New Beer Weekend #116

The Bakery: Boysenberry Pie

8.1% stout by The Bruery

Poured from a pint can, the body is dark as night. Small initial head with no lacing throughout the tasting.

The nose is a pleasant mix of berry and charred malt. The aroma is almost crème brûlée, dark and sweet. Inviting.

The taste follows nose but the berry flavor is stepped up. Added to the mix is cinnamon and vanilla and they work well with the berry flavor. Definitely a sipper as it skews sweet though not cloying. The ABV is completely masked.

The mouthfeel is good. Carbonation feels right but not strong. Soft finish.

Very enjoyable stout that works on a cool autumn day.

 

New Province Brewing's Escape Pina Colada IPA, 6.3% ABV; 3.56 overall

Pours a hazed gold with a pinky of cream colored head. Some head retention & lacing

S: Pineapple & coconut

T: Coconut, pineapple, a little lime & some dry & grassy notes up front. Lime, dryness & pina colada flavors as this warms. Finishes dry with lime, pineapple & coconut

MF: Medium body, restrained carbonation, okay balance

Delivers the advertised flavors, but just doesn't scream drink another

 

Good Sunday afternoon, New Beer Samplers and commentators. We're in North Carolina for our son's wedding yesterday. We've performed all the required duties and collapsed in our hotel room where we're watching football and I'm drinking some beers. St. Benedict's Breakfast is a Dubbel brewed with coffee and oatmeal by Haw River Harvest Ales in Saxapahaw, NC. It's an imaginative recipe and a very good Dubbel.

It pours a very dark cola color with more than a finger of fluffy, ecru-colored head and thick, creamy lacing. It has a good Dubbel nose with roasted malt, brown bread, plum, fig, and raisin, along with freshly-brewed coffee, caramel, and a whiff of brown sugar. The taste is surprisingly coffee-forward and the coffee taste is burnt and acidic;. It's quite roasty. The plum and raisin are in the background and slightly bitter. As it warms I also notice notes of bakers chocolate and just a hint of oat sweetness. On the whole there is less fruity sweetness than a typical Dubbel. The mouth feel is excellent; it's moderately creamy with a pleasant level of carbonation and the 7.2% ABV provides good substance.

4.09/5 rDev +0.2%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

I only bought two cans and now wish it were an entire pack. Hopefully, it will still be available when we're back in Chapel Hill in January. Cheers, NBW!

 

Congrats @MacMalt that has to be an incredible feeling seeing your kid get married.

 

Day 2, I’m in Fort Worth TX for work a couple of days. How about an Oktoberfest from HopFusion Ale Works, a Fort Worth brewery.

#DrinkLocal



3.72/5 rDev +6.3%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.75
Pours a mostly clear copper color with a soapy light tan head and very little lacing. The nose has some caramel notes and bit of grassy hops.

The caramel is more prominent on the taste and works very with the grassy hop flavors. This is a nice, easy drinker, especially with the very crisp mouthfeel drawing you back for another drink before you’ve finished the one you’re on.

 

Thank you! We get to do it again in January for our daughter. Both our kids live in Chapel Hill - about 10 minutes apart. It's funny how things work out. At yesterday's wedding, all of the groomsmen were high school friends from Morristown. We've known them all since they were boys (Tiger Scouts, soccer, fencing, etc.). In his speech, the best man (who is like our second son) mentioned how when he was of age he could enjoy an IPA from my beer fridge. He's now a successful engineer, married, with a very good beer palate. In fact, they're all into craft beer. LOL!

 

Greetings all from the great northwest where we are celebrating the Mariner's Wildcard Series'win over the Blue Jays. Next weekend there will be playoff baseball in the SEA . Good thing too, because the football this weekend has been bad.

Today we have Haze Tron IIPA from Deschutes.
https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/63/558539/

A drinkable and fruity imperial.

Until next time

GO MARINERS!

 

So many amazing things in this little paragraph...Oh and I wonder if their craft beer interests may have anything to do with a certain, you haha.

 

Saw this at the local bottle shop, an Imperial Stout from a local brewer, a collaboration actually between Roaring Table and Fire Hop Brew Works, Masters of their Fates. Looks and smells great.......



3.61/5 rDev -13.8%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 3.25
Thick, oily almost black pour, small brown head fades quickly, no lacing. This smells awesome, cinnamon, vanilla, cocoa, maybe some molasses, and as awesome as it smells it goes downhill quick. Taste buds get every bit of the above, and it comes out as sickly sweet candy bar. Great texture, smooth, abv well hidden. I'll choke it down.

 

I love reading about your take on these African beers, Tim!

 

Stars aligned indeed!

 

Rob @MacMalt threw that surprise in a box to me after I hit him up about another Oktoberfest bier. She's a gem she is.

 

So this beer is far from new to me but there is a big but...first to my astonishment I have never actually reviewed this beer, second new label since this is the first time it has been brewed since they rebranded their logo, third it is the first time it was brewed in their new production brewery, four they carb naturally now and five they have two new massive lagering tanks. That’s a lot of NEWs…I'll be honest though its lack of clarity makes me think it may have not seen time in those horizontals. I couldn't resist joining you all with one more so maybe I bended the rules just a little...

Tonewood - Dreadnought Dunkel




Dark brown pour, minor hues of red when held to light, slight chill haze but overall decent clarity; light brown head, not much staying power but leaves a nice persistent film.

Nose is mostly toasty grain spiced bread, minor toffee, and some nuttiness.

Taste is a pleasant and balanced combination of dark bread crusts with rye like spice, a toffee that finishes like unsweetened chocolate; some nuttiness.

Mouthfeel is light, pleasant vibrant yet soft and creamy carbonation, nice little spicy hop finish with some toasty bitterness; zero sweetness, super dry and quick clean finish.

That'll be it for me this weekend everyone, I can't wait for next weekend cause I have several beers I want to look for when I go beer shopping. Enjoy your week and be well. Cheers everyone!

 

That braised cabbage sounds amazing. Question: Is that a "metric" half pond of bacon?

 

I don't know...A lot of Canadian snowbirds flock to NM.

 

Congrats on the wedding, Rob.