He'Brew Funky Jewbelation - Shmaltz Brewing Company

UCLABrewN84

California

4.08/5  rDev +9.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Bottle I shared at jmgrub’s tasting.

Batch # 001. Bottled 3/6/12.

Pours an opaque black with a foamy dark khaki head that settles to an oily film on top of the beer. Small dots and streaks of lace form around the glass on the drink down. Smell is of roasted malt, sour and tart fruit, and some slight funky aromas. Taste is pretty much the same with a fruity and funky finish. This beer has a good level of carbonation with a crisp mouthfeel. Overall, this is a good beer that has an interesting blend of He’Brew beers.

Serving type: bottle

04-17-2012 00:41:34 | More by UCLABrewN84

drabmuh

Maryland

4.05/5  rDev +8.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Served in a snifter, beer is brown with a thin off white head of small bubbles, some lacing, low retention, low carbonation, looks fine.

Aroma is balsamicy and sweet, like caramel and vinegar, smells good.

Beer is medium in body, a little heavy but nice, it is sweet and balsamic notes, grapes and a nice finish. It was far better than I expected. Nice. Probably not a repeat but I'm glad I had it.

Serving type: bottle

05-02-2012 19:28:47 | More by drabmuh

Mora2000

Texas

4.33/5  rDev +16.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Big thanks to jjfoodie for sharing this bottle. Drank alongside Jewbelation 15 and Genesis 15:15.

The beer pours a brownish color with a tan head. The aroma has a lot of dark fruit, with some toffee and rye whiskey notes mixed in as well. The flavor is quite a bit more complex. I get the same rye notes from the aroma, but there is also a lot of cherry and raisin notes, as well as a lot of character from the barrels. I get some oak, maple and vanilla. There is also a hint of alcohol, but it is more well hidden than in a lot of He'Brew beers. Medium mouthfeel and medium carbonation. Of the three beers drank in the flight, this one was my favorite.

Serving type: bottle

06-16-2012 15:48:18 | More by Mora2000

zeff80

Missouri

3.98/5  rDev +7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A - Poured out a jet black color with a small, tan head of bubbly foam. It left thin rings of lace on the glass.

S - It smelled of some black cherry and toffee, caramel and sweet malt.

T - Malty and sweet with toffee and caramel flavors. Some sour cherry is present and very mild.

M - It was crisp, sharp and smooth. A medium bodied ale with a dry finish.

O - This is pretty good. I think letting it sit for a few months helped.

Serving type: bottle

07-26-2012 13:13:01 | More by zeff80

biboergosum

Alberta (Canada)

3.85/5  rDev +3.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

650ml bottle. After just having watched the George Clinton segment on the latest Daily Show, will this be definitely 2 Funky 2 Fail?

This beer pours a very, very dark cola brown colour, bordering on black, but betrayed by the slight highlights on all exposed edges, with two chubby fingers of foamy, creamy mocha head, which leaves some eroding ice shelf lace around the glass as it fritters away.

It smells of astringent barrel wood, sour cherries, acidic black fruit, a bit of boozy vanilla, and an understated caramel malt. The taste is much, much sweeter than initially let on - huge caramel, vanilla, and clammy alcohol esters, mushy, earthy, somewhat tart dark fruit, caramel borne of malt, caramel and vanilla borne of oak, and some bludgeoned musty, earthy, and leafy hops.

The carbonation is very mild, the body an easy chip shot to fullness of weight, and smooth, but kind of cloyingly so. It finishes still sweet and malty, but with a decent parrying from various edgy sources - wood fibre, booze singe, and fruit sourness.

I'm not getting a lot of 'ryeness' in the admittedly big and complex barrel effects in this offering; despite the proclaimed 3:1 rye/bourbon blend, it's the bourbon that stands out - all caramel, vanilla, and alcohol, to wade into war with the mega fruity malt. Nice of them to invite me to this little conflagration, but a glass of this is about all my palate can take - which is not meant as a reflection on the overall achievement of flavour, ado, and hubris so well jam-packed into this bomber.

