The Official Modern Times League Of Partygoers & Elegant People Thread

[ModernTimesLeanne]

That NOLA and that rum tho.!

My memory is getting crappy in my old age, so can someone remind me if Whales & Whales a Theory event, or if it was a tasting room point event? Thanks.

It's a Theory event! Emails were sent out and RSVPs were collected a little while back

 

[ModernTimesLeanne]

I saw that after my ability to edit expired. Thanks for clarification.

Also...bring Abaddon instead of Ice..kkthx4itbai

If we had any left, we would!

 

[SanDiegoJoe2011]

Ugh...wish I still lived in SD.

 

[drbenzo1]

Hey ModernTimesLeanne ModernTimesSteven , two questions

1. If every theory member bought two of the Beautiful Meadows Modem Tones, then only 60 (120 total bottles) members got bottles if they were quick on the order? I had a busy day and completely forgot about the sale.
2. What’s Beautiful Meadows mean... High West?

 

[coldstorage]

Yeah. bummer limit on that one. Oh well.

 

[Tyrsis]

Hey ModernTimesLeanne ModernTimesSteven , two questions

1. If every theory member bought two of the Beautiful Meadows Modem Tones, then only 60 (120 total bottles) members got bottles if they were quick on the order? I had a busy day and completely forgot about the sale.
2. What’s Beautiful Meadows mean... High West?

2. Belle Meade. Some rando distillery that buys their juice (they haven't bottled anything they've produced yet.) It's fine.

 

[chemman141]

Hey ModernTimesLeanne ModernTimesSteven , two questions

1. If every theory member bought two of the Beautiful Meadows Modem Tones, then only 60 (120 total bottles) members got bottles if they were quick on the order? I had a busy day and completely forgot about the sale.
2. What’s Beautiful Meadows mean... High West?

Yeah. bummer limit on that one. Oh well.

it lasted for almost 12 hours, no excuse.

 

[Xul1]

it lasted for almost 12 hours, no excuse.

Not really the point they're making - if they had ordered quickly, someone else would be disappointed that they missed out.

 

[chemman141]

Not really the point they're making - if they had ordered quickly, someone else would be disappointed that they missed out.

I could see their point if it sold out in under an hour even. 12 hours is plenty of time to buy, seeing as we knew about this bottle and when it would go on sale almost 36 hours in advance. I guess people will complain about stuff though, that's part of what this site is for.

 

[coldstorage]

Don't you have a degarde thread to go cry in or something?
Slow day?

 

[Xul1]

I could see their point if it sold out in under an hour even. 12 hours is plenty of time to buy, seeing as we knew about this bottle and when it would go on sale almost 36 hours in advance. I guess people will complain about stuff though, that's part of what this site is for.

Neither of them is even complaining, expressing disappointment is different, and IMO, not out of line. I mean, we can sit here and play with the semantics and timelines of how quick of a sellout is justified for complaining, or we can look at it from the perspective of constructively discussing the mechanics of the sale.

I know from past sales, some single barrel variants of Devil's Teeth and Monsters' Park haven't sold nearly as well as you might expect since they end up sitting at the Mini Mart, so perhaps the demand for this was heavier than they anticipated. Or perhaps they didn't want to deal with ToLC members complaining if leftovers made it to the League since there's not really time to do a ToLC second chance sale before the League sale.

Either way, they weren't outright bitching or slamming Modern Times - shouting down feedback to create an echo chamber isn't particularly helpful. If 60 of us doubled up and then 20 people say "hey, we're bummed we missed out on a bottle" it seems like the sort of thing they'd want to know.

 

[litheum94]

I guess people will complain about stuff though, that's part of what this site is for.

The irony of this statement is delicious.

 

[jwacky]

On the bright side - you know how $60 more to spend on whatever barrel aged bangers they bottle next month! Practically free for you now if you get creative with your accounting.

 

[chemman141]

The irony of this statement is delicious.

Yep never said I don't complain but I see this as a moot point (as I am sure many of my points are)

 

[sdreaper]

I know from past sales, some single barrel variants of Devil's Teeth and Monsters' Park haven't sold nearly as well as you might expect since they end up sitting at the Mini Mart, so perhaps the demand for this was heavier than they anticipated. Or perhaps they didn't want to deal with ToLC members complaining if leftovers made it to the League since there's not really time to do a ToLC second chance sale before the League sale.

