Xul1
Well-Known Member
The Beers:
1 - Reality Maze: Banana Coconut Cream Pie Edition
Style: Pastry Stout w/ Coconut, Vanilla, & Banana
Score: 4.3
Notes: The base on this is very similar to the Reality Maze that was released in July 2019, although the ABV went up slightly, and a new set of adjuncts was used. This time, they added Madagascar vanilla at a rate of .63 lbs/bbl, coconut at a rate of 17 lbs/bbl (half toasted/half untoasted), and dried wild Thai bananas at a rate of 8.3 lbs/bbl. The dried bananas were stewed in a kettle with a small portion of the beer until they mostly broke down, then that slurry was added to the recirculation tank through which the rest of the batch was pumped to impart banana character. Dense, overripe bananas are prominent on the aroma, followed by coconut and vanilla that are roughly in balance, semisweet chocolate, and light baking spices wafting around in the background. Coconut and light spices hit first on the tongue, giving way to chocolate-covered bananas. The vanilla really pulls the cocoa notes out of the base beer and creates a rich milk-chocolate note that melds beautifully with the bananas. Coconut pops back in towards the backend but acts as a supporting element through a finish of vanilla, chocolate, and bananas. The body is towards the middle of the road for a pastry stout, and it's surprisingly not terribly sweet for the style and adjuncts. I certainly wouldn't call it dry, but it's nowhere near Doom Hawk territory. I suspect a lot of you are wary of this one on paper, but several people remarked last night that it worked better than they were expecting.
2 - Modem Tones Aged in Bourbon Barrels w/ Vanilla
Style: Bourbon BA Stout w/ Vanilla
Score: 4.5
Notes: If there's one beer in Modern Times' portfolio that needs no introduction, it's Modem Tones w/ Vanilla. This year's release is a blend of three batches that were aged from eight to ten months in a variety of bourbon barrels, including Heaven Hill, Four Roses, Woodford, and Old Fitzgerald. They conditioned the blend on a mix of 55% Mexican vanilla and 45% Madagascar vanilla at a rate of 1 lb/bbl, which is tied for the second most vanilla they've ever used, behind only MT Ultra: Vanilla Edition. The taster came out a bit too cold and seemed rather boozy on first blush, but a few minutes of cradling the glass like a degenerate Gollum clutching his precious sugar water warmed it right up. Vanilla dominates the aroma with a blend of creamy sweetness, spices, and touches of floral character. Deep, sweet chocolate provides a canvas for the aforementioned vanilla, complemented by assertive bourbon and touches of vanilla-heavy oak. On the palate, a dry, dark cocoa note leads but is quickly subsumed by bourbon-tinged vanilla, creating a fudgy amalgam redolent of fresh brownie batter. Vanilla acts as both a focus and complementary note, standing out but also building into the chocolate character from the base beer. A long, sweet finish of boozy brownie batter coats the back of the tongue. Thick, fudgy, with restrained heat. I think a few months will benefit it, but it's better out of the gate than batch two was.
3 - Modem Tones Aged in Bourbon Barrels w/ Vanilla, Hazelnuts, & Maple Syrup
Style: Bourbon BA Stout w/ Vanilla, Hazelnuts, & Maple Syrup
Score: 4.75
Notes: This variant uses the same base blend as MTV, but the adjunct mix is .75 lbs/bbl Madagascar vanilla, 7.5 lbs/bbl roasted & salted hazelnuts (roasted in-house by the special projects team), and 3.3 lbs/bbl barrel-aged maple syrup. The nose opens with a wave of vanilla, but roasty hazelnuts join the fray quickly, along with assertive bourbon, maple syrup, and dark chocolate. As it warms, the adjuncts ebb and flow but never to extremes of dominance or subservience - they always work harmoniously, leaving room for the base to express itself. The flavor mostly follows the nose, as a wave of vanilla arrives first, quickly melding with hazelnuts and the fudgy base beer to throw of hints of Nutella, backed by maple syrup, bourbon, and sweet oak notes. The maple really comes out the longer it sits in the glass and builds a maple syrup-soaked Nutella finish that coats the palate in the best way possible. The body is thick but not overwhelming. I'd say they surpassed batch one with this - decadent, beautifully integrated, and utterly delicious.
