New Beer Friday 10/5/18

Fisher -"Yet Unnamed Lager": As of yesterday this beer had no name. It's a toasty and clean lager with pine like bitterness along with malts that lean towards caramel and almond. Kinda like a Altbier. 4.0%. Available at Fisher.

Saltfire - Wet Hop Lupulin Dew: I missed this one, but I hope to have tasting notes for you on this later today on New Beer Friday's segment on KBER101. That's at 3:30pm with Mick and Allen.

Toasted Barrel - Doll Face White IPA:  This Belgian influenced white IPA is described as being brewed with orange peel and coriander to compliment the tropical hops. This compilation creates a smooth, hoppy finish approaching a NE style IPA.

2 Row - Roll Out: This a new oatmeal Stout from 2 Row. It's 4.0% and sadly i missed it. It's only on draft at 2 Row, so bring your growlers.

Ballast Point/Western Standard - Saloon Lager: This barrel aged lager is a collaborative beer between Constellation Brands' Ballast Point Brewing and High West Distillery. It starts with a good dose of oak, marshmallow and bourbon. Some lager graininess emerges in the end. finishes semi hoppy. Don't judge this session barrel aged lager against the bigger bodied ales. Knowing this, you can now proceed. 5.2%. Available at The Bayou and select DABC stores.

Elysian - Punkuccino: I was really looking forward to this one; anticipation is always better I guess. A good dose of pumpkin spices start you off with some gourd flavors as well. After that you get mostly thin acidic coffee and a harsh bitter finish. 6.0%. I found it at Beer Bar. 

Elysian - The Great Pumpkin: Much better than the previous Elysian Pumpkin beer. Look for great pumpkin pie spices: nutmeg, allspice, cinnamon and perhaps a touch of clove. There's a generous amount of malt backing this all up. 8.1%. Found at Beer Bar.

Odell - Jolly Russian: This Rum barrel aged Imperial Stout has notes of sweet rum followed by some heavy oak. Raisins, figs, tobacco and brown sugar.  Other rum notes make for a sweet offering, but the warming alcohol does a nice job of balancing the heavy sugars. 13.3%. Found at Beer Bar.

Odell - Double Pilsner: Toasted bread with grainy crackers start you off. From the you get a slight mineral bite that leads you to grassy and citrucy hops. Alcohol is evident put it is an Impy Pils. 9.0%. Found at Beer Bar

Stone - Enjoy By 10/31/18: These never seem to disappoint; some may be better than others, but IPA fans can usually agree that these are pretty decent beers. This one is no exception. It has great citrus notes with a fair amount of tropical-fruit-like hops. The malt balance is spot on with a descent amount of citrus peel and pine bitterness. It's damn yummy. 9.4%. Available at Beerhive, Bayou.

Cheers!

A 420 New Beer Friday!

It's a 420 New Beer Friday! There's not a lot of 'dank' offerings this week; actually there's none. However, there are two beers out there designed to be swilled today. Lagunitas' Waldo and Stone's Enjoy By 4/20/18. These are 'special order' beers and are only available at your better beer pubs. Now that we got that out of the way, let's move on to New Beer Friday.

Today's options couldn't be more different, both in style and in taste. I think you will all be quite happy with what available.

Kiitos American Pilsner: This pils was made with mosaic and cascade hops. A far cry from the usual saaz people are used to. Pine and citrus aromas with light grains and a touch of grapefruit. The flavors start with lightly sweet grains and then citrusy hops with a moderate grapefruit rind bitterness blossom. This beer is hop forward but it has enough bread crumb and light grain malt flavors to knock off the rough edges. This beer is universally pleasing - everyone from classic lager lovers to hoppy pale ale people will like this. 4.0% - Available at Kiitos.

Epic Big Bad Baptist Reserve: Take one beer, make three different variants out of it, then blend them back into one beer. That's what you getting with the BBB Reserve. There were 110 cases made in SLC and there's no a 3 bottle limit. 11.7% Available at Epic's brewery bottle shop.