Serving type: bottle

05-05-2012 22:40:55 | More by biboergosum

tempest

Pennsylvania

3.63/5  rDev -2.4%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Got an 8oz pour at Mosaic in Astoria. Man, this is a big beer. Honestly, I think it could do with less blending. It's a rich beer, but not much can stand out. I couldn't even tell off the bat that this had whiskey barrel aging. It's sweet and almost a little juicy with dark fruit up front. The dark barley adds a slight roast and eventually a little barrel vanilla rolls in. Still, it'd be easy to mistake this for a massive brown ale. The hops are mild, the malts and dark and fruity, and the barrel character is very light.

Serving type: on-tap

06-30-2012 23:02:07 | More by tempest

rhoadsrage

Illinois

4/5  rDev +7.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

(Served in a snifter)
Batch 001 bottled 13/6/12
A- This beer pours a jet black body with a tan creamy head that last for a good bit.

S- The earthy wet wood aroma has a soft Flanders red cherry ester note to it with some tartness in the finish.

T- The nice tartness is followed by a red wine character with some caramel and smoke with some walnut hints to it. The sweetness of the finish has bourbon and chocolate malt coming through and lingering for a bit.

M- The medium-full mouthfeel has an alcohol heat and a soft carbonation in the finish.

O- This beer has some good layers and it is interesting how the sour and oak mix well with red wine and Flanders yeast characteristics with softer bourbon notes. It gets a bit too thick and syrupy for me as it warms but it was interesting to drink along the way.

Serving type: bottle

05-15-2013 20:30:32 | More by rhoadsrage

jlindros

Massachusetts

4/5  rDev +7.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Their Jewbelation beer aged with Rye whisky and bourbon barrels, what could go wrong?!

Pours darker mocha colored almost 1 finger head, lots of big bubbles scattered in the creamy fluffy head that pop quickly making it fade in a strange shape, but leaves decent lacing on the sides as it does fade. The beer itself hides the light, it gives the slightest aura of light trying to get through with a super dark murky brown-black color on the thin parts, but other wise the light hides inside the almost pitch black beer.

Nose wafts rye whisky, wow rye! Barrel aromas really come through as well, woody esters like the softened part of water soaked wood, barrel char, actually quite a bit of burnt acidic almost acrid barrel aromas, like they scraped the barrel and dropped the burnt shavings into the beer. Plenty of rye as well, spicy rye whisky that does give the aroma like it was soaked into barrel first, not straight from the bottle. Then beer, plenty of caramel and molasses, bit of dark fruit, vanilla, hint of cocoa, etc. Then throughout all that is a bit of a tangy aroma, like it may have a sour funk to it, but that could be the barrel and rye additions getting to my brain.

Taste comes on so complex my tongue doesn't know where to begin. No funky wild tangy flavors, so that's a good start. Lets start with the sweetness and malts. Quite sweet at first, syrupy thick almost molasses like, and speaking of which, some molasses flavors, blended well with caramel, toffee, all that dipped in a bit of cocoa. That seems to bring a bit of a fruitiness with it as well, hints of fig, black cherry, a tart cherry, and possibly some other dark ripe berry flavor. Next let's move to the barrel flavors, again mostly rye. A spicy rye component makes itself known, again soaked through saw dust like barrel, soft mushy water logged wood flavor, which also brings out a bit of vanilla, and hint of bourbon. The char comes in again as well, slightly tangy acrid burnt barrel scratch, a bit too much char on the barrel at least. other malts bring some cocoa, a bit of roast, and actually a bit of roasted coffee, a slight mocha java like flavor. last and actually fairly least is the hops, there are a bit of spicy earthy hops there, but fairly light in the background, and I had to find them so much that I'm not sure if my mind on beer is thinking this out too much, with a decent but lighter bitterness. Finish is sticky and syrupy, mouth coating, just a bit of warming booze, lingering roast, cocoa, molasses, and plenty of rye, barrel, and caramel even.

Mouth is rich and full bodied, complex and thick, syrupy, with lower but decent carb for what it is, just a bit of warming booze towards the end.

Overall pretty good, not quite as good as most of the other Jewbelation series beers, but decent nonetheless. Running out of room for characters, so quick summary, nice complex malts, hint of decent hops, nice rye, bit too tangy and acidic with too much burnt charred barrel and acrid char, and bit too soft woody taste, but overall super complex, rich, and decently drinkable all things considered. Would drink again.