4 - Transit of Venus Aged in Gin Barrels
Style: Gin BA Funky Rye Grisette
Score: 4.4
Notes: Several people asked if the gin barrels were the same as Slow Ice (Stonecutter gin) - they are not. This batch of Transit of Venus was fermented in a medium-toast American oak foeder, then aged in gin barrels from Koval and Caledonia Spirits for three months. The aroma is a harmonious symphony of complementary scents. Earthy and barnyardy funk pop out first with wet forest floor, light hay, and horse blanket, followed by gin barrel - juniper, coriander, eucalyptus, and white pepper - that is assertive but not overwhelming. Mild lactic acidity, touches of rye spice, minerality, and hints of oak work in the background. On the tongue, a spritz of lemony tartness gives way to rye and dry oak before earthy funk strikes on the mid-palate, while gin brings a sweet complementary element with more coriander and eucalyptus than juniper. The base beer's minerality and rye spice pop in towards the backend, leading to a funky, rustic finish tinged by gin botanicals. Effervescent mouthfeel, this one is both something I could crush pints of and spend an hour and a half just smelling. The gin barrels are remarkably restrained compared to Slow Ice, providing well-integrated flavors without being overbearing.
5 - School of Certain Victory
Style: Red Wine BA Blond Sour w/ Apricots
Score: 4.0
Notes: The base blend for this is a selection of blond sours aged in red wine barrels between one and three years, which they refermented on fresh Sunny Cal Farms Robada apricots (4 lbs/gallon) and B&R Farms Blenheim apricot puree (2 lbs/gallon). It only takes one whiff to understand why they used so much fruit, as apricot leaps right out of the glass. Think perfectly ripe apricot flesh and skin, with just hints of a juicy aspect backing it. The base beer asserts itself rather quickly with robust lactic acidity, along with oak and touches of funk. The flavor mostly follows the script, with substantial fleshy apricot and massive tartness. Oak provides some structure around the edges and hints of funk poke through, but this is a reasonably linear duel between fruit and acid. While the apricot character is outstanding, I'm left with the feeling that I'd enjoy it far more if it was less sour. The soft acidity from Valley of Sound is more my pace. I really can't overstate how stellar the fruit is in this beer, but your overall enjoyment is going to depend on how sour you like your beers. This isn't into Upland territory, but it's hitting a bit harder than I'd prefer.
1 - Reality Maze: Banana Coconut Cream Pie Edition
Style: Pastry Stout w/ Coconut, Vanilla, & Banana
Score: 4.3
Notes: The base on this is very similar to the Reality Maze that was released in July 2019, although the ABV went up slightly, and a new set of adjuncts was used. This time, they added Madagascar vanilla at a rate of .63 lbs/bbl, coconut at a rate of 17 lbs/bbl (half toasted/half untoasted), and dried wild Thai bananas at a rate of 8.3 lbs/bbl. The dried bananas were stewed in a kettle with a small portion of the beer until they mostly broke down, then that slurry was added to the recirculation tank through which the rest of the batch was pumped to impart banana character. Dense, overripe bananas are prominent on the aroma, followed by coconut and vanilla that are roughly in balance, semisweet chocolate, and light baking spices wafting around in the background. Coconut and light spices hit first on the tongue, giving way to chocolate-covered bananas. The vanilla really pulls the cocoa notes out of the base beer and creates a rich milk-chocolate note that melds beautifully with the bananas. Coconut pops back in towards the backend but acts as a supporting element through a finish of vanilla, chocolate, and bananas. The body is towards the middle of the road for a pastry stout, and it's surprisingly not terribly sweet for the style and adjuncts. I certainly wouldn't call it dry, but it's nowhere near Doom Hawk territory. I suspect a lot of you are wary of this one on paper, but several people remarked last night that it worked better than they were expecting.