Epic RiNo Juicy American Pale Ale: The nose on this one (get it?) has big tangerine, lemon, peach and mango with lightly toasted biscuit. The taste follows with grapefruit, pineapple and mango. Some honey-like malt inserts itself at this point making the hop flavors seem more genuine. Next the more bittering qualities of the hops begin to show with citrus peel, light pine and herbal grasses. The finish has zero lingering bitterness with a hint of berry peel. Alcohol is nearly present. This is a brilliant APA. If you don't love this as much as I do we're going to have to start seeing other people. 5.8% - Available at Epic's brewery bottle shop.

Wasatch Apricot Milkshake: I was hoping this would be on tap at the UBC's West Side Tavern yesterday, but it was not. If you have tried it, please share your thoughts. 4.0% - Available at Wasatch's Park City Brewpub and (maybe) the UBC's West Side Tavern.

Proper Black and Blue Skittlebrau:  A very nice looking fuchsia color. Lots of tart berries surround a nice saison base. If your not a huge fan of fruit beers I think you might dig this one. 4.0% - Available at Proper Brewing.

Ballast Point Aloha Sculpin: Some nice tropical fruit notes on the nose like lemon, grapefruit, tangerine, and peach. It starts with marmalade and dry crackers up front, then sharp lemon, grapefruit, and orange. Next there's a bit of berry - this sweetness transitions to pineapple, guava, and grapefruit to round round it out. It finishes somewhat dry with a clean bitterness. This is nice, but I'd probably take the Grapefruit Sculpin over this one. 7.0% - Available at DABC stores and better beer pubs.

Anchor San Franpsycho  IPA: This beer was just released last week and it's already on shelves which means it very fresh. Not tried it yet. 6.3% Available at DABC stores.

Stone/NOFX Punk in Drublic: The aroma is a little herbal, spicy florals with a touch of citrus. The taste is doughy and bitter with grassy German hops and orange peel. Some sulfur in the finish. A light and refreshing helles lager. 5.8% Available at the Bayou.

Stone Totalitarian: Have not tried this Imperial Stout. 10.6% Available at the Bayou

Coronado Stingray DIPA: Have not tried this. 10.6% Available at the Beer Bar

Coronado Orange Ave. Wit: The orange here is subtle allowing the wit part of the beer to still come through. Nice beer. 5.8% Available at Beer Bar, Beerhive.

Coronado Guava Islander: Again, this is a nice fruited IPA that has subtle fruitiness allow the base beer to still shine. 7.0% Available at the Beer Bar.

Coronado Islander IPA: This West Coast Pale Ale blends Centennial, Chinook and Columbus hops for a potent burst of piney bitterness ans lush notes of apricot, grapefruit and mango.7.0% Available at the Beer Bar.

Sláinte!

New Beer Friday 9/8/17

By now School is in full swing, if you're a student of drinking age your probably gunna need some New Beer Friday suds to help you in your end of the week decompression. Go Utes!

 

Shades of Pale - Sweet Dreams: I haven't had this yet. Debuts today at SOP. 8% ABV.

Talisman - Udder Chaos:  The nose has roasted malt and cocoa powder. The taste has deep roasted chocolate malt flavor, nicely bitter and isn't overly sweet. There is some sweetness in the middle before a lingering bitter finish that is part black coffee and roasted malt. Made with Park City's Ritual Chocolate. 4.0% ABV. Available at Talisman Brewery, Soon to Grocery and C-stores.
 

Brewery Ommegang - Pale Sour Ale:  The nose is tart with minerals and lemon. The flavor starts with malt, not quite grainy, maybe more cereal-like. The beer itself is more tart than sour. Cherry and lemon notes appear and there's some grassiness as well. Not super complex but very drinkable. 6.9% ABV. Available at select DABC Stores, Kimball Junction for sure.

Ballast Point - Bonito: The nose is malty sweet, lightly citrus and grassy. The flavor follows with more depth. It's subtly sweet with a touch of fruity lime-like citrus upfront. Median bitterness across the middle, and then followed by a dry grassy finish. 4.5% ABV. Available at select DABC Stores, Kimball Junction for sure.

Stone - 21st Anniversary Hail To the Hop Thief: A nice aroma of light citrus fruit, malt, and pine. The taste is kinda old school IPA meets West Coast IPA. There's a bit of malt with a good dose of pine, citrus fruit and a bit of lemon as well. A nice, well-balanced DIPA. 9.8% ABV. Available at the Beerhive, Slackwater. 

