Ymm, Beer!

[devildeac]

From last pm:

Christmas Morning-Hardywood Park Craft Brewery

Been local for a few years now

Credit-wbmcards88 with the payment, pickup and delivery via nrrrrvous; thanks to all!!
Style-coffee’d GBS
Format-pint can
Canned on-11/10/2021 12:03
Stemware-Hardywood teku
The good looks-quite a dark shade of brown; generous tan head
Scents-coffee and ginger
Mouthfeel-roasty with a zing
Tastes-dark roast coffee, generous ginger, cinnamon, vanilla drop of honey and a few shavings of dark chocolate (not added)
Adjuncts-the usual suspects of local ginger and honey with Madagascar vanilla beans, Vietnamese cinnamon (IIRC) and blended Guatemaland and Columbian coffee beans form Blanchard’s Coffee Roasting Company (no relation to fuse’s new beanz )
IBU-55, the usual
ABV-9.2%, the usual
Overall impression-it’s a tie for me with the original and this coffee variant
Ymm, Beer rating-mid cat 3; IIRC, the Kentucky Christmas Morning is a top tier cat 3 thanks to the BBA.

[devildeac]

From VP:

Cherry Vanilla Ice Cream Blender-Hopfly Brewing Company

Local works.

Credit-collected from older daughter’s fridge yesterday for a partial dog sitting fee; thanks!!
Style-fruited, smoothie style sour ale
Temporary residence-pint can; no fresh by/canned on stats
Stemware-large wine glass
Appearance-cloudy cherry; modest, light pink head
Nose-cherry vanilla ice cream
Mouthfeel-not quite a s creamy/smooth as a Tefnut, but, what is?
Tastes-lightly sweetened cherry pie with a huge scoop of Breyer’s Natural Vanilla ice cream; hint of sour
Adjuncts-“cherry and vanilla soft serve;” I have no clue how you brew a beer with ice cream
IBU-likely <10
ABV-7.2% (booze smoothie)
Overall impression-about a half rung below the couple Tefnuts I’ve sipped; high praise
Ymm, Beer rating-mid cat 3; very well crafted/blended; would readily buy a 4 bagger

[devildeac]

Fluffy GBS-Hardywood Park Craft Brewery

Still local for me!

Credit-wbmcards88 for the pickup and nrrrrvous for the delivery; thanks!
Style-go figure
Format-^^^^
Stemware-Hardywood teku
Appearance-very dark brown and a foamy/latte head
Nose-all the usuals plus the marshmallows
Mouthfeel-soft
Tastes-all the adjuncts including ginger, vanilla, honey and cinnamon with some pretty tasty toasted marshmallows and lactose; some milk chocolate, too
Adjucts-^^^^
IBU-55
ABV-9.2% (boozey s’more?)
Overall impression-a really fun beer to sip; one more to share
Ymm, Beer rating-low/mid cat 3; we can pick those nits for a loooong time but this is a really good product

[devildeac]

From last pm:

Jollydaze-Koi Pond Brewing Company

Adjacent county qualifies as local, amirite?

Credit-another dog sitting “treat” pilfered, err, collected on the snide on Friday
Style-pale ale, but I’m calling shenanigans here; see below
Format-pint can (no canning/fresh by info)
Glassware-standard pint
Appearance-hazy pineapple with a modest, fizzy head
Aromas-light grapefruit juice
Mouthfeel-fairly juicy
Tastes-white grapefruit juice, some pith and a twist of rind
IBU-SWAG 40
ABV-6.2%
Overall impression-a most pleasant intro to a known but never sampled brewery; tastes more like a NEIPA than a pale ale
Ymm, Beet rating-upper cat 2; I’d sample more from these folks, especially if a member of the administration team made a visit in a week or two…

[devildeac]

Bourbon Barrel GBS-Hardywood park Craft Brewery

Even the adjacent state is local for this one

Credit-wbmcards99 for pick up and nrrrrvous on the delivery; thanks!!
Style-If y’all don’t know by now…
Format-stubbie!!
Info at base of bottle-10917E2120904
Stemware-a perfect fit in the 2018 GBS Complete Set tumbler
Appearance-very dark brown; fluffy, tan head
Nose-ginger and spice and everything nice and boozy, too
Mouthfeel-lubricious
Tastes-ginger first, then bourbon, followed by cinnamon, some chocolate, char, vanilla and hints of toasted coconut
Adjuncts-“round up the usual suspects’”
Barrels-Virginia bourbon
IBU-always 55
ABV-11.2%
Overall impression-this is one way, among others/many that you make the original GBS even better
Ymm, Beer rating-mid cat 3 but I could be swayed to make it a bit higher

[devildeac]

From last pm; what’s better than a Morning Wood with dinner?

