence. Finishes with just a hint of astringency, clears palate quickly.

F: Low-medium bodied with moderate carbonation, lively on the tongue and crisp on the finish.

O: Is this one of the best AAL that I've had, absolutely. Was it worth the price tag, absolutely not. I'd happily grab again on draft, but wouldn't ever pay packaged price for this really nice AAL.



BA Score = 4.04, rdev = +3.3%

 

Thanks to @lordofthewiens for another great start to NBS. We had a fantastic Thanksgiving here at home. Both kids were home from college, along with a few of their friends, so the house was lively and many macro lagers were consumed by the youngsters. Great food, great company, good weather, and lots to be thankful for. After a few days full of big stouts, I'm happy to crack open this IPA from Collective Arts:


4.28/5 rDev +3.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25

First, this was a great looking beer and my pic doesn't do it justice. A bright yellow haze in the glass with a thick and long lasting white head. Great retention and lacing. The aroma was a bit muted, but it showed nice pineapple, sweet mango, and melon. The taste was brighter then the nose. Huge white wine, berry, and tropical notes. I've never had gooseberry, but if it tastes anything like this beer, I'll start looking for it. Medium bodied and on the soft side with medium carbonation. Clean finish. Overall, a fantastic beer that really showcases the best of Nelson hops. Cheers!

 

That Eagles-Gaints was hard to watch, but the Eagles finally stepped up! I wasn’t going to open any Bourbon County today, but I found Vanilla at the Total Wine near me so I had to open it.

4.87/5 rDev +5.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

500 ml bottle, dated 9/5/18, poured into a goblet

A- A black with a small mocha head

S- Tons of vanilla, chocolate, bourbon, touch of toffee, some oak.

T- Vanilla isn’t as huge as it is in the nose but still lots of vanilla, chocolate, bourbon, toffee, oak.

M- Smooth, thick, full body.

O- Truly amazing, has everything that makes BCBS great being lifted by great vanilla sweetness.

I am taken back by how good this is, glad I didn’t go Friday for the release, was told the limit was 1/person on Friday but when I asked today they said no limit so I grabbed 3 and I’m incredibly happy I did, cheers!

 

One more new style and beer for me today with this French Biere de Garde.

French Biere de Garde is defined on Beer Advocate as:

"Biere de Garde translates as “beer for keeping.” This style is popping up more and more from US producers. Blonde, amber and brown versions exist. Biere de Garde examples are light amber to chestnut brown or red in color. This style is characterized by a toasted malt aroma and slight malt sweetness. Flavor of alcohol is evident. Often bottle-conditioned, with some yeast character."



Jolly Pumpkin's Oro De Calabaza.

Pours a lightly translucent orange that maintains a slight site obscuring fog to it. Head formation is a finger in height and white in color. Head retention is good. Aroma is spicy and pepper right on the nose. Fleshy citrus, and toasty malts round it out. There is a tinge of sourness, but very minimal. Flavor profile opens with sweet, fleshy citrus and then fades into toasty malts and oak. Finish is lightly bitter with alcohol apparent. Peppery, spicy notes dance throughout the flavor profile. Each quality is kept well in check, with the loudest note coming from the alcohol burn at the finish. Mouth feel is sharp and crisp with a watery-still edge to it. It has a medium-thin consistency. Overall, peppery and spicy with a dose of alcohol at the end. It sips lovely and makes for a very enjoyable glass.

Score: 4.25 | 4.25 | 4.25 | 4 | 4.25 | BA Score: 4.23 | rDev: +2.9%

Personal notes: This may be the first beer I actually finish today. Up next? I'm not entirely sure. I have some NE IPAs I hauled home that are getting older by the day, but likewise, I have a dozen or more new beers I could visit for NBS. Regardless, this is my last new style for the day. It puts me 5 away from completing the list. A trade I'm shipping out Monday should see another 4 of those 5 in my fridge.

Cheers.

 

Revision's Citra City, gifted to me by @TheBrewsky. This was canned on 10.26, so it's just around a month old. This NE-style DIPA clocks in at 8.5% ABV and 42 IBUs. Drinking out of my Revision pint glass.



This beer is brewed with milk sugar, as have been several of Revision's latest releases. I don't get the concept of putting lactose in IPAs (or any beer for that matter), but I attempt to try all new Revision beers, so I will attempt to have an open mind.



The beer pours with a mix of deep yellow and orange and a murky consistency. A semi-aggressive pour produces 1.5 fingers of bright white and frothy head. The cap exhibits an above-average retention, and there is a good amount of lacing remains on the glass.

Smell is basically just a bunch of citrus notes, reminiscent of oranges and grapefruits, with an additional sweet element undoubtedly coming from the milk sugar used in this beer.

Taste follows the nose quite well. It is dominated by the same citrus tones, and milk sugar is apparent as well. There is an additional yeast element to the taste that wasn't apparent on the nose. I'm glad that the milk sugar is hidden quite well here. But then, why use it at all? I say it all the time with regards to these beers, but yet again I catch myself thinking that I'd like the taste a little more without the lactose. There is a bit of a sugary aftertaste.

The feel is spot-on NEIPA. Revision always nails this part, and thankfully there were no surprises here. No alcohol is apparent, which is an excellent thing for an 8+% beer.

Overall, nothing profound here. Owing to Revision's ability to hit all of the proper NEIPA notes, this scores pretty well in all categories. The lactose additions, however, bring Citra City slightly down.

4.5 | 4 | 4.25 | 4.5 | 4.25
Final Rating: 4.23 (rDev: +0.2%)

 

Good afternoon, NBS, time for New English Mild/Bitter Sunday. I say this because I am at Hair of the Dog, and they have a beer called Little Dog that they list with this limited info: “English Mild Ale, toasty and drinkable.” This beer is listed on this site as an English Bitter.



Having limited experience with either, I couldn’t decide which seems better suited. This is mainly a light, clean, dry, and nicely bitter beer. I am not getting what I would call “toasty” from this beer, but there is a nice bready note in the taste of this beer. Some hay and dry cut grass and a little lemon in the nose and you got this simple yet tasty beer.

I am a bit above average on this one, and I didn’t take the time yet to see why others rated it lower. Maybe I will as I try a few samples here.
(Selecting text on my phone nowadays is a pain, but here’s my full review)

 

Good Afternoon NBS folks after 4 trips to Lowe's we finally have the tile to redo the bathroom s it is time for a beer. This one comes courtesy of @LloydDobler via a NBS BIF ninja box. Platform Beer Co. Shake Me Down a Milkshake IPA with lactose and tangerine puree added. I actually did not notice it was 8% until I was about halfway through it since no alcohol can be found. Overall it is pretty tasty and very easy drinking. Thanks Chris!!!




Appearance 4 - pours opaque orange with a nice white head that settles to a thin film. Spotty lacing all around the glass.

Aroma 3.75 - Ripe tangerine, orange peel, light pine, oats, mild vanilla.

Taste 3.75 - Nicely balanced light sweetness with a touch of bitterness. The tangerine is coming through well along with the lactose. Biter citrus peel and grapefruit.

Feel 4 - Medium bodied the lactose adds a level of creaminess, slightly dry finish.

Overall 3.79 - Well done milkshake IPA, not overly sweet.