Maine Beer Company / Lawson's Finest Liquids Collaboration Time I - Maine Beer Company

Digimaika2

Ontario (Canada)

4.33/5  rDev +4.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

(4.0) A: Pitch black with a tall marshmallow-like and mocha coloured foam head. Very good lacing and similar retention. Chocolate milk bubbles linger on top with time.

(4.0) S: Very good combination/balance of malts and hops presented through the aroma. Dark chocolate, dark coffee, grapefruit, fresh lemon zest, and floral qualities. Fresh and lively.

(4.5) T: Bitter hop wave of citrus and weedy floral notes give way to roasted malt qualities of lighter chocolate with some faint smoke on the back end. Detecting some cola qualities leaning towards root beer-ish. Spices in there too. Very pleasing with a varied and satisfying style.

(4.0) M: Lighter bodied with a medium carbonation. Dry with a herbal bitter feel, however, enough malt qualities ensure this doesn’t lean too much in the other direction.

(4.5) D: Exactly how I imagined a beer brewed by the Maine Beer Co. and Lawson’s would taste- Outstanding.

Serving type: bottle

08-03-2012 01:34:11 | More by Digimaika2

PeterIngemi

Massachusetts

4.33/5  rDev +4.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Pored fr a 12oz bottle... Big thanks to my friend Sean for this one.... Poured into a shipyard tulip

A: pours a nice black... Slightly super dark brown around the edges when held to the light.... A solid two finger of slightly chocolaty head, That dissapates slowly and leavs some puffy streaks of lacing.

S: the aroma hear is phenomenal, a very nice citrus hop aroma, reminiscent of tropical fruit, mango,
Passion fruit. Along with a slightly roasty cocoa aroma, beautiful.

T: a beautiful balance of coffe like roastyness, chocolate and tropical fruity hops, these flavors intermingle very nicley.... This is delicious. A nice amount of resinous pineyness... It's like a hoppy mocha latte, yum.

M: medium super creamy body with very nice amoun of medium carbonation. Velvety and delicious....

O: this is an awesome beer, thank you again so much Sean, loved it, creamy delicious and well balanced. I'm privileged to hve tried this.

Serving type: bottle

08-10-2012 03:04:03 | More by PeterIngemi

WanderingFool

Massachusetts

4.35/5  rDev +4.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Collaboration Time 1 pours a deep red/near black into the glass with a big, rocky light tan head. The foam is slow to fade leaving some spots of lace on the glass.

The aroma is malty with notes of roasted malt, orange citrus and hints of chocolate.

Each sip of this medium bodied beer is smooth and creamy with mild to moderate carbonation. The flavor is nicely balanced between roasted malt, chocolate, orange citrus and pine. It finishes dry with lingering citrus and chocolate malt when gone.

This is a well balanced beer with lots of flavor and smooth mouthfeel. Wish I had more than one bottle.

Serving type: bottle

07-29-2012 18:41:27 | More by WanderingFool

oline73

Maryland

4.35/5  rDev +4.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Poured from the bottle into a tasting snifter. This was opened at the August Baltimore BA tasting.

Appearance: Pours a mahogany color with some red where the light hits the edge. There is a half finger of off white head that fades to a layer.

Smell: Some hops and smoke. I'm also getting some rye like spice and dark fruit notes.

Taste: Rye like spice along with a mild roast. Not very sweet at all. Some smoke and roasted malt with even more spice and citrus hops in the finish. Complex and quite good.

Mouthfeel: Medium body with fluffy carbonation and a dry finish.

Overall: This was one of the best beers we've had. The spice/bitterness was really good with the smokey notes. I would have another.

Serving type: bottle

08-26-2012 00:38:16 | More by oline73

Wasatch

Utah

4.35/5  rDev +4.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Thanks goes out to portia99 for this brew.

