New Beer Weekend #148

A new (but not so new) brewery in my area

Earlier this week I got together with an old college buddy. He suggested we meet at a brewery in the Chestnut Hill section of Philadelphia. I had never heard of this brewery before so this looked to be an exciting, new opportunity. I arrived at the Taproom before my friend arrived and I asked the bartender: “How long has the brewery been open?” To my astonishment he replied “Six years”. Whoa! How have I not heard of this brewery over those six years!?!

I was the only person in the taproom at the time and I took advantage to order a flight of four beers:



The beers I ordered from left to right, with the brewery’s descriptions are (also some high level discussion by me in italics):

Bronze ESB – Extra Special Bitter with strong hints of honey butter melting on fresh biscuits with warming aromas of cedar, mahogany and tobacco. This beer was very good. A pleasing malty beer which is well balanced.

Fiddler – A clean, crisp, single malt pilsner with Hersbrucker, Saaz, East Kent Golding hops and favorite San Francisco yeast. This beer was very good with a pleasant combination of bready malt and spicy/herbal hop flavors.

Motra – This West Coast IPA is our flagship brewed with Mosaic and Citra hops to create its name, it is aggressive and bold with notes of stone fruit and pine. Not much of an aroma but the flavor is tasty with a combination of fruity and citrus. A bit too thin. I enjoyed this beer: good – very good.

Galactic Loosey – New England IPA with wheat and oats. Dry hopped with Galaxy, Mosaic, and Citra. Galaxy hops bring delicious citrus and passionfruit. This beer was very good. A nice smooth mouthfeel and a nice combination of citrus and fruity flavors.

After finishing the flight, I decided to purchase a pint of Fiddler.

I was very pleased with the beers I had at Chestnut Hill Brewing and if my buddy wants to meetup there again, I will enthusiastically go!

@rotsaruch @KOP_Beer_OUtlet @RobH

 

Thanks @GrumpyGas for starting up NBW today. I missed posting last week due to travel, but back this week with a TIPA from Toppling Goliath, Seismic Sue.

Appearance: Cloudy yellow, good head.

Smell: Danky socks, citrus rind.

Taste: Moderate bitterness, orange juice—very light bodied/watery. Citrus rind, green citrus, moderately bitter finish.

Overall: Bit the bullet for the $26 4-pack for Seismic Sue. A bit disappointing, as it was pretty one-note in flavor and much lighter in body than I expected for a triple IPA. I think I prefer Pseudo Sue, then King Sue, then Seismic Sue.

 

Cheers @GrumpyGas for the opener today!

I'm starting out with

Imprint - Philsner



Courtesy of a trade done with @XsoldoutX, thanks Matt!

Canned on 4.5.23 'go phils' printed on bottom

Poured at fridge temp into a willi glass

Pours that classic beery-beer color I love and adore, a slightly cloudy golden sheen with a thin and fleeting head. Settled into a hair of a ring, but no cap. 3.75

Aroma is fairly balanced malts, grain and oaty(think Cheerio) sweetness. Really a nice blend I'm enjoying, especially for a breakfast beer, lagers are my go-to. 4

Crisp, malty, perfect amount of sweetness and seemingly no bitterness. Not complicated but really really good. 3.75

Body is fairly moderate build for being a light lager, which is to say this is robust and still crushable with just enough carbo bite. 4

Overall this is something I'd consume daily and likely the best light lager I've had to date. 4

I'm likely high on the rating for this because lagers are a favorite and they don't get enough well deserved love in my opinion, seems like @Roguer and I are of the same opinion more or less on this!

 

Glad you enjoyed it. Was wondering how that'd play out. They got a hot tequila ba version I need to get to you. You'd probably dig more Martin House beers. They are big on sours, adjuncts, BA beers.

Cheers!

 

Thank you Grumpy Gas for kicking off the weekend! I try to clear my beers in order (drink fresh, than older stouts than new stouts), so it will take me a few weekends before I get to @DoctorZombies 's Mexican Cake and a few others.

Have two Midwest bourbon barrel aged beers to get to this week. This one was part of March Beer Madness, and also highly recommended by @PapaGoose03 and @BigIronH who are fierce advocates of the Michigan Beer Scene. I've had two variants of this beer on draft, and really enjoyed both (4.25 overall for both) during my pastry stout exploration phase (Reserve Salted Caramel and Reserve-Cherry Chocolate). Today is the day to enjoy the real McCoy.

New Holland Dragon's Milk



Bottle Notes: Purchased 4/15 at Beer on the Wall for $4.75 w/ tax at store temperature, refrigerated at home until opening. Bourbon Barrel-Aged Stout, 11% ABV, bottled 8/2/22 @14:17.

Throughout the ages, Dragon's Milk has been a term used to describe potent ales and elixirs worthy of celebration, a reward at the end of the journey. Our signature stout carries on that tradition today. Roasted malt delivers notes of coffee and chocolate married with sweet undertones of vanilla and oak from a three month stay in bourbon barrels to create a truly legendary blend of flavor.

