New Beer Weekend #218

Drekker Lurk and Destroy NEIPA, 6.6% ABV. Pours hazy light orange with a 4+ finger white head that left lots of lacing. Aroma is pine, citrus, and zest. Taste is juicy citrus, zest, slight pine, faintly sweet, quite bitter. Dry mouthfeel, overall very good. A bit bitter for a NEIPA.

3.87/5 rDev 0%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.75

 

A collaboration between SARA and Private Press - was rightly concerned this would be too sweet for me - barrel influence and attentive blending are evident, but I definitely prefer the balance and depth of offerings from Firestone Walker for example (especially at this price point!) - cheers!

3.44/5 rDev -13.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.5

Poured from a 500mL bottle into a snifter.

Clear, nearly opaque bistre body with ochre highlights and a vague beige ring. Poor retention, no lacing, but legs form a thick viscous sheen.

Bourbon and honey in the nose - faint molasses, light barrel char, vanilla, and chocolate.

Intense palate entry - potent layered malt, cocoa, brown sugar, and caramel. Booze and milk duds with some dark fruit emerging as the beer warms. Finish is rather sweet. Low bitterness, vague hop presence. Yeast character is neutral (too much so for a "Belgian" stout). No fusel notes. Subtle/complex honey flavor returns in the aftertaste.

Dense, chewy mouth-feel, carbonation is rather low (especially, once again considering the "Belgian" influence), and alcohol is potent but not excessively hot.

While not a pastry stout, this is decidedly a dessert beer - happy to finally try something Private Press was involved with, if only to confirm their house style isn't for me.

 

We finally got some rain around here last night and into today. I think it was 3 or 4 weeks without a drop. Luckily it happened at harvest time and not mid-season otherwise our local farmers would be hurting again this year. Based on what I could tell from the local market, it's been a pretty good year for them.

Today's new beer is one we've seen on various threads in the BA bar quite frequently the past few weeks. There's some more nuance going on than I could detect with my palate that is still a bit limited by allergies (and I'm beginning to suspect potentially from Covid this past spring as well, as I've had some difficulty picking up detailed beer aromas since then...), but I still enjoyed this one a lot.

Sierra Nevada Oktoberfest
6.0% festbier



Pours a brilliant gold with a two-finger white head that lasts nicely until the first sip, when it promptly collapses.

Grassy, floral, and woody aromas blend together--its like standing in a woodside meadow. Some bread dough comes through as well.

First up on the sip is a hit of sweetness that sits right between honey and caramel. Following that, I get earthy, ground grains and bread dough and biscuit that's quickly complemented with a slightly woody bitterness. The hop bitterness builds toward the finish, which is pleasantly dry, and lingers through the aftertaste. As it warms, a bit of honey comes out in the finish as well.

Smooth with moderate carb. Medium-light bodied and just so easy to drink.

Overall, really nice festbier that is a bit elevated on hops, which is a nice nod to the SN heritage.

 

Paint the Town Dunkel by Art History

3.83/5 rDev -3.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75

New brewery, new beer for me

Brewers notes: Revolution Brewing / Art History Brewing Collaboration Beer. Munich-Style Dunkel brewed with German CaraMunich and CaraAroma malts. Delivers a big flavor without being too sweet. Chewy biscuit mouthfeel with a nutty aroma. Crisp hop finish. Dark and drinkable. Special tribute to the enduring friendship and revolutionary spirit of Greg and Jim, two old friends who have been at the heart of the craft brewing scene in Chicago since its earliest days. With a shared passion for both art and brewing, their collaboration is an homage to Chicago’s craft brewing history.

Chilled 16 oz can poured into a pokal

Clear chestnut colored liquid capped by a pencil think khaki foam , good lacings

Aroma is caramel malts, bready, roasty nutty

Taste is caramel malts, roasty, nutty, slight sweetness on the start and ends with a dry hoppiness on the tongue

Dry quenching mouthfeel

Good beer

Oktoberfest in Munich last year

 

Much thanks to @snaotheus for this 2022 Fort George Etymology ( A blend of English & American Barleywines aged in Westward Whiskey. Willet Bourbon & Booker's Bourbon Barrels, 13.0% ABV; 4.42 overall

2022 Vintage checks in at 13.0% ABV

Pours an effervescent chestnut/cola color with one finger of tan head. Stays effervescent throughout, some head retention & lacing

S: Tons of dark fruit, whiskey notes; vanilla & brown sugar once warmed up

T: Smooth Whiskey barrel notes, brown sugar & hints of creme' Brule' figs, leafy hops up front. Sour mash presence as this beer warms up, hints of vanilla & brown sugar, barrel dryness, rum & cola notes & a little bit of fig as this beer warms up. Finishes with warming Whiskey notes, brown sugar, figs, candied cherries, faint leafy hop & tobacco presence & cola notes

MF: Medium body, smooth carbonation, very warming

Much to love here, one you want to take your time on & savor this gem

 

Me and my wife are at joymongers Oktoberfest. Had a long low week.

