A Flowery Song

Background: Hey, it’s got pomegranate in it. From everyone’s favourite kosher brewery, this beer was launched back in 2007 to celebrate their tenth anniversary.

Nose: Caramel and a bit of musky fruit.

Taste: I blush to admit that I don’t know what pomegranate tastes like. Still, there’s some juicy and tart red fruit flavour here, with a solid backbone of toasty malt and caramel. Good balance of sweet, sour, and bitter and a satisfyingly chewy mouthfeel.

Overall: I’m very happy right now. Now go away so I can stay happy. Mmm, good beer.

Background: The brewery’s a new one on me, and I’m not even sure offhand where Mount Pleasant is. The beer has a decent label and is described by the brewers as a “classic, sweet stout”.

Nose: Repressed, slightly sweet and roasty.

Taste: Moderate sweetness, counterbalanced by a deep coffee roastiness and medium to high hop bitterness.

Overall: Quaffable though not spectacular. The finish is slightly acrid, but there’s none of the smokiness that would make that acceptable.

Background: Yes, I’m a sucker for collaborative beers (among many other things). This was brewed at SN’s facility using their own barley and maple syrup from the Calagione family farm. Clocking in at 10% ABV, it was fermented using a mix of the house strains from the two breweries, and bottle-conditioned (with Alaskan birch syrup used for priming). There was also a companion beer called Limb and Life made from the second runnings, but that was a very limited release and draft-only.

Nose: Boozy. Darkly fruity. Not much else, to be honest.

Taste: Hot alcohol. Mildly sweet, with some dark toasted character. Medium hop bitterness. Chewy maple toffee.

Overall: Disappointing. I was hoping for a bit more complexity, but whatever was there was buried under an overwhelming alcohol presence. The combination of the heavy alcohol and the unsubtle hops also makes the bitterness a bit too prominent in comparison with the other components.

Background: The third batch of this collaborative brew to be made, but only the second to be released (the one brewed in Jolly Pumpkin’s facilities is undergoing extended barrel aging, like many of their beers). See my notes on the first here. This release uses the same recipe, but was brewed and aged at Nøgne Ø in Norway.

Nose: Prominent sage, hint of hops.

Taste: Sage and spicy rye on the first sip. Juniper influence makes itself felt. Medium hop bitterness in the finish. Solid nutty malt backbone.

Overall: Comparing my notes to last year’s, it’s evident that (as would be expected) these beers are fairly similar. I don’t have a perfect memory or another bottle to compare, but I think this one is slightly heavier and sweeter, and the alcohol isn’t particularly noticeable. What I said then stands: an intriguing and drinkable special beer, but not an everyday beer.

Background: Beer, probably made with molasses. Also, it’s named after a pneumatic drill that killed miners with dust inhalation-related illnesses.

Nose: Subdued, slightly metallic, not much going on.

Taste: Slight molasses flavour, light tartness, smooth biscuity malt.

Overall: The can isn’t lying when it calls it light bodied, and a slight metallic twinge isn’t helping. It might make a decent quenching summer beer, but I’m not loving it.

Background: This fall release from the wonderful Great Lakes Brewing Company is a highly-hopped amber ale named after a vampire.

Nose: Caramel and treacle, with citrusy hops in abundance.

Taste: Big punch of hop flavour contributing piny, citrusy, and vegetal leaf mould accents on a bed of rich caramel malt.

Overall: It’s very good.

Background: Founders’ strong Scotch Ale is called “Dirty Bastard”; the bottle only gives us “ale aged in oak bourbon barrels” as the description, but I think it’s a fair assumption that the base beer is Dirty Bastard.

Nose: Fresh corn bourbon and vanilla oak.

Taste: Sugared oak. The caramelisation from the wee heavy plays nicely with the sweet bourbon flavours from the barrel, but the extra alcohol really thins out the body. Somewhat fruity.

Overall: I like barrel-aged beers, I really do. Unfortunately, I find that the bourbon barrels most commonly used have a tendency to overwhelm even the most robust base beer, giving them a distressing sameness. This is good beer, but it’s not great and it’s very bourbon.

Background: The first (and so far only) pumpkin beer from Jolly Pumpkin, this golden ale is flavoured with pumpkin, cacoa, and spices.

Nose: Dry, tart, with hints of cinnamon and chocolate.

Taste: Dry, tart, with hints of oak and squash. Very negligible spice influence, really.

Overall: Good beer. But while it’s what I expected from a Jolly Pumpkin beer, it’s not really what people expect from a pumpkin beer.

Background: Belgian-style farmhouse ale, available as a seasonal release in 750ml bottles. Very energetic carbonation; make sure to chill before opening, and it may be wise to open it over the sink rather than your computer keyboard or photographic equipment. Even a gentle pour produces an impressive head of foam.

Nose: Funky and earthy; a bit of barnyard, a bit of cellar.

Taste: Tart and refreshing. Lemons, black pepper, coriander.

Overall: Good Saison! Not a traditional choice for the middle of winter, but the acidity and earthiness went nicely with the steak and kidney pie I was having.

Background: From Keweenaw Brewing up in that other part of Michigan. You know, the bit that’s not shaped like a mitten.

Nose: Sweet grain and a light hint of fruity hops.

Taste: Smooth, sweet, and mild malt with the barest touch of spicy noble hops.

Overall: Light and easy-drinking, but with well-balanced flavour and nicely zippy carbonation.