New Beer Weekend #215

"Electric Butter"?????, Explain.

 

Picked up a 6-pack of Kulshan Oktoberfest at the local grocery store here on Orcas Island, Washington. It’s good but not outstanding. Preliminary review below. Cheers!
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3.5/5 rDev -7.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
12oz can (best by 2/9/2025) into a tumbler (only glassware available at the rental property I’m at). Pours a clear honeybgolden color with a soft white head that dissipates quickly.

Aroma is grainy/malty, slightly sweet. Subtle fruitiness. Floral hops. Notes of apple and pear, some spice.

Taste follows nose. Bready malt, fruity sweetness, floral hops.

Mouthfeel is medium bodied, drinkable. Better carbonation might make this beer livelier on the palate.

Overall an OK festbier. But it ain’t Weihenstephaner.

 

What is “electric butter”?

Cheers!

 

Me too! What iz it please!

 

It is what my senses tell me every time I experience Toppling Goliath Brewing NEIIPAs. I do not know how they do it. Butter and electricity is a magical combination.

 

I had a laugh about this one. You're within walking distance from the store that sells mustard in 10 gallon containers and bags of apples with 30 apples in the bag.
Better bring a wagon if you shop there. Its a wierd place,you go in for one item but have to buy the 20lbs of cherries because its such a good price

 

We just rec'd two new-to-Vermont offerings from TB yesterday.
Here's the APA.

https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/30654/619550/



16 ounce can with no date, which was distributed in Vermont this week.

Vigorous pour yields a one inch white head (gone in seconds) over a murky golden body with no lacing whatsoever.

Nose of slight sweet citrus and even slighter tropical fruit.

Taste is mostly fresh squeezed orange juice and slight tropical fruit with a sweet citrus pith bitterness on the finish.

Feel is on the watery side with low carbonation.

Overall, tastes good, but looks like shit and feels subpar for this brewery.

Cheers!

 

Second new beer for me today, this one also from a new-to-me brewery. And it’s not an auspicious start. I hate to ding a local brewery but I just didn’t enjoy this. Outer Island IPA from the San Juan Island Brewing Company in Friday Harbor, Washington. Preliminary review below. Cheers!
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3.07/5 rDev -11.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3 | feel: 2.75 | overall: 3
16oz can (packaged 7/17/2024) into a tumbler. Pours a slightly hazy golden color with a 1-finger head.

Aroma is … surprising? unusual? Not what I expected. Almost lemony, maybe with a touch of Pine-Sol or some other industrial cleaning agent. It doesn’t necessarily smell bad, but it doesn’t really smell like an IPA either.

Taste leads off with a grainy, crackery quality. Then some bitter hops show up, but they are muted.

Mouthfeel is somehow lacking. Perhaps it’s the carbonation level, which seems off—borderline flat.

Overall this beer was disappointing. It’s just not very well made and not very enjoyable. I grabbed this one on a whim because I’m visiting the San Juan Islands for the weekend, but I would not drink this again if I didn’t have three more cans in the fridge. Based on other reviews I have to wonder if this was just a bad batch, but consistency is also important and this just wasn’t very good.

 

It’s funny every time I try a new festbier this is my reaction. To the point that it’s the only pale one I buy anymore.

 

Enjoying this wonderful offering from Suarez on the last day of August, before temps creep back into the triple digits. Cheers!

4.27/5 rDev -3%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4.25

Packaged September, 2022 - enjoyed on 8/31/2024 - poured from a 500mL bottle into a port glass.

Clear vermilion gradient goes from cinnabar to coquelicot to salmon pink. A low ivory head recedes to a lasting collar. Very fine, even, sandy lacing; decent retention.

Characteristic concentrated (i.e. dried) montmorency cherry aromatics with hints of stone fruit (apricot/peach) pits, candied apple, and low barnyard notes.

Taste follows the nose with fruit leather and mild funk against a biscuity malt background. A glimmer of sherry-butt aged single malt (sans oxidation). Fleeting tartness. Medium-dry, faintly spicy (peppercorn) finish, low bitterness throughout. Subtle and rustic.

Light bodied, slightly fizzy, not quite refreshing.

A lovely, delicate/breezy expression of cherry.

 

Hello, NBW'ers!

Nice to show up, and have something to talk about.

Outer Range's Down Days WCIPA. 6.5%
canned 8.22.24
Hop Bill: Simcoe, Citra, and Galaxy

4.08/5 rDev +3.6%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

L - clear, but with a kind of unfiltered look rather than crystal.... promising, not much head or lacing.

S - dank, musk-melon, cat pee, weedy. Ok... I might like this. edit: Got even better as it warmed in glass.... freaky good aromas of the weedy kind, if that's your thing.

