New Beer Weekend #250

For sure, it has become more expensive in recent year, so not an excuse. When I worked there, it was like less 50 cents more for regular price per bottle (but its all singles so there is always just a bit of an up charge for that)....not perfect, but what you going to do ha. Its also not worth it to drive all the way across town for me, when I just want a couple of unique bottles, so there is that.

 

Don't be a stranger!

 

I tend to fixate on ingredients & the malt bill/hops. But I am very sure you or I can build a low/mid ABV beer with outrageously priced malts & hops too.

 

Lefthand Nitro Candy Cane Imperial Stout, 9.5% ABV; 3.61

Pours an effervescent Chestnut/Auburn with a thumb+ of tight cream-colored head. Lovely head retention & better than average lacing

S: Some minty notes & chocolate, muted from the Nitro

T: Follows the nose, some dry notes with booze on the fringes. More of the same as this warms up, a little woody hops break through, some vanilla too. Finishes with trace of woody hop bitterness, minty notes & a little cocoa

MF: Medium body, creamy carbonation

Most of the time I consider Nitro a detractor, here it's about a push, might even be a slight help. Certainly helps with drinkability. This isn't one I'd tap again, but if someone offered me one around the Holidays, I'd be cool with that. ABV is very well hidden, could be lethal

 

Live it up Brother!

 

Still catching up with everyone's posts - enjoying a saison (or a "country pale ale") from Suarez on this drizzly evening - cheers!

4.27/5 rDev +0.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

January 2023 batch, enjoyed May 3rd, 2025 - poured from a 750mL bottle into my Unibroue tulip.

Lightly cloudy jonquil/gold liquid with a heavy stand of ivory merengue up top. Rich, dense lacing; excellent retention.

Gentle brett. combines with wildflowers/alfalfa/citrus/tropical fruit/etc. in the nose. Funk, fruit, and malt synergize to great effect.

Bright, tart palate entry, biscuity, peppery, funky, and fruity. Lightly grainy with a touch of sorrel, meyer lemon, and unripe apricot. Dry, crackery finish with maybe a whisper of oak. Low bitterness.

Soft, creamy, yet refreshing mouthfeel - well carbonated.

Well crafted, gently sour, easy going yet subtle.

 

From the awesome @bbtkd via a LIF from the never ending NBW Imperial Stout/Barleywine BIF#2

White Elm Brewing Co. Apple Brandy Champurrado Imperial Stout aged in Apple Brandy Barrels, Vanilla, Guajillo Chiles, Cinnamon & Raw Cocoa Nibs added, 13.0% ABV; 4.56 overall

Pours an effervescent cola/mahogany color with one pinky of mocha colored head. Viscous as Hell, below average head retention & lacing

S: Green Apples immediately once opened, Brandy Barrel notes, some cinnamon late

T: Follows the nose, cinnamon, leather, vanilla & cola up front. trace of citrus & black pepper & pepper heat. Molasses notes, cola, Apple Brandy. oaky notes dryness & rich dark chocolate & deep tobacco notes once this beer warms up. Finishes super-chewy with cinnamon, green apple Brandy & tobacco notes & traces of pepper heat

MF: Super chewy, restrained carbonation, warming. Carbonation picks up once warmer

How is this 13% ABV? So drinkable, while bringing flavor & complexity

 

Nice glass!

 

Good evening NBW!
My last post lamented how I was lacking new to me imperial stouts so I went out and bought some.
Transient has been pretty solid as far as most beers go, yet their barrel aged stouts always have adjuncts and/or additives. So I focused on the barrel - rye whiskey, which has yet to let me down.

I live and learn. This one looked promising but turns out to be another full on pastry stout.
The version is (2024). Apparently earlier versions were more balanced.
The pour is used motor oil black with a dark brown head measured in millimeters. For the ABV, not surprising.
The taste is where it deviates from the norm; doesn’t matter what barrel or what additives, the maple syrup dominates. That isn’t an exaggeration. No hops, no rye whiskey edge, no discernible coffee flavor, just CBS on steroids.
The feel is viscous, appropriate for a syrup based beer.
OA, well damn, I really expected better, but it was not to be.
Tomorrow I will have something without adjuncts or additives, I want to taste the beer!

 

Thanks for the mention! That was a very inspiring post. A few breweries around here have been doing some real throwback beers over the past year or so (and by throwback I mean late 1990s/early 2000s or thereabouts). Ruse Brewing (Portland, OR) did a fresh-hop version of their Dad Moon Rising hoppy amber last year with fresh Centennial hops. It was a real kick.

I will definitely watch for more hoppy ambers. Especially if they sound as good as the Tonewood beer you waxed poetic about.

