Ymm, Beer

[duketaylor]

Thinking I might run by Mekong today and sample a few and watch the 1st half of Germany v. Argentina. Sposed to be 97 here today, need refreshments

[mattman91]

Paging Duketaylor...

How was Mekong?

[fuse]

Chico, not Western, NC origin.

Quite nice.
Since the Festina Peche has evaporated, and the Cackalacky is almost impossible to find outside Fullsteam, I'd give Summerfest an enthusiastic thumbs up as a tasty cold beverage to beat the heat.

Cheers!

[duketaylor]

Went by Mekong today and sampled a few-have to go to boys' basketball game in a few minutes, will post later as I bake a banana/blueberry bread later tonight Tried Devil's Backbone Pear lager and another brew I'll have to recall

[duketaylor]

Devil's Backbone pear lager is a very nice, easy drinking brew. My first pear brew, only 4.4% ABV and IBU prolly about 20 was good for a very steamy, hot Richmond day.

From DB: (IBUs of 12, I guessed 20, eh) "This 2013 Virginia Craft Brewers Fest Silver Winner is a light bodied lager with a beautiful straw color. Subtle quenching flavors of pear create a beer that's perfect for drinking anytime. Hashtag #Pear Lager if you like it! 4.4% ABV, 12 IBUs"

I'd love to offer this type/style on the lakes during summer.

[duketaylor]

Dogfish Head Namaste

From ratebeer, keep in mind I have awful sinuses: "A witbier bursting with good karma. Made with dried organic orange slices, fresh-cut lemongrass and a bit of coriander, this Belgian-style white beer is a great thirst quencher.

20 IBU"

I found this very nice and well-balanced. Could drink several in a sitting, alas, I had my 2-ounce sampler while drinking my pear lager.

Did go today to Huguenot Hops down in "Dogtown" (south of the river in Richmond) in Midlothian. They are currently farming 1.25 acres of hops (Cascade, Zeus and Nugget) and have plans to expand to 3 acres (largest hop farm in Va. until I catch them) Very well organized and impressive. I was there with two local breweries and a rep from the Va. Craft Brewers Guild. For me it was an info session, for the brewers a salespitch. Very interesting session, they know what they're doing. I'll need to raise my standards.

[mattman91]

More activity brewing on the South Slope. Come on up guys!

[devildeac]

More activity brewing on the South Slope. Come on up guys!

There must be a lotta thirsty souls in Asheville/Buncombe County. Then New Belgium opens 2015.

[devildeac]

Baby Maker-Triple C Brewing (Charlotte)

Bomber trader from fuse a couple months ago that I divided over the last couple nights. Poured a surprising cloudy, amber color with pine and resin scents with tastes of the same with hints of mango and caramel. Foamy head which lingered. Statistically "balanced" DIPA with IBUs of 80 and ABV of 8.5% but not that balanced on the palate as I thought this a bit rough. I suspect this would be a bit smoother on draft and would probably pair well with spicy/hot foods or some ribs. Not one I'd re-visit or seek out. I've got a bomber of Triumphant, the NoDa triple that I'm probably going to enjoy tomorrow/this weekend that I am highy anticipating after I had it on draft at Brewgaloo in Raleigh a couple months ago.

[August West]

Holy hops! This has the potential to be one of the most insanely delicious 12 pack assortments ever. I might have to buy two (or three) of them.

http://beercamp.sierranevada.com/bee...rewing_company

Picked mine up today. DD, have you picked up yours? AW.

[mattman91]

I'll be moving in a couple weeks, so no more beer purchases here...cleaning out the fridge!

[devildeac]

Picked mine up today. DD, have you picked up yours? AW.

No, but I'll be going beer hunting tonight. Thanks for the tip. Hope I can get one.

[devildeac]

Big Boss Brewery/taproom visit today. More to follow.

[August West]

No, but I'll be going beer hunting tonight. Thanks for the tip. Hope I can get one.

Sam's Bottle Shop had about 12 cases left yesterday. Hope Valley Bottle Shop has it, but I don't know how many they have and its $3 more. Haven't checked TW. AW.

[devildeac]

Four beer sampler from Big Boss, four ounces each.

Tailwind is their draft only session IPA which seems to be a new brewing trend. Straw-colored with a small head, this evoked thoughts of a weak grapefruit-citrus blend. A bit unbalanced with ABV at 4.5% and IBUs of 60, it had a somewhat dry finish with little caramel sweetness somewhat overpowered by the hop presence. Takes a bit of getting accustomed to but a good pour and style.