Beavertown / Garage Project / Stone - Fruitallica: The nose here has vague hops and fruit. No habanero notes at all. The same goes for the taste. No spice, heat or peppers. It relies on the the tropical fruits (yuzu and kiwi) to carry it. It's not a bad fruited IPA, but I was expecting a little more pepper snap. 8.0% ABV. Available at the Beerhive, Slackwater.

Fisher - Oyster Stout: This is much like their standard stout. Don't worry, it doesn't have "the worlds first great taste of fish"! ~ Monty Python. 4.0% ABV. At Fisher Brewing.

Great Divide - Hoss: This is a typical Märzen style lager. It's full of vanilla like caramel malts but it's more aggressively bittered with spicy and floral hops. 6.2% ABV. At the Beer Bar. 

Sierra Nevada - Ovila White Ale: A great example of the style. A good dose of wheat and coriander with spicy notes from the yeast. Very nice. 5.3% ABV.  At Beer Bar. 

Goose Island - Sofie: Soft malts, clove and Belgian yeast. There's a slight peachy tartness in the back end. Quite nice. 6.5% ABV At Beer Bar, BeerHive. 

What did I miss? Please share!  

Cheers!

New Beer Friday 8/4/17

New Beer Friday is chock-full of goodness this week. Now with twice the recommended dose of Conway Twitty!

Snake River's Eclipse Ale: This pale ale is citrusy and floral in the nose. The taste follows with a bit of tangerine and floral bitterness. There is some toasted grain sweetness rounding it out. Overall, it's a tasty pale, not bad for a one and done beer. 5.2% ABV @ Slackwater

Desert Edge's ALTernative Facts Alt: This is a light copper colored German Ale. Malty sweet aroma with a smooth bready malt flavor. Low hop flavor and dry finish 4.0% ABV. @ Desert Edge

Ballast Point's Sea Rose: Hints of pomegranate in the nose. The flavor has a creamy malts with some tart cherry flavor and pomegranate. The flavors as subtle and not in your face. Overall, the flavors are pleasant and it tastes surprisingly fresh. Highly drinkable. 4.0% ABV @ Harmon'sand othe grocery and C-stores.

Talisman Presents - North East Style IPA: Not tried this one yet. Described as juicy and tropical. 7.0% ABV @ Talisman

Melvin's Heyzues: Grassy lemon nose. The taste starts with crackers and dry malts. The bitterness is somewhat herbal with some lemongrass notes. The finish has some pine resins. This is a really great Mexican style lager. @ Slackwater, Bayou

Proper's Lei Effect: This Gose is enhanced with passion fruit. The nose is dry and tart with a slight hint of sulphides. The taste is lemony and slightly briny with tart passion fruit. Some dry cracker notes round out the tartness. 5.0% ABV. Debuts later this afternoon at Proper Brewing. 

Mother Earth's Primordial IIPA: Thus has a subdued nose of mostly citrus peel and flowery hops. The taste has pine, citrus and floral notes. The malts are somewhat muted. A bit of alcohol makes it slightly drying in the finish. A nice west coast style IPA, it's just a tad dry. 9.5% ABV @ Slackwater, Bayou, BeerHive 

Cheers!

New Beer Friday 7/28/17

Not a huge selection of New Beer Friday suds today. However, all three of these beers are damn tasty. You cant go wrong with any of these.

Hoppers - Sendero Obscuro: Pours a clear chestnut-brown color with off-white head, leaving a ring of lacing. The nose has bready malt, fresh bread crust and grass. The taste starts off with roasted grain, cocoa and a bit of brown sugar. A slight nuttiness comes in next with a hint of corn pops as well. The end is floral and grassy, with a nice drying bitterness in the finish. One of the best traditional Mexican lagers made in the state. A must try! 4.0% ABV Look for it at Hoppers.

Sierra Nevada Oktoberfest - Brauhaus Miltenberger Collaboration: Pours a clear -  darkened honey color with a nice pillowy head. The nose has sweet malt some honey and herbal grass. Right off the bat you get a nice dose of caramel malt that is rounded out with a nice dose a vanilla-like flavors. On the back end the hops are assertive and drying with herbal grasses and hint of spices. This is a wonderful marzen that is true to style. Get on this one fast because it will likely never be made again. 6.1% ABV. Look for it at DABC, Beer Bar.

