Ymm, Beer!

[devildeac]

Original tasting/review 6/1/13:

Quad (2013 version)-Weyerbacher Brewing

I am not sure why this is a quadruple. Could be 4 malts, 4 yeasts, 4 hops or 4 fermentations. Or all of the preceding. The style is really similar to a Belgian dubbel but it is a bit lighter in color (medium-light brown) with a small head and a nose rich with dark, dried fruits like raisins, dates and figs and tastes to match. Most ales of this style have candi sugar and this tastes no different with the presence of light brown sugar and rummy notes, too. I'd guess the IBU to be about 30 and the ABV is higher than a dubbel or tripel (but not for a quad) at a stunning 11.8%, so pull out your snifter, let it the brew warm a few minutes on the counter and enjoy as your dessert. I found this as a 4 pack at Total Wine a couple weeks ago for about $3.96, not the usual $14 and even had the price checked at the register and, when verified, returned and added a second 4 pack to my cart. A very good ale to age and quite cheap at $0.99 each so very well worth the purchase.

Last night's tasting:

Last bottle of the litter . This aged well as it remained clean/clear with a very small amount of sediment in the last few drops, most of which I was able to avoid. Enjoyed lightly chilled in a large Ommegang tulip over about an hour, though it was so smooth sipping that it took a lot of discipline to stretch out the time that long. I may make a visit to Total Wine this weekend to see what's on their "last chance" shelf that I might procure at a nice price. Certainly worth a 4 pack with one for now, one to trade and a couple to age for a year or two.

[windsor]

I come before the Bastion Of Beer Knowledge with a question...

I was in Publix an hour ago doing my grocery shopping and I went down the 'beer aisle' because my neighbor said Publix sold Cigar City brews. There they were - a nice selection of six packs of Cigar City offerings..right next to a couple from my favorite locale craft brewer/hangout/local music venue Three Daughters. All the beer was in...cans. Cans? Did something change while I was on the Sofa sipping Cabernet? I always thought beer in cans ended up tasting like...the can. Why do really good local breweries pick CANS over bottles?

Inquiring wine drinking minds want to know.

[devildeac]

I come before the Bastion Of Beer Knowledge with a question...

I was in Publix an hour ago doing my grocery shopping and I went down the 'beer aisle' because my neighbor said Publix sold Cigar City brews. There they were - a nice selection of six packs of Cigar City offerings..right next to a couple from my favorite locale craft brewer/hangout/local music venue Three Daughters. All the beer was in...cans. Cans? Did something change while I was on the Sofa sipping Cabernet? I always thought beer in cans ended up tasting like...the can. Why do really good local breweries pick CANS over bottles?

Inquiring wine drinking minds want to know.

Actually, very good questions.

1. Lighter to transport/carry.
2. No exposure to light.
3. Smaller/shorter package.
4. Unbreakable.
5. Easier/more likely to recycle.
6. Better temperature/insulation than bottles.
7. New "liners" impart no metallic taste to beer, or at least far, far less.
8. Probably less residual air at top of a can than a bottle.

Light and air are death knells for beer.

Hope that helps. There may be another reason or two but those are the ones I've learned over the last several years.

[windsor]

Thank you! I did not realize that they had developed liners that would keep the beer from picking up the metallic taste. That was always the downfall of cans, back in the day.

With cans, I have will have more room to tote samples to a tailgate. Bonus - I will not have to worry about breakage!

[devildeac]

Thank you! I did not realize that they had developed liners that would keep the beer from picking up the metallic taste. That was always the downfall of cans, back in the day.

With cans, I have will have more room to tote samples to a tailgate. Bonus - I will not have to worry about breakage!

Nor will you have to worry about pulled muscles, torn tendons, loose ligaments or dislocated vertebrae toting all that beer in those lightweight cans .

(Seriously, let us know where you'll be staying and you won't have to deliver and I'll provide all the lifting/carrying/toting power you need.)

[devildeac]

Sorachi Ace-Brooklyn Brewery

Nice story from their website:

"Named after the Sorachi region of Hokkaido, Japan, the Sorachi Ace hop was developed by a large Japanese brewery in the late 1970s. A cross between British Brewers Gold, Japanese “Beikei No. 2” and the famed Czech Saaz, it had a unique lemony, herbal scent, but this hop was deeemed "odd" and ended up quickly banished to a laboratory.
In 2008, the Sorachi Ace hop was quietly revived by a family farm in Washington State. Less than a year later, we made it the star of its own titular beer. Originally a member of our limited Brewmaster’s Reserve series, Brooklyn Sorachi Ace is a beer we just couldn’t let disappear. Brooklyn Sorachi Ace is a classic saison, an unfiltered golden farmhouse ale, with a clean malt flavor and the quirky Sorachi Ace hop standing front and center. Dry-hopping releases Sorachi Ace’s bright, spicy aromatics to tickle the nose before ascending into a fine harmony between pilsner malt and playful Belgian ale yeast."