Serving type: bottle

04-21-2012 02:26:08 | More by jlindros

Beerandraiderfan

Nevada

4/5  rDev +7.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A dark cola like pour, good head formation, not the greatest in terms of retention or lacing though. The aroma was interesting, reminiscient of Firestone XV, but with some cinnamon and more dark fruit going for it.

Taste, similar again to Firestone XV, had a nice sweetness going for it, a body and consistency that was more barleywine or old ale than it was imperial stout, despite the color. I thought more pomegranite and cinammon (I keep mentioning cinnamon, its not like it was oppressive, or even large, just the right amount). The barrel addition to the flavor profile is mild, but enjoyable. Definitely not getting any charre barrel remnants on this one, leans more towards the sweeter non charred whiskey barrels I would think. Alcohol relatively well disguised. More often than not, dark fruit notes don't sit well with me in a beer like this, they make it all 'quad' like, but thankfully, there's no yeast like quad notes, nor does the beer come off as dark fruit bitter, it just truly lends a small pomegranite like sweetness to the beer. Brown, black, even a little chocolate malt in short order. Some mild citrus notes, similar to the inclusion of double jack or wookie jack in a FFW blend, probably from the Rye IPA they use, here, blended in just the right amount.

I was pretty impressed with this. Sampled with greenkrusty101, who bought this for me about 6 months ago, finally put it down after a growler of Ephraim while watching Season 1 of Trailer Park Boys at the new house.

Serving type: bottle

10-29-2012 16:14:24 | More by Beerandraiderfan

johnmichaelsen

Oregon

4.23/5  rDev +13.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

On tap at Max's today.

The beer pours a dark rootbeer color with good head retention and lacing. The nose is likewise attractive, and the beer smells as if it will be on the sweet side (something I confirmed after my first sip). Otherwise, I get some concord grape, brown sugar, vanilla, chocolate in this beer and hint of bourbon on the nose. On the palate, this beer is just terrific. I toyed with giving it a score of 5 here, but the sweetness in this beer is a bit much. Otherwisee, I get an incredible combination of fruit cocktail, brown sugar, light caramel, a hint of citrus, chocolate and light booze. The flavor combination is exotic and complex in this rich beer, though needless to say, a little bit goes a long way. Mouthfeel is medium bodied to full, with a long, sweet, somewhat citrusy finish. Alcohol is noticeable, but is not over done. The beer is not hot or tiring on the palate, despite the sweetness.

Pretty impressive stuff from Shmaltz brewing.

Serving type: on-tap

04-27-2012 19:36:16 | More by johnmichaelsen

lacqueredmouse

Australia

4.55/5  rDev +22.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5

I purchased this bottle from Berkeley Bowl West in Berkeley CA, and brought it back to Australia where I shared it with @LaitueGonflable and @tobeerornottobe.

Pours a deep, thick, black, with a gorgeously dark head of chunky mocha-brown. Lacing is speckled but forms as the persistent chunky head moves around the glass. Body is thick and heavy, and leaves streaking streams of fine carbonation. All up, it's a pretty damn fine looking beer.

Nose is rich, sweet and deep, split by a pealing bright funk that lends acidity to the mix. Plenty of roast sweetness and a rounded barrel character to carry it through this, however, and it ends up more boozy, rich and sweet than funky or tart. Slight mineral characters round it off, always giving the suggestion that you're not fully aware of its full complexity. Lovely stuff.

Taste is deep and sweet, but again dogged by that persistent mild acidity that weaves its way amongst the barrel-aging, the mild roast astringency and the booziness, so you never really seem to see it out in the open. It leaves a smooth lemon-custard character: probably citric and biting, but also caught up with the sweetness and richness that surrounds it. It's an impressive beer.

Feel is pretty much perfect: smooth, clear and rich, providing just the right amount of weight for the flavours.

Overall, this is superb stuff. It blends all the oddities into a gorgeous, complex but coherent and balance whole. I think this is a step up even from the regular Jewbelations. Love it.

