New Beer Sunday (Week 771)

As I made mention in my post the base malt of Furious is 2-row Golden Promise malt. I have homebrewed with this malt a few times.

Golden Promise is a barley variety and to the best of my knowledge is solely grown in Scotland. You can read more about this barley variety here:

https://beerandbrewing.com/dictionary/COMO4SK5Y5/

Now, malt is a product produced by a Malting Company and the only Malting Company I know of that produces Golden Promise Malt is Simpsons which is an English Company. Since malt is a manufactured product I prefer to associate the area (country) of origin as being where the Malting Company is located.

So, from my perspective Simpsons Golden Promise Malt would be an English malt (produced from barley grown in Scotland).

The above discussion may be more scholastic than would be desired but I figured I would offer it up for consideration.

Cheers!

 

It's a cold rainy ice stormy sort of day in North NJ. It calls for a big beer and this new beer is. Brute Squad Barleywine Ale from Two Ton Brewing in Kenilworth NJ. This ale is 10.2 ABV and is a malt bomb. It pours a dark bronze with a thick brown head. The aroma is all malt (don't know what malts were used). The taste is also malts with caramel and toffee coming forward.The brew is a bit sweet but has a nice hop bitterness also, The mouthfeel is very full. The finish off dry and long lasting, A fine beer for a nasty day
Two Ton is a tiny brewery that very few people outside of North NJ have ever heard of let alone have drank there beer. Every time there I wonder why I don't get there more often. It's only 15 min. away and the beers are always good.

 

Lupulin Fruitsmack Mango Vanilla IPA, 7% ABV. Pours bright orange with a 2+finger foamy white head that left a little foamy lacing. Nose is mango, vanilla, and pine. Taste is mango, slight pine, slightly sweet, slightly bitter. Excellent mouthfeel, overall excellent.

4.09/5 rDev +0.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

 

Pillar of Beasts from FFF, another awesome beer from @FlintB.

4.24/5 rDev 0%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

Pours a murky orange-brown with a quarter inch tan head that left some blotches of lacing. Smells of bourbon, caramel, vanilla and oak. Tastes of salted caramel, bourbon, vanilla, oak, cocoa, molasses and raisins. Syrupy mouth feel, light carbonation, medium bodied, lingering sweet and salty finish.

 

Hey what's going on!?

Hope everyone is well. I returned back to the homestead from the New England area after consuming much turkey and mirth. Had a good time, but with being busy, and trying to do some of the technical difficulties with the new image posting formats online with my smart-phone, I was a bit busy to post all the goodies or figure out how to do so.

I think I got it figured out now, and also a big thanks to @woodychandler for some help. Just in time for hey look a new NBS! I packed up a bucket load of new beers having been in an area I normally don't get to be in, found lots of crazy goodies to pack in my suitcase for check in. 50 pound limit! woo hoo! and that luggage was full I tell ya.

All arrived for some good consumption. So what's new for our hero today?! Let's start with this one right out of the gate.



Poured from the can into a Lawson's tulip/globe glass. Canned October 21st 2019.

Deep classic walnut brown opaque body, nearly black but not quite it seems. Dark tan forming head, but very small, but leaves a good creamy collar when settling.

Aroma is nice and creamy. Sense of churned roasted dark malts with hints of molasses and toasted barley. A small hinting sweetness but comes off more slight vanilla than maple. Very nice and subtle and solid.

Very neat tasting stout. The body is a mix of hinting velvet but also real wine like character. Quite a mix and a lot going on here to digest. First sip seems to be of a fruity almost dark plum wine and sweetness, then a big woody sap bitterness comes crashing in. Good amounts of dark char and hinting carbon as well in the malt department here too. Earthy sensing a bit, almost fresh tilled soil tasting with a finish that is a real almost brandy like warmth. Aftertaste is loaded with lots of angles, sweet cream, dark carob like bitterness, piping light alcohol heat, and a bit of honey sticking sweetness on the lips.

This has to be one of the most interesting maple added beers I've had. It doesn't come off with a lot of maple flavor, but the addition has created some fantastic characters to the other parts of the beer creating flavors and a profile I never would have expected. Very impressive stout.


4.33/5 rDev +3.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5

Cheers!

 

Thanks for the detailed response, Jack. This is where my failed homebrewing "career" catches up to me - of course I've heard of Golden Promise malt, but had zero idea it's grown in Scotland.

*Note to self - bring "A-game" when asking Jack a question.

 

One of my favorites! Nice review.

 

G' afternoon NBS-ers! Been a long time since I stopped in, I figured today is as good as any.
Picked up a Cigar City Mixed 12 Pack the other day, because there isn't one beer in there I would turn down! Bonus was the Space Pope IPA, so let's get into it!



