New Beer Weekend #270

I was excited to see this review pop up. As I mentioned when you posted the Québec haul your wife brought you, I think Albion is a criminally under appreciated brewery. Their commitment to traditional styles and historical beer recipes is unparalleled up here.

The brewer/owner was at L’Amere a Boire prior to opening Albion in 2010. The original brewery is located in an old building in the town of Joliette in the Launadiere region of Québec. The area is beautiful to visit in the fall with the changing of the leaves. As a kid, I went to summer camps in the region every year and have fond memories.

They tend to the British in terms of styles and do them very well. They also innovate, but in rather idiosyncratic ways. How many North American breweries have the following beer list available right now to go:

English Porter
Blanche (Wit brewed with English yeast)
Bitter (their original beer)
Mild
English IPA
White Wine barrel aged English Brett IPA.
and finally, 18th century style English blond ale (saison’s cousin according to the description).

and… to prove they can do it..

DDH NEIPA.

Their beer list on tap and in cask is even more impressive including two different Scottish styles, a Hefeweizen, a Grisette and an Old Ale.

They’ve only recently gotten bigger and have more Québec distribution than before.

In case you couldn’t tell, I love the brewery.

ok, ok. Proselytizing over.. for now.

 

Hammerheart Druid Pines


Appearance: Clear dark gold, good head.

Smell: A bit of smoke, and what I think is wild rice-grainy, earthy.

Taste: A bit of sweetness, then the browned rice comes in afterwards. Medium bodied. Mild smoke through the middle and in the finish.

Overall: Always pumped to see a new Hammerheart release, this is a “Laurentian Pilsner” with wild rice and smoked beechwood malt. It's pretty solid, there is smoke but not over-the-top, and the wild rice gives an interesting flavor.

 

Damn, that one sounds painful.

 

Glad this one redeemed the prior dud.

 

Great writeup. And, YES to Chinook!

 

That's genius!

 

Or chew?

 

Thanks for the background Peter. Sounds like passionate dedication to art.

 

I had a nagging feeling at the back of my mind that I still had an Albion bottle hidden somewhere in the cellar. I was right! It was right behind the ten other bottles of beer I’ve forgotten about….

This may have been held far too long (unintentionally), but I’ll try my best to get it open tonight before the thread closes to share. It’s a smoky, creamy English brown ale.

Until then…

 

Hey what's going on?!

Went out to BabyCat and came back with this alligator instead. Just taking it easy and ready to dive into some Oktoberfest and marzen as the season changes. Unfortunately I think it will be pretty brown around here but who knows.

What's our hero drinking today?

BabyCat Brewing - Alligator Blood, Czech Pilsner



Poured from the can into a Libbey style pilsner glass.

Frothy and rich foaming right out of the can, hitting a good solid controlled three four finger height. Bright white, not quite bleach or blinding luckily and settles fairly nicely with minimal retention. Beautiful gleaming clear brass body, with light lines of fine bubbles and rising carbonation. Nearly mirror like presence but with a very limited collar and top after a quick settle.

Aroma goes for light clean sensations, but with a good bakery malt note. Hits a little sweet sugar and very minimal sensing hop presence.

Palate comes out a little more basic. Some touches of that dough to bakery bread malt, but more of a minimal generic sweetness. The brew has a bit of a watery presence, and a bit of flatness going on, leading to a slightly downturn in mouthfeel. Not much sense of herbal pop or noble presence either.

Unfortunately not much going on here, with some flaws in feel and body, but passable and drinkable at least.

look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5 | BeerAdvocate Generated score: 3.67

Cheers!

 

Festbier from Stockyards Beverage Company

Poured a 473ml can into a mug. A two finger fine white head on a clear gold. Excellent head retention. Lots of lacing.

Bready malts in the nose. the taste follows the nose. bready malts up front. Sweet. A moderate hop finish.

Medium body and carbonation. Smooth and well balanced. An excellent Festbier. I prefer Marzens for my Oktoberfest needs. Although a Festbier, it leans Marzen. Well worth a try.

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

 

You’ll see me on shark tank soon…assuming you provide the backing

I’ll make something up about antioxidants, yada, yada, yada; we’ll be millionaires.