Serving type: bottle

11-11-2012 04:36:24 | More by lacqueredmouse

JohnGalt1

Idaho

4/5  rDev +7.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 4.5

22 from Brewforia for a damn pricey $14 ... Shmaltz is getting pretty damn proud of their brews ;-)

Poured into my thin tulip... dark tan head rises and drops pretty quickly but leaves behind very pretty lacing... the brew is dark.. looks like a porter.

Woody sour notes immediately make me think of Collage.. but sweeter, darker, and not quite as sour... plenty of wood and whiskey.. fruity like currants and/or sweet cherries.. a bit vinous and mildly acetic.

Flavor has Balsamic qualities that gel on the palate.. not really a bad thing.. just present. Vanilla and woody character is more than prevalent.. more sweet than sour, but I like it.. waves of malty complexities that are hard to harness... dark/chocolate.. hints of black malt..

Body is heavy... carbonation tries to make up for the deficiencies.... but ultimately fails.

I am sooo surprised I enjoyed this one as much as I did.. It should be a bit drier... that would help the barrel character shine and take away the sorta cloying sweetness.. but overall, this is a winner.

Still too expensive ;-)

4/4/4/3/4.5

Serving type: bottle

06-08-2012 06:02:45 | More by JohnGalt1

mactrail

California

3.13/5  rDev -15.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Dark brown in the big chalice with a modest head. Reasonable carbonation but the slick mouthfeel and sugar load make it more syrupy. Interesting nose of nuts and caramel with that whiff of acidity.

There is definitely something a little funky about this stuff. There is a buttery but some kind of slight sour along with it. Tangy flavors, but the sweetness is unrelenting. Not as boozy as you might expect. More of a fruit and candy flavor. Fig preserves, but some bitterness as in thick cut orange marmalade. Makes me think of Malta with cheap whiskey added.

Not what you'd hope for in a barrel-aged beer, but more of a sweet liqueur beer. Truly weird. Bought the 22 oz bottle at Liticker's in San Diego.

Serving type: bottle

06-20-2012 05:38:32 | More by mactrail

OWSLEY069

Pennsylvania

4.7/5  rDev +26.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Pours a deep amber to black in color with a tan head. In the aroma, a small sweet to sour fruitiness and a licorice. In the taste, sweet alcohol, fruity white grape, plum, green apple, and licorice. A small bite, but mainly smooth, with a medium bodied mouthfeel, with a small dry note of licorice and a small fruitiness in the aftertaste. A bit boozy, nice fruit, licorice, that lingers nicely.

Serving type: on-tap

07-03-2012 17:09:16 | More by OWSLEY069

FosterJM

California

3.75/5  rDev +0.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

1239th Review on BA
Bottle to Kuhnhenn Tulip
22oz

Purchased from El Cerrito Liquor for $11.99

App- A bit of a liquid chocolate pour with a bit of a liquor sheen to it. A huge three finger fast receding brown head with zero cling or lace.

Smell- Very sweet from the opening aromatics. Huge amount of licorice, fruits with bourbon, vanilla and creamy candy.

Taste- This was very sweet. Cloyingly so, but better as it warmed up. Started off as a sherry/port type of flavor then moved into the smooth dark cherry fruits and lastly only a little bit of bourbon. Didnt get much rye to it.

Mouth- A bit of a light medium with a creamy backend to it. A medium bubbly carbonation, with some very sweet dark fruits almost candy like and a little bit of bourbon.

Drink- All over the place on this one. Cherry, creamy, candy and very sweet. Was okay. Couldve been better. I think letting it sit for a year is a good idea.

Serving type: bottle

04-29-2012 22:05:09 | More by FosterJM

champ103

Texas

3.53/5  rDev -5.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

A: Pours a dark black, nearly opaque with a large tan head the rises to over two fingers. The tightly packed head gently recedes to a ring that sticks throughout.
S: Dark fruits of tart cherries and plums. Very sweet in the nose with sweet milk chocolate.
T: Dark fruits again with that slightly tart cherries covered in chocolate. Which I enjoy, but then the over barring sweetness just takes over. Seems over attenuated.
M/D: A full and sticky body. Low on the carbonation. A slow sipper for sure. The alcohol packs a punch, and the sweetness is a bit much.

