New Beer Weekend #10

Looks like the last (and only) time I’ve had that beer was 2013. So that’s maybe an indication of how it compares to other options. It’s probably not bad, but in my mind a real fresh hop beer literally tingles on your palate and tastes/feels alive, if that makes any sense. They’re all unique though, and for me the point of fresh hop beers is to feature the given hop variety (if a single hop is used; sometimes it’s a combination) at the very peak of its “ripeness” if you will. Just as you look for cherries, peaches, or corn at their seasonal best, the same applies to hops.

 

Have to agree with @draheim, if you were up here at the right time and drinking this stuff the same week it's released...it's magical.

Awwwww
This post makes me happy and sad
No Zwanze for me this year
Beetroot sounds interesting -- only had one or two other beet beers, and they were not lambics and also weren't terribly enjoyable.

 

Judging by the number and size of the boxes floating around the country in NBW BIF #12, we’re going to see a LOT of beers from that magnificent event in this thread over the next couple of years.

Yes, years.

Here’s one, courtesy of a MASSIVE 2-box hit from @Roy_Hobbs that is simply overwhelming in both magnitude and quality.





4.42/5 rDev +1.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5

Beautiful hazy orange color with a compact soapy white head that provides really nice lacing. Truly gorgeous beer, IMHO. The nose is all dank citrus and tropical aromas, with tangerine most prominent, but plenty of mango and pineapple as well.

The dank fruity flavors are the attention grabbers on the taste, but what hooked me was the sweetness from the malt, which provided a nice balance to the surprising bitterness present in this IPA that straddles the line between old school and NE-style. Exceptionally well done, IMHO.

 

Time for some more Astrolab.



Poured from the can into a Spiegelau IPA glass.

Slightly hazy, and hinting just a little brackish brown, a body that is dull dark lemon yellow with a bright white fine bubbled three finger head. Lots of pill like lacing, and soft retention, with a nice creamy island in the center.

Bold aromatic hop nose. Thick earth but not quite dank. Hits a mix of soft pine and experimental spice like tones. Soft green herbs.. It's hard to put this one in words but is real enjoyable. Some possible hinting sweet caramel as well for balance.

Palate seems a bit more familiar than exotic. Decent backbone of malt, touching honey sweetness a little. Juiced fruit with lots of lemon drop like flavors in the mid palate. Finish faint spice sweet in the aftertaste but not distinct. Slight light caramel sugars as well.

An exotic aroma of an IPA that comes out more like a memorable standard solid brew. Hard to be disappointed either way.

look: 3.75 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4 | 4.05/5

Cheers!

 

#2, more from @Roy_Hobbs. Wow.

4.22/5 rDev +5%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.25



Pours a dark cola brown with a light cola brown head, the first note I get on the nose is fresh rye bread, followed by a nice cocoa note.

The rye bread is also forward on the taste, and the cocoa is an excellent complement to that flavor. The mouthfeel is REALLY dry, which is nice to see with a black lager - that makes this an uber poundable black lager that doesn’t even approach “Cloyingville.”

That’s difficult to do in my experience with the style, and much appreciated.

 

Next new beer for me this weekend is a bottle I got a few years back I think while in NYC. Forgot I had this until I recently found it again. Looks like it has a 5 year expiration date, so this is probably around 4 years old. If I see this beer fresher sometime I might try it again.

Some brewery notes:

"XX Bitter is a very weighty beer, aggressively brewed to be the hoppiest in Belgium. Some more delicate palates are put off right away. Those warriors who accept the challenge, and take time to sort through the barrage of sensory impressions, usually end up loving it. It is first of all remarkably hoppy – and it persists in its hoppiness unto the bitter end – but it does not want for balancing maltiness. In the middle is a “barnyard” Brettanomyces yeast character that is very reminiscent of Orval in its heyday.

You might say this beer is Orval with everything turned up to 11, which is exactly what the brewers were seeking."