[devildeac]

War Hawk is an American style pale ale that I reviewed a week or so ago upthread as a bottled product. See #5814. The draft version was perhaps a bit smoother but not much different except I thought the flavors included a bit of unripe mango/papaya, whereas the bottled version didn't. Shows how much I know. My IBU meter was pretty accurate guessing 50 when the actual on the "board" at the taproom today was 53. $3.50 for a bottle at the taproom versus $3.25 at the package store reflects on the limited production, I guess. Still a bit "spendy" for a middleweight APA but glad I had my 4 ounce sample today as a taste test.

[devildeac]

High Roller was the only one from my sampler that is also available in bottles. This is their standard IPA. Poured a bit more golden than War Hawk with a bit more pronounced citrus nose and distinct orange peel flavor to accompany some grapefruit and other tropical flavors. Good balance with a bit of caramel sweetness. Perhaps a tad low with the stats, showing up at 6.75% ABV and 55 IBUs. Good product that would match spicy/hot dishes or tangy BBQ fare well. A 6er for take out from the taproom woulda been $9.

[devildeac]

From May 9, 2013:

Big Operator


I actually had a two ounce taster of this last PM as my after dinner beer. A liquid milk chocolate-covered, slightly underripe raspberry. A couple sources list this as a black ale but the menu described it as a Belgian dark ale and I'd agree with this classification. Dark brown appearance with a small head, the aroma was dark, dried fruits, chocolate and rum and the raspberry taste was pretty subtle and near the finish. Think Belgian dubble/brown ale here so the IBU are pretty low, guessing 20-30 with an ABV of 8.6% so the standard pour would be 10-12 ounces. The sample was free but a full serving would have been $5 which is pretty reasonable for a complex high ABV brew.

Found a label and a picture of a bottle on line so they must have released this in limited quantities in bombers and kegs.



From 3 hours ago:


Today, it was a 4 ounce sample from the brewery and was bit surprised to find it in the middle of July but the beertender said they keep a few kegs "cellared" and bring them out occasionally after aging a bit so I'll guess this was the winter 2013/spring 2014 version. My thoughts were pretty much the same. ABV was listed at 8% and no IBUs were on their board but I'd guess on the low end as above. This bordered on luscious and would pair well with any chocolate dessert or stand proud on its own as a liquid dessert.

[devildeac]

Worthy of re-posting from 8/13/13:

Redemption (bottle dated 3/14/14)-Russian River Brewing

Now, on to my bottle supply. This was a corked and caged 12.68 ounce (aka 375 ml) bottle purchased by my daughter and son-in-law on their recent California journey. Poured a cloudy, fizzy, yellow-orange with nice lacing that lingered. Aromas of ripe bananas, lemon and sourdough bread with a hint of pepper on the palate with tastes of Granny Smith apples, bananas and mangoes. My daughter's first impression was "pinot grigio." I'd guess the IBU about 20 as it was a blonde ale, or Belgian single, with an ABV of 5.15% and was way too easy to drink. Serve chilled in a goblet with a fruit and cheese plate for an appetizer or dessert. Would also accompany a light seafood entree nicely.

redemptionbottle-copy.jpg

[devildeac]

Inferno Ale-The Lost Abbey (contract brewed by Port Brewing Company in San Marcos, California)

Recommended to my daughter and son-in-law by a beer shop steward in Lafayette, CA as they shopped for Russian River brews for me last month. This is a Belgian style golden/triple ale and was packaged in a 12.7 ounce caged and corked bottle and shared with her last evening, along with Redemption reviewed above. Poured a hazy, golden-orange with an immense amount of Belgian lace which coated our dainty little 4 ounce glasses for several minutes before we could sip. Aromas of apples, pears and bananas with an immediate perception of black pepper upon tasting with the sweet, fruity notes following. This may be the only beer I've ever had that could be described as "yeast-forward" as those tastes are so prominent. I'd guess IBUs 20-30 and the ABV is a deceptive and seductive 9%. Duvel is still the benchmark for the style as the yeastiness of this brew makes it just a bit difficult to like at first but the last 2-3 ounces were more enjoyable than the first couple. Definitely worth a try if you can find it, suspecting it may only be available on the west coast.