Like I said, just overly sweet. Other than that, very enjoyable. I am thinking some age will mellow this out.

Serving type: bottle

06-11-2012 02:53:08 | More by champ103

Metalmonk

North Carolina

4.13/5  rDev +11%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 5 | overall: 4

Pours a gorgeous mocha head, fluffy and thick, lasting a long while...it sits on top of a deep, deep, deep brown that might as well be called "black."

Very woody nose, and musty with whiskey/bourbon, while the dark fruits (fig, raisin, grape) shine through, as does a bit of toffee/burnt sugar.

Completely complex, unusual and truly wild flavor, which would be what you get when blending six already complex ales and then again in a couple different barrels (whiskey, bourbon). The whiskey/bourbon gives a bit of a boozy slant, but it's actually more subtle than expected and the juicier, dark fruit and heavily caramelized flavor come out as strongly as they should. Bit of a vibe of a sour, although I only really get Brett if I try. If it's used (I didn't do the research), it's taking a back seat to all these other crazy elements. Yay for beer blending, I'm all for it!

This feels AMAZING. Super thick but not gross; rounded, creamy, with a zip thanks to ample carbonation. Luscious, silky, superbly velvety. Pretty much perfect in this department.

No real surprise that this thing feels so insanely good. I've found that to be one of the reasons I continue to buy every Jewbelation this brewer releases. So, a completely sumptuous textural experience, and the rest is pretty damn great too!

Serving type: bottle

04-27-2012 18:12:29 | More by Metalmonk

ngeunit1

California

4.43/5  rDev +19.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

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

S - Aroma is full of oak, vanilla, and Bourbon, with some rye, molasses, dark fruits, cherries, chocolate, and a bit of black licorice, hops, and booze.

T - Starts off with sweet dark fruits with some raisin and sour cherries, with some chocolate, vanilla, and some black licorice. Through the middle, the Bourbon and oak comes through with some rye, molasses, and some more sour cherries. The finish is a mix of sour cherries and dark fruits, vanilla, oak, Bourbon, rye, with some molasses, chocolate, and a bit of booze.

M - Full bodied with moderate carbonation. Feels smooth and syrupy with a warming, sweet, and lightly sour finish.

D - Very drinkable. Really interesting blend. Good bold and complex flavors with just the right amount of sourness.

Serving type: bottle

08-30-2012 02:17:07 | More by ngeunit1

canucklehead

British Columbia (Canada)

4.23/5  rDev +13.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Quite a complex beer that opens up with time in the glass and shows both elements of a DIPA, a Barley Wine and a Belgian Dubbel. The barrel aging is apparent in both the nose and the vanilla notes in the finish. Sometimes the sweetness is a little too much but mostly this beer is in the zone. Extra aging might dry it out a bit but it is drinkable right now.

Serving type: bottle

05-30-2012 01:04:28 | More by canucklehead

billab914

Virginia

2.3/5  rDev -38.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 2 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2 | overall: 2

22oz bottle into my Dogfish snifter. It poured dark brown, almost black in color. A thin, sticky head was scattered across the top of the beer.

In the aroma the first thing I notice is the sour cherry flavors. From what I read I didn't think "Funky" was supposed to mean it was an American Wild, but that's definitely what I'm getting out of it. Behind the sour cherries I get a sweeter, sugary malitness. Not nearly enough of the barrel character comes through for me but it's definitely sweet and funky.

The taste follows with more of a tart cherry flavor showing up throughout. Again, it's also very sweet and sugary but the barrel flavors do show up just a little in the finish. It's definitely overly sweet and sugary and the sour, tart cherry flavor just dominated.

The mouthfeel feels syrupy while carbonation is a little above average. Overall, it wasn't a good beer and was a waste of $12. I'd put money that it's infected and it will start to live up to the "Funky" name as time goes on. I didn't get much of the blended base beers or barrel aging to it, just a tart, funky, sub-par American wild profile.

Serving type: bottle

04-21-2012 23:31:25 | More by billab914

maximum12

Minnesota

3.65/5  rDev -1.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 4

Picked this up recently since the big Shmaltz beers have been very good to us. 22 oz. bomber split with my wife after realizing, for the 935th time, that people are generally assholes. I'm not sure why this is, but it's true. Yeesh.

