New Beer Weekend #231

Merry, happy, blessed Christmas everyone!
I have two to share with you.
The first was my dinner beverage but due to family being here I had to wait to review it with you all.

My last “big” beer from Tennessee, BBA Black Belle. This one with coffee.
Poured stout black with a very briefly lived brown head.
The taste was really quite good, the stout was foremost with more than a hint of coffee, albeit mellow and smooth. The bourbon is present but even milder.
The feel is pleasantly full, not quite viscous but tries really hard.
OA, I think it’s a good, solid offering from a brewery that doesn’t have enough members of this site to put in the database. Sad but true.
So - if you live in the Nashville area, we need you to step up!

 

Not sure if I really want to know, but what is the story behind the mountain of Santa’s in the background?

 

My nightcap was one I bought I don’t remember where but it was the freaking 30th anniversary of Goose Island BBA Stouts so it begged me to take it home for a special occasion.
And what is more special than Christmas?
(Spoilers; Easter)
Anyway, this has been staring at me since I bought it and tonight seemed to be right for the drinking of a special beer.

From 2022, aged in multiple barrels and instead of coming out muddled like I expected, it is crisp in flavor with coffee and dark fruits, (more pomegranates than figs) and cacao. Oh yeah, the bourbon is present but is so well balanced that it doesn’t overwhelm the base stout.
I really didn’t think I’d enjoy this one, Goose Island BCBC has been pretty sugary in the past for me but oh my, it’s really very good.
Now I see why people pay so much for the variants - the opportunity to drink a beer like this.
That stated, I am not buying many variants because I am not much of a gambler and would rather buy a sure thing.
But occasionally I weaken and succumb.
Cheers all, and many thanks to @Todd for letting this stay open.
Hopefully you all had a great Christmas Day!

 

Paulaner Marzen. Forgot to take a picture of the glass I poured it into when I drank it yesterday, so here's a pic of a bottle as a poor substitute. First time preparing these sorts of tasting notes.

Appearance: pours a gorgeous deep amber with good clarity. Head is fairly modest and disappears somewhat quickly.

Aroma: lovely toasted bread, raisin, cherry, plum, even maple nose on this marzen. A surprisingly strong cinnamon note too. Honestly wasn’t expecting this to be so aromatic.

Taste: all of the above flavors mingle in a wonderfully malty and rich way. The malt, fruit, and spice hit blends with a taper to a moderately hoppy finish that balances well. Hops feel on the piney, earthy side.

Feel: Medium body. A crisper and less syrupy finish than you’d expect from the opening flavor hit - maybe a little thin for my liking. Drinks fairly smoothly. It feels warmer than its relatively mellow 5.8% would suggest.

Overall: An excellent malt-forward brew that’s full of flavor, but doesn’t overdo it in any direction, with just enough bitter backbone. Well worth it. 4.2/5

I tried their hefe yesterday as well, but it was just sort of OK - outclassed by Ayinger and Hofbrau. Maybe it'll be better with another taste some day in the future.

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Additionally sampled today at a Christmas party: Paulaner Salvator (very good doppelbock - I prefer Ayinger but this is a close second), Allagash White (pleasantly refreshing), and Great Lakes Christmas Ale (very nice - tossup between this and East End's Snow Melt as my favorite seasonal offerings).

Merry Christmas yinz. This is a lot more than I usually partake in, so now to take a breather for the next week, and enjoy sampling a bunch of black teas I picked up recently until New Year's Eve.

 

Happy holidays and welcome aboard the best recurring thread on Beer Advocate.

 

I enjoyed your review, and glad you were able to join us this Christmas!

The black teas sound great as well. I’m also enjoying some warm tea this time of year, but nothing too fancy.

 

Great review. I did not expect to see a MST3K/Final Sacrifice reference in the wild, but they just got approval to show it on youtube again. Apparently they also recently added a Torgo beer at this brewery. A bit of ISO @Ozzylizard someday after I finally review all your BIF beers

Cheers