Formerly only available as a corked and caged 750 ml bottle that fuse kindly reviewed sometime a few (many?) months back, they have revived this in 12 ounce bottles now sold in 4 packs. I selected a single of this last PM as part of my office NCAAT pool winnings for somewhere between $2.00-2.50. Poured a yellow-straw color with a lacy, lingering head. Fresh aromas of new mown grass, some tropical fruits, apples and pears. Tastes include a bit of black pepper, mango, pineapple, papaya and unripe apples and pears. Very pleasant palate with IBUs of 34 and not overpowering ABV of 7.2%. Not sure why I "avoided" this for years but it may have been the $10 price on the big bottle. This way, I got to taste, review and highly recommend it for about half the cost . It'd make a nice pairing with lighter grilled BBQ fare or any seafood dishes.

[devildeac]

Old Heathen-Weyerbacher Brewing

Yep, that's me. I divided a 12 ounce bottle of this imperial stout over a couple nights as a dessert beer after a session brew with dinner several hours earlier. Poured an almost black with aromas of dark chocolate, hints of espresso and dark fruits. Tasted like semi-sweet chocolate covered Damson plums along with dates and figs. It's a bit thin for the style but the texture is smooth and almost oily with mild bitterness from the 7 heavily roasted dark malts (not listed) and not from the milder hops, Perle (B) and Fuggles. IBUs rated at 23 and ABV at 8%, both a bit lean for the style. Very easily sipped at cellar temperature, this dark ale would also pair well with chocolate, caramel and cinnamon baked goods.

[devildeac]

From fuse:

"I swear by sight and smell you'd think tart strawberry soda.

Pink head, and a neon pink/ red in the glass.

Tart cherry for miles with maybe a slightly salty finish.

Oh so good- one four pack may not be enough.

My only disappointment is the pronunciation of the Gose style.
It's actually Go-zuh (almost like Ghostbusters) and not "goes".

However you pronounce it, I need a Victory truckful.
This beer would be the antithesis of New Glarus Raspberry. It is neither thick nor rich.

It is light, airy, sippable fun.
If you like sours or fruit beers this is a must try.

I'd put it right there with DFH Festina Peche and Fullsteam Cackalacky as beers of summer.

I had low expectations, Victory Kirsch Goze blew me away."
From my tasting:

Kirsch Gose-Victory Brewing

This is why I really enjoy this thread. If not for this review, I'm not sure I grab one of these for about $2-2.50 at Bottle Revolution after work on Friday and chill it for last night's beverage. Not sure I was blown away but this was an excellent representation and variation of a style of beer relatively new to me but centuries old in the German brewing traditions. Think slightly spicy, mildly sour, cherry flavored soda with a pinch of salt and a splash of cherry liqueur. Minimally bitter, guessing IBUs in the 10-20 range from Spalt Spalt hops (might be a typo on their website) and highly sessionable at 4.8% ABV with the following malts: Pilsner, Wheat, Torrified Wheat, Acidulated. I'd compare this to a Founder's Rubaeus with cherry instead of raspberry. It's too light colored to compare to the New Glarus Wisconsin Red or any of the Belgian kriek lambics. Total Wine has a coupon in today's paper for $1.50 off each 4 pack or 6 pack you buy before May 17 and I may grab 4 more of these.



http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Tw6NFB2VZdY/V ... %2B001.JPG

[devildeac]

Hop Hunter-Sierra Nevada Brewing (don't know whether it's Chico, CA or Mills River, NC)

One of the IPAs I bought with my NCAAT office pool winnings last Friday. Poured a yellow-straw color with a moderate foamy head that lingered. Immediate grapefruit and rind aromas. Tastes were the same with perhaps some citrusy, bubblegummy notes. Light brown sugar and caramel for the malt balance. There's almost an oily consistency to the brew (more below). Here are their humulus lupulus and grain ingredients from their website:

BITTERING HOPS Bravo
FINISHING HOPS Cascade, Crystal, Simcoe
MALTS Two-row Pale, Caramel, Flaked Oats
OTHER Farm Distilled Hop Oil: Cascade, Centennial, CTZ


Apparently, they use a new process by which they harvest the hops and steam distill them wet before they leave the fields and make hop oils. IBUs right at 60 and ABV measured at 6.2% and it's a pretty well-balanced brew. Serve with grilled or spicy fares. If offered, I'd certainly pour another of these.

