Reunion: A Beer For Hope 2011 - Shmaltz Brewing Company

cokes

Wisconsin

3.95/5  rDev +3.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Dark mahogany brown with a moderate rise of beige froth, which both retains and laces moderately well.
Cocoa nibs and vanilla are both immediately evident in the aroma, but not overbearing or artificially so. There's a treacle-y dark malt base, with liquorice and dark fruit and jammy vinous overtones.
That same treacle/liquorice is the hallmark of the flavor. Some small toasty/roasty notes, then a burst of treacle and fudge. Vanilla is subdued, but noticeable. Plum-like as it warms, and the chili pops out just a bit (and only as it gains temperature, I was totally ignorant to them when this was chilled down). Hopping is a quiet nonfactor.
Full bodied, and a little grabby sweet as the carbonation fizzles itself out rather fast, though once it warms, the chilis help cut through any cloying aspects. Let that be a lesson, this is much better as it nears cellar or even room temperature.
Overall, a somewhat strange but pretty good beer that grew on me with its intriguing moments, and its for a great cause. We can all drink to that.

Serving type: bottle

08-29-2011 06:57:09 | More by cokes

kingmaker

Louisiana

4.5/5  rDev +18.4%

05-21-2013 00:53:59 | More by kingmaker

lucasj82

Indiana

4/5  rDev +5.3%

05-15-2013 01:04:59 | More by lucasj82

vonnegut21

New York

3.75/5  rDev -1.3%

02-23-2013 02:14:35 | More by vonnegut21

LeRose

Massachusetts

3.4/5  rDev -10.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Bottled,into Sams glass. Poured coffee colored, compact head that stayed around. Some lacing from the thin head. Aroma was chocolate and coffee, roasted malt. Maybe some vague vanilla. Not strong. Flavor was sweet coffee leaning to mocha, toasty and smoke, a little cinnamon and nice hit of chili pepper at the end that lingers and brings a sweetness out. Did get a slight metallic taste on first sip, not repeated. Body was medium, thought the carbonation was OK. Overall liked the taste and it was enjoyable enough. The little peppery tingle lingers and I like that.

Serving type: bottle

01-06-2013 00:21:24 | More by LeRose

elgiacomo

Georgia

3.88/5  rDev +2.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

12oz bottle, served at around 55F.

Pours clear dark brown to black with red highlights and a one finger light tan head that leaves some sheets of lacing and recedes to a light wispy cap.

Aroma is chocolate/cocoa, roasted malts, grain, hint of vanilla and chillies, some mild oxidation. Good strength.

Flavor starts with nice chocolate, cocoa powder, roasted malts, and coffee, the chilies move in with a touch of heat, some vanilla, moderate sweetness, mild bitterness, chilies come back on the finish with some warmth and spice, but not overly hot. As the beer warms the chili finish diminishes and is replaced by more chocolate instead. Flavor is much more robust than the aroma.

Mouthfeel is medium bodied, somewhat creamy and sticky, light to moderate carbonation.

Took me longer than I anticipated to try this...had it stuck away in the cellar and forgot about it. Pretty good. Never tried the Terrapin version, but I heard this one was better anyway. The chocolate is the star here, with the chilies and vanilla playing just minor supporting roles.

Serving type: bottle

12-23-2012 23:10:33 | More by elgiacomo

sneaks2210

New York

3.5/5  rDev -7.9%

11-21-2012 02:54:09 | More by sneaks2210

socon67

New York

4.25/5  rDev +11.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

A - Chocolate brown pour. Tan foam settles quickly and with minimal lacing. Very little carbonation.

S - Nice smell of milk chocolate and vanilla. Over time the cinnamon came through nicely. I really did not get much from the chili peppers at all.

T - Rich chocolate flavor; very malty. Sweet flavor of vanilla rounds this one out well. Finish has a spicy feel.

M - Very flavorful brown ale. I'd have loved ot try this again, though I doubt its possible. Plenty of flavor, and smooth feel.

O - This was a highlight of my tasting event. I'd look for future colaborations from these two.

Serving type: bottle

10-24-2012 02:52:16 | More by socon67

davey101

Connecticut

3.63/5  rDev -4.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Kind of weird that this started showing up in MA recently. 12 oz bottle into a tulip glass.