Morning Wood-Funky Buddha Brewery

Local for the buying/shipping agent.

Credit-Teacher Tom; thanks and more thanks!!
Style-flavored BBA imperial porter
Format-12 ounce bottle
Glassware-mini snifter
Appearance-dark, dark brown with hints of ruby; thin, tan head
Nose-bourbon and maple
Mouthfeel-delectable
Tastes-maple, bourbon, coffee, hints of chocolate and caramel
Adjuncts-“maple syrup, coffee beans, natural flavors and caramel color”
Barrels-Untapped claims High West whiskey
IBU-25
ABV-105
Overall impression-high quality stuff from a mixed 12 pack if I’m remembering TT’s words
Ymm, Beer rating-mid cat 3; I’d buy a litter of these if available in the area

[devildeac]

Last night’s line-up from start to finish (630-1100) with a couple timeouts for clean-up, walking, playing with a 5 1/2 month old, halftime and a walk:

Enlightened Aren’t We All-Burial Beer Company

Local enough

Credit-$4 off a minigrowler on FrIPAday at Bottle Rev
Style-labeled American IPA but the weather was hazy and New England is part of America, correct?
Format-^^^^; halfish last pm and we’ll finish the remainder tonight
Stemware-snifters
Appearance-white grapefruit juice; small meringuey head
Nose-fresh squeezed
Palate-lots and lots of grapefruit, rind and pith with hints of honey (not added)
Adjuncts-oats and wheat
Hops-triple saturated with Mosaic Incognito and Mosaic Cryo then DDH with 3 different lots of Mosaic from Oregon, Washington and Idaho; dusted with Mosaic Cryo (all paraphrased from Untappd which almost always quotes from the can
IBU-42 (actual number from Untappd)
ABV-7.2%
Overall impression-great pairing with a combo Mexican platter
Ymm, Beer rating-mid cat 3; it’s been a while I think since I’ve rated any Burial lower than mid cat 3 and this is no exception; a fabulous NEIPA

[devildeac]

Second:

Shade of Lies-Incendiary Brewing Company

Local. Period.

Credit-a trader from RJ sometime in 2021; thanks and thanks!!
Style-BBA and flavored imperial stout
Format-waxed and capped 500 ml bottle with a “rip cord” partial wax removal feature
Bottled on-3/17/21
Stemware-3 mini snifters for 3 thirsty souls
Appearance-dark brown and oily; 12 small, tan bubbles
Nose-maple and coffee
Mouthfeel-“Take Me Home Tonight”
Tastes-maple, coffee, burnt caramel, hints of bourbon and coconut, char
Adjuncts-maple, coffee and coconut
Barrels-Blanton’s
Grains-2 Row, roasted barley, choccolate malt, flaked oats
Yeast-American house strain
IBU-“no IBU” ; but, I’ll guess 50s
ABV-12.5%
Overall impression-declared the early winner for the evening; strangely, I wouldn’t want the whole bottle of this (call me crazy) but it was perfect to share 3 ways, especially with the prior NEIPA and a couple other high gravity brews patiently waiting at the scorer’s table
Ymm, Beer rating-high cat 3; decadent

[devildeac]

Second:

Shade of Lies-Incendiary Brewing Company

Local. Period.

Credit-a trader from RJ sometime in 2021; thanks and thanks!!
Style-BBA and flavored imperial stout
Format-waxed and capped 500 ml bottle with a “rip cord” partial wax removal feature
Bottled on-3/17/21
Stemware-3 mini snifters for 3 thirsty souls
Appearance-dark brown and oily; 12 small, tan bubbles
Nose-maple and coffee
Mouthfeel-“Take Me Home Tonight”
Tastes-maple, coffee, burnt caramel, hints of bourbon and coconut, char
Adjuncts-maple, coffee and coconut
Barrels-Blanton’s
Grains-2 Row, roasted barley, choccolate malt, flaked oats
Yeast-American house strain
IBU-“no IBU” ; but, I’ll guess 50s
ABV-12.5%
Overall impression-declared the early winner for the evening; strangely, I wouldn’t want the whole bottle of this (call me crazy) but it was perfect to share 3 ways, especially with the prior NEIPA and a couple other high gravity brews patiently waiting at the scorer’s table
Ymm, Beer rating-high cat 3; decadent

[devildeac]

From Friday:

You sit upon a…

Throne of Lies (draft)-New Anthem Beer Project

Local? Yep!!