I have not been keeping track of these single barrel offerings all that well...curious if you had the data readily available, otherwise I can go scour emails and sales pages (assuming they are still posted up on BPT and the like),

but aside from MP 10 and 12yr, is this the first single barrel batch with only 120bottles? I could have sworn the others (again, except for the 10 and 12yr) were in the 200ish range. The Uncommon Raptor DT, I am glad hung around as long as it did since I did not jump on those when offered. Had a bottle and immediately started searching for more.

 

[chemman141]

I have not been keeping track of these single barrel offerings all that well...curious if you had the data readily available, otherwise I can go scour emails and sales pages (assuming they are still posted up on BPT and the like),

but aside from MP 10 and 12yr, is this the first single barrel batch with only 120bottles? I could have sworn the others (again, except for the 10 and 12yr) were in the 200ish range. The Uncommon Raptor DT, I am glad hung around as long as it did since I did not jump on those when offered. Had a bottle and immediately started searching for more.

Yeah I thought the 120 bottle count was odd seeing as a barrel should produce 300+ bottles. Maybe they had a low yield and/or are holding bottles back for future events.

 

[sdreaper]

Yeah I thought the 120 bottle count was odd seeing as a barrel should produce 300+ bottles. Maybe they had a low yield and/or are holding bottles back for future events.

We believe that if the barrel came from K&L then they would get roughly half the yield in order to resell through them, and then of course MT likely holding back a case or two or three in archives. This is only an assumption though, I have 0 data to back this up.

Edit: If true, it does suck that public could be getting these bottles over members, but on the other hand...it could spawn new fans and potential new members. Just like when league and theory are handing out their coins and getting special pours for others at the festivals.

 

[chemman141]

We believe that if the barrel came from K&L then they would get roughly half the yield in order to resell through them, and then of course MT likely holding back a case or two or three in archives. This is only an assumption though, I have 0 data to back this up.

Edit: If true, it does suck that public could be getting these bottles over members, but on the other hand...it could spawn new fans and potential new members. Just like when league and theory are handing out their coins and getting special pours for others at the festivals.

Ahh, that would make sense. I did see that K&L was fire selling one of their MT single barrel beers (I think it was a DT variant?) a week ago.

 

[Xul1]

Edit: If true, it does suck that public could be getting these bottles over members

It's fairly standard when a liquor store provides a barrel to a brewery that they get allocated some of the batch, and more specifically is how it has always worked in the Modern Times/K&L relationship. The alternative scenario is that Modern Times doesn't get the barrel to begin with and this beer doesn't exist - in that context, I'm pretty okay with the fact that the public will have access to it.

 

[sdreaper]

Most definitely ok with it. Because that relationship allows us to reap the rewards.

 

[abawol01]

Tequila Creature Times. Holy ******* nope.

 

[litheum94]

Tequila Creature Times. Holy ******* nope.

You just hate flavor.

That Necternomican with guava and raspberries tho.....

 

[drbenzo1]

I’m not crying... just curious... I have very little ***** anymore.

 

[Xul1]

July 2018 Preview Tasting Notes:

1) Modem Tones Aged in Jamaican Rum Barrels w/ Raspberries & Cocoa
Style: Imperial Stout
Score: 4.5
Notes: An initial wave of rum barrel hits hard upon the first whiff with dark fruit and touches of alcohol heat, giving way to a huge raspberry truffle character composed of bright berries and semisweet chocolate, along with vanilla wafting around in the background. The palate largely follows with rum barrel character openings things up, although I didn't find it to be quite as magical as it was in the Jamaican Rum Monsters' Park variants - perhaps Modem Tones' greater heft overwhelms some of the barrels' nuances? When the beer is first served, there's a bit of an astringent alcohol bite on the mid-palate that's slightly distracting, but it blew off after the first few sips - if you're getting that, your glass is probably too cold, let it sit and revisit. Barrel character quickly gives way to rich dark chocolate along and berry flavor that's slightly more restrained than it was on the nose, but still rich enough to balance the cocoa and lead to a long finish redolent of raspberry truffles. It's also worth noting that this adjunct combo works far better than it did in BA Devil's Teeth.

