New Beer Weekend #72

Broad Leaf is Brewery Vivant, the American version. Of beer that is. They tend to focus on European styles, especially French. Which puts them in a niche. They do that niche very well, but wanted to reach a wider audience. And expand their footprint a bit.
So it’s technically the same beer, just brewed and canned at their “other” location.
I like it better than their BBA Stout, I suspect because of their French take on the style.
Glad it was at least interesting!

 

First of three new stouts tonight! I haven't had a several-beer NBW in a long time, so I'm excited! Starting the new job on Monday, as well, so this is a time of cheer for me. I hope all of you BAs out there are having a cozy, enjoyable evening with your loved ones.

This is Aglow, a cocoa/peppermint stout from Banded in Biddeford, ME. I haven't had many stouts from Banded (previously Banded Horn) of late, but their classic Jolly Woodsman from years ago was a top-tier coffee stout and a constant presence in mine and my friends' fridges for a while, so I believe they have what it takes to do well by this idea.

The pour seems a little watery, as it tumbles out of the can and into my glass with a ruby tinged brown-ish color that seems mostly clear. I usually expect stouts these days to pour very thick and viscous, so this was a change of pace, but I suppose it builds up decently in my glass by the end of my initial pouring. It's definitely a clear beer, which is surprising, and the head is thin-ish and not impressive. There is some decent lace show here, but... eh, not really a superb appearance.

The nose seems more biased to the peppermint side of things than to the cocoa or even to the stout-like underpinnings it should focus on, but I get wanting to go a bit harder on the adjuncts to at least make them come across in the finished product. Upon my first sip, I'm feeling even more like the peppermint bias is prominent. I want more chocolate here for sure, and I thought maybe letting it open up a bit would cause that aspect to pop... spoilers: it doesn't; this is very peppermint-forward. Now, the peppermint isn't artificial or distracting, nor does it feel like it overtakes everything! It's just that the base of this beer seems very safe. I think the risk here mostly has to do with the mint addition, and they maybe tried to intentionally dial back other elements to hedge their bets. The feel is pretty thin, and there is some bitterness and a cola-like aftertaste that I feel might not be the best. However, I think this beer is a good "one-and-done" and it does achieve its goal of being a holiday-themed stout (it's a collaboration with Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens in support of their drive-by holiday lighting event), and I support it. If you are looking for a rather unique holiday stout that tries something unique, I'm sure you could do worse than this, and I'm enjoying sipping on it. Do I think it could be better; that they could do a better job by this concept? Yes, I do.

More soon... cheers.

 

I saw that Cambridge Brewing Co. (in MA) put out a "kveik yeast fermented lager" recently. I am intrigued but also... my cynicism causes me to raise my eyebrow at this concept. It's pretty much just a kölsch, right? Or, in a sense, it's like a cream ale by the term's original usage. I dunno. I've never really had an impressive kveik beer, but I've only had beer that utilized this yeast in the context of an IPA, and the funkiness of traditional kveik use doesn't lend itself well to the punchy, aggressive IPA styles I prefer. Shrug. Guess I'll have to give one of these a shot if they still continue to gain some kind of weird traction.

 

Hello New Beer Weekend!!!

All right, I'm home from work, and have tomorrow off, and am ready for a new beer.


Oktoberfest - Moose Lake Brewing - Moose Lake, MN - 7.3% ABV

I've never had it before, and it was the last crawler of it at work, so I decided to get it. I really like how it looks. Nice murky amber color, with a good looking off white head. The flavor is pretty good, though a bit bitter right up front, though it goes to the malty, biscuit flavor on the back.

Not bad at all.

Review:
https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/48340/578541/

3.67/5 rDev +0.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75

Amber colored pour, and it is somewhat murky. The head is 4 finger, off white, fluffy looking and also fairly long lasting. There's no lacing on the glass.
The nose is a malty, biscuit aroma. Slightly nutty as well.
Up front it is somewhat bitter, from the hops used. This mellows out quickly to a malty, buttery biscuit, nutty flavor on the backside.
The body is decent. Pretty good for the style.
Not a bad beer in the style.


I might have another. Not sure yet.

 

Last one for the day, but I've got a couple lined up for tomorrow (including a very special beer) for NBS. Thanks to @jonphisher for this Carton Milk, a (wait for it) Milk stout. A bit more roast forward than most, but it works nicely.

https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/26817/579993/

 

Hope everyone has a good NBW. Life is going amazing and I am balancing a bunch of hobbies all at once instead of just beer like it was for 7 years. Pretty swell. I want to buy a surround sound system next to watch movies and play games on the couch. I am moving down Julia next weekend, I got a flight to CAK and I will get my dad to pick me up and take me to Uhaul the next day. I'll move her out as swiftly and quietly as her parents did for her from when I lived in Ohio. I don't ever need to talk to them again if they don't want to. I am the one in control now bitches.