[devildeac]

Delicious IPA-Stone Brewing Company

Continuing to drink up my winnings from the office NCAAT pool. Clear and straw-colored with a burst of tropical fruits from the top of the glass to papaya, mango and Juicyfruit gum flavors throughout the 12 ounce serving with a bit of a honey finish. This is on the borderline between an IPA and a IIPA at 80 IBUs and 7.7% ABV. Another bold brew from Stone that would be at home with some spicy ribs or Szchuan offerings.

[devildeac]

3C IPA-Triple C Brewing

Named after the C hops, Citra, Chinook and Centennial varieties, that comprise this brew, it poured a golden-yellow with a generous, foamy head. The aromas and tastes were mainly citrus and tropical with a bit of interwoven bubblegum and pine. They describe it as a hop bomb but the malty, grain content, clocking in at 6.2% ABV, balanced the IBUs of 70 reasonably well. This 16 ounce can for about $2.50 was another portion of my office pool winnings from the NCAAT. It would pair nicely with mildly spiced and grilled bovine or porcine creatures.

[YmoBeThere]

The 16 Best Beer Cities in America:

https://www.yahoo.com/food/the-16-best- ... 40061.html

What say you?

[devildeac]

The 16 Best Beer Cities in America:

https://www.yahoo.com/food/the-16-best- ... 40061.html

What say you?

Move Asheville, Burlington and Portland, ME into the top 10 and get rid of Milwaukee, Minneapolis and New York and maybe 1-2 others. I need to travel more and research this in more depth ;) .

[devildeac]

Prometheus Unbound (draft/growler)-Big Boss Brewing

Drink local!

I'll thank Total Wine for printing $2 off coupons in their ad in Sunday's News and Observer, for if they hadn't done this, along with $1.50 off a 4 or 6 pack, I'd have probably not ventured into their North Raleigh store on Thursday evening and made any purchases. This was a fabulous find for $6 for a mini-growler that I shared with our son late last PM.

Poured a dark mahogany with a small, creamy head into a pint glass and sipped over 30-45 minutes. Enticing scents of red wine and dark berries were followed by taste explosions of the same with added bonuses of dark caramel, chocolate, sour patch kids dark fruits, oak and vanilla. Incredibly complex brew. I'd guess IBUs of 20-30 and the ABV is 8%. I wouldn't pair this with anything as the flavors are so rich that it's a stand alone/dessert beer. Worth seeking out today as it's a limited quantity release from their Strange Cargo series (http://bigbossbrewing.com/news.aspx) and won't be around long and might not be released/re-created again.

[devildeac]

Pinner Throwback IPA-Oskar Blues (Brevard, NC)

Drink local!

Well, almost local. Heck, it'll be local Tuesday through Saturday next week as we (try to) visit all 20-25 breweries (not in one night) in the greater Asheville area with the bonus of dining and supping with ricks68 and his lovely bride, mattman and Amused Cupcake with a rumored appearance of Mountain Devil and whoever else would like to join us.

Oh, wait, beer to review. This was a 12 ounce can shared with our son with a dinner of crabcakes (99% lump crabmeat), lime teriyaki shrimp, roasted garlic asparagus, fresh corn and a Caesar salad. Poured a light straw with a a small head. Some citrus and tropical fruits to tickle the nares then some pine and resin to accompany the mango and papaya flavors with a light, honey-like finish. IBUs of 35 and ABV of 4.9% so another entry in the "throwback" or session IPAs described as "crushable" on their web site. And I thought they were referring to the environmentally friendly aluminum can. My only quibble is that with those stats, why is this labeled an IPA when it really looks, tastes and measures like a pale ale?

