Marauder (Born From Wood Series) - Great South Bay Brewery

cosmicevan

New York

4.78/5  rDev +2.4%
look: 4.75 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.75

been sitting on this since the release a while back, tonight seemed like the appropriate night to pop it as i'm celebrating some local successes and this is a local limited release.

batch 004
bottle # 50 / 180

aged in hudson bourbon barrels

a - poured the 16oz? bottle into my blue point snifter (keeping things local!)...the brew filled the glass to the top with a really attractive lush deep purple red brown liquid that settled in the glass pretty much black...to the light i see some crimson highlights, but they are few and far between as the light hardly penetrates the beer. a thin bubbly head that bubbled away shortly after the beer settled in the glass.

s - as a big fan of the scotch ale style (particularly when aged in bourbon!) i was pleasantly surprised by the classic toasted caramel smell smoothed over by some chocolate notes from the booze infused wood.

t - the flavor is equally impressive. chocolate covered bourbon soaked toasted caramel malt. nutmeg and some grape.

m - drinks like a dream. SUPER smooth, goes down like a glass of juice...carbonation is very light, but it works incredibly well. the booze is invisible.

o - not sure if the time i held this played a role in everything being just perfectly placed or if this was a winner right out of the gate, but it is a winner right now. i am floored by this beer. i have not been overly impressed with much of what comes out of long island in general, but there are a few diamonds in the rough, and this beer is a gem. i wish this wasn't my only bottle as i would've loved to have shared this. oh well, more for me...i will certainly savor this one while i can.

Serving type: bottle

03-17-2013 02:13:11 | More by cosmicevan

bonbright7

New York

4.22/5  rDev -9.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

I had this mouthful of an ale at TJ Finelys in Bayshore, NY last night and I was excited to learn that it was based on a friend's homebrew plans. While I had tasted this on cask previously and liked it, I was waiting to see if it was going to full production.

The tap version captured an unusual element of layers within the beer that I have rarely tasted. Maybe it was akin to the cream in a filled donut that struck me as new for the beer as the bourbon barrel influence was very prominent on top of a very good ale.

The aroma of bourbon coupled with the taste confirmed the abv was well above the mentioned 7%.

The taste was very pleasant and malty. It left me with the idea that the hops were merely waived over the top of the mashing vat.

I didn't think I would normally take more than two in any sitting. Okay, I had three...but it was its first arrival and we were having a great time too.

Serving type: on-tap

02-13-2011 20:01:48 | More by bonbright7