What beer are you drinking now? #2199

Omnipollo Zodiak Multiverse NEDIPA. This is fantastic. Aromas and flavors of grapefruit, tangerine, lemon, orange juice, peach, pear, pineapple, apricot, passion fruit, papaya, mango, melon, guava, gooseberry, citrus peel/zest, and light pepper/pine hops; with moderate wheat, biscuit dough, light honeyed malt sweetness; and herbal, floral, grassy hop earthiness. Very mild pine, zesty, herbal, floral, grassy, spicy bitterness on the finish. Medium carbonation and medium-full body; very creamy/silky/bready/grainy malts and light sticky hops in the mouthfeel. Lightly increasing lingering bitter dryness. No hop astringency. Amazingly smooth/soft finish, minimal warming 8%. Assuming this is just imperial Zodiak. Simcoe, Citra, Centennial hops. Insanely juicy and lightly dank/earthy hop complexity; perfect wheat/oat/malt backbone, not overly sweet/heavy from lingering dryness. Stellar stuff for the style. Should revisit the base beer again.


Amazing American barleywine as always. Aromas and flavors of grapefruit, tangerine, pineapple, peach, plum, apricot, golden raisin, red apple, citrus peel/zest, light pepper, and pine hops/yeast; with balanced caramel, toffee, brown sugar, brown bread, toasted biscuit, and light nutty malt sweetness; with herbal, floral, grassy hop and yeast earthiness. Light-moderate pine, citrus peel, herbal, grassy, spicy bitterness on the finish. Medium carbonation and medium-full bodied; balanced creamy/silky/slick malts and sticky hops in the mouthfeel. Slight resins/rinds and increasing bitter dryness, never astringent. Very smooth sipper, mildly increasing warmth of 10.9%. English barleywines are my favorite style, but this one is definitely a top favorite American barleywine; due to the fact they have an English house yeast and it's not super aggressively bitter. Pretty much an English/American hybrid on the style, to me at least. I have 4 more left, I should have just bought a whole case.


Cheers

 

2012 vintage. This was insane as expected. Aromas and flavors of huge dark chocolate, cocoa, coffee, caramel, molasses, toffee, vanilla, biscuit, nuttiness, bourbon, toasted oak, and dark bread; with light notes of licorice, raisin, fig, date, smoke, char, leather, and tobacco. Very mild roast/char bitterness and bourbon/oak spiciness on the finish. Light carbonation and full body; with a very creamy, silky, velvety, and rich mouthfeel that is amazing. Slight slickness, chalky roast, and oak tannins. Mild increasing warmth of 11%, no barrel booze. Insanely smooth sipper. This is even better than I remember more recent batches. It just gets better with age. Insanely rich/silky malts with perfect barrel integration. I got a handful of vintages a week ago from a friend. World class RIS all the time. I prefer the base over a year old, just gets better after that.


Fantastic this year as expected, maybe a bit better than the 750ml last year. Aromas and flavors of huge milk/dark chocolate, cocoa, coffee, cinnamon, vanilla, marshmallow, molasses, toffee, fudge, bourbon, toasted oak, and dark bread; with lighter notes of coconut, pepper, smoke, char, and dark fruits. Very mild roast/char bitterness and bourbon/oak spiciness on the finish. Light carbonation and full body; very creamy, silky, velvety, rich mouthfeel that is amazing. Slightly slick, sticky, chalky, and tannic. Slightly increasing lingering spicy/tannic dryness, no cloying/acrid/astringency. Dangerously smooth, minimal warming 12%, no barrel booze at all. Will grab more if I see them. Super rich and decadent malt complexity; with perfectly integrated/balanced bourbon barrels and spice flavors. Not overwhelming on any aspect. I initially felt it would be too spicy like Imperial Mayan last year, but they nailed it.


Cheers

 

Delicious session IPA as always. Aromas and flavors of big tangerine, grapefruit, lemon, peach, pineapple, passion fruit, mango, melon, berries, citrus peel/rind, light peppercorn, and pine hops; with moderate toasted bread, light honeyed malts; and herbal, floral, grassy hop earthiness. Moderate pine, citrus peel/rind, herbal, floral, grassy, peppery bitterness on the finish. Medium carbonation, light-medium body, and moderately crisp finishing. Balanced bready/grainy malts and sticky hops in the mouthfeel. Some resins/rinds, moderate increasing bitter dryness, minimal hop astringency. Very flavorful and pretty refreshing, 4.8%. Not watery. Mosaic hops instead of Galaxy this year, not sure why. Still just as impressive. Very vibrant, dank, and earthy balanced hop complexity; with a nice pale malt backbone for the ABV. Love it every year.


New Prairie APA. They actually date the cans now. This was awesome. Thick lasting head retention/soapy lacing on the glass. Aroamas and flavors of big tangerine, orange juice, grapefruit, lemon, peach, pear, pineapple, apricot, passion fruit, papaya, mango, watermelon, guava, berry, citrus peel/zest, and light pepper/pine hops; with moderate wheat, white bread dough, light honeyed malt balance; and herbal, floral, grassy hop earthiness. Mild pine, zesty, herbal, floral, grassy, spicy bitterness on the finish. Medium carbonation/body; creamy/bready malts and light sticky hops in the mouthfeel. Lightly increasing lingering bitter dryness. No cloying/astringency. Very smooth, soft, and pretty refreshing; 5.5%. They nailed another NE style beer as usual. Feels like El Dorado/Citra. Extremely juicy and lightly dank/earthy hop complexity; perfect wheat/oat/malt backbone. Not overly sweet from lingering dryness. They rarely disappoint.


Cheers