New Beer Weekend #288

Happy NBS. Hope all are staying warm, I had to turn up the heat in the house. Only people on the road are the 4WD people, just saw a Wrangler drive up the street earlier. I finished up Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir this afternoon and it is a 5/5. Modern version of an Arthur C Clarke vibe. Need to read The Martian soon. I just started Who Is Government? by Michael Lewis(of The Big Short fame) which is amazing so far. It's about everyone in the government who doesn't work with politics. Plenty of info about regulations.

RIP @cavedave, really sad about that news. I was NBS contributor back in the day religiously, he always seemed like a really chill dude, I wish I could have met him. I remember when he had to limit his drinking for health reasons, but I loved to see him checking into the thread occasionally.

In Cavedave's memory I have a beer I received from @GreenBayBA before metalfest 2023 in my hotel room Pregaming . Central Waters Reese and Desist Stout. Got a thick ring of fat residue in the neck of the bottle. A fluffy head with poor retention and minimal lacing. Aromas are great with milk chocolate, cocoa, peanut butter, fudge, caramel, toffee, vanilla, bourbon, toasted oak, light coffee. Increasing booze in the aromas as it warms. Taste follows with big milk chocolate, cocoa, caramel, brown sugar, peanut butter, vanilla, cream, toffee, bourbon, coconut, toasted oak; light fudge, coffee, char, pepper, pine. Light-medium pine/roasted bitterness and bourbon/oak tannin spiciness on the finish. Light-medium carbonation and medium-full body; good creamy/silky body from the lactose, light-medium chalky roast and bourbon/oak tannin drying lingering after the finish. Increasing warmth/booze of barrel and 11.3% after the finish. Outstanding all around complexity for a BBA imperial stout, not as bold on peanut butter flavor as I wanted, but loved the beer(and so did my wife). Great barrel presence, and only mildly sweeter with the flavorings. Always been a big fan of the base beer. 4.1/5


Cheers

 

I love this post, I am here for it to, your excitement is palpable out here on the East Coast. All the bitter and bite I love in classic IPA in a drinkable standard abv format, how could anyone argue with it?!?!?

I'm assuming this style, or "style", gets added sooner than later, it hasn't gone away, if anything there are more now than there was last year.

 

As far as I can tell there's about a foot of snow so far and it's going to come down heavily until about ten tonight. I'm going Bob Eucker knuckleball mode - when it stops snowing I'll clean it up. Although the temp has gone from 6 degrees this morning to 24 now - I hope that doesn't mean we are in the dreaded "mix zone"...right now we are light and fluffy...

Here we go:



Boulevard's Proper Pour with a dr8nk by date of July 2028. It's an AIS aged in red wine casks and whiskey barrels, 12.7% ABV. I gather it's an annual release since there's BA notes for 2023 and '24. Straight from the pantry, so its 55-ish degrees on the pour.

Pours a dark espresso-like brown color. Looked clear as it was pouring, but can't see through it one bit in the glass. Dark tan foamy head almost making an inch. Ends up as a thick ring and with splotches over the surface. The edge bubbles lace nicely and the liquid clings heavy on the glass.

Smells...different. I get stout pretty clearly - a little nice roast malt and a little char with a bit of coffee. Then there's kind of a melange of red wine grapes and whiskey and a little woodiness. I'm also getting a strong floral note almost like rosewater.

Loving the taste here. Without knowing what barrels were used, the character is pretty obvious. Deep red wine flavor mingled with a whiskey sharpness with some noticeable oak tang. The stout base is contributing a lot as well - not hidden by the barrel flavors. Mild and pleasant char, a bit of coffee, a touch of chocolate, dark breadiness, tobacco. There's dark cherry and the fig/date thing going on. Mild sweetness.

It's thick on the feel and it is leaving a lot of residual flavor post-swallow. Wine, whiskey, stout-y and some sticky fruity sweetness. Carbonation is not strong and it's VERY warming for 12.7%.

Overall, the smell was initially confusing. I have no idea where the floral part comes from but it isn't in the taste. It's intensely flavored but everything is nicely melded. Lots of the cask/barrel but not overwhelming. Good stuff - 4.2 or so.

 

Paying my respects to @cavedave - will keep him in mind whenever I pull from my cellar.

The penultimate beer from my Suarez hall. Would have been interesting to review this Satsuma version side-by-side with the Shiro version - I rated the latter a little higher, but both were pleasures to imbibe - cheers!

4.19/5 rDev -1.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4.25

Bottled November, 2022 - enjoyed on January 25, 2026 - poured from a 500mL bottle into a port glass.

Nearly clear coral pink liquid with a low fizzy cap; no lacing; mediocre retention.

Complex funk and fruit melange in the nose. Rose petals, light oak, fresh plum...

Tart bright palate entry with the acidity giving way to a core of fresh plum (like biting through the bitter/tart skin). Mild wild yeast notes and a whisper of oak. Fairly dry finish.

Relatively light body, crisp with adequate carbonation.

An excellent expression of an heirloom ingredient supported by an excellent base beer.

 

There was a book swap this afternoon at a local taphouse, so I stopped in for a beer and a browse.

I left a few books on the table and didn't see anything I wanted to bring home, so I settled in with the library book I brought and
enjoyed a New Beer.