Ballast Point - Unfiltered Sculpin Extra Hopped India Pale Ale: This IPA is hazy with golden orange hues. The head is on the thin side, but it's fine. The nose has citrus peel, peach, mango and lime with some caramel cake. Tropical fruitiness takes the lead in the taste with peach, mango, tangerine and lime. The malt bed ties it all together in the end creating a familiar fruit salad richness. More juicy and fruity than the filtered version. Worth checking out for sure.7.0% ABV Look for it at DABC.

Prost!

New Beer Friday 2/3/17

My self imposed beer exile is finally over - And just in time, because there a shload of new stuff covering the board this week.

RedRock India Red Lager - Haven't tried this one yet. Look for Fruity caramel malts with big citrus hops. 4.0% ABV @ RedRock Downtown

RedRock Lady Ga Gose - Lemon tartness with a moderate amount of sodium bite. A nice Gose. 4.0% ABV @ RedRock

Ballast Point Red Velvet Nitro - Not tried this one yet. The deep red color comes from beets, which add a rich, earthy character that complements the chocolate flavor and aroma. The foamy head of the nitro pour is the “icing”, adding a creamy smoothness to the mouthfeel. But this liquid dessert still finishes like a beer – not sweet, but just as satisfying. 5.5% ABV @ Beer Bar, Slackwater

Ballast Point Manta Ray - The nose has lots of tropical fruits. Mango, papaya, passion fruit, and some citrus. The taste is more citrusy with some tropical fruit notes. Bitterness at the end with some pine. A bit boozey. Some toasted malts. 8.5% ABV @ Beer Bar

Deschutes Black Butte XXVIII - The nose is a blend of coffee, raisins, chocolate, bourbon, prune and alcohol. The taste is a complex blend of chocolate, coffee, bourbon, oak, raisins, apricots, pine and vanilla. Very nice addition to the series. 11.5% ABV  @ DABC, BeerHive

Desert Edge Waimea IPA - This is a session IPA brewed with Waimea hops from New Zealand and a bit of citra in the dry hop. The aroma is mango and citrus. The flavor is the same with underlying grassy and botanical flavors with a hint of ripe melon. The malt flavor has just enough bready malt and light caramel to balance the hops. A firm bitterness keeps all the fruity flavors in check for highly drinkable session IPA. 4.0% ABV @ Desert Edge

Melvin Lambda3 - Brewed with 4+ lbs of Simcoe and Mosaic hops per barrel, then double dry-hopped. Flavors of peach, stone fruit, and herbal forest. 11.0% ABV @ Beer Bar, BeerHive, Slackwater

Melvin Drunken Master - The nose has pine resin with peach, melon and mango. The taste is slightly sweet with mild hints of toffee/caramel, heavy tropical fruits, hernal hops finishing with a moderate hop bitterness. @ Beer Bar, BeerHive, Slackwater

Melvin Citradamus - A lot of tangerine and grapefruit happening here with a good deal of tropical fruits as well. Malts subtle and caramely  9.0% @ Beer Bar, BeerHive, Slackwater

Great Divide Barrel Aged Yeti -  The Nose has chocolate, roasted malt, toffee, raisins, plums and figs. The taste is similar with the addition of a very sweet base. It tends to take away from the barrel that is already a bit subtle. Needs more of those bourbon/vanilla/coconut flavors that you want in a BBS. 12.5% ABV @ Beer Bar

Sierra Nevada Sidecar - This beer has a pop of bright orange flavor that emphasizes the natural citrus-heavy character of Cascade, Equinox and Mandarina hops. Brewed with orange peel added directly to the kettle, and all the classic hop flavor you'd come to expect from our all-new take on the hop-forward fruit beer. @ Beer Bar 

Sierra Nevada Tropical Torpedo - Mmango, papaya, and passion fruit dominate this version of Torpedo. 6.7% ABV @ Beer Bar

Squatters Outer Darkness Cans  Not new, but it is in new packaging. Handy-dandy 12 oz. cans!

Cheers!