Credit-a Friday afternoon treat to myself to sit on the patio at Bottle Rev at 65 degrees, a few rays of sunshine and watch the traffic
Style-“Throne of LIes returns. This time as a crossover American Barleywine/TIPA”
Format-from the spigot
Cupathy-half pint plastic
Appearance-slightly cloudy amber with a thin, tan head
Aromas-pine, resin, rind
Mouthfeel-bitter
Tastes-grapefruit and orange rind but mostly pine and resin with a hint of caramel
Hops-Comet, Citra and Simcoe
IBU-“no IBU” on Untappd, likely because they fear full disclosure; I’ll guess 80+
ABV-10%
Overall impression-almost brutally bitter, reminding me of Bigfoot which I stopped buying about a decade ago as it never mellowed much and I drank several bottles of it that were 5-10 years old
Ymm, Beer rating-I’ll grudgingly stamp a high cat 2 on this as it’s true to labeling but wouldn’t buy a can to share/trade; if however, you want a pint of a very good American style barleywine, treat yourself to a draft or $5-6 pint can; stick with the NA IPAs/IIPAs

[devildeac]

Or, you can sample a New Anthem imperial stout:

The Clowns Hot Cocoa (draft)-New Anthem Beer Project

Staying local

Credit-Bottle Rev owner for a small taster
Style-flavored imperial milk stout
Format-2 ounce taster
Vessel-sample cup
Appearance-dark, dark brown; creamy, latte head
Nose-chilled hot cocoa
Mouthfeel-pillowy
Tastes-take a rich cup of hot cocoa and chill it and you have this beer
Adjuncts-lactose, organic cocoa nibs and vanilla beans
IBU-60
ABV-9.5%
Overall impression-teetering on the border of decadent; a bit shy of overly sweet
Ymm, Beer rating-mid cat 3; the final product matched the description and expectations almost perfectly; I liked the draft taster so much I bought a 4 bagger and shared a (bit too cold) can with younger daughter and son in law for a nightcap last pm and they liked it a lot

[Bob Green]

I took a trip to Total Wine today, picked up a couple six packs of my favorites: Richmond Lager and Tavern Brown Ale. My plan also included Old Speckled Hen but it was out of stock so I grabbed a four pack of Samuel Smith Taddy Porter.

https://www.samuelsmithsbrewery.co.uk/s ... dy-porter/

It is in the fridge chilling so I’ll provide the taste test results later today.

[devildeac]

I took a trip to Total Wine today, picked up a couple six packs of my favorites: Richmond Lager and Tavern Brown Ale. My plan also included Old Speckled Hen but it was out of stock so I grabbed a four pack of Samuel Smith Taddy Porter.

https://www.samuelsmithsbrewery.co.uk/s ... dy-porter/

It is in the fridge chilling so I’ll provide the taste test results later today.

Taddy Porter is a world classic.

[Bob Green]

Drinking the Taddy Porter and it is an excellent beer and it is the perfect time of year for a dark beer. This one is full bodied with a mild aftertaste.

[devildeac]

Sharper Focus (draft)-Hopfly Brewing Company

Next county=local

Credit-FrIPAday special at Bottle Rev; my treat to me
Style-West Coast DIPA
Format-mini growler, half tonight and will share half tomorrow
Stemware-snifter
Appearance-clean, yellowish bronze; thin, white head
Nose-orange and pine
Mouthfeel-a bit fruity mixed with a dash of bitter
Tastes-orange rind and liqueur, bit of pine and resin, some light caramel and apricot
IBU-“no IBU” but West Coast DIPA begs to differ and shouts “60 or maybe a bit higher”
Overall impression-reminded me of DFH 90 Minute, my old standard/classic which I still like and will always sip if offered
Ymm, Beer rating-upper tier cat 2; I think the DFH is still a tad better but this would be worth a pint of draft or a can if you see it

[devildeac]

Some overdue reviews from Monday’s high gravity tastings:

Wee Heavy Barrel Aged Scotch Style Ale-Incendiary Brewing Company

The 336 is local.

