New Beer Weekend #145

#2, I need a hop break.

Yep, I typed that.

Plus, I’ve had this beer more than a minute, and the brewery is one of my ATF’s, so let’s dance Parabolita style.



4.25/5 rDev +1.7%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
Pours a dark cola brown and settles in the glass black with a voluminous, sudsy tan head that does lace the glass a bit. The nose is led by rich cocoa, some char, and a bit of oak courtesy of the barrel.

The taste has that rich cocoa flavor up front, with some caramel as well and a smidge of oak from the barrel, with the roasty char at the back of the palate. No sign of the sea salt on my palate.

The mouthfeel is full but a bit softer than expected. This is packed with flavor and WAAAY too easy to drink given the 9.2% ABV. Firestone Walker always executes at a high level, and this beer is no exception.

 

Yes. There's a penalty of Double Secret Probation. He should re-read the rules and the Honor Code. That shit's heavy, man........

 

Here's a new-to-me from our friends over the border in Quebec.

https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/1141/58998/



11.5 ounce bottle packaged 2022-11-22 @ 10.2% abv.

Moderate pour yields a 1.5 inch white fluffy head over a golden body with sticky lacing.

Nose of citrus, melon, and an earthy floral aroma with spice present as well.

Taste of citrus and spice upfront with a sweetness of melon in the middle and finishing just a bit dry with spice. This is quite complex in the best way.

Feel is real nice and full with excellent carbonation.

Overall, here's another gem from Brasserie Dieu du Ciel! and would highly recommend this Tripel.
Cheers!

 

Rough day, man. Hope things improve for her and for you.

 

Sending our best to your family
Cheers

 

Thank you much appreciated. I realize "death is a part of life" but I'm tired of sitting in hospitals waiting for people to die. Did it with my brother, Mom and Dad. It never gets easier. TY

 

EDIT:
@tasterschoice62 , I am really sorry to hear about your mother-in law. You and your loved ones are in my thoughts.

All right, I am done with work, and ready with a new beer.

Bait Bucket - Bock - Bobbing Bobber Brewing - Hutchinson, MN - 7.4% ABV

It's not a bad beer, but it does seem to be lacking in the flavor department to me. Somewhat bland. Not much else to say beyond my review:

https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/52949/652718/

3.32/5 rDev 0%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.25
Poured from a 750ml crawler filled at the brewery on 4-29-2023 - consumed on 4-30-2023
This is a dark brown pouring beer, however, when held up to the light, it's a deep dark amber color. This beer is fairly clear looking, and I see carbonation bubbles rising in the glass. The head comes to 1 finger and is tan colored. The bubbles are fairly small looking. The head retention is so-so, but not a big deal. No lacing on the glass.
The aroma some dark fruit in it. I get some plum, and raisin with some cherry. I also get some malts shining through. Aromas aren't too strong.
Taste - is fairly light. It is malty up front, with some biscuit flavor. The back I get some raisin and plum, but mostly cherry.
The body, while not watery, does seem light for a beer in the 7% range.
Ok, but this is nothing special. Somewhat of a let down to be honest.


I'll see if I can upgrade after finishing off this beer.

 

Kiitos - Chilled IPA, via trade with @NorsemanOne

12oz can served in a tulip. Can doesn't appear to be dated.

Pours clear light golden with a biggish almost two-finger head, lots of active carbonation. Smell is lemon, hop resin, and cut vegetation. Something about it reminds me of the smell I get from some session IPAs.

Taste is pretty far in the direction of hop tea. Kind of watery, lots of lemon, some hop resin, not a ton on the malt side to balance it out.

Mouthfeel is fairly light, kind of resinous. Overall...it's not impressive, but it's definitely enjoyable and sessionable, especially on a hot day.

 

Good Sunday evening. Hoping without much factual basis to support it that the Bruins can keep themselves in the playoffs. What a time to be playing really bad hockey.

This is the penultimate beer from the Extreme Stout box for me:


Dog Fish Head Wake Up World Wide Stout. If you want the skip-to-the-end Cliff Notes version, it's yummy.

Looks black in the glass, but pouring out it is a chocolate brown color. I got a pretty decent head on an aggressive pour, but it didn't last long. It falls and leaves some foam at the edge that hangs in pretty well.

The smell is actually quite stoutish - I get a fairly strong presence of roasted malt, a touch of smokiness, mild char. There is a nice bit of maple in the background and a decent amount of milk chocolate. There's also a very good coffee smell. Nice.