A - Dark brown/red body with a two finger light mocha head. Pretty tame lacing,

S - Lightly charred malts, vanilla sweetness, and a touch of chocolate.

T - Sweet malts, vanilla, and milk chocolate. The finish has the slightest hint of warmth. Maybe its due to the age, but zero pepper flavor here. Mouth feel is light to medium and well carbonated.

O - An average brown ale for an excellent cause. Quite drinkable with a hint of greatness in the form of some chili heat, but it never really pans out to very much.

Serving type: bottle

10-06-2012 02:28:06 | More by davey101

ryan1788a5

Massachusetts

3.9/5  rDev +2.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

12oz bottle poured into a snifter.

A: Pours a very dark brown with ruby hues at the edges. Two fingers of sandy-colored head settle into a thin crown shortly. Lacing is patchy and spotty.

S: Milk chocolate with a backing of chili pepper spice. Faint vanilla bean. Malt scents of bread, molasses, and a touch of caramel and toffee.

T: Bread crust and a touch of smoke up front. Rich flavors of molasses, caramel, and toffee on the mid-palate. Strong punch of black cocoa and then vanilla bean. Chili pepper heat is noticeable on the tongue, and the spiciness is felt on the swallow as well. Finishes with milk chocolate, cocoa powder, and spicy chili pepper.

M: Moderate thickness in the body. Chewy and a little viscous. Full and slightly mouth-coating. Moderate carbonation.

O: There's a lot of bold and distinct flavors going on in this beer. They're not really at odds with each other, but then they don't really seem to mesh either. The experience of drinking this beer is more a progression of shifting flavors. Almost like a flavor-changing jaw breaker or something. As a whole the beer is good, and rather tasty too. It just lacks some cohesiveness.

Serving type: bottle

10-04-2012 01:34:40 | More by ryan1788a5

Butterworth

4.75/5  rDev +25%

09-05-2012 22:27:37 | More by Butterworth

JonathanSuarez

3.75/5  rDev -1.3%

09-04-2012 05:19:23 | More by JonathanSuarez

Rmatuszak2

Illinois

2.5/5  rDev -34.2%

09-02-2012 17:14:56 | More by Rmatuszak2

Stevie_Janowski

Illinois

4/5  rDev +5.3%

09-02-2012 04:45:14 | More by Stevie_Janowski

MeowTom

4.05/5  rDev +6.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

A- Super dark Amber, I mean it would be on par with a porter or so. I mean it has to get a score of about 24 on the SRM chart. Has a very lovely head on it that stays around for a while.

S- Lovely chocolate, malts, and chili notes there. It's not crazy intense with power, but once you get your nose in there it is so intense with complexities and fullness that I'm glad I can't smell it 2 feet away.

T- Malty chocolate flavors with fruits coming through the longer I sip it. I mean there is a lot of things happening with this beer that it is an experience in itself. The one thing I notice is that classic Shmaltz brewing yeast they have that seems to come through in every beer they have in some little way or another.

M- Heavy medium body that makes it a sipping beer. There is still a heavy alcohol tinge that once you exhale your first sip it just lays there in the mouth. I have aged this bottle about 10 months I think maybe a little longer would done something for it. It's only 7.3% but still feels more.

O- Wonderful beer, I really like all that it has going on. It feels like a good break from a lot of DIPAs and APAs that I have been drinking lately with the complexities in malts not hops.

Serving type: bottle

09-02-2012 01:58:06 | More by MeowTom

ngeunit1

California

4.33/5  rDev +13.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

A - Pours a dark brown color with a finger of frothy chocolate colored head. The head fades down fairly slowly leaving behind some nice lacing.

S - Aroma is a mix of roasted dark chocolate malts, some chilies, vanilla, and some dark fruits and coffee.

T - Starts off with a mix of roasted dark chocolate malts with some vanilla and dark fruit sweetness and a bit of spicy chili. Through the middle, the heat from the chili comes through a bit more with a bit of roasted coffee, molasses, and black licorice. The finish is a mix of roasted dark chocolate malts with some dark fruit, vanilla, chili, and molasses.

M - Medium-plus bodied with moderate carbonation. Feels smooth with a spicy, sweet, and roasty finish.

D - Very drinkable. Interesting mix of flavors with the chilis adding some nice complexity. Surprisingly well balanced.