Having a joymongers Carolina common. Fantastic California common! Aromas and flavors of big bread dough, corn, cracker, wood, peppercorn, pine, herbal, floral, grass, lager yeast earthiness. Medium pine pepper herbal bitter finish. Crisp clean refreshing. Lovely 4.25/5


Cheers

 

Joymongers tepach ale. This was great and interesting. Aromas and flavors of lightly funky pineapple, corn, grain, peppercorn, cinnamon, coriander, grain of paradise, herbal, floral, grass, yeast earthiness. Light herbal bitterness and fruit tart finish. Crisp clean refreshing lager finish. No astringency. Very unique. No off flavors. 4/5


Cheers

 

My wife is my dream. I really lucked out to have someone as patient as she is. Really a true gift


Joymongers saison Picardy. Great saison. Big white grape, banana, bubblegum, peppercorn, clove, apple, pine, wheat, cracker, dough, herbal, floral, grass, yeast earthiness. Medium pine, herbal, spicy bitter yeasty finish. Lightly tart/tangy. Medium plus carb and body. Lingering resin dryness, no hop astringency. A hoppy saison much like tank 7. Heavy yeast character. 4/5




Cheers

 

Good evening, kids. Much-needed rain yesterday and today. We took on the cold and wet to go for Indian food for lunch and a couple of dishes may have followed us home for a light dinner. It's a cuisine we truly enjoy and our local-ish joint never lets us down - can't say that about many eateries. There's a couple of good beer stores nearby and the missus likes pumpkin beers, so while she did the dedicated hunt, I did make some impulse buys to cover at least a couple of NBWs.

So tonight's volunteer:



This is Yuzu Nama Biiru from the ladies at Japas Cervejaria in Brazil. If you havent read their story, it is interesting. I do not know where their beers are actually brewed, but they have batted 1.000 for me going 3 for 3 with Black Daruma being the grand slam.

This is a Japanese rice lager, so one more style tick. It's 4.8% alcohol and was hopped with Sorachi Ace and Lemon Drop hops with some yuzu added. I have no idea the age of the can (or the contents thereof...)

Pours very clear and pale golden in color. The head is soap-bubbly and short-lived, not much left behind. No cling.

The smell is pretty vague given the additions. Slightly sweet, clean, crackery malt. There's some vague citrus and herbal notes over the top.

The flavor, while subtle, reveals a lot more of interest. It's actually showcasing the Sorachi Ace quite nicely. Slightly sweet malts - very clean. Then it's heavy aromatics and it shows all of the possibilities of Sorachi Ace. Light lemon, then very herbal and its a wee bit of all of 'em that Sorachi Ace can bring. Orange citrus, spicy coriander, a little dill, slightly minty. Something like maple sap - not syrup, but like a maple water flavor. Oh wait...Lemon Drop plays too adding some weight to the citrus with a bit of lemon. There is some melon-like flavor, and a little green tea. On the aftertaste there's more lemon, a lingering but mild spice (dill for sure and maybe a bit of coriander), a bit of grassiness, and a nice minty carryover. Mild bitter hit just ahead of the finish.

This is light, dry, and refreshing. It's pairing quite nicely with our Indian takeout.

Overall, I'm impressed (again) with the subtlety and the layers of flavor this beer delivers. It seems quite deftly crafted with an eye towards delivering flavors. Whether the intent was to showcase Sorachi Ace or not, it seems to have done just that. Assuming the yuzu is adding some lemony citrus, it seems like it's in a supporting role. I'm thinking in the 3.8 - 4.0 range on the BA-o-rometer. Good, and interesting, beer.

 

Joymonger autumn haze ipa. Fantastic hazy. Aromas and flavors of big red grapefruit, tangerine, passionfruit, peach, pineapple, mango, melon, papaya, blueberries, citrus peel/rind,peppercorn, pine, wheat, cracker, bread, herbal, floral, grass. Medium pine rind bitter finish. Soft lingering resin drying. No astringency. Huge mosaic and Simcoe presence. Big juicy vibrancy of hops. 4.3



Cheers

 

Happy Saturday evening! Shoutout to @jonphisher for kicking it off! I’m enjoying a Human Robot “Dreams of Orgonon” IPA!

A Philly brewery that I have not been to and my only 3rd offering from them! I’m gonna have to rectify that shameful admission.

This pours a bright hazy golden straw color. Very fine head with an abundant tropical fruit aroma. The flavor is a perfect combination of juicy citrus fruit and just the right amount of hop bite! Lush mouthfeel with delicate carbonation. Human Robot tends to be a lager-centric brewery, but they killed it with this IPA!

 

Joymongers Oktoberfest. Spot on style. Aromas and flavors of big brown bread, toast, biscuit, nutty, wood, peppercorn, pine, herbal, floral, grass. Medium pine herbal bitter finish. Balanced rich Munich malts and noble hops. No lingering hop astringency. 4/5



Sushi truck. Lovely specialty rolls.


Cheers

 

The Spak is back!

 

I hope to keep the pace. Still plenty of ba reviews to crest my 10k on the site. I would say I had a cicerone ready palate for many years.

 

Joymongers affable porter. Great American porter. Aromas and flavors of big dark chocolate, cocoa, coffee, nuttiness, dark bread, char, wood, peppercorn, pine, herbal, floral, grass. Medium pine char bitter finish. Balanced bready/chalky malt and resin hops. Lingering resin drying. Spot on style balanced American hops and black patent malts. 4


Cheers

 

My son and I are trying our last Notch Brewing beer. This was in Tenner, their Czech Pale Lager.

 

Wild air beerworks unholy disorder pilsner
..clear light gold appearance
...medium light carbonation with a just below average body but added up to a nice feel
..aroma is malt and honey with cereal and grain
..taste is mildly sweet but otherwise stays true to the aroma.
...simple in a good way, delivers on flavor and very enjoyable

 

Victory pretzel bier
...dark ,black coffee appearance
...light carbonation with about a medium body adding up to a nice feel
...aroma is malty dough, salty pretzel, not too much else going on but its still an impressive aroma
. Taste has a mild sweetness, salty, malt, definitely doughy.
...overall its a well done interesting gimmick beer but delivers interesting flavor