New Beer Weekend #73

Happy NBW all. This one's fun because it's different, and odd haha. This is Chocolate Lava Cake Stout by Aldi's State of Brewing (or something approximate to that).

The 6er was, I believe, $7.99 which shouldn't be ignored in considering this package.



It looks excellent, lovely head and lacing following that. The aroma is loud, it smells of baking chocolate and the sachets of hot chocolate. Milo (for anyone who knows) would be really close to what this nose is, malt and artificial chocolate. The taste itself makes very little sense, it's so loud and pronounced, and due to the nose you'd anticipate it to be too artificial but it isn't. I'm not sure why but it's oddly drinkable, kind of like Easter Candy. Not the best and yet somehow not awful either.

I'd not argue that it's a "good" beer but you could do a lot worse and pay a lot more. No qualms in picking this up and it's a fun detour for anyone so inclined. On to more complex things from here I believe.

Cheers!

 

Form & Void. A new release by really small Structures Brewing in Bellingham, WA
A-Murky hazy peach with prodigious head and moderate lacing
S-Mango and pine
T-Again, Mango prevails, with resinous hops, vanilla and melon. Below avg sweet, Above avg bitter
M-Moderate (+) chewy body with above average carbonation. Finishes dry.
O-Will be packing a few of these on my way back to Boise.

Go ARMY - Beat Navy

 

12oz can served in a tulip. No date. Received from @FBarber in NBS BIF #14 antics.

Pours super thick, solid, dark black with a surprisingly rich, dark brown head, with surprising retention, keeping a ring about half a centimeter up the side of my glass. Best looking stout I've had in a long while. Smell is boozy and bourbony, tons of anise and coffee and if there's chocolate, it's very dark.

Taste is consistent with the aroma, though not as boozy. I might add in a creaminess that made me think of vanilla ice cream. Strong bitterness in the finish, strikes me mostly as roasted grain bitterness.

Mouthfeel is thick, rich, smooth, creamy, without being sticky or chewy. Overall, this is a very well-made and very tasty beer.

Thank you, Frank!

 

Howdy all. A couple brews this afternoon from a box I received from @Roguer this morning. We had some flooding here in my county back in November, and tonight is a benefit concert at the theater I work at. The theater is donating the space and all the concessions sales, and the staff is donating our time to run the show.

My first entry today is from Allagash's From Maine, With Love series, #09, a tart wheat beer with second use berries: https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/4/579456/

 

Greetings fellow NBWers from on the ridge in Mid Hud Val, NY. Man, felt good to say that, even with the "W". Dreary day here, but hate to complain about weather when folks in parts of this country are burying loved ones due to weather. But dreary is the word. It is not the word for this beer however, nor the play of my favorite football team in the first half.

Cellar still looks like it will outlive me, but it is a small remnant compared to the heyday it enjoyed when the South Mountain men were in their prime. It provides this amazing beer today,

Flora Plum, original bottling. Sorry the picture sucks but I am a poor photographer.

Will edit this for addition to database

It is a clear, reddish plum pour with half a finger of pure white head. It looks less thick than many of the HF saisons I have tried, but "prettier".

Tart plum bursts from the bottle and fills the room. As I pour it gets even stronger. My salivary glands fire before I even put nose to glass. Such a delicious aroma, it calls, entices, with fresh plum, tart sourdough, raspberry jam, grape must notes, honeysuckle, hints of spicy alcohol and fresh flowers, in perfect balance to create a stunning aroma.

Funny that notes so distinct in the aroma are blended into a magical whole when I drink. I close eyes and think what the aroma showed, and I can sense all the flavors of the bouquet, now a balanced, strong blend. It ends a touch jammy that fades into a mildly tart, very fruity linger. As it warms hints of an herbal bitterness enter the mix, quite lightly, and it gets even better.

Medium body for style, light carbonation which works well here, clean as a whistle, with a brilliantly flavored linger that is just right to bring on desire for next sip.

Another masterpiece from the master I regret not tasting fresh. It has either remained or become a beauty of a beer that is an artistic work of intoxicating refreshment

Hope you also have a Great American Beer in your glass. Cheers!

 

It seems crazy that I've not registered this lovely brew in all my days but BAM! it's here now. I'd like to crush it in a 0.5L HB stein but that wouldn't bode well for a pic. I'm sure when I bought my pair of steins in the motherland 40 yrs ago...I had the beer down in the bier hall. It lives again!
Hofbrau Munchen Dunkel
4.08/5 rDev +7.4%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4
12oz bottle with Enigma dating into a tall lager glass.
*I honestly wish European breweries would use a simple and tangible 6 digit MO/DAY/YR packaging date for consumers.
L: Pours dark crystal clear mahogany with a 1.5 inch light beige semi-creamy head with fair retention. Good carbonation to end of entire glass. Random spotty lacing.
S: Caramelized malts, dark soft bread, light floral hops, weak coffee, light yeast, slightly metallic.
T: Toasted caramel malts, mild sweetness, light biscuit, light black tea, dark honey, gentle hops with a subtle tangy citrus zest, lightly fruity and broad, nutty and mildly bitter.
F: Lightly zesty and relatively smooth med-light bodied semi-wet mouthfeel with a med-fast finish that is a bit dry, clean and tingly.
O: Brewed for centuries it is a delicious, gentle, well balanced and easy drinking classic traditional dark lager from one of Germany's oldest breweries. A fantastic compliment with meats and cheeses. It is crushable and is excellent in it's style.