New Beer Friday 3/4/16

This guy is making my brain hurt. Luckily New Beer Friday will numb us from the dumb.

Anchor - Saison Spring Ale: This beer is described as having lemongrass, lemon peel and ginger - whose synergy adds a tangy crispness and herbal spiciness to this sharply refreshing, uniquely California saison.

Ballast Point - The Commodore: This American Stout has a nose of coffee, roasted malt, chocolate, some caramel, and some bready malts. The taste has roasted malt, chocolate, some slight coffee, and a bit of vanilla. Finishes on the bitter side with hops and char. A nice stout. 6.5% ABV @ Bayou, Beer Bar, Beerhive

Boulder - Shake Chocolate Porter: The nose is is full-on milk chocolate not much else. The taste is slightly sweet chocolate syrup and roasted malts followed by coffee-like bitterness. Very creamy texture with a semi-sweet, piney bitter finish. 5.9% ABV @ Bayou, DABC

HUB - IPX El Dorado: This IPA is huge with floral and tangerine and tangerine both in the nose and in the taste. Malts are subtle and sweet with a moderate to strong bitter finish. Really nice an easy drinking beer. 6.0% ABV @BeerHive, BeerBar

Hive - Ghost town Dry Oaked Mead: described as having a bourbon nose with clover, sage and oak on the tongue. Sounds wonderful. No ABV listed @ Hive Winery

Cheers!

Ballast Point Beer at the DABC

Many of you have been asking when and where the Ballast Point beers will be showing up in DABC stores. They have popped up at few places along the Wasatch Front, and when I say few - I mean FEW. Here's where you can find them. If your going to make a long drive I suggest you use the phone numbers provided to double check. Who loves ya, Baby?

BALLAST POINT GRAPEFRUIT SCULPIN 355ml
NORTH STATE STREET    OREM    801-225-0119
1675 SOUTH 900 WEST    SALT LAKE CITY    801-975-4035
255 SOUTH 300 EAST    SALT LAKE CITY    801-533-6444
262 E GATEWAY DRIVE    HEBER    435-657-3088

BALLAST POINT HABANERO SCULPIN 355ml
1675 SOUTH 900 WEST    SALT LAKE CITY    801-975-4035

BALLAST POINT SCULPIN IPA 355ml
1688 NORTH STATE STREET    OREM    801-225-0119
1675 SOUTH 900 WEST    SALT LAKE CITY    801-975-4035
262 E GATEWAY DRIVE    HEBER    435-657-3088
671 S PLEASANT GROVE BLVD    PLEASANT GROVE    801-785-0228

BALLAST POINT BIG EYE IPA 355ml
1688 NORTH STATE STREET    OREM    801-225-0119
262 E GATEWAY DRIVE    HEBER    435-657-3088
671 S PLEASANT GROVE BLVD    801-785-0228

BALLAST POINT DORADO IMP IPA 355ml
1688 NORTH STATE STREET    OREM    801-225-0119
262 E GATEWAY DRIVE    HEBER    435-657-3088

BALLAST POINT PALE ALE 355ml
1688 NORTH STATE STREET    OREM    801-225-0119
262 E GATEWAY DRIVE    HEBER    435-657-3088
671 S PLEASANT GROVE BLVD    PLEASANT GROVE    801-785-0228

Oh, and the Ballast Point Even Keel should be in most grocery and convenience stores by now.

Cheers!

Ballast Point Coming to Utah

Our local beer news lately seems to have at least one thing in common with our winter, it's been practically non-existent. After a long news drought we finally have something new to talk about and it's pretty damn big news. Yesterday via Facebook Ballast Point Brewing announced that they were bringing their beers to Utah and they will debut with their new IPA called Even Keel.

Even Keel is Session IPA that's described as having a silky malt backbone, with herbal and citrus hops. It has a whopping ABV of 3.8% and will be available in cans and on draft.

Don't worry, Ballast Point also announced that other beers in their portfolio will be en route as well. If your a fan their Grapefruit Sculpin IPA (and who isn't) you can begin to sqeeeeee now.

No exact date was given as to their arrival, but the next couple of months seems likely. We'll share the news as becomes available. Thanks Jim for bring this to our attention!

Cheers!