New Beer Sunday (Week 771)

Two new IPAs to share with you all today, NBSers! Hunkering down at home because we're supposed to get clobbered by snow today/tonight/tomorrow. Yikes.

First up is Strata, a new Rising Tide IPA featuring the hops of its namesake. This is one of those new-school varietal that's supposed to be very dank yet tropical as well. One site claims it smells like “passion fruit meets pot,” so I guess I'll keep that in mind while I sip on this one.



Very hazy pour, but it's not actually opaque if held to light. I can see the silhouettes of my fingers through the murk, naturally, and the color has kind of a peach/apricot hue to it as opposed to the straight orange/pineapple juice a lot of NEIPAs have these days. Tight and well-developed head of bone-white measuring about three fingers at its highest point. Very fluffy and consistent. Legs and lace are indistinguishable from one another... this looks great!

The nose is, well... passion fruit meets pot! Nailed it. Seriously, it's insane how well that describes what's going on here. Dank grassiness/greenness melding with tropical fruit including dragonfruit, passion fruit, and lychee. Super soft and subtle smelling, but somehow also raw and hoppy. It's probably just that the fruit notes themselves aren't "aggressive," I suppose. No catty guava or intense mango in here, for example. Smells clean... a little bit of fruit gum esters and melon as well. Yum.

Juicy tropical fruit and bright dankness hit the palate upon my first sip. Dry and quenching with complex esters and light notes of melon and white grape skin... Rising Tide really did well by this hop varietal! This has got to be one of the best expressions of a single hop I've had recently. It lines up so well with everything I've read about Strata. Crazy drinkable stuff. Light and airy carbonation with a semi-chewy feel upfront that leads to a zippy finish. I would love to drink more of this any time!

 

Pours near pitch black with a few finger dark brown head that leaves little if any lace and settles very quick. 4.25

Smell is cinnamon, orange peel, vanilla bean, coffee grounds, and charred bourbon pretty darn intense. 4.25

Taste follows cinnamon, orange, oaked vanilla, expresso, and a massive jab of booze in the dry lingering finish. 4.25

Mouthfeel is big and slightly syrupy, dry, very moderate carbonation, and at 13.5% ABV a dipper and may drink even bigger. 4

Overall this is really nice, will save my other bottle for a year or two down the road. Price tag is very hard to justify, but still a very complex treat. 4

 

Happy New Oliver Beers Sunday (Week 771), CANtinued!
This is working out nicely, thus far. If you look at my feed, you will notice that there is a method to the madness, in this case (& usually) going from lowest ABV in ascending order.

This does not always work out, but from an N2 Coffee Stout to a Belgian Wit was a stroke of luck. The bitterness of the coffee segued nicely into the spiciness of what I characterized as a liquefied Christmas cookie:
https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/46063/284564/?ba=woodychandler#review

Next, I enlisted the aid of The Healer:
https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/46063/301724/?ba=woodychandler#review

& I'd like to take this CANportunity to welcome @Smakawhat to the madness on CANother site! I just got a Friend request from our hero.

I then needed to take CANother time-out to take, resize & submit a pic for approval before I could move on to:
https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/46063/442987/?ba=woodychandler#review

The next one is a bit of an oddball, so I am going to take a break & then I'll return with more ... stuff!

 

Good Sunday afternoon, New Beer Sippers and commentators. I hope everyone has enjoyed the long holiday weekend. After a nice couple of days the weather is just nasty today. Lots of freezing rain and sleet. We're expecting 3-6 inches of snow tomorrow. I'm glad our son left early yesterday to return to North Carolina; today would have made for horrific traveling.

18th Street Brewery of Hammond, Indiana recently started distributing to New Jersey. I've received several of its beers in BIF boxes, including the coffee version of Hunter which I thought was quite good. This variant is the Double Milk Stout brewed with lactose, sugar, and cocoa nibs. I couldn't fine a date on the can. Maybe it's passed its prime or maybe it didn't travel well but I just wasn't impressed. It was more acidic than I anticipated and the cocoa and caramel, while vaguely present, didn't shine. I'll give it the benefit of doubt since I have enjoyed other beers from this brewer. Here's my full review:

3.97/5 rDev -5.7%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4

No evident canning date. Poured into a stout glass. It pours an inky black with dark walnut hues, and a large, frothy, light-mocha colored head that dissipated slowly leaving a thin film of lacing. The smell was a bit subdued: just roasted malt, nuts, and a whiff of cocoa and caramel/toffee. While there is initial sweet milk chocolate in the taste, it is balanced by slightly bitter, acidity, nutty char. As the glass warms there are caramel and vanilla notes but they fail to overcome the increasing bitterness. For a Milk Stout it boasts a fairly creamy, viscous feel with a very low level of carbonation, and the 8% ABV gives it good substance. Overall, I'm somewhat disappointed. I enjoyed the coffee variant considerably more. I cannot tell the age of the can but 18th Street Brewery only recently began to distribute in New Jersey so it shouldn't be too old.