This beer pours a cloudy hazy amber gold orange with a creamy white foam head that settles to a ring around the glass with decent retention.

Smells a bit fruity and funky with brettanomyces yeast, subtle leathery barnyard, musty pineapple, apricot, apple, pear, hint of grape, lemony orange citrus, fresh pine, almost minty floral earthy dank herbal hop notes, with some toasty caramelized malts laying underneath.

Tastes hoppy, bitter and refreshing still with age, clean tasting with piney and lightly citrusy hops, mainly fresh pine, moderately bitter sprucey earthy herbal floral resinous hops, lemony citrus, hints of orange peel, grapefruit pith, mild apple, pear, grape, apricot, musty pineapple, hay, peppery spice, subtle leathery brett funk, and just enough toasty bready crackery caramelized malts to make their presence known.

Feels lighter medium bodied, creamy smooth, fairly dry with crisp moderate carbonation.

Overall this is a real nice beer and I'm glad I got around to trying it. I can imagine this being even more bitter and refreshing when fresh, though even after 4 years this is still tasting really clean and refreshing right now. This is actually more bitter and hoppy than I was expecting for a Belgian beer, it lives up to it's name. I can see the comparison to Orval too, only this being a far more bitter and hoppy example, though a little similar with the base beer and brett imo. A real nice beer to try. Cheers all!

 

Good evening, NBW. A little warm here today, almost uncomfortable after the cool and dry days last week. Leaves are changing color rapidly and I am surprised at the brightness given how dry we have been. I do enjoy the change of seasons.

So...a refresher for a warmer day.



Springdale Barrel Room Razz Hubby, a sour brewed with raspberries and hibiscus. Pours with big bubbles, no head, a bit cloudy and some floaty chunky bits. Hmmm... Slightly pinkish.

Smell is underwhelming. Faint raspberry and a floral sweetness that I guess would be hibiscus?

It tastes good. Slightly sweet, slightly sour, a bit of raspberry and a bit of tea character that goes with raspberry. The sour lingers just a bit. Floral aromatics, but light.

Light mouth feel, fairly flat.

Not sure on this one. Pleasant enough tasting, but pretty subdued. Not super sour, not intense in the raspberry flavor. Thinking 3.75-ish.

 

This thread is always a fun part of my weekend since I’ve joined in on the fun. Came across this beer, hasn’t ever seen it before so I knew it was newly stocked. Fresh,not sure, says bottled 20075, so I’m guessing 20 is 2020 and 075 is 75th day but not sure. Anyone? Anyway here we go...



Whether it’s old or not it is still quite tasty. It pours a beautiful clear gold, picture has condensation on glass, it’s crystal clear. Minimal head and no lacing but white thin layer of carbonation lingered the whole glass.

Aroma was a small hint of lemon and then mostly honey and bread. Taste was the same minus the lemon note. Mouthfeel was very pleasant, lively carb but it still managed a nice pleasant smooth drinking sensation. Super drinkable and crisp with a nice dry finish.

Overall I really liked this beer a lot. I usually lean pils instead of Helles but I’m glad I grabbed this one to try.

 

Last one in the @Roy_Hobbs trilogy tonight, Imma need a nap.





4.35/5 rDev +4.8%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

This beer pours like orange juice in my glass, a very hazy orange color with a dense white head. The nose is all about ripe orange and tangerine aromas, a bit dank, and a nice malt aroma.

The taste is led by the citrus flavors (simply delicious) and the sweetness from the malt does indeed make this taste like an orange creamsicle. The mouthfeel is a little creamy and soft, per the NE-style.

This is my first beer from these guys. If this is an example of their prowess as brewers, I need more of their stuff in my beer nerd life, because this beer is excellent.

 

I have those discs! I don't know exactly how it happened, but that Bulgarian Women's Choir managed to have an international hit on their hands for a few years there. Such unique harmonies and vocal timbres. Kate Bush even used them to great effect on her The Sensual World album.