Serving type: bottle

08-28-2012 04:30:19 | More by ngeunit1

Flounder57

Massachusetts

3.78/5  rDev -0.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

12 oz bottle was poured into a tumbler.

Appearance: The beer poured a tiny head that reduced pretty much to nothing. It is a dark brown color with some vision when at the bottom of the glass when put up to the light.

Smell: a lot of sweet maltiness here, some mocha, a little spiciness from the peppers, dark fruits, vanilla, and almost has the same scents as a dark ale. Interesting.

Taste: Very interesting here. Vanilla and spiciness from the peppers are the most noticeable up front. Mocha is there too

Mouthfeel: smooth, spicy, full bodied, some burn to it, medium carbonation, and a very special beer on the palate.

Overall: Not a shabby beer for a ABA. Chili peppers are a nice addition, but for some people it could be much. I enjooyed the spice and happy to have gotten this from volunteering the EBF in Boston back in February.

Serving type: bottle

08-18-2012 04:34:23 | More by Flounder57

WastingFreetime

Wisconsin

3.88/5  rDev +2.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Reviewed from tasting notes.

Dark brown color, 1cm tan head with a few minute's worth of stability and minimal lacing on the glasses' surface.

Smells of a roasted malt, dark chocolate, and just a hint of licorice and vanilla.

Tastes of all the elements from the nose and also has a brief lift of spicy chile heat on the finish, some mineral hard water finish aspects, and some interesting root beer-like flavor moments. Overall, plays out like a mole sauce with not quite enough chile heat to counterbalance the chocolate.

Medium body and carbonation level, soft and smooth texture.

My obligatory complaint about this one is that the chile aspect is underwhelming. It needs some more spicy zest to really shine IMHO. As it is, is tastes and presents like a beer version of a slightly flawed mole sauce. If only it were a perfect mole sauce...

Serving type: bottle

08-12-2012 20:52:11 | More by WastingFreetime

GrindFatherBob

New York

4/5  rDev +5.3%

08-05-2012 11:33:50 | More by GrindFatherBob

yamar68

Minnesota

3.9/5  rDev +2.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Poured from 22oz bomber to McDonald's happy meal mug, circa early 1990's:

Pours like a thick root beer - dark brown body with some hazy clarity, topped with a loose light brown finger of head.

Kind of takes the direction of a brown ale on the nose... milk chocolate malts, a bit of hard water character, some fresh cream. No chile presence which is disappointing for me, but it doesn't detract from the beer that it is.

Rather nice. Those peppers actual provide a bit of chipotle smoke that compliments the chocolatey brown ale profile. Super smooth. No bite at all.

Glad I tried this one. I wish more bombers of this quality were priced similarly.

Serving type: bottle

07-28-2012 02:12:13 | More by yamar68

nmann08

Maryland

3.5/5  rDev -7.9%

07-26-2012 16:56:58 | More by nmann08

bluckbeyes

Oregon

4/5  rDev +5.3%

07-19-2012 18:26:20 | More by bluckbeyes

bluesplit63

Connecticut

3.5/5  rDev -7.9%

07-04-2012 20:54:25 | More by bluesplit63

DocJitsu

California

3.68/5  rDev -3.2%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Pours a very dark brown with red highlights in the sun. A foamy, taupe colored head forms quickly and stubbornly lingers. Aromas of toffee, white chocolate, sorghum, and wood. The mouthfeel is viscous and smooth. Sweet flavors of chocolate and sorghum occur first. The bitterness of fresh chili pepper and coffee acidity compliment the hop finish. it's ok. Not super. I was excited to try it, so I was a little let down.

Serving type: bottle

07-03-2012 01:45:21 | More by DocJitsu

beer2day

North Carolina

3.78/5  rDev -0.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Dark earthy brown pour with 2 fingers of densely packed cream head. Not much retention, but very nice lace.

Nose is more about cocoa than Terrapin's version. Chiles come through, but behind the nibs.

Taste is sweeter and less abrasive than Terrapin, but not as rich and chocolate-filled. Light hops in the finish do make it through the chiles.

Medium bodied and actually rather light.

Overall, I'd give the edge to the Terrapin version - but not by much.

Serving type: bottle

06-19-2012 02:03:29 | More by beer2day