I like finishing NBS on a better note so I'll be back soon with a different style. Cheers, NBS!

 

The New England madness continues...



Poured from the can into a Spiegelau IPA glass. Canned Nov 11th 2019.

Thick out of the can, and a turbid swamp water looking brown yellow color right out of the gate. Screaming NEIPA like it was nobody's business. Head is a very fine soapy off white kind of vanilla yellow color, accenting the glass with light bubbled lacing as well, and a fleeting head with minimal retentive power.

Aroma is like a giant pina colada. Ripping tropical pineapple hops off the nose, with a sweet earthy dankness like a smokey call. Hints of sweet leaf mellow craziness as well. Very grand and enjoyable.

Palate is just a ripping pleasure. Juiced up rich malt backbone, with a thick mellow sweetness to showcase the entire beer. Ripping amounts of tropical pineapple and earth flavors but without the box juice or incredible sugary rush. Filthy rich smoking herbal aftertastes that bring a little tickle of bitterness, and then mellow mint and sage sweetness that slowly builds on each swallow.

Bold, in control, pure raw hop power and thick controlled juice. A NEIPA I can go full throttle and get on board with.

4.46/5 rDev +2.3%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Cheers!

 

I really enjoyed that one as well Evan. I didn’t get a lot of salt, but there was a TON of caramel in mine. Good stuff, cheers!

 

God afternoon and happy New Blend Sunday, BAs. Hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving. As far as Black Friday, it's not for me. I did however stumble across a lunch experience at Breakside Brewing that provided me with a handful of cellar pulls at a discounted price, so I guess it has its benefits! Had a little snow flurry this morning after some unusually sunny seasonal weather, so I guess the PNW is finally ready to move into winter. But before my portfolio of beers goes to the dark side, I think I can have another couple lighter offerings. Time for one now.

Kent Falls / Arizona Wilderness-
Brett Lager Aged in Wine Barrels





A lager combining two regions malted grain, transferred into red wine casks with two regions mixed culture yeast? Color me intrigued.

Simply put, it pours as a beautiful looking Pilsner. A polished brass color that shows a slight lack of clarity, white soap sudsy foam frothing above, retaining well before leaving a burn around the perimeter of the glass and spotty trickles of lace.

The aroma acts as the perfect salesman to what the label indicates. Elements of the transformation are apparent individually with biscuit, honey and grass representing the Pilsner, oak and light tannins showcasing the wine barrels, and a hint of farmhouse funk, hay, and a little white pepper tying it all together with the wild yeasts.

Flavors are well supported by the implications of the nose. The Pilsner itself is somewhat lost, but the grassy finish defends its presence. In the foreground, the slightly tart and funky attributes of the mixed cultures reign supreme over the delicate oak and even less prominent red wine.

I think I'll use that word again. Delicate. This beer feels exactly that. Soft and gentle, crisp, light, and even a bit bubbly. The lightest amount of tartness, sweetness, and bitterness imaginable working together towards perfect balance. A superbly dry finish demands sip after sip, and in an instant, this bottle is nearly gone.

What a frustrating experience to have such a wonderful beer, and only one crack at it. This is the type of beer I could drink by the truck load. Full of, again, "delicate" and delicious flavors wrapped up in a ridiculously easy to drink overall approach. A true table beer of sorts. Find me a beer like this at a reasonable price in a 12 pack format, and I'll give up on all other "sessionable" styles.

After my official review, I gave this collaboration a rating of 4.4. Kind of hard to believe I was the first to review this beer as I'm nowhere near Connecticut or Arizona . Cheers!

 

It always pains me a tiny bit to see something like a bourbon barrel aged salted caramel barley wine with vanilla and cocoa nibs get classified as a “British” barley wine on BeerAdvocate. I get why it is the way it is though. Put some extra hops and it suddenly becomes an “American” style. (I’m glad you picked this beer for today though - Cheers.)

 

Alright, here's my second and final entry for today. The Snowpocalypse is beginning and I am sad. This should keep me warm, though, at least...



Strikkly Vikkly by Four Quarters is an 8% NEDIPA brewed with Vic Secret hops. This beer is dedicated to/named after Victor Rice, an "underrated dub producer," according to the guys/gals at 4Q. I'll have to check his stuff out; dub techno has been a big favorite of late, and I've even been producing my own. Not sure how close his dub stuff is to techno (it can be pretty different, FWIW), but whatever. Worth listening to and trying anyway!