 

A holiday beer from Hamburg Brewing that skates by copyright complaints with Yule Shoot Your Eye Out

Hamburg describes Yule as a 6% “bready rye ale spiced with ginger and spirit for the holidays”
Yule is clear amber with a short, short lived off white head and the faint aroma of rye malts that strengthens as the beer warms

The taste is strong earthy rye, like biting into a slice of unseeded Jewish rye bread with a dry, almost chalky finish and a pleasantly peppery aftertaste

Overall, a pretty well done rye ale, but there is not really any noticable ginger. If you like rye beers you'll likely like Yule of you don't care for the taste of rye bread stay away.

4.06/5
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

 

Funny this is a line my wife likes to use with me and as you all know I Do You Do You very well. Poured into a 16 oz can shaped glass canned 12/6/21. Pours a very clean and clear orange with a finger plus sticky slightly off white head that leaves webs of lace, with excellent retention. 4.5

Aroma dank weed up front, pine, tangerine, peach, mango, and grapefruit rind. 4.25

Taste follows gonja, pine, tangerine, mango, peach, and some grapefruit really balanced and tasty, just a little bitterness lingers. 4.25

Mouthfeel is above medium, not sticky or dry, rather soft carbonation, and at 6.9% huge flavor but easy going down. 4.5

Overall another excellent IPA from my favorite local Kettlehead. Very nice to branch out and this is really nice. Curious how it sells with the hipsters, but I am enjoying for sure. 4.25

 

Watching the MLS Cup,may God have mercy on my football soul

Burial The Savages of Ruminating Minds India Pale Ale
7.2 % ABV, hops? Yes

4.57/5 rDev +8.8%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.5
Strong citrus and tropical fruit aromas.
Smooth feel leading to a nice balance of the oats and malt, and Mosaic.sour pineapple,. Orange, savory flavor.
Bitter hoppy aftertaste. Well balanced.
Expensive but worth it.

 

Great write-up. FWIW, many Trillium hoppy beers are having head retention issues, although not the Turducken, at least not as much.

 

Hey moderators I gotta own up here. I saw that there's a little bit of shite-like leftover content string (url) at the base of my posted image. There's no link to click on so I don't think there's any harm but I just wanna own up to it. Sorry...feckin' septic postimages poop...clean up on isle 28.

 

Another new one before I head to work, another from @Roguer , and another new brewery, Fiddlehead. Second Fiddle is a very nice take on an OG ImpIPA. Would happily drink again:

https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/27919/127652/

 

Several months now; even @TheIPAHunter has taken notice.

 

Starting yesterday, and carrying though overnight, we had a fairly substantial snowstorm here. Some parts of the state got more than we did at my house, but even so, I measured 1 foot of snow on my front walk, which is fairly well protected from any drifting... and I measured this as I was going out to clear the snow early afternoon, so it had no doubt settled a bit.

I just got back in from the job, and today seemed like the perfect day for a new beer I picked up last from August Schell. Photo taken in the late afternoon fading sun in my front yard.

Schell’s Snowstorm Oat Starkbier
ABV: 6.3%
IBU: NA

Clear dark amber, lightly carbonated, with a tall, thick, off-white head from a pour into a pils glass embedded in the snow. The head has excellent retention, forming a mountainous surface as it does fade, leaving a huge amount of stringy, sticky lacing.

Aroma is lightly roasted with kind of a north woods smell.

The taste repeats the light roasting with slight bittering above a very malty overall flavor. Again, as with the aroma, there are hints of evergreen that brighten the flavor. It's quite a satisfying and enjoyable winter brew. The maltiness brings a substantialness to the beer, befitting its "starkbier" name (strong beer, where "strong" implies more than a higher ABV; it also implies a more filling beer. In other words, a Dopplebock!)

The body is (as I wrote above) substantial and the mouthfeel is smooth.

Overall, I am enjoying this one as I relax from clearing our 200 ft driveway of 1 foot+ of snow, including a few drifts and the much appreciated mountain of snow pushed up at the end of the drive by the city snowplows. (Thankfully, with the help of a large 2 stage snow blower!)

L: 4.0 | S: 4.0 | T: 4.25 | F: 3.75 | O: 4.0 | Rating: 4.08