New Beer Weekend #157

Fathead's Groovy Juice Hazy IPA, 7.1% ABV; 3.87 overall

Pours a very hazed gold with one finger of cream colored head. Nice head retention & pretty good lacing

S: Plenty of citrus. a touch of pine, mango once warm

T: Oranges, grapefruit & green melon, plus some dryness up front. Tangerine, dryness & green melon as this beer warms up. Finishes dry with pomelo, grassyness & a little lime

MF: Medium body, slight carbonation, pretty good balance

Pretty drinkable, but had much higher hopes for this one

 

Day 2, just a single for me today, but it’s a doozy (in the best possible way). I stopped at the brewery on the way home on Thursday from a work trip to northwest Ohio to pick up a couple of their world class imperial stouts and grabbed this as well.

That was a fortuitous decision on this old beer nerd’s part. This is The Pursuit, a big hazy from Wax Wings Brewing in Kalamazoo.





4.6/5 rDev +4.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
Pours a beautiful hazy mango color with a creamy off white head that provides a nice amount of lacing and provides a modest cap on the beer as you drink it. Gorgeous hazy.

The nose is filled with dank mango and ripe tangerine aromas that literally jump from the can when you pop the top, some passion fruit, and a nice creamy oat note as well. This is gonna be REALLY good.

It is really good, with a fusillade of mango and ripe tangerine flavors battering the palate up front, which sounds harsh, but the introduction of passion fruit and especially the creamy oat flavor (which has a smidge of vanilla as referenced in the brewery’s description of the beer) mid-palate and beyond provides a perfect complement to make for an exceptionally balanced, richly flavorful beer.

The mouthfeel is silky and soft, fitting this hazy like a glove. This is on par with the best offerings from the big boy hazy breweries on the East Coast.

Yep, I typed that.

 

Those one's Stone put out were the worst I've ever had

 

Back with another new to me beer
Reflections of a Bad Sea from Bellflower Brewing 8% abv IIPA with lime

Kind of one dimensional, lime dominates the aroma and taste but in the words of Anthony Bourdain “ it doesn’t suck”

Poured from an undated can

White fluffy head, soapy lacing and a thin cap over a cloudy straw yellow colored appearance
Aroma is dominated by lime zest, some peach and cantaloupe for a tropical aroma. Kind of bready notes as well.
Taste is lime forward layers of peach, cantaloupe, passion fruit are there but over powered by lime.
Mouthfeel is surprisingly soft, with the amount of lime zest one would think tart or bitter, not the case. Medium carbonation and soft tasting, the finish is a lingering citrus taste and a dry feel. For a IIPA the bite and alcohol feel is non existent
4.25. 3.75. 3.75. 3.75. 3.75. 3.84 rDev -5.2%
There were only 2 reviews on it so my rDev may be more in line with more reviews

 

After reading @Victory_Sabre1973 ’s review of that ipa I went with this for tonight. From the variety pack I am more than excited to have in the fridge.

Sierra Nevada - Hop Hunter (IPA 6.2%)



Pours a pale mix of yellowish and orange; weak head, always a thin film but really lacks retention for a SN beer.

The nose is nirvana for me; it’s a refreshing zesty bite of fresh fresh pine, light dankness, becomes more dominant as it warms, some fruitiness also emerges and some malt sweetness.

Taste shows a huge dose of darkened citrus rind, pine cone sappiness, earthy dankness, bitting malt sweetness on the finish.

Medium body, slight hefty and full, I get a touch of abv hint…in your face abrasive bitterness in all of its glory; this beer is sticky icky…that to me, and the nose are very high points of this beer.

I’m dying to drink Ruthless Rye; one of my biggest I hope it returns one day beers. Enjoy your beers tonight, see you all next weekend.

 

Here's tonight's NBW victim. Just take those old records off the shelf....



Mayflower Brewing Crispy Business...a Kolsch style ale. So Mayflower using pop culture references? Nah...thinking it doesn't really fit.

It looks like it should very slight turbidity, fairly light golden color. Nice, tight head that sticks and falls to a thick, creamy cap.