Best By: 9/15/2012

Pours a very nice black color, very nice carbonation, with a HUGE two-finger plus creamy/foamy light tan color head, TONS of sticky lacing left behind. The nose is hoppy, with some nice malt notes, lots of licorice notes, slight chocolate, slight citrus note, and some pines thrown in. The taste is very nice hoppy, with some nice maltyness, licorice, some citrus, and some pine notes. Medium body with a slightly dry/bitter finish. Overall this is a very tasty brew, glad to have had a chance to try it. Thanks Bill!

Serving type: bottle

09-28-2012 00:08:10 | More by Wasatch

CooperEllis

New York

4.38/5  rDev +5.3%
look: 5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Very nice bottle, MBC style label on a 500ml.

Thanks to properpinter for this one.

The pour is dark, espressor black, latte beige head. BIG hoppy aroma out of the bottle with this.

From the glass the hops are underneath a layer of malts, chocolate roast and flour.

There is a bit too much going on in the taste for it to be 5/5, though I really enjoy this selection and it is in a preferred style. There is a malt richness that does nothing to diminish the crisp hops flavor and this is quite enjoyable despite the aftertaste.

As noted above, there is a distinct bitter aftertaste. All of the parts that push to the front - big piney hops, baking chocolate - are bitter. There isn't much bitterness while drinking but it lingers for a long time after.

Really good. The lack of hops in the nose and the abrupt and persistent bitterness at the death detract from an otherwise perfect pint(ish).

188th

Serving type: bottle

08-18-2012 22:45:41 | More by CooperEllis

sk8man121

Maine

4.43/5  rDev +6.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5

From label:

"Lawson's Finest Liquids and Maine Beer Company made this nice brew to have fun and hopefully please some drinkers out there. This collaborative beer incorporates locally-sourced ingredients; Vermont-grown hops, Maine-grown barley, New York-grown wheat and Massachusetts-grown rye."

16.9 oz bottle poured into NERAX tasting glass. "Best By" date of 09.15.12. No mention of style of ABV.

A: Pours a completely opaque dark brown with russet highlights. 2-finger mocha head stands tall, leaving a great deal of lacing on the glass.

S: "Autumn Harvest" Yankee Candle (or some such scent) is extremely prominent in the nose; likely a spicy component of the rye. Dark, dank pine, bittersweet chocolate and faint hints of tangerine. Remember those orange-chocolate things that you had to smash in order to open? That.

T: Roasted malts share the spotlight with citrus-heavy hops. Grapefruit, wood smoke, spicy rye and charred oak. Faint alcohol heat (this bottle is exceptionally fresh). Quite dry, with a touch of sweetness in the finish.

M: This is where this beer really shines. A bit chalky at first, the heavy carbonation leads to a very creamy mouthfeel no doubt helped out by the presence of wheat. The hop resins make this one a bit sticky, but the bubbles lift things up nicely and keep it from coating the tongue in an uncomfortable manner.

O: I was happy to have grabbed a bottle of this tonight, as it appears to be extremely limited; it's already pretty much gone. While I'm not typically a huge fan of "American Black Ales" (or Black IPAs or whatever you want to call them), this one is exceptionally well-done and probably the best I've had. Not a huge surprise, considering the consistent quality expected from both MBC and Lawsons.

While not exactly a revelation, this is a very well put-together collaboration between two of the best breweries New England has to offer.

Serving type: bottle

07-18-2012 02:34:06 | More by sk8man121

VelvetExtract

Massachusetts

4.43/5  rDev +6.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 5

A-Pours Stout-like. Very dark and light-impervious. You can tell the body isn't too viscous, but it definitely has a meaty build. Mild carbonation. Light bubble clusters.

S-Creamy and roasty and malty but it also sweats out plentiful amounts of hop aroma. Spiciness that is clearly derived from the rye. All local grown ingredients yield a very aromatic mixture of roast and hop.

T-Very multidimensional. Citrus and pine covered in milk chocolate and wrapped in rye bread. The rye actually isn't too overly involved. Flavorful and toasty. Definitely a memorable taste. Seems to change per sip.

O/D-If there were a triple Venn Diagram of a Stout, a Porter and a Black IPA this would lie right in the middle ground. Then you add in the rye addition and you have one unique brew. A great collaboration by two stellar breweries.