The taste opens with chocolate for me, then the stout bits come to play with the malts coming on nicely. A tiny bit of smokey char. Coffee jumps in mid-taste, and it's a creamy coffee so maybe that is where the oatmilk comes into the equation. It's actually a little sweet overall with a minimal bitterness. The maple is low intensity, but rounds the edges off a bit. Late in the aftertaste there's a mild spicy hit that might be cinnamon. The overall effect is incredibly smooth.

It's thick and rich and decadent, but not syrupy. A little stickiness which I'll attribute to the maple syrup. Dry finish, significant alcohol warmth but not particularly hot or boozy. There's an espresso-like bitter after a few repeat sips.

Straight up good stuff right here - plenty of Stout character, but the extras aren't shy, either. Super-smooth and nicely integrated. Somewhere between 4.3 and 4.5 here.

 

Good evening NBW
I've been working a bunch and not able to contribute here, despite plenty of beer in the fridge. Saw this at Meijer yesterday and couldn't pass it up.

Brewdog Bushwood Beer

12oz canned on 03/29/23 poured into a vintage bow tie glass at fridge temp 5.0% ABV. The beer pours very bright, very light straw yellow with nearly white head. The head recedes to a thin ring and single layer of bubbles. The aroma is mild with lemon prominent over grass and pale malt. The taste is more of the same with light pils malt and plenty of lemony, herbal, grassy hops and moderate bitterness. The mouthfeel is thin bodied with average carbonation and a mostly dry finish. Mostly clean lagering. Overall, ok.

Cheers all!

 

House lager lime by treehouse




3.29/5 rDev 0%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Brewers notes: House Lager Lime is an American Light Lager made entirely with flaked corn and malt from our friends at Thrall Family Malt in north-central Connecticut. In a sea of beers that invite innovation and genre-bending experimentation, House boldly holds to tradition. A brewer’s beer indeed, House Lager Lime brings a bright and zippy twist to this classic style. Rather than source a flavoring adjunct, we collaborated with Tree House Distillery to utilize a freshly made batch of lime extract. We think you’ll be able to tell the difference. House Lager Lime reminds us that using simple, expressive ingredients can translate into world-class beverages. Light, characterful, & easy to drink, House Lager Lime carries notes of grain, sweet corn, and bursts of thirst quenching citrus. Enjoy!

Can dates spring 2023, “with lime” printed on the can, poured into a pokal, fluffy two finger white foam over a clear yellow liquid with active carbonation streams

Aroma is limey, grains

Taste is lime , bud light-ish

Light, fizzy, would be a good beer on a hot humid day after cutting the lawn with a push mower

I’ll order a lawn service, this is a one and done for me

 

Welcome to Sunday night; the rain is coming down, the lights are low, candle is burning, hockey is on and I have poured a beer fit for tonight that @snaotheus sent me, always wanted to try and never sought out...I'm not a fan of big beers but I love a well made straightforward stout every once in a while. I'm really excited for this beer and fits perfect to end a cold dreary weekend, I'll sip this as darkness falls on this Sunday night...

Fremont - Dark Star (Oatmeal Stout 8%)



Pours black, pouring gives the impression of a more viscous beer; a huge montrous dense and creamy light brown head forms, stays for a while and then settles to a thick silky smooth uniform layer; plenty of lacing.

Nose has some licorice/anise; some char, coffee breath, a rich and deep decadent chocolate, like a rich darker milk chocolate…feel like I’m picking up some hops too, they add a refreshing hit to this beer.

Taste is big on bitter dark things; dark chocolate, espresso, licorice; hops are more evident than on the nose; though present more in feel…something present reminds me of graham crackers…deliciously rich and so balanced.

Smooth and silky beer, carbonation is appropriately restrained and creamy nitro like in feel; roasty burnt bitterness on the finish, goes down so easy, no hint of abv at all…the oatmeal is very evident and adds to the great feel of this beer.

Yup…this is the exact beer I was hoping it would be, I’d have this on hand as my stout fix instead of Old Rasputin if this was around here, great beer. Thank you for sending me a beer from your fridge, I love it.

————————-

@tasterschoice62 I’m sorry to hear that, hopefully a few sips and writing your thoughts for us took your mind off it, even if for just a few seconds…

————————-

Have a great week and cheers everyone.

