New Belgium Brewing Company Snapshot

New Belgium Brewing Company Snapshot
Style: Wheat Beer

Alcohol Content: 5%

From: Fort Collins, Colorado, United States

Purchased From: Great British Beer Festival 2014, Olympia, United Kingdom

http://www.newbelgium.com/Home.aspx

New Belgium was established in 1991 after its founder, Jeff Lebesch, decided to take his homebrewing passion commercially. The name New Belgium originates from a bicycle trip the founders took through Belgium in the late 80's. They would cycle from brewery to brewery, sampling beer as they went (sounds like bliss to me). Almost every label has been designed by watercolourist Anne Fitch. Anne has often been credited with helping the brewery develop so quickly due to her eye catching designs. Infact this partnership has helped New Belgium become the third largest craft beer brewery in the United States.

Not resting on their laurels, in 2013 the brewery became completely owned by their employees through an ESOP (Employee Stock Ownership Plan). The quirky corporate culture this generates helped New Belgium to be recognised as one of INC magazine's "25 Most Audacious Companies to work". The brewery is primarily based in Fort Collins where they produce over 700,000 barrels of beer each year.        

Colour: Pours a very pale straw yellow and is completely clear. Personally, I like to add the yeast into my wheat beers, so I naturally left a small amount of beer in my bottle and gave it a quickly swirl around. Normally this removes all the yeast that clings to the inside of the bottle, however, in the case of this beer, no yeast seems to be picked up and the drink remains crystal clear.

Aroma: Definitely not the most perfumed beer on the market, but you can pick up notes of zesty citrus fruits subtlety juxtaposed by the hints of creamed wheat. It certainly smells like a archetypal wheat beer. Perhaps this drink can now rise to the occasion.

Body: At first the body feels very rich and creamy. The incredibly low level of carbonation helps add to this depth. However, unlike the majority of the beers I review, this beer actually felt thinner in the mouth once it has warmed. It appears to become more watery as the temperature rises. The hints of citrus help to clear the slight clogging sensation on every sip. Mix this with the watery body and you have a real thirst quencher on your hands. Totally not what I was expecting from this beer.

Taste: To be honest, this is not the most flavoursome beer I have ever tasted. Sharp citrus notes completely dominate the subtle hints of creamed wheat and yeast. It all feels rather unbalanced much like the current Arsenal team. Lots of upfront zest, but no defensive body. The finish is slightly tart and ends incredibly dry. I hate to say it, but I think this beer is quite similar to Coors' Blue Moon. A thirst quenching wheat beer that has unfortunately failed to make its mark on me.

Similar to: http://beefsbrewery.blogspot.co.uk/2014/02/blanche-de-bruxelles.html

Different to: http://beefsbrewery.blogspot.co.uk/2013/11/ommegang-hennepin.html

For the latest news on reviews follow me on twitter @beefsbrewery or like me on Facebook at Beefsbrewery

New Holland Brewing Dragon's Milk

New Holland Brewing Dragon's Milk
Style: Bourbon Barrel Stout 

Alcohol Content: 10%

From: Holland, Michigan, United States

Purchased from: Great British Beer Festival

http://newhollandbrew.com/

Being deeply in love with someone means that you take on a little bit of them, and in my case, their interests and love of craft beer. And this is how I now find myself, spending my rainy bank holiday Monday getting rather excited about cracking open a bottle of bourbon barrel stout. It's certainly not something that I would of caught myself doing a year ago, I can tell you!

Just over a week ago, we spent a boozy (yet well-paced) day at the Great British Beer Festival. We sampled many a delicious beverage and I decided to bring back little treat for myself for later. Having a particular penchant for the darker, more alcoholic varieties of beer, I settled on a bourbon aged stout called 'Dragons milk' from New Holland Brewing. I squeezed the little bottle into my purse and dreamed of day i would enjoy the beverage. Yum!

However, upon delving a little deeper into the secrets of this Dragons Milk- it turns out that I haven't brought back an authentic Dutch beer at all, but a US beer from Holland in Michigan State! Kevin always said I never was any good with geography! This little beauty has been brewed by a couple of American chaps who first met in college and had a passion for their own home-brewed beer. After graduating, they formulated a solid business plan which attached the attention of some investors which eventually led to the opening of New Holland Brewing in 1996. The site now includes the microbrewery, along with a distillery, speciality brew house, restaurant and a pub! Sounds like our kind of place Kev! Nudge nudge wink wink!

Colour: This drink pours jet black complete with a deep tan coloured head that dissipates in a flash. It's thick and dark, with deep claret shades when held up to the light.

Aroma: As a lady with a vast collection of perfumes, ill tackle this question like I would any scent. Top note: Cloves. Middle notes: Vanilla, milk, a tumbler full of grandad's scotch whiskey Christmas 2002. Base notes: Marmite.

Body: This beer is every bit as dark and delicious as I had hoped! Unlike other stouts, this one has a full bodied mouth feel and coats the back of the tongue nicely. Hmmmmm! A wave of alcohol comes through on the aftertaste, giving that warming feeling that is nice when you're tucked up indoors and its all grey and misty outside (like today). The beer has that pleasant champagne-like effervescence to it which helps it slide down nicely!

Taste: With a smoky and spicy depth to it, this beer is a real winner. Every sip should be savoured as to really appreciate that bourbon edge. Flavours of cloves and cinnamon combine with a more delicate and floral note when I swill it around my mouth. I couldn't help but think that this beer is a perfect match for GU chocolate soufflé - both of which would just melt in your mouth. Soon after polishing off about half the bottle, the marmitey richness tends to sharpen and the alcohol content becomes more apparent. This is a drink that you only need one bottle of, or maybe that's just me. It's density and richness puts it up there with one of the hits of this years Beer Festival! Fullers Vintage 2014.

Similar to: http://beefsbrewery.blogspot.co.uk/2014/04/weird-beard-brewing-company-chinook.html

Different to: http://beefsbrewery.blogspot.co.uk/2013/02/gambrinus-excellent-11.html

For the latest news on reviews follow me on twitter @beefsbrewery or like me on Facebook at Beefsbrewery