This pours a milky-looking yellowish color. Very pale and almost sickly-looking Someone get this beer some fluids, stat! I kid, I kid. Thin but retentive head that leaves behind some streaky lace. Moderate legs and semi-hazy surface. Opaque as hell. You know the drill by now. Fine but not great.

Vic Secret is absolutely in my top 5 hops at this particular moment in time, and I'm happy with what 4Q has done with them here, overall. The nose is sugar cookie, pine resin, dankness, guava juice, and lychee with some light gooseberry and pungent spice notes. Not much of the typical passion fruit I expect from VS, but I just had potentially the most passion fruit-forward beer not actually made with fruit that I've ever had with that Strata IPA above, so... oh well. This probably isn't DDH because it doesn't quite jump out of the glass, but it's still decently hop-saturated.

Hugely bitter punch right upfront here; yow! Incredibly hefty dankness wallops the palate immediately, following up with strong flavors of guava and red berry. Almost has a slight Mosaic bent to it, in my opinion. Strict and dry finish with moderate baking spice notes and a light dank/earthy aspect. I stand by my "sugar cookie" claim from the scent of this beer, by the way. This definitely has a very "sweet" yet bready/biscuity malt backbone that melds well with the multifarious fruit elements on display here. Still finishes quite dry, as I mentioned, but that early phase of each sip pulls in a lot of directions. This might not smell super-intense, but the flavor profile is certainly nothing to sneeze at.

Alright, time to pause the death metal for a bit and check out Victor Rice. Have a great night, NBSers! Hope the snow cleanup in your area isn't too bad... keep me and my soon-to-be-buried car in your thoughts!

Edit: OK yeah apparently this guy is kinda dub-famous. I don't know much about reggae or dub, to be honest, but I do love myself some dark dub techno. Listening to some of his stuff, and I'm not into it really because it's not quite my thing, but I can appreciate it. And I feel like the past few times I've been at 4Q, they've been jamming this kinda thing. It's very chill, brewery-friendly music. Cool! Learn something new everyday.

 

A new brewery opened in Houston a few weeks ago, called New Magnolia.

Currently about 7 beers on tap. Some the standard brewpub fair, but with stuff like a Grodziskie thrown in for good measure. I have tried the Grodziskie before they opened and though it was just light Hefe flavors up front, then dropped off to BBQ smoke. I need to have a full pour to make a better opinion, but these are what I had today:

First up their "Heffeweiss" at 4% ABV:


Pours a light cloudy pale yellow color. A small white head forms and recedes in a second. Not much lace is left behind. lots of banana and clove up front, but that fades quickly and leaves a cooked corn and sulfur character...maybe some DMS there? A light body with crisp carbonation, and just OK to drink. Can't say this is particularly impressive. Especially after having a Live Oak Hefe just before.

Second, is their "88 Pils" at 4.9% ABV


Pours a clear golden/yellow color. Lots of bubbles rising to the top. Though a very small white cap forms with no retention and very little lace. Nose up front is butter...yep diacetyl. With some spicy/grassy hops in the finish. Taste is similar, with that butter flavor up front and citrus/grassy/European hop bitterness in the finish. A light body that is very effervescent. Yeah, that diacetyl character is too much for me.

Last one, is the Luscher's Brother Brown Porter. At 4.6% ABV.



Pours a dark brown with red highlights around the edges. A beige head rises to over two fingers with some lace. The only one so far to have some "legs" as it were. Aroma is cereal grains and toasted malts. Cracker like as well. At first, the taste is the same, but more roasted malts and chocolate come out. With a sweetness that helps round things out better. Again, a light body and crisp carbonation. Though smoother than the others, as it should be. This is OK to drink. That reminds me a bit of Holler's Pub Crusher, which is one of my favorite beers in the Houston area, except that it is sub 4% and a dark mild which has a much more expressive malt character.


Overall brewery impression:
I will add my "official" reviews here when I get a chance. I'll probably wait till I have a chance to try them a few more times. While they do low ABV and subtle styles that I just love, their execution isn't the best right now. With what I feel are some flaws. The Brown Porter is probably the best, but also the easiest to hide flaws. If they could pull these styles off better, they might be one of my favorites in the Houston area, but haven't so far. I'll certainly give them a few more tries to find out.

 

My 2nd NB today was brought here by a thoughtful Thanksgiving Day guest. Unfortunatly I will tell you in advance I ended up drain pouring it after 1/3. I have too many good beers in my house to suffer through 16 oz of this.
Stoneface DDH IPA.