The smell is clean malts, maybe a whiff of white grape, floral and spicy hops. Slightly sweet. So far, so good...

...and then the wheels kinda fall off. The taste opens malty followed quickly by citrus, spiciness, oily resinous hops and that's the issue. I know the style can have significant hop flavors and bitterness, but this in my opinion is massively over-hopped. The bitterness accumulates to an unpleasant bilous level, and the spicy kick briefly gets to smack upside the head territory. Oily resin adds to the non-fun going on. The hops simply become unpleasantly dominant, creating an imbalanced brew. Disappointed because the initial swig gave me hope...

Feel - light, very dry, massive and unpleasant bitter. The aftertaste lingers...lots and its not delightful.

So...looks good, smells ok, taste good initially then the whole thing derails into what I think is an overly hopped, imbalanced mess. This might make it to 3.5, depends on how generous I feel in a bit. Not recommended.

 

My nightcap beer, one I picked up to see if it would fit in on a future SAN.

Poured stout black with a dark brown head that dissipated very quickly.
The taste was really quite good, not quite “pastry” stout sweet but there are no hop bitterness or coffee char that keep the taste in check, so it approaches cloying.
The feel is that of a BA stout, just viscous enough to remind one to sip.
OA, a good Imperial Stout that I would be happy to take to a SAN.

 

Great Lakes Brewing Co. TropiCostal IPA, 6.0% ABV; 3.82 overall

BBD of 08/22/23

Pours an effervescent honey color with a pinky of cream colored head. Average-ish head retention & lacing

S: Citrus, ripened melons & nectarines once warm

T: Pomelo, green melon, a touch of lemon & just a little breadyness & pine up front. Bitter orange, a little passion fruit, dryness & a little papaya as this beer warms up, plus a little cantaloupe. Finishes piney with a little blood orange & dryness, plus a little bit of melon

MF: Medium body, fairly firm carbonation, okay balance

Drinks alright, just not very tropical, perhaps the BBD was overly
optimistic?

 

Dank 7
7% Belgian IPA by Boulevard

Poured from a twelve ounce can, the body is a cloudy yellow with small initial head. Light lacing.

Nose is a pleasant mix of Belgian yeast and hops.

Taste follows nose and there's a small hop bite from the 7 hops (Simcoe, Chinook, Citra, Topaz, Columbus, Mosaic and Bravo). The beer cleans up nicely: a soft fade.

Good carbonation and soft mouthfeel.

An easy drinking soft IPA. I’m not very experienced with this style, so there’s a bit of cognitive dissonance when the yeast and hops hit the palate. I love Duvel, but this one is different and worth trying.

 

Hot one, today, I think it got to 97°.

This afternoon, I had a pastry stout courtesy of @russpowell.

https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/61918/641348/?ba=woemad#lists
Meant to taste like Oreos (or some similar chocolate sandwich cookie), and it initially had an aroma like that, but as it warmed up, a far stronger salted caramel aroma took over, and dominated the flavor. While it wasn't strictly as advertised, it still tasted like a pretty nice pastry stout, and I'm partial to caramel. Absolutely no sign of the high ABV in the flavor. If taken to excess, this one could be quite devastating!
Thanks, Russ!

 

Hoppin' Frog - Smashing Jalapeno Blonde

12oz can served in a snulip. @Ozzylizard sent it to me in a box that was unexpected but I have assumed to be associated with NBS BIF #17. He sent me two cans, and my wife is drinking the other one right now. I'm reviewing this as a pepper beer, not just a blonde ale.

Pours a hazy straw yellow with about a finger of head (or slightly more) that settles into a fluffy ring and a thick dusting across the surface. Smell is peppers. Bell peppers and jalapeno peppers. And not much else.

Taste follows suit. There's a bit of heat, but really not a ton. Some grainy honey sweetness. Somehow the green vegetation notes from the peppers turn into something really floral here.

Mouthfeel is light and airy. Overall, it's definitely one of the better pepper beers I've ever had. Strong, clear pepper flavor, but still clearly a beer, with just a mild hit of spicy heat.