2) Flamenco Sketches
Style: Super-fruited Berliner
Score: 4.0
Notes: Big guava and blood orange lead the aroma, followed by mild vanilla that supports and integrates into the nose without overwhelming. Hints of dragon fruit waft around in the background. On the palate, the guava struck me as even more dominant up front, with blood orange working its way forward as the beer rolls across the tongue. Vanilla builds from the mid-palate into the finish, never quite reaching a sense of genuine sweetness, but tempering the acidity and melding nicely into the fruit. I found the adjunct profile on this one to be the most restrained of the super-fruited Berliner series, and while I enjoy it, I'd prefer a return to beers more like Star Metal and Order of Hermes with fruit that jumps out of the glass and assaults the senses. YMMV.

3) The Fruitening Part 1
Style: BA Sour Blend w/ Zinfandel Grapes and Blackcurrants
Score: 4.25 (4.35 rounded down for Untappd-style scoring)
Notes: A red wine barrel-aged blend of saison, sour blonde, grisette, and Flanders red aged in Spanish brandy barrels, to which they added 425 pounds of whole cluster California Zin grapes and 880 pounds of blackcurrants, yielding a fruiting rate of 4.5 lbs/gallon. Absurdity, but in the best way possible. Zin grapes his first on the nose, building a vibrant, vinous tapestry that supports light peppery notes, a building fruity counter-balance of blackcurrants, mild to moderate acidity, and light oak notes. The palate opens even heavier with the vinous character with blackcurrants taking on a supporting role, slightly heavier acidity, and some great tannic structure. This doesn't quite surpass Analog for me as far as favorite wine/beer hybrid, but it's clear that Modern Times is really onto something in how they're using wine grapes, this is the sort of thing that should appeal to fans of both sour beer and wine.

4) The Fruitening Part 2
Style: BA Sour Blend w/ Boysenberries, Blueberries, Plums, Zinfandel Grapes, and Blackcurrants
Score: 4.5
Notes: The same blend of base beers as Part 1, to which they added massive amounts of boysenberries, plums, and freeze-dried blueberries (sorry, I didn't catch the exact quantities), and then later blending a bit of Part 1's final result into this beer. Berry character jumps right out of the glass before you even get it up to your nose, with boysenberries taking the lead, blueberries providing a sense of berry complexity, and plums rounding out the fruit profile and preventing it from becoming one-dimensional. The Zin and blackcurrants from Part 1 waft around in the background but are mainly bit players in this blend. On the palate, the berries hit first once again but with a touch more acidity before plums assert themselves with a slightly-sweet depth of stone fruit goodness, leading to a long, jammy finish dominated by a mix of boysenberries and plums. A touch of vinous character comes through on the backend but never reaches more than a tertiary flavor to me. This blend is definitely more of a jammy sour beer that has some fruit wine elements to it but follows a more classic trajectory. Opinions were divided as to which Fruitening was better, but both are quite good.

5) Creature Times Aged in Tequila Barrels
Style: Tequila BA Gose
Score: 3.5
Notes: Before I describe the beer, let me note that I'm a far bigger fan of smoked beers than most people, and I was a bigger fan of Creature Times than most people. If you don't like smoke or didn't enjoy the base beer, you're very unlikely to be a fan of this. Big smoke aroma hits first followed by a heavy dose of pineapple, restrained chili notes, and light acidity. Hints of tequila roam around the edges but aren't particularly evident on the nose. On the palate, however, tequila and smoke lead the charge leading to a sort of mezcal effect that's reminiscent of bad life decisions. Pineapple comes in strong along with lingering tequila, while chiles lurk in the background. The aroma is definitely the high point of this beer as it has an expansive and rich pineapple character. This one will definitely be divisive, and while I think it's relatively well-executed and will be buying a couple bottles, I found the barrel aging to have a deleterious effect on the beer.

And a bonus review...

