New Beer Weekend #98

And it worked so perfectly (pouring a big ol’ imperial porter into a lager glass) - I’d like to say I’m so confident that I knew it would work, but in reality, I just wanted to honor the magnificent gift you sent my way, both with the beer and with the glass. That it looked so cool in the glass was just an added bonus. You are a true beer nerd rockstar for sending both my way.

The crazy guy from the Midwest may have another trick or two up his sleeve. IJS.

 

Another glorious early summer day here. Except for the pollen...it has covered everything with a top coat of yellow. Never mind the havoc it plays with my sinuses, bit 'tis but a temporary thing. Vegetable planting is complete, only about two-ish weeks behind, but done. Trying something new planting a few test items in an aged compost pile covered with landscape fabric. It grew weeds really well, so maybe squash will like it.

Ok...on to what everyone wants to know:



From deep in the cellar comes Allagash James and Julie, a sour brown ale with quite a varied malt bill, fermented with the house yeast, then aged in SS with lacto and brett. I do not know the age of the bottle. BA says it is a Flanders Oud Bruin.

Beautiful clear mahogany pour with a compact half inch tan head. Nice to look at...

Ohhh...smells nice, too. I get caramel sweetness, a little cocoa, a tartness that strikes me as fruity vs vinegar. Very mildly funky. Raisins and figs on top of the caramel, maybe a touch of cherry and some other fruity things going on.

The taste is more controlled than the smell suggests. Very clean but assertive tartness, then caramel, bready malt, and it does have a fruity character that is sweet and dark, but there are other elements that taste like plum and maybe pear. The malt is sweet and kind of brown bready and there is a faint sense of cocoa powder. The funk is quite mild, being more earthy and grounding than in the face barnyard. Mello, maybe the result of graceful aging?

Medium bodied, lightly carbonated, a little stickiness.

Overall, I think this is a very refined beer. Nothing dominates to any great degree, and the flavors play off one another nicely. The net effect is a pleasant tartness and a very clean beer. Definitely a worthy beer from the good folks at Allagash. Another beer easily in the 4.25 to 4.5 range on the BA-o-rometer.

 

Back for round 2 tonight, and another from the Sweetwater 12 pack.


Glacial IPA - Sweetwater Brewing - 6.3% ABV

This beer is weird, I'm not going to lie. I get a ton of malt, and a bit of hops - tropical. I get a strange creamy feeling from it. Is this an IPA? Probably is, but I really don't know. It does taste good, however.

Review:
https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/273/595764/#navigation

3.55/5 rDev -8%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
by Victory_Sabre1973 from Minnesota

This beer pours a semi murky golden color. The head is 2 finger, white, and long lasting. There's a bit of lacing on the glass.
The aroma has some tropical hop aroma in it.
Taste - Well ,this is an odd duck to me. There's a decent amount of malts here that give a bread/biscuit flavor. There's also a bit of hops that give a tropical mango flavor. No bitterness/ pine at all.
The body is creamy feeling, huh? I guess full body, but creamy?
This beer confuses me. Is it an IPA? I really don't know. I do like the flavor, but I am not sure where this fits in to an IPA.


I am not sure I'll be back for any more tonight, though, if I am, it will be the other I haven't had from the Sweetwater 12 pack. Cheers all!

 

The Pursuit - a DIPA from Wax Wings brewery in Kalamazoo MI.
Poured opaque golden orange with an impressive soft white dense head.
The aroma was full of citrus and tropical fruits; wow, this smells tasty. A fleeting whiff of harsh keeps it from going to 5.
The taste follows; I'm not sure I could untwist all the citrus and tropical fruits that seemed present, but I did recognize the hops bite at the swallow that keeps this from going gooey. (That's a beer term, right?)
The feel was very nice, I found it hard not to just slam this down. Which may have been bad considering the ABV.
OA, I knew Wax Wings was known for their IPAs and apparently that reputation is deserved. Glad they are finally distributing!

 

It's really beautiful art and as nice a beer package and glass that I've seen and cheers!
I've been to a dear friend's memorial today at his sister's house. It was beautiful and I saw friends that I haven't seen in 50 years. It was fun and it was accompanied by Mark's lyrics and music, with some John Prine, Lyle Lovette, live by family members, and an amazing tune titled "Skating on the Rings of Saturn" that was really other-worldly. Mark's sister is a noted author and his brothers are skilled musicians. Mary Jane penned the lyrics from a conversation that she had had two days before he died. Skating on the rings of Saturn because it's all downhill. Everyone had the chills.

 

Happy Sunday. Have to be in work a bit early for some vehicle weighing in the first floor shop tomorrow. Me and Julia watched Zombeavers last night which was hilariously bad, and started Planet Terror. Been a while since I've seen a Robert Rodriguez movie. She hasn't seen From Dusk Till Dawn, so that might be going on tonight.

We had the Aldi 5 cheese pizza with added pepperoni and it was amazing.


From @snaotheus from NBS BIF. pFriem Japanese Lager. Amazing stuff! Lasting fluffy head retention and soapy lacing the whole glass. Aromas and flavors of big lemon, plum, pear, red apple, cracker, white bread dough, herbal, floral, wood, grass, and light pepper. Light herbal, woody, grassy, spicy bitterness on the finish. High carbonation, light body, and crisp/clean/refreshing finish. Balanced grainy malt and sticky hops. Slight lingering resin dryness with no astringency. Very flavorful for 5%. Perfectly clean lager flavors. Perfectly balanced clean malt and hop flavors. Insanely drinkable like water. Wow, best pale lager I've had. 4.41


Cheers

 

Prairie Peach Crumble Pastry Sour; 4.17 overall

Pours an effervescent and very hazed honey color with 3 fingers of cream colored head. Not a pretty beer, looks more like a smoothy

S: Cinnamon and peach

T: Follows the nose, some vanilla and dryness. More peach, cinnamon and vanilla as this warms. Finishes, sweet, sticky and just a little tart

MF: Medium body, fairly firm, carbonation, a little sticky

Nice beer that leans as much pastry as sour. I enjoyed this a lot

 

Last one of the weekend courtesy of @Beersnake1. Founders KBS Maple Mackinac Fudge.



Pours a thick dark brown with a tight, small cappuccino head.

Big aroma on this beer. Sweetened coffee, chocolate. Some maple as it warmed. A little indistinct booze.

The taste follows, but fuller. Creamy sweet coffee. Milk chocolate. A hint of maple. Alcohol.

Body is on the thinner side despite the rather thick looking pour.

This is a great variant of the original, a beer I like quite a bit. Given the choice between a KBS and this, I might choose this one. Thanks Tim!

 

I have one bottle left. I am saving for a special occasion maybe

 

Nøgne Ø From Norway
Imperial Stout

500ml bottle, date codes: 27.05.25, 17.08.21, 2468
Look: nice looking beer, black body that doesn't let any light thru, nice medium brown head that leaves some lacing.
Smell: chocolate, dark fruit, roast, brown sugar
Taste: follows the nose, plus a hint of red wine, cherry wood, and maybe coffee. Smooth. Not really all the bitter. Has some sweet notes to it. ABV is well hidden. Not harsh in anyway
Feel: good, not thin, low carbonation

A solid beer, I like it, 4.10/5
4.12/5 rDev -0.2%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/7730/28248/

I have plenty of new beers in stock, but didn't get to them, too much yard work. Too many flower beds/pots. I did go to Mopars in the Park car show yesterday. I did hit some tap rooms in the last 3 days, but nothing all that interesting.

 

I thought it was a good beer but one bottle would give me a hang over.