Great Lakes Siren Shores. BB 10/24/2020. This was an awesome saison. Lasting fluffy head retention and foamy lacing. Big streaming carbonation. Aromas and flavors of big lightly tart/tangy passion fruit, pear, red apple, apricot, peppercorn, ginger, clove, light banana/bubblegum, wheat, white bread dough, herbal, floral, grass, and yeast earthiness. Some good yeast funk from what seems like Saison Dupont yeast. Light-moderate peppery yeast/ginger spice, fruit tang/tartness, and light herbal/grassy bitterness on the finish. High carbonation, medium body, and fairly crisp finishing. Some creamy/grainy malt, sticky spice, and yeast/fruit tang/tartness in the mouthfeel. Increasingly drying spice with no astringency. Minimal warming 6.9%. Great classic saison yeast complexity without overdoing the fruit or spice. Pretty refreshing for the ABV. GL usually nails random styles they make seasonally. This is one of those times. 4.13


Cheers

 

Happy New Beer Weekend! Thanks for the nice open @Roguer, apparently I too need to try the new winter lager if you enjoyed it that much. Unfortunately our dog hurt her hind leg bad today, she won't really walk on it at all. Luckily we got to vet for some meds and hope that it will improve slowly but surely. She's her own worst enemy in keeping herself calm, its what we love about here but it also gets her in trouble.



On a positive I had never tried Weltenburger but always wanted to, I saw them once years ago, then they disappeared from distro until now. Came across some and grabbed a six of this to start.

Weletenburg - Barock Dunkel



This is one pretty looking beer, crystal clear brown with a really nice reddish hue to it. The head has a nice light brown to it and it had some really nice retention. Minor lacing.

The nose is mostly a sweet rich bread aroma, some dark fruit and caramel/toffee like smells to it too.

The taste much like the nose has a sweet rich bread and crusty flavor, but it also presents some dark grain and nuttiness to it as well. A nice little subtle but noticeable hop kick to it as well, comes out in the form of almost a little black pepper like.

Mouthfeel is light but full, it has some nice body but it drinks much lighter than that body would make you think before you swallow. A minor sweetness to it and little to no bitterness present.

This is a good and enjoyable dunkel, it isn't my favorite but I'm enjoying it enough to be glad that I have a whole six pack.

Looking forward to seeing what everyone else is drinking tonight and tomorrow.

 

Long, busy day and I finally have some down time, which also means beer time. Somehow I've never tried Saison Dupont until today, despite my love for the style.

4.03/5 rDev -4.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Pours a clear, golden color with loads of robust, long lasting foam leaving behind plenty of lacing. Aroma has plenty of funk, with floral / herbal notes, as well as some banana, Took me several deep whiffs to appreciate the relative complexity of the aroma. Taste is heavy on the yeast and cloves, with a funky / earthy quality to it. Mostly dry, well carbonated and fairly crisp. Glad I finally got a chance to try this classic beer

 

I am glad to see folks still drinking the Oktoberfest biers. This one brewed here in the Florida panhandle is quite refreshing and quaffable at 5 % ABV; however, I surely wish the brewers made this one crisper. The flavor has hints of rye bread, toffee, and butterscotch. The label states this is a "Festbier", but when I think of festbiers this flavor profile does not come to mind. It is still a flavorful lager.

 

Brewing Projekt Excellent Find Imperial Stout, 10.3% ABV. Pours thick and black, with a half-finger tan head that left some lacing. Nose is strong cocoa and nuts. Taste follows, slightly sweet, slightly tart, with the cocoa lingering nicely, and salt on the close. Excellent mouthfeel with good carbonation. Overall outstanding. Be sure to let this one warm, cocoa really pops.

4.39/5 rDev +3.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5

First beer I've seen in this tall and skinny 12oz can format. Good beer to sip while I finish up online Christmas shopping.

 

Thanks! So you do know the challenge of keeping a northern breed calm I'm gonna miss our long walks while she's down. The times she has almost injured herself chasing, and many time successfully catching animals, in her 8.5 years is quite impressive. It seems in her later years the "almost" is being replaced with just "injured". Hopefully not for long, fingers crossed, vet said her knee joint felt a little unstable we both hope it was just from the swelling.