Canned on 11/06/2019
A: Poured into Teku glass. Golden orange body with a bubble white head that dissipated quickly to a slight white rim of small bubbles on the outer edge.

S: Sharp aroma of citrus: grapefruit rind and orange. Some bitter melon and pine.

T/MF: Getting some bitter grapefruit and citrus up front with a juicy hop pine in the middle. That being said there's a nice dryness to this in the finish that makes drinking this one easy.

O: This is a fairly decent offering from CCB, however this one is a little underwhelming, hop-wise, for an IPA. I would like to have seen a little bit more from the hop bill. I would definitely choose the Jai Alai or Guayabera before this one though. It's not a bad beer, I was just expecting more.

Cheers!

 

Fantastic! Love your side x side reviews.

 

Great to see you back!

 

1st and Favorite Beer Reviews to give Thanks for:
Even More Jesus / Evil Twin / 12%
4.34/5 rDev +0.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
Wow! Drop mike.
a) Shards of lace climb the glass over a tan head and a fudge like black body.
s) Chocolate over roasty fire, charcoal, peat, smoke.
t) All the above. Brings complexity, enough bitter to balance the sweet, ABV well enough masked, and grows more complex as it warms. Marred slightly by old fashioned medicine chest?
f) Chunky, medicinal, but not cloying.
o) Needs to be blind tasted vs TenFidy, Rasputin, BourbonBarrel, and the best.
Andrés / Carton / 3.9%
4.16/5 rDev +4.8%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
1st Review. Brewer writes: "Highlander Weiss Sour Ale with charred watermelon & spearmint ABV 3.9%, SRM 3."
a) hazed light golden body, splashes lace after a small foam head, light carbonation.
s) Hard time rising over the yeasty wild body, slightly soapy, to sniff out the watermelon and mint - just a hint.
But a fall, wet garden windowbox is there.
t) Follows smell, and brings flavor strengths, wine like, fall and orchard notes.
f) fizzy by sour, but softly carbonated, wine like.
o) Refreshing and my Victoria always loves these sours so she's a happy companion.
Everyone at brewer raving about these sours ranging from Blossom to VildBits.
Comma/ Carton /6%
4.16/5 rDev +6.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
1st Review in 2014. (Even better 5 years later) Released today (April 2014) at the Carton Brewery. This Saison will be a regular in their line up, at least for the summer. If I make any mistakes in this review, I apologize as I am writing from memory.
I made a trip down to the brewer to try this before a kayak. It was 79 degrees and this beer was a perfect early spring day new beer Sunday.
A: Dark as porter, or old stock ale, and as flavorful as wine. Good head retention and lacing. Surprisingly dark, no, not for a pepper saison with a name as black as "comma".
S: Black pepper upfront, along with belgian yeast and sweet/peppery body. Inviting. Going to be a great food beer.
T: Extremely original, but true to Saison. I've had some good American ones lately, from Ommegang and 1st Amendment and others, and this one is equal or above them and squarely in the Belgian category. Pepper first and last, but balanced by yeast, grain, sweet malt and fruity sweetness. Grassy, complex and wine like. Would gladly have another.
MF: Light. Well carbonated, clearly built for April to Oct.
Overall: This brewer is on a roll with finding originality and blending to the satisfying core, being both first, original and yet true to style in the backdrop. Must try.
Urraca Vendaval Oitava Colina/ 6%
3.93/5 rDev +2.3%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
4th review. enjoyed at Crafty Corner Lisbon - a must stop pub.
Best on tap.
a / slight hazed copper body, white head, some lace.
s / fresh pine, grass, citrus, pineapple.
t / pine dominant, nice bittering to counter the sweet fruit.
f / medium, bitter clean finish.
o / best Lisbon IPA?

 

I have a new Pilsner today, Connecticut Casual from Beard Brewing. I gave it 4s across the board. Still haven't had anything mediocre from these guys.



Poured from a 16oz can dated 11/07/19 into a Pilsner glass.
Frothy white head above a light gold clear body. Bubble propagation is mesmerizing. Head fades to single layer and nice lacing within 3-4 minutes.
Aroma is fresh hay. Taste is crisp and clean with balance, but no sense of slight pepper associated with the style.
Personally, I could use 10% more carbonation, but I'm not complaining. This is a beautiful Pilsner.

 

Second beer of the day, second Dunkelweizen:

Andechs Weissbier Dunkel
IBU: 12
ABV: 5.0%



Aroma is spice, caramel, and ripe banana.

Very tall light tan thick head with an ice cream top from a moderate to gentle pour. Dark brown / cola color, moderately carbed. Head retention is quite long. Keeps the ice cream cone top as it very slowly recedes, leaving some lacing, but not a lot, and most of which slides down back into the head.