 

New Taxman beer #2
I split this with the lovely Mrs. as I am not a Piña Colada fan

Taxman Brewing Spiced Rum Barrel Piña Collateral: barrel aged imperial golden ale with coconut and pineapple

12oz canned 8/27/20 ( about a month ago) poured into a snifter at fridge temp 9% ABV 13 IBU. The beer pours slightly hazy orange amber in color with off white head. The head recedes to a thin ring single layer of tiny bubbles. No lacing. The aroma is moderate in strength featuring spiced rum, pineapple & coconut. The taste is semisweet tangy pineapple with hints of coconut and rum barrel. Nearly no bitterness, yet not sweet. The mouthfeel is medium bodied with average carbonation and a dry finish. No hint of the ABV in the taste or aroma. Overall, good, if you're into these types of things. I can't say that this beer mimics a Piña Colada, but only because it's not super sweet. All the flavors are there.

The wife can't get past the rum barrel and only lasted two sips. If it were sticky sweet, she might have bought in. She's not a hard liquor drinker unless it's drowned in sugar.

Cheers all!

 

Today I received a killer box from @beertunes as part of our recent NBW BIF. Included were a bunch of those PNW fresh hop beers that were being discussed earlier in the thread. I may get to one of them tonight, but first I just couldn't wait to pop this one open:

Chuckanut Rye Lager

It's so goddamn good! Amber lagers and rye are the perfect marriage to begin with, imo, but on top of that this one is incredibly well constructed and brewed. It's so squeaky clean, allowing that alluring combination of rustic spicy rye, complementary noble hops, and richly fulfilling bread crust malt really shine. The water profile is so soft, the bitterness really pops, finish is so crisp and dry- just a master class in brewing technique. This may have exceeded my expectations and crossed into A+ territory (4.75). Heaven in a glass.

Thanks so much, Terry!

 

I had that the first time the other day and was a little bit blown away. Glad you enjoyed it.

 

Taras Boulba by Brasserie de la Senne comes next. This might be the closer I can think of a 'whale' in my beer universe, as I am a fan of the hoppier/lighter Belgian pale ales in the mold of Extra 4, La Rulles Estivale and...well, little else that I know about.

Sadly this is way too old, as I bought it already past its BB...before the summer, and has been in the fridge since then while I was on vacation. So this is pretty unfair for a beer this hyped and my first by de la Senne, but anyway let´s dive in and see.

4.5% again, poured in a Tom Collins glass for maximizing bitterness (this is my non science-backed theory). The beer was bottled in May, 2019.





The beer looks great with a hazy white golden and lovely meringue-like white head with a nice retention. It looks pretty much like a whiter Extra 4, even almost like a Blanche de Namur. I am in, as a fan of these looks.

The aromas have surely faded but I can still catch a solid 'herb' hoppiness (almost Jever like) and spice over the soft, grainy malts. More expressive floral notes and definitely lemon appear as the beer settles in, with also hints of stone-fruit and even banana. Not really complex, but exactly what I´d be looking for in a beer like this.

Hell yes. It is still wonderfully bitter after more than a year, and the grassy aftertaste in the first sip is actually killing it. The very tasty noble hops definitely bite first and actually carry the beer on top of the softer malts below. Further 'complexities' are seemingly erupting together by the end of the sip (mainly lemon and a subtle fruitiness with just a hint of sweetness). It finishes dry, and the grassy hop and lemon peel keep lingering forever.

Sharp, slightly watery in a silky way, but not that 'thin'.

Overall pretty great without the need of any fireworks, I love it even if well beyond its days. This is the beer you want to drink along with fish and chips, and definitely a favorite 'style' of mine.

I won´t rate it until I get a fresher sample, but well worth the hype imo. Might even try to negotiate a fair price for the remaining ones in the bar´s fridge where I got it.

Now I will catch up with the thread and relax a little bit with an Urquell or something, even if I still have a good one left!

 

This one (fresh or wet hops) should be much easier than drawing the boundary for porter/stout.