 

Here is the second of two collaborations between @scream's son and his liquor store. Please zoom into the label to view the details. I have experienced that stouts aged in whiskey that is not bourbon or rye is usually not as good as if they were. That is the case here. This beer has a look that is undiscovered black hole in color. Smell is strong Jack Daniel's. Familiar. Vanilla Coke. Club Raul whiskey and splash of cola. Taste is like a mixed drink. I like Tennessee whiskey. Maybe not right now. Vanilla. Coke. Mouthfeel is Jack and Coke. I like that, but not necessarily from 3 Sheeps Brewing. Overall, you can only brew a barrel-aged stout that the barrel allows. I appreciate what was done here, but I am not drinking this beer on a special occasion. I love Nate and his team at 3 Sheeps Brewing. I love my favorite liquor store. I hope for more collaborations between the two.

 

Emperor Julius by Treehouse Brewing

4.53/5 rDev -1.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.5



Can opened 12.4 poured into a teku

Brewers Notes: Emperor Julius stands tall alongside Very HHHazyyy at the very top of the Tree House family tree. We don't take brewing a beer like this lightly. It has to make sense, and the flavors have to be soft, rounded, elegant, and easy to drink all the way through the glass. To that end, we consider Emperor Julius to be a triumph. It pours an opaque orange in the glass and gives off notes of orange juice, orange Starburst, and overripe mango. It's the summation of almost 15 years of refinement of our unique style of hoppy beer!

Creamy off white on finger foam cap over a hazy orange liquid , reduces to a solid pencil thick layer , spotty lacings

Aroma is citrus orange, tangerine,

Taste is orange citrus , finishes with a little pine and dank, hoppy

Creamy, sudsy mouthfeel , semi dry finish , hop bite with a lingering bitterness

Good beer

 

Okay. You people sit tight, hold the fort and keep the home fires burning. And if we’re not back by dawn… call the president.

Tonight's beer was brewed by Shaidzon and Union Station in RI to celebrate the rivalry between University of Rhode Island and Providence college:



This is Big Trouble in Little Rhody, a beer brewed in the kolsch style.

The beer pours initially crystal clear, golden yellow, with dense white foam about a half inch tall. The head falls quickly to a ring. Was not happy to see that the beautiful clarity of the beer went away after a few minutes - translucent but a significant level of turbidity.

The nose is ok. There's biscuity malt and a decent bouquet of floral hops, light lemon There is also DMS. Initially it is quite intense, but it does fade. Not necessarily a flaw in a kolsch style, but the initial intensity was...well...intense.

The taste seems slightly out of whack to me. Everything is there, but a bit rough around the edges. There's a substantial bitterness that weaves in and out, maybe a bit too heavy. The DMS is there (I know that technically it isn't a flaw for the style). A nice level of lemon and some peppery spice eventually join the party. Green herbal hops. But I am feeling this is not quite a clean and cohesive as it should be. The style element are all in the sandbox but don't seem to be playing as well together as well as they should.

The feel is drying, light mouth feel, a peppery tingle in the aftertaste.

Well...Just remember what ol’ Jack Burton does when the earthquakes and the beer ain't as good as you expected, and the pillars of Heaven shake. Yeah, Jack Burton just looks that big ol’ pint glass right square in the eye and he says, “Give me your best shot, pal. I can take it.

Thinking around a 3.5 or slightly less on this one. Its an OK beer, not worth seeking out. There are much better brews in this style readily available.

 

Up next is Save Your Forks by Mast Landing. This is *sigh* a "dessert inspired pastry stout." Tell me, BA, what kind of pastry stout is not dessert inspired? Pastry stouts should just be called dessert stouts. Case in point. I think this is probably inspired by crème brulée, and it features caramel, cinnamon, vanilla, and lactose. Sounds good, probably.



Pours pretty nice. Large initial head formation with bubbling carbonation and some solid lace that sticks around for a while, ending with a half-finger of off-white foam. Small island of suds on the top that slides away to one side after a few minutes. Good looking stuff, I think.

Huge cinnamon and toffee in the nose with a hint of coffee and tiramisu-like dessert elements. Not too much booze considering it's 7% ABV. Enjoying the smell of this one. It seems rich and like it will be semi-sweet but not too over-the-top in terms of the added ingredients. Hoping I'm right, let's see!

Great flavor profile! Really rich and well-developed with strong cinnamon flavors melding with the caramel in a superb way. It's deep, effective, and very reminiscent of a dessert without being overly-sweet or cloying. Loving the balance here. I wish brewers didn't rely on vanilla and lactose for stuff like this because I find it typically comes across too sweet, but this did nail that element so I guess I can't complain. So much caramel in this as it warms up... very decadent and nice. I dig.

Feels soft and very drinkable. Smooth drinking, nails the dessert aspect, and doesn't feel over the top at all. Loving this one. I enjoy it a lot! Would definitely get again.