3.37/5 rDev -18%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.25

Poured from a 16oz can dated 08/27/19 to a nonic.
Nice golden hazy body below a pillowy head that laces nicely.
Aroma is mild peach.
Taste is off putting. Can't quite put my finger on the off taste- Mild medicinal, some cardboard, finish is similar to the worst part of orange pith.
Mouthfeel is appropriate.
I am going to attribute the issues to the age of this can. Maybe I will get to try a fresher one.

 

I sell to retailers, Black Friday is very, very, VERY Important to me and my retailers.

My new beer is Daily Serving from Trillium

4.58/5 rDev -3.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5

canned 11.21.19, opened 11.27.19

poured into a chalice, pencil thin pink rose foam layer quickly recedes to a ring with islands , ruby red hazy liquid , a few lacings

aroma is tart raspaberries, sour cherries

taste is tart raspberry jam, full of raspberries, acidic tartness is not over bearing, refreshingly tart

full mouthfeel, subtle fizziness that quickly settles , tart raspberry taste gently lingers

not sweet like a lindens raspberry lambic. much better than the berliner weisses served in berlin with syrup. repeatable.

great beer

 

Good evening everyone. Currently waiting on the first real snowstorm of the year and I couldn't be less excited for it.

Anyway, trying out a new beer today. It's:

Brouwerij Omer Vander Ghinste - Oud Bruin

Do you know how hard it was just to find this beer on the internet? Apparently it has like 38 different labels and goes by 67 different names. After 4 hours of research and contacting no less than three different Harvard professors, I was able to discern that it was in fact the "Oud Bruin". Anyway this is a 2016 vintage so that might have something to do with it.

(Please forgive the lighting in this photo, I usually drink beer in the dark, naked)


Pours a deep reddish brown color with a finger of creamy tan head. The head leaves a ton of lacing before settling into a thick blanket. Other than looking like bloody diarrhea, it's a good looking beer. Beautiful head on this one.

The aroma brings notes of cherries and apple cider vinegar, with softer notes of caramel, fig, and plum not far behind.

The flavor starts off with sweet cherries and grapes, and is followed by some tart Granny Smith apples and a lingering vinegar acidity. There's some caramel and vanilla as well as figs and brown bread on the back. A lot going on here. It's like a child spilled grape juice in the backseat of my car after eating fig newtons.

The feel is medium bodied with modest carbonation. Very smooth and dry on the finish. The tart flavors linger before bready aftertaste.

Overall, this is a great Flanders ale that is wonderfully balanced by sweet and tart flavors, as well as an ever-present caramel malt backbone.



Admittedly I am NOT familiar with this style of beer so I can't really judge it by style. But I did enjoy it and would probably drink it again.

 

Ok, I am officially getting bummed out with whatever variant of a cold that I have. I don't even want to look at beer, much less drink one. Bouncing back and forth between feeling good and violent coughing. Doc says lungs are clear and it is just a head cold, take a cheap decongestant. Yeah that's fine, but its going on a month?

So now it gets better...freakin' snow has started much earlier here than predicted.

I will be back with new beers eventually...

 

Sorry to hear that, I hope you get better soon!

 

Hang in there. Drink lots of good water. Drink/ consume citrus. Hope your're better soon. Wishing you the best.

 

NBS #2. Dogfish Head's Suddenly Comfy, an 8% American Cream Ale. Maybe I'm overreacting to my previous beer but this is outstanding! At its base is a typical American Cream Ale; mild corn sweetness, etc. but it features lots of cinnamon and allspice, along with apple and tart citrus. The mouth feel is lively and its 8% ABV gives it good substance. I'm glad I was able to try this on Thanksgiving weekend. I'll look for it next year. Here's my review:

4.24/5 rDev +4.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

Bottled on 9/10/2019 and poured into a pint glass. It pours a slightly hazy, honey-amber color with a half finger of creamy, milk-white head and and sheen of lacing. The smell is unusual for a Cream Ale insofar as it features fresh citrus , cinnamon, and other spices along with the expected grains. It's a pleasing nose. The taste follows the nose - with great results. It has the backbone of a Cream Ale with creamy, vanilla and corn sweetness. But the spicing really sets it apart. There are big notes of cinnamon and allspice, along with lots of fresh fruit, including apple and lemon. The flavors blend exceptionally well. It's lite and crisp with lively carbonation, and at 8% ABV it's much bigger than a typical Cream Ale. Overall, I enjoyed it very much. It's a unique interpretation of a classic style that its well-crafted. It's an appropriate beer to quaff at Thanksgiving.

 

I thought it tasted like liquid apple pie.
Loved it and your review

 

That's interesting. I wonder if it was the same batch? Also, the second pour was less salty and had more caramel. I thought it was my palate adjusting.