6) BA Monsters' Park w/ Salted Caramel & Extra Glam
Style: Glittery Affront to Humanity
Score: 4.5
Notes: Before the glass even reaches your nose, notes of self-indulgent hedonism meld with a supporting sense of postmodern relativism to form an overarching aroma redolent of a total breakdown in societal norms that leaps out of the glass, with a mild character of nihilistic commitment to excess wafting around in the background. The first sip reveals a flavor profile steeped in bacchanalian gluttony before a wave of well-worn strip club flooring comes in and dominates the mid-palate. A bright, lightly acidic dash of unicorn blood comes in late to break things up and leads into a long, viscous finish that tastes entirely of a Caligulan disregard for one's own well-being. As the glass warms, the beer really opens up and reveals an absolutely consuming disdain for all that's right in the world. While this beer represents an obvious step towards the decline of civilization, I have no doubt Andrew will come up with an even more disturbing glitter concoction down the road, and I'll thus reserve the mantle of "humanity's nadir" for that future abomination.

 

[litheum94]

July 2018 Preview Tasting Notes:

1) Modem Tones Aged in Jamaican Rum Barrels w/ Raspberries & Cocoa
Style: Imperial Stout
Score: 4.5
Notes: An initial wave of rum barrel hits hard upon the first whiff with dark fruit and touches of alcohol heat, giving way to a huge raspberry truffle character composed of bright berries and semisweet chocolate, along with vanilla wafting around in the background. The palate largely follows with rum barrel character openings things up, although I didn't find it to be quite as magical as it was in the Jamaican Rum Monsters' Park variants - perhaps Modem Tones' greater heft overwhelms some of the barrels' nuances? When the beer is first served, there's a bit of an astringent alcohol bite on the mid-palate that's slightly distracting, but it blew off after the first few sips - if you're getting that, your glass is probably too cold, let it sit and revisit. Barrel character quickly gives way to rich dark chocolate along and berry flavor that's slightly more restrained than it was on the nose, but still rich enough to balance the cocoa and lead to a long finish redolent of raspberry truffles. It's also worth noting that this adjunct combo works far better than it did in BA Devil's Teeth.

2) Flamenco Sketches
Style: Super-fruited Berliner
Score: 4.0
Notes: Big guava and blood orange lead the aroma, followed by mild vanilla that supports and integrates into the nose without overwhelming. Hints of dragon fruit waft around in the background. On the palate, the guava struck me as even more dominant up front, with blood orange working its way forward as the beer rolls across the tongue. Vanilla builds from the mid-palate into the finish, never quite reaching a sense of genuine sweetness, but tempering the acidity and melding nicely into the fruit. I found the adjunct profile on this one to be the most restrained of the super-fruited Berliner series, and while I enjoy it, I'd prefer a return to beers more like Star Metal and Order of Hermes with fruit that jumps out of the glass and assaults the senses. YMMV.

3) The Fruitening Part 1
Style: BA Sour Blend w/ Zinfandel Grapes and Blackcurrants
Score: 4.25 (4.35 rounded down for Untappd-style scoring)
Notes: A red wine barrel-aged blend of saison, sour blonde, grisette, and Flanders red aged in Spanish brandy barrels, to which they added 425 pounds of whole cluster California Zin grapes and 880 pounds of blackcurrants, yielding a fruiting rate of 4.5 lbs/gallon. Absurdity, but in the best way possible. Zin grapes his first on the nose, building a vibrant, vinous tapestry that supports light peppery notes, a building fruity counter-balance of blackcurrants, mild to moderate acidity, and light oak notes. The palate opens even heavier with the vinous character with blackcurrants taking on a supporting role, slightly heavier acidity, and some great tannic structure. This doesn't quite surpass Analog for me as far as favorite wine/beer hybrid, but it's clear that Modern Times is really onto something in how they're using wine grapes, this is the sort of thing that should appeal to fans of both sour beer and wine.