Alesong Czech Dark Lager

The beer has a gorgeous clear red-brown body with chestnut highlights. The thin head of tan foam which left a few threads of lacing. The nose offers touches of toasted brown bread and a caramel in a base of nutty, mildly sweet malt. The flavor follows, and adds hints of brown sugar and a prominent roasted malt character. The semi-sweet finish deftly blends toasty malt, brown sugar, moderate bitterness, and some earthy coffee in the aftertaste. The body is light with bracing carbonation. The texture is a little abrupt, and I wish it were a bit softer. Overall, it's a solid version of the style, but there are better local options I'd reach for first.

 

I’m baaack.
Okay, this is exactly why I should check BA before I buy a beer that I think is new to me.
But the good part is that it was still really good.

Also picked up my annual HopSlam but I remembered having that one before.
This next one (yes, a rare three beer evening for me) I *did* check BA for and found it was retired. But the end cap with many cases argued against that. And I hadn’t had it yet. Or at least not reviewed it yet.
Let me fix that-

The pour is dark, darker than stout black, it approaches true black. Zero light shows through. The brown head was around a half inch thick and the lacing is excellent.
The taste hits all the notes expected; dark bread, toasted, coffee by the gallon, chocolate and a little vanilla. It is flirting with being a pastry stout.
The feel is very much what I hoped for (lactose tends to lend viscosity) nicely full and actually viscous.
OA, glad it’s back, bummer I didn’t get it the first time it was released.
And that will do it for me this weekend I think.
Cheers all!!!

 

@LeRose the dreading mix never happened, some other demonic concoction. 6-7 inches of fluff, then sleet for 8-9 hours.

It was like shoveling sand and it looked it too, so trippy it would pour off the roof like it was an hour glass but sounded like crystals. Never seen anything like it.

 

Yeah - lucky so far. There was about two feet drifted onto the front landing - I just cleaned that up and the walk-up so I can get to the tractor. Plus we get avalanches off the solar panels and it's a 12 foot fall that packs in. Tempted to do some bucket loader work tonight before people get on the road in the morning (duh...everything is already closed and there's damned few who actually HAVE to get somewhere in this town) - just push everything as far across the road as I can get it. But...must... resist..temptation...

 

Would loved to have experienced that, sounds fascinating.
I took a walk with my dog between beers 2 and 3 and there was what seemed to be a sleet made of the smallest possible ice crystals coming down. In the light from my headlamp it looked for all the world I was walking through a ten inch thick carpet of diamonds. That one was new to me as well, and I've seen a *lot* of different kinds of snow.
Stay warm all, this vortex isn't done with us yet!

 

Best of luck tomorrow with the clearing my friend.

The cold does some pretty amazing stuff, for those who venture out to explore it. Sounds like we had similar experiences today.

 

The snow is two Shih Tzu's deep - couldn't walk 'em beyond the patio if I had to!!! I keep thinking if I glue the three of them together I'd almost have my labs back...rescues...we do the right thing.

 

What goes in the Hamburger Helper that gives it such a lofty name?

 

Learned a fun fact about our new Corgi, refuses to pee or pooh unless on a leash ( except out carpet outside the bedroom ). We tried to just throw him out in the now, he wasn't having it

 

Echigo Premium Red Ale, 6.0% ABV; 3.57 overall

Pours an effervescent copper/scarlet with one finger of tan head. Average head retention & lacing

S: Toasty, a little caramel. Caramel picks up a little as the beer warms through

T: Follows the nose, a little dry, woody hops up front. More caramel, toastyness & leafy hops once warmer. Finishes toasty with a little caramel sweetness & woody hops

MF: Medium body, slight carbonation. Lack of carbonation didn't help the cause

This one seems a little tired but can't decode the lot number & I am too lazy to do so now. Had higher hopes, drinks alright, one & done

 

Last new beer of the weekend,.

River City Brewing's Rob's Morning Glory Breakfast Stout w/ Cinnamon, Orange, Vanilla & Brown Sugar, 14.0% ABV; 4.15 overall

Pours an effervescent chestnut/cola color with a sliver of mocha colored head. Last few ounces pour like motor oil, zero head retention & lacing

S: Cinnamon, oranges, chocolate

T: Follows the nose, a little vanilla cream & coffee up front. Dark chocolate oranges, a little coffee & vanilla creme with brown sugar as this beer warms up. Finishes with dark chocolate, sweet oranges, vanilla cream, faint coffee & cinnamon notes

MF: Very chewy, low carbonation, warming

Good combo of flavors, a little carbonation would've really helped the cause, a sipper to be sure

 

Elder Pine Brewing & Blending Co. - Simcoe Archives
It's a very tasty 6% West Coast-Style IPA. Hopped exclusively with Simcoe. I found a lot of interesting depth and complexity within Simcoe that I was not previously aware of. It's very tasty and balanced, as expected from Elder Pine! Nice brew. IMHO, this is one of the better ones from their "Archives" series.

Cross-posted in WBAYDN #4846 and What Mid-Atlantic beer are you drinking now? (2026)

 

I dig single hop beers for that reason. There are times when I go " that was the hop that wrecked that one."