Taste is dark malts with the ripe banana and clove-like spice in the foreground. Caramel flavor appears in the middle, mixing well with the banana and spices. Wheat tanginess lingers on the tongue in the finish and aftertaste. No bitterness at all.

Body is moderate to somewhat thick, with only a very slight tingling from the carbonation.

Finish is dry and spicy. Easy drinking, with each swig inviting the next. Excellent, all the right notes, flavorful with a nice balance among the flavors. Highly recommended.


L: 4.0 | S: 4.0 | T: 4.25 | F: 3.75 | O: 4.0 | BA rating of: 4.08

 

Dude!!! Welcome back!!!

 

Central Waters Brewers Reserve Bourbon Barrel Barleywine


Pours a nut brown colored beer with a smaller, mohagony colored head.


On the aromas, old, spicy oak is very well pronounced, blending together with sweet toffee and lighter molasses. This got a glazed caramel sweetness atop, balanced by matured hops and anise.


Has a fuller body, with a velvet mouthfeel, finding almost no need for any carbonation at all. This is a beer, best enjoyed in a slow pace.


Tastes of a pungent barrel integration from the get-go, accompanied by bakers chocolate and subtle earth, feathering the uprising barrel heat perfectly. Turns sweeter and hotter then, with toffee, licorice and caramel malts getting entangled into burned coconut, bitter, matured hops and warming, biting oak. Finishes with a mellow relief, more toffee, bakers chocolate and maintaining Bourbon, lending a long lasting, dry aftertaste to the flavors, balancing the sweetness in this very well.


This aged tremendously well, providing an awesome balance and depth, making this a perfect winter sipper.

 

Clear amber gold color with good white cap and lacing.

Aroma of solid, clean malt with enticing hop high notes of sweet citrus and pine.

Taste of fresh bread and caramel malt with a solid hop punch. Malt has good and flavorful depth with remarkable staying power and hop influence is equally present with further notes of grapefruit, lemon zest and an herbal essence that just underscores hop richness. Good flavors with great complexity and balance.

Full texture with balancing carbonation.

Overall it's a first rate expression.

 

I've never seen it before, let alone had it, so quite believable.

I've had 15+ beers from Plan Bee, and that one , their most basic, everyday beer, is my favorite so far. It is quite a nice treat.

Reminds me that I need to go to the local auto recycling center ( They're not junk yards anymore. ) & get a real tire .

& that one especially. I didn't even get a free lizard out of the deal. []

Today's first new beer is, in short, nothing to get excited about . (I drank it so you don't have to. You're welcome.)
Saranac (FX Matt's) Holidaze Haze . Not horrible, just not a lot to recommend it.
At least it looks nice. See below, with some of the aforementioned stone.
(That's sleet & freezing rain, not snow, so only risked one of the 50c thrift store glasses. When a breeze came through, it actually moved the glass & can. )

Appearance: As you can see above , fairly inviting. Good color, with nice head & lacing.
Smell : Mixed citrus, Douglas Fir (slightly fruity, & pine-ish but not pine) , chamomile, wet grass, bread dough. Sounds good on (virtual) paper,but something(s) is missing/off. Except for the brief flashes of tangerine, all of the aromas seem of old, dried versions of the good things I've come to expect with IPAs .
Taste : Orange rind, dried pine, grass (as in 2 day-old straw) , with moderate bitterness that gains momentum, & tends to obscure everything else towards the finish. Pretty simple, and somewhat subdued.
Feel : Medium, with fine, moderate carbonation tingle, that builds slightly, towards the drying finish.
Overall : Not horrible, just not that good. It's just there. I want it to say "Drink me!", but it just doesn't happen.
Their 100 Series IPA (hop harvest session IPA) was pretty good when fresh , especially for the price, so gave this one a try.Nope! Better luck next time.
It might be a good mixer for overly sweet IPAs. Or to revive the latter part of a growler/crowler that has gone flat(ish), if the IPA/APA/Saison has compatible, but stronger flavor.
*shrug*
3.57/5 rDev +1.4%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.5
https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/99/447344/?ba=mikeinportc#review

More of the stone. Still about a recycle bin-ful short on the #2 Crushed.
(& no, I didn't plant that stuff that's too close to the house. It was there. )

(Door?What door ?What paint? That's on the to-do list, now that I won't fall on my @$$.)
That stone box/wall/thing encases a crumbling concrete pad. [With a good step, in the wrong direction, to nowhere ] (WTF? It was just poured in 1940. SAD! Nothing lasts anymore. )

That was an eroded clay slope, that left a slick film at the bottom of the steps I actually use, every time it rained.I remember a coach saying "A loose groin is a happy groin!", but I don't think it's supposed to get that loose.
Seems to have solved that issue .

.