Brew Batch #27 Belgian Dubbel

First in the "Wedding Series" of beers this one went to bottle. I got 27 long neck 22oz bombers with black crowns. I put one off to the side to try as the wedding gets closer, I ain't giving my close family and friends wedding cat piss as a gift. I'm a little worried about this one but the tripel was the same, it seems to taste initially green, perhaps yeasty but it hasn't been on the yeast bed in a month however good fermentation seems to have started again because there was about 1/2" on the bottom when racking to bottle. FG 1.006 +0.00@ 65F to give it about 7.6%abv.

Representation!!

Flying Dog decided to show how much they like my dog's (Growler) love.

Our Tastes-- Yazoo Rye Saison

Sent to me via Junk, Rye Saison is Yazoo's offering at their 5th anniversary. The label is a departure from Linus's wife's murals to a full photo of his 5 year old little girl (with her hand in front of her face), a nice marketing twist to immortalize family on his life journey, after all every man yearns to leave a legacy, so that his legend may be told. This label speaks volumes to me. It's not just doing well but touching others (in family and outside) to leave a positive impact. Pouring a slightly cloudy mustard yellow with flat white head this one noses of anything other than rye. Immediately entering the mouth it attacks the tart buds and seems to leave a film on the teeth. It is a unique blend unto itself. Made with rye and pale malts, spice "American" hops (I assume Centennial or Cascade but Linus do love Amarillo) and a farmhouse yeast (which one day I'll get someone to define for me... french ((yes little "f", don't get me on that rant the last time the french needed proof Hitler was in downtown Paris)) yeast) perhaps a weak strain. A descent beer in its own right. Came in a nice BrewMasters Reserve 4-pack. This touches the realm of DFH Festina Peche. Most saisons brewed today have abvs of 5-8%. Have some just to say you tried it and supported an American micro!

Our Tastes-- Coney Island Sword Swallower

Sword Swallower Steel Hop Lager is a brew The Enabler and I picked up on our last trip to Peach Tree City. According to the label it is a "spectacle" of 8 hops and 4 luscious malts. Apart from that there is a stunning blond in a titillating red dress that has a steel shank down her throat? Phallic much? Pouring one of the clearest lager profiles I've seen, so much so I could see my fingerprints on the glass I had just wiped down. Head is nothing to remark on. Nose is no hops to notice and has the "standard" lager smell to it. This is a surprisingly bitter beer. (maybe they should have used 5 malts). Made with Specialty 2-row, rye (which is what smacks the side of the tongue), Canadian wheat malt, along with Warrior, Northern Brewer, Palisade, Crystal, Fuggle, US Golding and Cascade then dry-hopped with Cascade, Crystal and Amarillo. 6.8%abv, makes it a super buy, I'd swill it around again.
BTW, each purchase goes toward go toward Coney Island USA a non-prof for the lost American arts, much like brewing great beer.

Our Tastes-- Yazoo Wassail

Ending the last of the big Nashville trip brews, we try Wassail, Linus's latest seasonal offer through the tap room. Wassail defined as "liquor for drinking and wishing health to others on festive occasions, esp. spiced ale, as on Christmas Eve and Twelfth-night." This beer pours a med/dark clear brown with macro bubbles. Aroma is more malt and spice than hops. When tasting the carbonation almost put an unpleasant feeling in your mouth, like pop-rocks. The taste is bland to begin with for such a colored beer then the spices slowly jump around on the taste buds. Not sure what spices were used but this is much like my Reindeer (Batch #7), that was my first attempt at my own recipe so to speak. There is definitely cinnamon, maybe a clover, but nutmeg for sure at the end. The mouthfeel is almost vanilla cookie. Overall, a good beer, not my fav of the trip but worth buying a growler.

Our Tastes-- Dogfish Head Midas Touch Golden Elixir

Well if Sam Calagione is anything, he's inventive. Midas Touch, is a replication of the actual oldest-known recipe of fermented beverage in the world. Made with barley, white Muscat grapes, honey & saffron this brew is truly an innovation reborn. Santa Claus brought me a couple of new Rogue tasting goblets so that's what I using and I'll have to say the color is unique and breathtaking. The color reminds me of The Bees' Knees that is currently fermenting (still wide open!) in my brew room. It has a slightly cloudy light orange hue. The head completely dissipates to flatness with a couple of small patches of thin white foam (like a pond that has duck weed in it). A University of Pennsylvania expedition opened a tumulus (burial mound) that likely contained King Midas and some serving vessels in Turkey. Of course we all the story of Midas and nearly starving to death and turning his daughter to gold after Dionysus gave him the golden touch. The taste of this stuff is truly confounding. The nose as you take it in is that of southern muscadines (or scupanons) and slight honey, then leads to a dry taste with little hop (or well-balanced with the honey). A very neat bevvy. Plus drinking it out of a goblet makes you feel king-like. At 9%abv and 307kcal, a four pack of these will have you calling for the royal house cat to see if it likes your golden member;)

Our Tastes-- Left Hand/Terrapin Terra-Rye'Zd

Terra-Rye'Zd is a collaborative release between Left Hand Brewing (Longmont, CO) and Terrapin Brewery (Athens, GA) . A Black Rye lager that's got a high rye and malt bill which is able to grab the nose with a bready rye whole grain. The hops aren't listed on either site but I can attest that the color is an opulent black with flat head. Taste is a bit more complex than I imagined. A hoppy rye unlike any other brew I have encountered. A medium mouthfeel and 6.6%abv makes this "a keepsie". Glad I bought a dozen to see how it ages.