Serving type: bottle

07-23-2012 02:22:18 | More by VelvetExtract

Goblinmunkey7

Massachusetts

4.45/5  rDev +7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5

Big thanks to bilco for sharing his bottle.

Appearance: Near black with some lighter browns and deep reds when held to direct light. Head is a light, dirty khaki. Massive notches of lacing. Head drops to a spotty cap and chunky collar. Moderate carbonation.

Smell: Roasted malts. Touches of chocolate. Roasty smooth. Some minor coffee notes. Hops are oily, earthy, piney, and vaguely tropical. Mango and tangerine over resinous, oily pine. Some grapefruit. It's all there. Both breweries managed to nail their distinct hop profiles. Malts are a touch sweet with a nice burnt edge. Chocolate malts and milk chocolate with a dusting of cocoa.

Taste: Nice punch of hops on the start. Roasted malts. Some caramel and chocolate sweetness. Creamy smooth roast. Oily pine. Big tropical component. Rough and raw mango and tangerine. Pelletized hops were obliterated and it's awesome. Some day old coffee. Touches of darker sugars bordering on char, but not quite. Mild spicy/earthiness from the hops as well. Oats? Great depth. Mild vanilla. Building bitterness.

Mouthfeel: Creamy, smooth, with a moderate body and carbonation. It drinks like black gold.

Overall: The blunt force aggression of Lawson's meets the deft balance of Maine and damn if it's not a top notch take on the style. Loaded with flavor and manages to represent both breweries in great fashion.

Serving type: bottle

08-11-2012 18:36:02 | More by Goblinmunkey7

makomakoman

Maine

4.48/5  rDev +7.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

what a great beer. Picked this up at the Bier Cellar.

great taste

great pour (a little too much head but that is like most Maine beer Company beers)

I like the idea of using locally sourced ingrediants for this. I hope they do another collabration this winter...maybe an Imperial Stout..

nice beer to enjoy in the summer of Maine

Serving type: bottle

07-21-2012 20:40:25 | More by makomakoman

TheSevenDuffs

Ontario (Canada)

4.5/5  rDev +8.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Sampled at VBF.

A - Black, stout-like in colour; almost opaque. A small amount of light brown head formed and quickly disappeared. 4.5

S - Loads of fresh hop aromas up front - grapefruit, pineapple and mango. The roasted malt backbone is definitely there but takes the back seat in the nose.

T - A big bitterness up front with big grapefruit and pine flavous and some lighter tropical fruit notes. Roasted malts show up in the finish and add a nice layer of flavour to the finish. The hops definitely play centre stage here.

M - Medium body with lots of sticky hop oils. Light carbonation.

O - An excellent example of style.

Serving type: on-tap

07-24-2012 19:16:43 | More by TheSevenDuffs

rudzud

Massachusetts

4.68/5  rDev +12.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 3 | overall: 4.5

Picked up a bottle of this at Hunger Mountain Co-Op in VT. Poured into my Duvel tulip.

A - Pours a wonderful deep, rich brown almost black pour with an excellent almost 3 finger mocha head that slumps down to leave sticky side lacing and a nice dense half finger blanket.

S - Excellent aromas of chocolate roasted malts, nice and sweet like a fine chocolate with just the slightest coffee aroma. Wonderful pine aromas follow along with grapefruit rind. Excellent.

T - Taste is just delicious. More of those excellent chocolate malts along with light coffee flavours. There is some nice pine and grapefruit after the slightly smokey malts resulting in a lingering sweet, bitter finish. Way towards the end of the finish I get the faintest of tropical mango and papaya. Wow.

M - Not a super fan of the mouthfeel. Its not quite creamy, its not quite sharp. Its an odd combination of the two which results in an almost thinnish feel. Nice finish though.

O - Overall this is an excellent black IPA. I really love how there is some tropical notes on the finish. Really never had that before in a black IPA. Kicking myself for not having bought more of this as there were 6+ cases there.

Serving type: bottle

07-25-2012 15:28:42 | More by rudzud