 

Greetings, New Beer Weekend people. This is not my first new beer of the weekend. That honor goes to Deja Vu Double IPA from VIA Beer here in Portland, OR. I drank that one last night after watching my LA Kings get bumped out of the NHL Playoffs by the admittedly much better Edmonton Oilers. Let's just say I was not in any shape to write a review.

But today is another day. The weather is cloudy but dry and mild, so I was happy to get out and put some miles on the bike and a New Beer in mah belleh.



Gigantic Darcelle Blonde IPA
Enjoyed on tap at the Beaverton location of John's Marketplace. This beer was brewed to honor Darcelle XV, a Portland icon who recently passed away and held the Guinness record for being the World's Oldest Performing Drag Queen’.

Look:
The beer has a slightly translucent body of deep orange-gold, capped with a thin skin of white foam on the surface and a stubborn ring at the edge. Not much retention, but it leaves some nice lacing.

Smell:
Starts off kind of worty, with a raw malt sweetness and tea-like hop character. Notes of toasted wheat bread, peach preserves, and weed start to come through as the beer warms.

Taste:
A moderate malt sweetness leads into a grainy middle with interesting notes of rye bread and sweet tea, along with tangy hints of raspberries and peaches. There's also a delicate herbal undercurrent: oregano, tarragon, and weed. The finish is semi-sweet with some lingering, resiny bitterness, toasty malt, and peaches.

Feel:
Medium-bodied with moderate carbonation and slight astringency.

Overall:
A good beer, though it's a touch sweeter than I like and I don't think the flavors quite fit together. Not quite my thing, but I'm glad I tried it.

 

Good choice for an under-the-radar want, dude. That beer is so good, and gets so little attention (except from @Oh_Dark_Star, who seems to have gone dark).

 

Yeah I can see that. 3 bucks was definitely
The ceiling on what I’d pay for it BUT I’d much rather just buy aventinus for a similar but far superior experience. Glad to have tried it but I can imagine some bottles aren’t in good shape depending by on how they were stored over time. I actually dug into some counterweight headway IPAs I had instead, will come back round to it later haha.

No, at maximum beverage something or other. Over in weha. Right near the Bloomfield line. I had never been there before. I remember seeing a bunch of birrifico at amity but still at full price last I was that side.

 

It is a beautiful beer in every sense of the word

 

TY.

 

Here's a Jester King offering I've neglected for too long.


https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/24018/228467/



Batch #2
February 2022.
750 ml. bottle.

Gentle to moderate pour yields a nearly two inch white head over a golden amber body with lacing.

Nose of honey at the outset; then citrus, spice (coriander, black pepper), and slight funk.

Taste follows nose very closely with honey sweetness giving way to a bit of black pepper and coriander. Very complex as each sip brings a slight lessening of sweetness and a slight increase in spice. Tasty!

Mouthfeel is very Jester King-ish and spot-on.

Overall, I'm glad we could get this in Vermont and would recommend this to all the JK fans out there!!

Cheers!!!

 

Received from @NorsemanOne during NBW BIF #17.
Poured looking all the world like grapefruit juice without the pith. Oh, and grapefruit juice generally doesn’t have a 1 finger beige head.
Aroma lost on my Covid affected nose.
The taste is primarily wheat ale with a grapefruit accent. It’s noticeable but in no way overpowering. Nice actually.
The feel is softer than I expected, but certainly not unpleasant, just not what I expected.
OA, a tasty wheat ale that I could quaff quite a few of in short order.
Thanks Jonathan!

 

Second Street - Dubstep Donuts

Right alongside @sulldaddy, this is my first beer with sprinkles as a decoration.

500ml bottle, capped, with silver wax and sprinkles. Served in a Waterford crystal snifter because a beer with wax and sprinkles deserves the fanciest glass available. Don’t tell my wife I borrowed her glass.

Pours dark, with a large-for-the-style (half a finger) surprisingly dark brown head. The head settles fairly quickly and leaves a thin but dense ring. There might be a little bit of active carbonation. Smell is…well, I can smell maple/frosting sweetness and booze. There’s a little anise and char in the background.

Taste: Waaayyy more chocolate here. First impression is maple sweetness, but with a little patience some dark chocolate with a little creaminess comes out. Anise is still there, booze is very noticeable, fairly strong vanilla, something richly nutty.

Mouthfeel is smooth, thick, still. Overall…it’s a tiny bit over the top, but honestly, pretty restrained for a beer with sprinkles in its wax.