2 - Modem Tones Aged in Bourbon Barrels w/ Vanilla
Style: Bourbon BA Stout w/ Vanilla
Score: 4.5
Notes: If there's one beer in Modern Times' portfolio that needs no introduction, it's Modem Tones w/ Vanilla. This year's release is a blend of three batches that were aged from eight to ten months in a variety of bourbon barrels, including Heaven Hill, Four Roses, Woodford, and Old Fitzgerald. They conditioned the blend on a mix of 55% Mexican vanilla and 45% Madagascar vanilla at a rate of 1 lb/bbl, which is tied for the second most vanilla they've ever used, behind only MT Ultra: Vanilla Edition. The taster came out a bit too cold and seemed rather boozy on first blush, but a few minutes of cradling the glass like a degenerate Gollum clutching his precious sugar water warmed it right up. Vanilla dominates the aroma with a blend of creamy sweetness, spices, and touches of floral character. Deep, sweet chocolate provides a canvas for the aforementioned vanilla, complemented by assertive bourbon and touches of vanilla-heavy oak. On the palate, a dry, dark cocoa note leads but is quickly subsumed by bourbon-tinged vanilla, creating a fudgy amalgam redolent of fresh brownie batter. Vanilla acts as both a focus and complementary note, standing out but also building into the chocolate character from the base beer. A long, sweet finish of boozy brownie batter coats the back of the tongue. Thick, fudgy, with restrained heat. I think a few months will benefit it, but it's better out of the gate than batch two was.
3 - Modem Tones Aged in Bourbon Barrels w/ Vanilla, Hazelnuts, & Maple Syrup
Style: Bourbon BA Stout w/ Vanilla, Hazelnuts, & Maple Syrup
Score: 4.75
Notes: This variant uses the same base blend as MTV, but the adjunct mix is .75 lbs/bbl Madagascar vanilla, 7.5 lbs/bbl roasted & salted hazelnuts (roasted in-house by the special projects team), and 3.3 lbs/bbl barrel-aged maple syrup. The nose opens with a wave of vanilla, but roasty hazelnuts join the fray quickly, along with assertive bourbon, maple syrup, and dark chocolate. As it warms, the adjuncts ebb and flow but never to extremes of dominance or subservience - they always work harmoniously, leaving room for the base to express itself. The flavor mostly follows the nose, as a wave of vanilla arrives first, quickly melding with hazelnuts and the fudgy base beer to throw of hints of Nutella, backed by maple syrup, bourbon, and sweet oak notes. The maple really comes out the longer it sits in the glass and builds a maple syrup-soaked Nutella finish that coats the palate in the best way possible. The body is thick but not overwhelming. I'd say they surpassed batch one with this - decadent, beautifully integrated, and utterly delicious.
4 - Transit of Venus Aged in Gin Barrels
Style: Gin BA Funky Rye Grisette
Score: 4.4
Notes: Several people asked if the gin barrels were the same as Slow Ice (Stonecutter gin) - they are not. This batch of Transit of Venus was fermented in a medium-toast American oak foeder, then aged in gin barrels from Koval and Caledonia Spirits for three months. The aroma is a harmonious symphony of complementary scents. Earthy and barnyardy funk pop out first with wet forest floor, light hay, and horse blanket, followed by gin barrel - juniper, coriander, eucalyptus, and white pepper - that is assertive but not overwhelming. Mild lactic acidity, touches of rye spice, minerality, and hints of oak work in the background. On the tongue, a spritz of lemony tartness gives way to rye and dry oak before earthy funk strikes on the mid-palate, while gin brings a sweet complementary element with more coriander and eucalyptus than juniper. The base beer's minerality and rye spice pop in towards the backend, leading to a funky, rustic finish tinged by gin botanicals. Effervescent mouthfeel, this one is both something I could crush pints of and spend an hour and a half just smelling. The gin barrels are remarkably restrained compared to Slow Ice, providing well-integrated flavors without being overbearing.
5 - School of Certain Victory
Style: Red Wine BA Blond Sour w/ Apricots
Score: 4.0
Notes: The base blend for this is a selection of blond sours aged in red wine barrels between one and three years, which they refermented on fresh Sunny Cal Farms Robada apricots (4 lbs/gallon) and B&R Farms Blenheim apricot puree (2 lbs/gallon). It only takes one whiff to understand why they used so much fruit, as apricot leaps right out of the glass. Think perfectly ripe apricot flesh and skin, with just hints of a juicy aspect backing it. The base beer asserts itself rather quickly with robust lactic acidity, along with oak and touches of funk. The flavor mostly follows the script, with substantial fleshy apricot and massive tartness. Oak provides some structure around the edges and hints of funk poke through, but this is a reasonably linear duel between fruit and acid. While the apricot character is outstanding, I'm left with the feeling that I'd enjoy it far more if it was less sour. The soft acidity from Valley of Sound is more my pace. I really can't overstate how stellar the fruit is in this beer, but your overall enjoyment is going to depend on how sour you like your beers. This isn't into Upland territory, but it's hitting a bit harder than I'd prefer.
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