T - muted taste of all of the above but a bit bland, and just "OK" in the hop expressions. Strange given the hop bill of Simcoe, Citra, and Galaxy (three of my favorites). But none of them really shine or show up. Perfectly "good" beer, but like it's trying to reach Blind Pig status without quite managing get there. Huh - taste does shine as it warms a bit in the glass, so the weediness does come through in the end. Did improve more than most IPAs over time.

F - Ok, good balance, smooth as hell. Given the ABV of 6.5, it would sneak up on you if you sipped on this all day long. But again, lacking a little guts, carbonation, or mouthfeel to really leave a strong impression. Just .... solid.

O - an very good (B+) west coast IPA from Outer Range. [Side note: I worry a little about ORB these days; I feel like QC just isn't what it used to be and I wonder if they're stretching too much with two breweries.] But in any case, this is a good beer but one I wouldn't necessarily seek out or trade for, IMHO. Cheers.

 

Kind of like why no one (so far) has attempted a remake of “Casablanca”

 

Here's a DIPA from TB.

https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/30654/325509/



16 ounce can, no date, but distributed in Vermont this week.

Moderate to vigorous pour yields a one inch white head over a murky golden body with scant lacing.

Nose of citrus, pine, slight tropical fruit, and a bit of dankness.

Taste is mostly citrus (grapefruit, lime), and a bit of tropical fruit with a finish of citrus pith bitterness and a bit of pine resin.

Medium mouthfeel with near medium carbonation.

Overall, not too bad. Go check it out!
Cheers!!

 

This evening’s beer is not only new to me, it is new (i.e. fresh). A yearly release in the fall from Westbrook Brewing - “Graveyard Shift” DDH IPA, brewed with Citra, DDH with Citra Incognito. Canned 8/27/24. An easy 7% abv. I purchased a 4/pk at the brewery 8/28/24:



Poured a hazy milky gold with no clarity; white mixed bubbles foam; ok+ cap retention; solid ring; medium heavy soapy lacing. Citrus and tropical fruit nose. Lemon, lime, orange, passionfruit, peach. Slight dusty dry tongue coating from the incognito; full minus body; soft fluffy feel; light carbonation; no astringency. Overall, very drinkable; a true hazy without the murkiness.

4.25 | 4.0 | 4.25 | 4.0 | 4.25
Score: 4.17 rDev: +3.5%

I’ve had better hazies this week alone from Treehouse and Trillium…still, a good effort and a hazy I would not hesitate to drink again. Cheers weekend imbibers!

 

Cerveza con lima from magnify. Mexican lager with lime aged in oak barrels
...pale,cloudy gold appearance with a lasting white head.
...medium carbonation with about a medium body
...aroma is yeast,yeasty bread, lime zest and candied lime with what might be a feint amount of wood in the background.
...taste is nice, mildly sweet,almost candy like as it warms.lime zest and candied lime is there as well as yeast,grain and cereal. Oak i think is there but not overpowering.
....overall its a really good Mexican lager which is a style I really enjoy. This was very flavorful and kept my interest
...

 

Revolution Brewing and Half Acre Brewing On and On: Part 3. A double barrel-aged stout. 16.6% ABV. A beer meant for a special occasion. Courtesy of @ChicagoJ. I decided to proceed with this beer right now to celebrate the return of @utopiajane, and to acknowledge @Chicago's strong opening of this thread. Watching CM Punk dominate in Germany also provided inspiration. The look is pitch black. There was no foam when pouring the beer. The smell is strong with bourbon. Chocolate, vanilla, and caramel are present in the background, but this is going to be a potent experience. The taste is incredibly intense. Bourbon flavor takes the lead, but fudge, caramel, graham cracker, and vanilla quickly emerge. All the flavors hit hard. This is immediately one of the most remarkable beers I have ever experienced. The mouthfeel is not as thick as I expected, but it is silky, smooth, oily, and robust, with light carbonation. This is as spectacular as I anticipated. It is a beautiful evening. I am so glad I selected this beer right now. It is one of the best beers of this style I have ever experienced, and also one of the best beers in general I have ever experienced. Thank you, @ChicagoJ! I must provide a similar experience like this for you, as soon as I am able!

 

Vault brewery hidden values belgian style witbier
...cloudy,murky,pale gold /orange appearance
...medium light carbonation with about medium a body but has a slight thick syrupy feel.
...aroma is mixed tropical fruit and peel,especially tangerine. The coriander is there which gives it a mild earthiness and some tangerine juice.
...taste is mildly sweet with the coriander being out front to balance it out. Tangerine,floral,honey and a little earthiness that lingers.
..overall its very good,not sure it comes together perfectly but still very good