4) The Fruitening Part 2
Style: BA Sour Blend w/ Boysenberries, Blueberries, Plums, Zinfandel Grapes, and Blackcurrants
Score: 4.5
Notes: The same blend of base beers as Part 1, to which they added massive amounts of boysenberries, plums, and freeze-dried blueberries (sorry, I didn't catch the exact quantities), and then later blending a bit of Part 1's final result into this beer. Berry character jumps right out of the glass before you even get it up to your nose, with boysenberries taking the lead, blueberries providing a sense of berry complexity, and plums rounding out the fruit profile and preventing it from becoming one-dimensional. The Zin and blackcurrants from Part 1 waft around in the background but are mainly bit players in this blend. On the palate, the berries hit first once again but with a touch more acidity before plums assert themselves with a slightly-sweet depth of stone fruit goodness, leading to a long, jammy finish dominated by a mix of boysenberries and plums. A touch of vinous character comes through on the backend but never reaches more than a tertiary flavor to me. This blend is definitely more of a jammy sour beer that has some fruit wine elements to it but follows a more classic trajectory. Opinions were divided as to which Fruitening was better, but both are quite good.

5) Creature Times Aged in Tequila Barrels
Style: Tequila BA Gose
Score: 3.5
Notes: Before I describe the beer, let me note that I'm a far bigger fan of smoked beers than most people, and I was a bigger fan of Creature Times than most people. If you don't like smoke or didn't enjoy the base beer, you're very unlikely to be a fan of this. Big smoke aroma hits first followed by a heavy dose of pineapple, restrained chili notes, and light acidity. Hints of tequila roam around the edges but aren't particularly evident on the nose. On the palate, however, tequila and smoke lead the charge leading to a sort of mezcal effect that's reminiscent of bad life decisions. Pineapple comes in strong along with lingering tequila, while chiles lurk in the background. The aroma is definitely the high point of this beer as it has an expansive and rich pineapple character. This one will definitely be divisive, and while I think it's relatively well-executed and will be buying a couple bottles, I found the barrel aging to have a deleterious effect on the beer.

And a bonus review...

6) BA Monsters' Park w/ Salted Caramel & Extra Glam
Style: Glittery Affront to Humanity
Score: 4.5
Notes: Before the glass even reaches your nose, notes of self-indulgent hedonism meld with a supporting sense of postmodern relativism to form an overarching aroma redolent of a total breakdown in societal norms that leaps out of the glass, with a mild character of nihilistic commitment to excess wafting around in the background. The first sip reveals a flavor profile steeped in bacchanalian gluttony before a wave of well-worn strip club flooring comes in and dominates the mid-palate. A bright, lightly acidic dash of unicorn blood comes in late to break things up and leads into a long, viscous finish that tastes entirely of a Caligulan disregard for one's own well-being. As the glass warms, the beer really opens up and reveals an absolutely consuming disdain for all that's right in the world. While this beer represents an obvious step towards the decline of civilization, I have no doubt Andrew will come up with an even more disturbing glitter concoction down the road, and I'll thus reserve the mantle of "humanity's nadir" for that future abomination.

The rum booziness of my Modem Tones never went away, even though the glass was gripped in my fat, sweaty hands. I am not planning on opening a bottle of that for at least 6 months. I thought it was incredibly boozy, and not in the good way.

I think Creature Times may have benefited from less time in the barrel. There were some characteristics that I enjoyed, but you're spot on with the mezcal comments.

I loved both of the Fruitenings.

 

[Tyrsis]

I didn't find it that boozy at the Anny event. I was actually impressed, especially after that DT with Raspberry (which I didn't like at all.)

 

[chemman141]

I didn't find it that boozy at the Anny event. I was actually impressed, especially after that DT with Raspberry (which I didn't like at all.)

That beer had me holding off on extras of this raspberry beer. Glad to know this is nothing like that.

 

[rcubed1]

But can you taste the glitter?

 

[abawol01]

The rum booziness of my Modem Tones never went away, even though the glass was gripped in my fat, sweaty hands. I am not planning on opening a bottle of that for at least 6 months. I thought it was incredibly boozy, and not in the good way.

I think Creature Times may have benefited from less time in the barrel. There were some characteristics that I enjoyed, but you're spot on with the mezcal comments.

I loved both of the Fruitenings.

This is pretty much exactly how I felt. That Moden Tones was very heavy on the alcohol. On the whole for that beer I was not impressed. Glad I'm getting two! Yay.

See my above post on Creature Times. Don't like smoke and don't like Tequila. Blech.

 

[ThatGuy1]

But can you taste the glitter?

One of the most common thoughts from the entire block surrounding the Fermentorium......