Acer Quercus
The Bruery

750 ml bottle, 2024 edition, bottled 12/13/24. Served in a chalice, the beer pours dark brown with about an inch tan head that stuck around for a long time. There's also a lot of lacing. Aroma is nice, the brew smells like maple, nuts, smoke and some breadiness. Taste is similar to the aroma, but with the addition of some oak, earthiness and a bit of chocolate. Don't really pick up much maple in the flavor, tastes nuttier and smokier to me. Mouthfeel/body is medium, it's smooth and a bit creamy with a good amount of carbonation. I liked this one overall but would recommend it more to people who like smoky beers.

Brown color. Big, beige head with nice lacing. Toasted malt, smoke, cocoa, and a hint of toffee in the aroma.Malty, surprisingly dry taste with roasted bitterness at the end.

 

Posting my review here but note there’s a second profile for a beer with the same name and ABV, similar description down to the collaboration with Lawson’s. I submitted a request that the listings be consolidated but as of now that hasn’t happened, for whatever reason.

750mL bottle (2024 edition) into a tulip. Pours a deep mahogany brown with a big frothy khaki head that leaves behind patchy lace.

Aroma is sweet and nutty with notes of cinnamon, chocolate, and bready dark malt. Not really getting a ton of maple but how different is maple syrup from certain malts? Based on the nose I’d almost consider this an imperial porter but whatever.

Taste is rich and balanced with more notes of chocolate, bitter roasted malt, vanilla.

Mouthfeel is soft and creamy, again, porter- or stout-like. Medium body. Nice subtly bitter finish.

Overall a really tasty, straightforward beer. I’m sticking with my belief that this is closer to an imperial porter than any other style, but in any case it’s delicious.

 

i never caught this the first time, not even sure i knew it came out, but its right in my wheelhouse, big lawsons guy, huge maple lush, so its cool they made it again, scored a bottle this weekend and cracked it saturday night, a real banger, super complex stuff, so glad they made it again, 2024 vintage. sort of a just a strong ale as a base that hits a little like a brown ale, a little like a belgian dubbel from the grain perspective, just light brownish chestnut colored in the glass, crystal clear to the bottom of the large bottle, and sporting a high shine, a two inches tall belgian looking khaki head of tiny stacked bubbles, pretty lace as it drinks too, really well conditioned. some residual sweetness apparent in nose and taste, but its not viscous and thick and concentrated and long boiled seeming to me, its light even with the sweetness. subtle almond, cocoa, and toffee, but this is done with smoked malt and that element is really obvious to me, its the first thing i smell and by far and away the last and longest thing i taste, that part is with me for awhile but isnt overdone, and cool that they do it with maple smoked malt, uncommon for sure and an added wrinkle of terroir and interest that helps define this. i get raisin and tobacco, an abbey type grain thing and even a candy sugar aspect from the maple that leans it a little more belgian still. the date sugar addition does that as well, and i do get the fruitiness of the date in here from that, a really cool element offsetting any mild bitterness from the smoke. the maple is obvious and high end, the sugars are well incorporated, and there is a breadiness to this that i like a lot, subtle fermentation character. i reckon the oak aspect is awesome too, newish with a vanilla hit, light tannins, and a softening character that makes the whole thing silky and melty and gentle feeling despite all the carbonation. the smoke is neat, a pipe tobacco vibe, the maple is there the whole drink, and this is a great coming together of some special ingredients, and indeed also some special breweries, whether this latest batch is a collaboration or not, they still mention lawsons on the back label. great oak property, maple character, and well hidden abv, this is smooth and lighter bodied for what it is, dangerously drinkable, boldly flavored, one of the best beers ive had from the bruery in a while, pretty bold smoke, but im into it!

 

End of August 2015. This was a little bit of a let down bc the Lawson's stuff I had before this was just mind blowingly awesome. This was good, but not on that level.

Pours brown, but not a viscous brown you can't see through. 1/3" off white head. Aroma might have been the best part. Oak, maple, earthy brown malt, smoked wood. Yum.

Taste brought some things you didn't pick up in the nose. There is a little bit of an alcohol bite and a bitter wood like component. They aren't too harsh, but not as nice as the smell. I thought the sweetness would really temper all that but I dunno, the maple wasn't as perceptible on the taste buds as the were in the nose. Wasn't a heavy feeling beer, but there was also a raisin like dark fruit bitterness contributing, and maybe the smoked malt/wood was another contribution as well.

A bourbon barrel. That is what was missing here.

This has been in my fridge since I bought it in VT, 2011-2012. Far too long to wait, so here it is!

Color is a dark, translucent brown. Thin off-white head.

Nose is smoky but smooth malt. Campfire, beef jerky, light caramel. Much less nose than I thought.

Flavor is smooth with a light smoke bite on the finish. Does not seem strong, given the substantial ABV. Not as much maple as I had hoped, but tasty!

Mouthfeel is thinner than expected, but not abrasive or astringent.

Drinkability is high. Light on the palate and the smoke is not too obtrusive.



Flavor

 

 

 

 

 

L - Pours a deep dark brown body with a tan one finger head that dissipates quickly. Not much lacing or retention to speak of.

S - Dark fruits, smokey oak essence and sweet maple syrup. Not very complex, but yet still rewarding.

T - I'm usually not big on smoked beers, but this is delicious! Sweet maple syrup collides with smoked oak and a dark fruit (plums/raisins) base. A smokey sweet candy.

F - Mouthfeel was a bit lacking, but it has held up well for its age. Medium bodied and low carbonation.

O - Not sure why the low-ish score. Must have been a love it or hate it beer when young, but I think it's come together quite well and is very tasty.

 

This is my last bottle of this beer and m first review of it. Delicious still but some of the body has fallen off from earlier tastes. Little less smokey, but the maple is much more pronounced. Mouthfeel is thin but not bad.