[devildeac]

Calling-Boulevard Brewing

False advertising! The 12 ounce bottle from their Smokestack Series is labeled IPA but the ABV in the fine print clearly states 8.5% so I knew we needed to be careful as we shared the bottle with the above menu. Upon further investigation, the IBUs are 75 so this easily squeezes into the IIPA category. Poured a yellow-straw hue with a small head. There were some floral aromas along with tropical and citrus fruits and some resin. Tastes matched nicely with some pineapple and passion fruit flavors along with maybe a little bubblegum and some light caramel notes, too. They claim 8 hops including Mosaic, Amarillo, Equinox and Galaxy, the last two of which were new to me. Their malt description is "minimal" but that ain't the truth either with a high gravity brew. Nothing outstanding about this brew (cost me about $2.50 from my NCAAT office pool winnings), just a solid IIPA from a quality specialty series from a good brewery.

https://www.boulevard.com/wp-content...1.22.08-AM.png

[devildeac]

From 8/10/14:

Raspberry Tart (circa 2012)-New Glarus Brewing

I got lucky with this one. My BIL brought this back from a trip to Wisconsin a couple years ago, I think. It's not supposed to age but it did. I shared the 750 ml capped bottle last night with my daughter and my wife (no typo-she HATES beer) and it was wonderful. German Hallertau hops lend a very slight floral presence. Wisconsin wheat imparts very minimal citrus notes. Oregon raspberries aged in French oak make this delicious. Nose is fresh raspberries and tastes are bubbly, effervescent berry flavored champagne. My wife thought cider and my daughter thought carbonated Ocean Spray cran-raspberry juice. Poured a clear pink-red with minimal head. No bitterness, guessing IBU of about 10, with an ABV of 5%, I think. This equals or surpasses any Belgian frambozen/framboise lambic I've ever tasted. Liquid dessert. I'll have to taste/share the 2014 bottle a patient brought back from Wisconsin before the summer is completed. These folks know what they are doing keeping ~95% of their brews within their state boundaries.

Raspberry Tart (2014 edition)-New Glarus Brewing

See that 2014 bottle mentioned above? Tonight it was a shared dessert along with small pieces of an oreo cheesecake brownie, a turtle brownie, a plain brownie and a macadamia cookie. The beer won. Same pour, aromas and flavors. I don't know the next time I'll ever see one of these so we savored it, wished our daughter-in-law a happy birthday and wiped a tear from our cheek as the last drop was shaken from our tulip glasses onto our palates.

[devildeac]

Double D's Watermelon Lager-Deep River Brewing (Johnston county's first "legal" brewery)

Drink local!

Infused with watermelon juice from local watermelons, this light-bodied lager is named after the owners' fathers, both named Don and NOT named after yours truly. Poured from a 16 ounce can, it appeared a very slightly cloudy light straw color, the nose was floral and fruity and tastes were subtle and slightly sweet fresh, ripe watermelon. Five of us shared the can with a grilled pork loin dinner accompanied by a marinated zucchini, orange pepper, grape tomato and mozzarella salad and roasted potatoes. Yummy pairing. I prefer the 21st Amendment Hell of High Watermelon a bit more but this was a very palatable lager at about 10 IBUs and 4.5% ABV.

[devildeac]

Monkey Bizzness (draft/mini-growler)- Big Boss Brewing

Drink local!

I'm a couple days late with this but wanted to include before going whole hop wild in Beervana, NC.

Five of us shared this at a Mama's Day/Birthday celebration on Sunday. Poured a golden-yellow with a smallish head that quickly disappeared. Pungent aromas of ripe to over-ripe bananas, cloves and medium brown sugar. Tastes of the same and quite cloying and almost syrup-y in texture and mouthfeel. It was on the chalkboard as a saison but it's a Belgian-style golden ale in the Golden Monkey/Duvel category. I'll guess it's about 10 IBUs and the ABV was 8.8% and was a nice prelude to dessert that evening. I wouldn't spend $4.50 for a 12 ounce bottle of it as I've seen priced in two places but it was certainly worth the $6.50 for the 32 ounces, including Total Wine's $2 off coupon in their recent circular.

[devildeac]

Saison D'Orient (draft)-Burial Beer Company

Imbibe indigenously!

Part of a 6 beer sampler shared with ricks68 last PM shortly after our arrival in Asheville and after a whirlwind driving Tour D'Beer. Arrived a slightly cloudy yellow-orange and brewed with schechwan (their spelling) peppercorns, aged Thai basil, ginger, lemongrass and lime zest. I think we picked out the ginger and thought lavender and something "herbal." They brewed it for the grand opening of a Vietnamese restaurant, converted from an old gas station, on Charlotte Street in Asheville. With IBUs at 35 and ABV at 5%, it sounds like a perfect brew for mild Asian cuisine.