Credit-RJ199 either as a trader or as 1/4 of a “beer pie” bet; thanks!!
Style-^^^^
Format-pint can from a mixed 4 pack of Wee Heavy variants; shared with younger daughter (sorta) and her husband
Stemware-mini snifters
Appearance-thin mud with a foam topping
Nose-dark caramel and bourbon
Mouthfeel-soft
Tastes-dark caramel, bourbon, hint of peat/smoke, earth
Barrel type-Willett bourbon
Malts-2 Row, Crystal 80, Extra Dark Crystal, Chocolate and Carapils
Yeast-Scottish Ale
IBU-maybe mid 30s; it’s a malt/booze bomb
ABV-12.3% (yea, we started our tasting with high octane stuff )
Overall impression-not sure whether I liked this or the Buffalo Trace version better after Christmas; we’ll call it a tie as recency bias is highly suspect ; they were both outstanding
Ymm, Beer rating-mid cat 3 but staring longingly at that top shelf

[devildeac]

Second brew:

The Path I Fear 2020-New Anthem Beer Project

The 910 is local.

Credit-a patient whose son is the New Anthem sales manager; thanks!!
Style-flavored imperial stout
Format-500 ml bottle, shared 3 ways (almost equally )
Stemware-mini snifters
Appearance-Texas grade crude, oil, that is; thin, tan head
Nose-espresso and dark chocolate
Mouthfeel-silky
Tastes-espresso, dark chocolate, vanilla, molasses, heavily roasted grains
Adjuncts-Burundi Gacokwe, vanilla, cacao nibs
IBU-“no IBU,” but still not as dumm as I look so I’ll guess 50s
ABV-12% (yea, a step dow from the 12.3% “starter” beer )
Overall impression-an amazing blend; don’t sleep on New Anthem stouts
Ymm, Beer rating-mid cat 3 but joined hands with the Wee Heavy and called out loudly to the top shelf

[devildeac]

Third:

Rye Barrel Lord Maris-Wolf’s Ridge Brewing

When your son lives about 7 miles from the brewery, it’s local.

Credit-Mama raised him proper; thanks, son!!
Style-whiskey barrel aged, 8 hour boil English barleywine
Format-8 ounce bottle (Dafuq?); shared 2 ways (daughter declined to taste a barleywine meaning more for her husband and me )
Packaged on-08/13/21
Glasses-mini snifters
Appearance-dark brown; <10 bubble head
Nose-toffee and whiskey
Mouthfeel-soft and sexy
Tastes-toffee, leather, tobacco, whiskey, hints of musty and earth
Barrels-Echo Spirits Rye Whiskey for a year
IBU-maybe 50s
ABV-11.4%; our “light” beer for the evening’s tasting
Overall impression-now we have a 3 way tie for the night so far; this had even a longer “boil” than the 2 recent Hardywood 5 hour boils I sipped recently
Ymm, Beer rating-another mid cat 3 beer, joining hands with the prior 2 and looking longingly at that upper shelf

[devildeac]

Clean-up hitter:

Your Compliance Is Strongly Suggested-Burial Beer Company

It’s local, even if they brew it in Asheville and sell it in Raleigh or wherever in NC.

Credit-birthday and/or Father’s Day gift from younger son in law, June 2021; thanks!!
Style-flavored/blended imperial stout
Format-500 ml bottle shared 3 ways
Stemware-mini snifters
Appearance-5W20; no head
Mouthfeel-luscious
Tastes-maple, vanilla, dark chocolate, dark caramel, molasses, very slight alcohol burn and a hint of coconut; the Macadamias are kinda lost
Adjuncts-toasted coconut/macaroons, Macadamia nuts, Mexican vanilla beans and maple syrup
IBU-35, a bit lower than I’d have guesses
ABV-15%, right at the NC legal limit
Overall impression-magnificent concoction; reminds me of a Commonwealth Brewery elixir
Ymm, Beer rating-sneaks onto the top shelf cat 3, barely edging out the others from Monday night for “best of show”

[devildeac]

From last pm:

Wee Heavy Barrel Aged Scotch Style Ale-Incendiary Brewing Company

Yep, the 336 is still local.

Credit-either a trader or a payoff from RJ; many thanks either way!!
Style-^^^^ with this one the Cruzan rum version
Format-pint can, all to myself
Canned on-11/15/21
Stemware-a new, little used stemless Incendiary teku; thanks RJ
Appearance-murky brown; smallish, tannish head
Nose-Caribbean spirits
Mouthfeel-alluring
Tastes-rum, dark caramel and brown sugar, earth, a hint of smoke/peat
Barrel type-Cruzan rum
Malts-2 ROW, Crystal 80, Extra Dark Crystal, Chocolate and Carapils
Yeast-Scottish Ale
IBU-mid 30s?
ABV-12.3%
Overall impression-I liked the rum flavors a lot but not quite as much as the Willett or Buffalo Trace versions
Ymm, Beer rating-low cat 3 but darn close to the middle tier; I’d readily buy another single or mixed 4 pack of these variants