 

Good afternoon NBW
I took a chance to check out a new local place and a beer and brewer I'd never heard of.

Eredità Festbier 2025

Draft pour 5.8% ABV served cold at Barker Brewhouse in a wheat beer glass...
Mostly bright, light gold. Off white head. Webs of lacing. Not a lot of aroma. Taste is big floral hops over a fairly light malt base. Moderate bitterness. The feel is thin bodied with average carbonation and a mostly dry finish. Overall, more of an IPL than a true festbier.

This place is on the other side of town and only has one or two of their own beers on tap at any given time. I'll come back to try their oktoberfest. It's pretty typical for Kentuckiana, Pabst and other AAL options in the cooler.

 

Big Guava by Tree house


4.3/5 rDev -2.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

Brewers notes : Big Guava is Haze conditioned atop heaps of guava purée! Big Guava carries notes of overripe guava, fresh fruit salad, orange juice concentrate, and clementines.

Big Guava is Haze conditioned atop heaps of guava purée and freeze-dried guava. This treatment concentrates the flavor profile and brings the most potent representation of our favorite tropical fruit to the forefront of this offering. Pouring a brilliant hazy yellow in the glass, Big Guava carries notes of overripe guava, fresh fruit salad, orange juice concentrate, and clementines. It carries a beautiful balance of hop, fruit, and yeast character that is carefully captured and locked into this can. Please keep it cold at all times and enjoy it as fresh as possible for the best experience—Enjoy!

Chilled pint can poured into a teku, big bubbles, glassy bubbles over a hazy mango colored liquid . Steady carbonation streams Settles to a ring ,

Very fragrant aroma, fruit salad , guava

Taste is fruit salad , guava , peaches

Juicy mouthfeel , low carbonation, medium mouthfeel, abv well hidden

Good beer, dive into a glass of this Tree House beer

 

Bidding farewell to Summer (though I know the heat will carry forward well into November here in the San Fernando Valley) with the latest rotating Swami's variant - cheers!

4.18/5 rDev -2.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25

Packaged August 25th - enjoyed on September 21st, 2025 - poured from a pint can into my Dogfish Head shaped pint glass.

Hop bill is Citra, Krush, Motueka, and Idaho 7.

Nearly clear golden body with three fingers of rich crenellated ghost white foam up top. Rocky/soapy lacing; superior retention.

Crushed orange, peaches, lemon balm, and low catty/berry notes as well. Complex and subtle nose.

Hop forward and fruity with a cavalcade of flavors: rock candy, ginger, white wine grapes, green tomato, tangerine, gooseberry, dandelion greens, Fruit Loops, and on and on. Fairly sweet up front with a lengthy and lasting bitterness leading into a medium-dry slightly herbaceous finish.

Medium-light bodied, round yet biting with plenty of carbonation. ABV hides behind the bitterness.

Fascinating if a little tiring showcase of some newer hop varieties.

 

Some Yard's Brawler while I cook up some chicken piccata

 

*raises hand*

I am definitely old enough to remember the dancing bear on Captain Kangaroo.

Good call on the resemblance of the bear on the label.

 

I picked up a lot of new beers last week, so I'll be joining in more often in the coming weeks (not sure if that makes you smile, shrug, or cringe).

Today's new beer is one of several New England Oktoberfests I grabbed. Representing Vermont is:
Zero Gravity Oktoberfest
5.4% Marzen



Pours a clear, bright amber with a thick two-finger white head.

There isn't a lot going on for aroma. I can pick up cracker and biscuit along with an earthy/grassy hop presence, but that's it. My mind says there must be some caramel or toffee notes, I just can't find them.

Thankfully the taste is far better. Honey on white bread and toffee are on the sweet start to the sip. I then get caramel and rustic bread that turns to brown bread with caramel and honey nearing the finish. Earthy and grassy hop bitterness comes through on the finish and lingers pleasantly through a long aftertaste, balancing caramel that pops in and out during the aftertaste.

Medium bodied with slightly high carb; a bit of prickle throughout the sip.

Overall, a fine Marzen. Could definitely use some improvements, especially on aroma and feel, but not something I'd avoid.

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I'll be back next week with at least one more Oktoberfest to see how it compares. Have a good week NBWers.