Appearance: Chestnut brown bronze while pouring from the bottle, settles into a dark brown/black base with generous creamy bubbly razor head thin that completely blankets the base, with the excess clinging to the side of the glass for dear life. Almost nitro like texture from a standard beer bottle, quite excellent. 4.75

Aroma: Light to mild in strength, perhaps a victim of age. Roast malt and milk chocolate lead, bourbon emerging now 15 minutes post refrigerator pull and pour. Works for me. 4.0

Taste: Much stronger taste, nice bourbon and oak leads now that this reached proper temperature, backed by a sweet mixture of sweet milk chocolate, caramel and hot fudge. Sweeter than I typically seek, but the blend works really well and I'm digging this. 4.5

Mouthfeel: Thin to medium body for the style, slightly creamy, negligible tiny fizzy carbonation heard more than felt. Sweet with the strong initial bourbon lead playing nicely with the sweet malt flavors. Can't find a hop flavor, lightly dry, drinks easy the first few sips but stands its ground and delivers a sold punch nearing the quarter pole. Dry sweetness lingers, caramel, roast malt and chocolate fudge on the decedent finish. 4.5

Overall: Enjoying this very much. This is sweet enough as is, and while I did enjoy two variants with additional flavors, this is my favorite version. No jacket or adjuncts required. Held up will despite the 9 months in perhaps not optimal conditions, highly recommend and will seek in the future, hopefully fresher to determine whether a hop presence dropped off over time with this 9 1/2 month bottle. Sweet bliss! 4.5

Really glad I picked this up, hope you all have a similar experience this weekend. Have a BBA Chicago Barleywine that I thought I reviewed but didn't planned for Sunday.

 

Again with another crusher from @XsoldoutX

Yards - Philadelphia Pale Ale



Bottled on 2.27.23

Poured at fridge temp into a willi glass

Pours clear and pale golden with a tall bright white head that leaves a nice spiderweb lacing and 1/2finger head/cap. 4

Light citrus hop note and malty breadiness, mostly soft orange and lemon. Delicate but delightful aroma. 4

Flavor seems to do the same, hop florals and citrus, some light Simcoe bitterness and then a kiss of breadiness. 3.75

Light, very easy drinking with a hint of hop oil aftertaste. 3.75

Overall a different kind of pale ale than I'm used to, but I really enjoy the aroma and taste. 4

 

I was golfing yesterday and playing well (two over par after nine holes), when my wife called. She was walking one of our dogs when he tried to take off after a rabbit, pulling her over. She needed me to come home. I get home and my wife said it's just a sprain. Well, the ankle looked quite swollen and it hurt like hell. I said I thought she needed an xray, and after some discussion she agreed. She has a fracture of her left ankle, is in a boot, and will see the orthopedist Tuesday. We'll be having a quiet weekend.
I got a shipment from Beer Drop on Thursday, so I have plenty of beer to help me perform my nursing and caretaker duties. Let's start with Conehead IPA from Zero Gravity,
Hazy gold color. White head that retains well. Some lacing.
Aroma of sweet malt, some fruit.
Taste of pineapple, grapefruit, and caramel.
Medium-bodied, slight bitterness.
Very drinkable.

 

Thanks to @XsoldoutX for this new brew

Victory - Brotherly Love



Best by 8.6.23

Poured at fridge temp into a willi glass

Pours a pale/dull orange with a tall and aggressive off white head. Settled into a thin cap and ring though left a fine and even lacing. 4

Aroma is big and mixed citrus, hard to pull a single thing out and fairly piney with a touch of yeast. 3.75

Taste follows, nondescript citrus, piney hops and some malty bread. 3.75

Body is light, with mild carbo and slight resinous aftertaste. 3.75

Overall a decent neipa that is refreshing. 3.75

 

Gold Dust a 6.8 ABV NEIPA at the 6 month old Oakflower Brewery in Millington NJ. A fine brew , hazy gold with a white head and nice fruity aroma. The taste is various fruits with a nice malt backbone. Full mouth feel and a lasting off dry finish. Another excellent beer from Oakflower.

 

One of my favorite drinking hoppy beers; neat to see someone post about it in here. Their signature IPA is great too IMO.

 

Good Morning All.
A morning Pils...

Bauhaus from Art History Brewing

From the massive assault on my humble home, courtesy of Mr. @FBarber in NBS BIF #17

A beautiful gem in the glass. A slightly hazy golden straw swirl quickly clears up while pumping a frothy white cap nearly 3 fingers skyward.
The nose pops, peppery & herbal with zesty lemon & grass, and a hint of crackery malt.
The flavors start off with the herbal notes, then straight to grass, and bright lemon. The undertones of the malt are definitely a solid base. Again, crackery and most pleasant.
A really smooth, crisp ride. Carbonation is lively but not overwrought.
Overall, could kill these all summer long.
4.21/5 rDev +2.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25

 

Dang, sorry about your wife. At least she has a doctor in the house.

 

Long weekend / short vacation with the missus

 

We will have to agree to disagree...that is an awful beer ha. I guess if you like drinking vinegar go for it (cause thats all I got ha). As a note, I love pickles. Though is just plan not enjoyable to drink ha. If the goal was to make the worst beer the best, they get the prize I guess

This is all in good fun, for anyone that likes it go ahead. Even liking the food products they are imitating, I still can't wrap my head around it though ha.