 

New to me
Watching at my taco truck spot
Illegal stream.
Canelooo

 

Up in Astoria, OR, where the Columbia River meets the Pacific Ocean, Fort George Brewery celebrates Stout Month every February. They release a new stout pretty much every day. The crown jewel is the Festival of Dark Arts, where they pour nothing but stouts. Dry stouts, sweet stouts, milk stouts, oatmeal stouts, imperials, barrel-aged...you get the picture.

Tickets can be hard to get, as the Festival tends to sell out quickly. The good news is that leftovers start showing up in the Portland area for a couple months afterwards.

I bring this up because I stumbled across a real beast of a stout at a nearby taphouse this afternoon, and it's from Fort George in collaboration with Grains of Wrath (Camas, WA, just east of Vancouver and north of Portland).



Fort George/Grains of Wrath Spirit Creature
Imperial stout aged in Elijah Craig bourbon barrels for 24 months
15.3%

5-ounce pour enjoyed in a small snifter at the original Prime Tap House in Beaverton, OR. No spoilers, but 5 ounces was plenty.

Look:
Opaque black-brown with cola-brown highlights at the edges of the glass. No head, just an incomplete ring of dark brown bubbles. No lacing, but nice legs (as you might expect from a beer north of 15% ABV).

Smell:
Bourbon, fruity dark chocolate, and grape jelly. Sweet, but not just sweet. Notes of port wine, almonds, milk chocolate-covered cherries, and an almost savory whiff of caramel.

Taste:
Starts with high-percentage cacao dark chocolate dunked in bourbon. Big alcohol flavor follows, along with a crazy whirlwind of flavors: roasted malt, burnt brown sugar, white jelly beans, vanilla fondant, cappuccino with a caramel drizzle, roasted strawberries, a touch of campfire smoke. Sweet, but not too sweet. The finish is dark chocolate ganache, blueberries, creme brulee, toasted almonds, and bourbon.

Feel:
Full-bodied, voluptuous, and syrupy with a velvety texture. Just enough carbonation to give each sip a satisfying bite. Some alcohol heat, but far less than expected, given the ABV and the huge bourbon flavor which permeates the beer.

Overall:
As I mentioned above, Fort George makes a lot of stouts this time of year. Some of the one-offs I've sampled over the past year have been way too sweet for me. But not this beast. Yes, it's sweet. But not too sweet. And it's loaded with other flavors which were a joy to pick apart as I savored my 5-ounce pour. Really nice beer.

 

Me too I wanna ask @Resistance88 what he thought of Old Speckled Hen, but honestly, why cause a fuss?

 

Welcome one and all to New Beer Sunday #1054!

Need to catch up with the thread likely after sleep and the final Sox game of the homestand. As promised, my last of three from the latest Forest & Main Drop.

Forest & Main I Will Be You

3.86/5 rDev +2.9%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 4



5/4/25 - (Can - Home) (Chicago, IL) Can Notes: Purchased at Beer on the Wall at Park Ridge at store temperature for $4.55 including tax on March 22, 2025. Refrigerated upon returning home until opening this morning. 16 oz, no can date, distributed week ended 3/21/25. 4.0% ABV Saison. Brewed with triticale, wheat, and pilsner malt. Hopped with aged hops, Hallertau Blanc, and Hersbrucker. Keep Cold - Drink Fresh. Brewed and packaged by Forest & Main Brewing Company, 241 N. Main Street, Ambler, Pennsylvania.

Appearance: First pour about 12 oz into a large tulip glass, yielding a clear yellow golden base, steady sustained carbonation, and a very generous and rich bubbly bright white head, which looks great and lingers quite a while before finally leaving a creamy cover over the entire base. 4.5

Aroma: Nice mildly funky aroma, lemon, bubble gum, and white peppercorns. Traditional saison take, mild plus in strength and enjoyment. 3.75

Taste: Consistent with the aroma though stronger, very sweet with lemon, bubble gum and tropical pineapple and tangerine front and center. and a dry white wine. Many flavors, they blend well, enjoying. 3.75

Mouthfeel: Light easy body, lightly prickly carbonation adds a bit of depth. Very light and easy drinking consistent with the 4.0% ABV. Sweetness and tropical fruit flavors noted in the Taste notes resides and it's a nice typical Saison blend. Perhaps slightly less funk than expected, more fruity flavors that work well with white wine and lemon the flavor closers. 4.0

Overall: This is another winner from Forest & Main. My first saison from them, a solid offering hitting most of the expected notes. I like more funk than this offered, would get again or explore other saisons from them in the future. Looking forward to their next drop or perhaps a Fall visit back to Philadelphia. 4.0

 

I second this statement

 

That beer sounds like it would be worthier of the plane price to get it