Friday, March 8, 2013

Weyerbacher - Sixteen (2011)

2011 marks Weyerbacher's sixteenth anniversary and what better way to celebrate than to make another very special beer?  Sixteen is a dark braggot made with 1,440 pounds of honey per 40BBL batch or over 18.5 oz. per gallon!!  That is truly ABSURD!  It is an impressive beer.  This one is going to be fun to cellar.  It will be really interesting to see how this beauty changes over time. 

Sixteen – Caramel, crystal, munich and chocolate malts form a rich foundation for this dark and complex ale. Brewed with an absurd amount of honey from Pennsylvania bees, this braggot has a profound honey character and a nice warming finish. It is the perfect beer to celebrate our sweet sixteen

2011 GOLD MEDAL at the Great American Beer Festival

Updated 3/8/2013

The ABV is 10.5 and the IBU rating is ??
Style - Braggot
Glass to use- Pint Glass, Tulip, Snifter or Oversized Wine Glass
Delivery 12oz Bottle

Can be cellared for long periods, under the proper conditions.

The Pour - Pours a dark brown with a small tan head. Good lacing.
Aroma - Malts, chocolate, spice nose from the honey and a touch of brown sugar.
Taste -  Malty, spicy, honey some chocolate and caramel notes. A slight bitter after taste.
Mouth Feel - Medium body and carbonation, pretty smooth.
Drinkable - A nice brown ale with a unique after taste from the honey.  There is a nice warm feeling from the alcohol not over powering. At first the taste was much better than the smell.  However, as it warmed up the taste and aroma blended together making a well balanced brew. 

This beer pairs well with cheese or dessert, try it with grilled meat.

This beer gets a Duper rating of A-.
BeerAdvocate Rating =85
Ratebeer Rating = 91

Thursday, March 7, 2013

BrewDog - Paradox Macallan (2008)

Bottle Conditioned, Special Batch 011
Imperial Stout aged in a former 1987 Macallan Sherry Cask 

Scottish Malt Whiskey Casks rock! 

Their ruggedly robust beauty, character, captivating aromas, and unique Scottish heritage had us completely spellbound.  This edition sees our Imperial Stout aged for several months in specially selected Speyside whiskey casks.  This maturation process results in the whiskey flavors and aromas being infused deep into our beer. 

Made in Scotland, Paradox combines BrewDog’s craft brewed beer with the finest malt whiskey casks. 

To release the true character, complexity, and depth of flavors in the beer, please enjoy it at room temperature, unless you live in an igloo.”

The ABV is 10.0 and the IBU rating is ??
Style - Imperial Stout
Glass to use- Pint Glass, Snifter, Oversized Wine Glass
Delivery - 330ml

Can be cellared for long periods, under the proper conditions.

The Pour - Pours a solid black color with no head. No lacing.
Aroma - Malts, scotch, chocolate, coffee and some vanilla bean.
Taste -  Malty, dark chocolate and a slight bitter after taste.
Mouth Feel - Low carbonation.  Full body.  Smooth.
Overall - Aged extremely well, a well balanced 5 year old brew.  Very good, not what I was expecting. I do not detect any barrel aging other than the Scotch and vanilla bean aromas. 

This beer may pair well with cheese and grilled or smoked meats.

This beer gets a Duper rating of A.
BeerAdvocate Rating = 89
Ratebeer Rating = 98

Tuesday, March 5, 2013

Cigar City - Dos Costas Oeste (2011)

Dos Costas Oeste is the result of a collaborative brewing effort between Cigar City Brewing of Florida’s Gulf (West) Coast and The Bruery of Placentia, CA.  Like the breweries involved with its creation, this ale cheerfully meanders off the beaten path.

This Saison is a high gravity ale with coriander, ginger and sweet orange peel aged on grapefruit wood spirals.    This is Variation #2 – aged on grapefruit wood spirals.   Variation #1 was aged on cedar spirals.

Bottled by Cigar City.


The ABV is 9.0 and the IBU rating is ??
Style - Saison / Farmhouse Ale
Glass to use - Pint Glass, Becker, Tumbler or Oversized Wine Glass
Delivery - 750ml Bottle

Can be cellared for long periods, under the proper conditions.

The Pour - Pours a cloudy orange color with a big white head that vanishes. Some lacing.
Aroma - Citrus fruit, spices - I get coriander and the ginger is very strong, hops
Taste - Same as the nose, strong ginger and orange.
Mouth Feel - High carbonation and medium body.
Drinkable - I opened the bottle and the brew rushed out of the top (gusher!), I had to scramble to the sink. Lucky that only a half a glass ended up on the floor instead of my belly.  From what I've read online this is a normal occurrence for this brew.  I would call this a Winter warmer for the summer time.  Very refreshing, should have opened on a hot day.

This beer pair well with cheese, salads and white meats.

This beer gets a Duper rating of B
BeerAdvocate Rating = 86
Ratebeer Rating = 92