Surly Darkness 2011

Here is a little throwback to a tasting from a few months ago that I thought was worth sharing. I recently was able to obtain a vertical of Surly Darkness 09'-11'. I decided that the 11' was easy enough to get that it was worth trying right away to see how the brew was fresh.

Pour is pitch black (the name doesn't lie) with an extremely thin creamy tan head. Aroma is very sweet - malted barley, caramel, dark chocolate, and roasted coffee. The flavor is somewhat cloying with hints of over ripe fruit, candied sugar, and chocolate. Probably much better with age. I think I will stick to aging these for at least a year after attempting this.

Appearance - 3.9
Smell - 3.8
Taste - 3.9
Texture - 3.5
Overall - 3.78/5

FiftyFifty Hiram Walker/Christian Bros Imperial Eclipse Stout

Here is yet another one from the tasting a few weeks back. This beer was tricky to figure out. They make ten or so versions of it all in the same bottle with different wax colors. This one had burgundy wax, so its the one brewed in brandy barrels from Hiram Walker and Christian brothers.

Pour is brownish amber with a very small tan head. Aroma is of heavy dark fruits, tea leaves, oak chips, smoke, and bitter sweet chocolate. A touch of booze lingers in the glass. Flavor is more mild than I would have thought from the smell, with strong Earth, wood, caramel, and chocolate notes. Medium bodied, and not very carbonated.

Pretty good overall, the texture was a bit lacking but I'd like to try one of the other ten verities. 

Appearance - 3.6

Smell - 4.0

Taste - 4.0

Texture - 3.4

Overall - 3.75/5

Kuhnhenn Bourbon Barrel Fourth Dementia Old Ale

As some of you may know Old Ale is my favorite beer style. I've been holding on to this gem for the last year since I came back from Dark Lord Day. Hopefully it has gotten better with age.

2010 Bottle. Muddy and dark amber in appearance with a small beige head. Aroma is of overripe fruits, bourbon, walnuts, and oak. Flavor is extremely boozy even though its been aging for two years. Malts dominate it - toffee, caramel, ripe dates, licorice. Very viscous/oily with little carbonation. Some slight bitterness in the finish.

Well worth the wait.

Appearance - 4.0
Smell - 4.3
Taste - 4.0
Texture - 3.9
Overall - 4.05/5

Lawsons Finest Fayston Maple Imperial Stout

Here is a slightly strange one from the bottle share, I hadn't heard of it until that day!

Pour is dark brown/pretty close to black with a small tan head that darkens into a slight orange as it dissipates. Aroma is of roasted coffee, burnt chocolate, earth, and espresso. Flavor is of burnt wood, ash, very bitter chocolate, and some slight sweetness from the maple. Alcohol is there but hidden well, not too complex but still good. Medium to heavy bodied.

Appearance - 3.9
Smell - 3.6
Taste - 3.5
Texture - 3.3
Overall - 3.58/5

Goose Island Rare Bourbon County Stout

This is a review from a few months back and I thought I'd share since this beer is amazing.

Pour is pitch black with a very thin tan head that fades into nothingness almost instantly. Little to no lacing at all on the glass and faint carbonation. Aroma is of strong bourbon (pappy van winkle) with slight notes of roasted barley and molasses. Flavor is sharp on the bourbon with a mild bitter, hoppy finish. Great bourbon flavor in the aftertaste. Some molasses, coffee, and burnt malts. If you are a bourbon fan this will be amazing, if not, its not worth the cost.

Appearance - 4.0
Smell - 4.2
Taste - 4.3
Texture - 4.0
Overall - 4.13/5

Anchorage Tide and Its Takers

Next up is another review from last Saturday from an up and coming brewery!

Pour is hazy golden with a huge bubbly white head that fades slowly over time. Aroma is what I’ve come to expect from Anchorage - sour Brett, white grapes, doughy bread, and a little bit of oak. Flavor is very strange but welcoming - a huge abbey tripel with sour funk added in. Hints of honey and grapefruit along with the sourness help to balance it out. Medium bodied.

This is pretty easy to find in the NYC area so get it while you can!

Appearance - 4.0
Smell - 3.9
Taste - 3.9
Texture - 3.4
Overall - 3.8/5

Goose Island Bramble Rye Bourbon County Stout

Another great example from the Goose Island BCS series! My thanks goes out to Soj for sharing this at the beer tasting.

Pour is dark red/brown with very little carbonation and an almost none existent head. Aroma is heavy on the blackberries with some boozy tones in the background. Flavor is almost cloyingly sweet, but the alcohol balances it out well, you want to sip this beer. Finish is like warm rye bread and balances out the sweet body. Interesting and better than I expected it to be.

Appearance - 4.0
Smell - 4.2
Taste - 4.1
Texture - 4.1
Overall - 4.10/5

Hill Farmstead Arthur

Its been a while, but I'm hoping that I can keep up with this blog and make a post at least once a week.

I hosted a large tasting event last Saturday and I'll slowly add my review of each beer we tried, starting with this one.

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Hazy golden brown with a bubbly white head. Aroma has a lot of farmhouse characteristics - rustic, zesty spice, grass, citrus, yeast. Flavor is golden raisins, grassy/citrus hops, bananas, and yeast. Great carbonation levels and mouth-feel.

This is worth a try if you can find it.

Appearance - 3.7
Smell - 4.0
Taste - 3.9
Texture - 3.7
Overall - 3.83/5