Pour is...well, mine's a lot shorter than my wife's, if I ever committed that sin I'd get an earful! Dark brown enough to kiss up to light black. Surprisingly frothy for a big strong ale. Bourbon is hearty on the nose, buttressed with a sigh of underlying funk. Simple but nice.

Funky Jewbelation is one odd character. Up front there's bourbon, but it short-circuits in a hurry. Big, tart fruits, slight souring cherry, offset strangely by a big helping of sweetness that strays into cloying. The barrel vanishes & those fruits have serious staying power in the aftertaste. Kind of like herpes. Heavy beer.

Well, this is uncomfortable. Not a bad effort, but the tart makes the barrel almost disappear, yet at the same time manages to balance the jazz with sweetness that goes a bit over the top. This might balance out more with age. As is, pretty good beer that feeds into the Shmaltz shtick & is, at least, unique.

Serving type: bottle

06-27-2012 02:28:14 | More by maximum12

laituegonflable

Australia

3.73/5  rDev +0.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Very, very dark colour. Almost black, with a hint of red the only colour to be seen. Head is darkish beige, large bubbles. Looks nice.

Bit of funk to the nose, but also dark roast and chocolatey sweetness. Burnt caramel, bit of organic barnyardy funk, and underripe plum as well. Touch of coconut. Very nice.

Taste is a little too sweet. Slight tart notes, giving apricot, fig jam and plum; touch of cocoa, and then finish is all fruity with slight funk - some mango, caramel and molasses. A bit sweet, but mostly just not enough roast. I think with more bitter roast, you'd have a really interesting beer here, whereas now it's just a bit off balance.

A bit thin, but quite fluid on the body. Not bad.

A bit too much light. Needs more dark. It's a little incoherent. Dark - seriously. I need you here. Why have you forsaken me?

Serving type: bottle

03-19-2013 05:12:10 | More by laituegonflable

superspak

Michigan

4.1/5  rDev +10.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

22 ounce bottle into snifter; Batch 1, bottled on 3/6/2012. Pours nearly pitch black; hazy very dark brown color with a 1 finger dense khaki head with great retention, that reduces to a thin cap that lingers. Light spotty soapy lacing clings on the glass. Aromas of big raisin, fig, date, caramel, molasses, toast, toffee, dark bread, chocolate, rye, bourbon, vanilla, oak, light pepper, and roasted earthiness. Damn nice aromas with great balance and complexity of fruity, malty, and barrel notes. Taste of raisin, fig, date, prune, molasses, toast, toffee, caramel, dark bread, chocolate, rye, bourbon, oak, vanilla, light herbal spiciness, and roasted earthiness. Lingering notes of dark fruits, molasses, toast, toffee, chocolate, rye, bourbon, oak, vanilla, and roasted earthiness on the finish for a while. Damn nice flavor complexity and balance of fruity, malty, and barrel notes; barrel strength is just enough without being overpowering; with some slight cloying sweetness present after the finish, but not bad at all. Light-medium carbonation and fairly full bodied; with a very slick, creamy, and lightly chalky mouthfeel that is nice. Alcohol is very well hidden with only a slight warming noticed after the finish. Overall this is an excellent barrel blended strong ale! Great balance and complexity of fruit, malt, and barrel flavors; and extremely smooth to sip on. A very enjoyable offering.

Serving type: bottle

03-14-2013 04:06:25 | More by superspak

Pencible

Virginia

4.5/5  rDev +21%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

A: This poured a nearly opaque black cherry with thick tan head.
S: It smelled like funky oak and tart apple, with rye bread and sweet caramel and toasted coconut.
T: It tasted like sweet sugary caramel and tart apple and funky oak, with toasted coconut and sour cherry and bitter dark chocolate. It had a clean sweet and tart aftertaste.
M: It was thick and chewy with moderate smooth carbonation. Great full body.
D: This was a great complex beer most similar to an Oud Bruin. The smell and taste were fantastic, and the body was perfect. The alcohol was well hidden, and the finish was smooth, so it was amazingly easy to drink. This beer will probably age for a long time, but it was still delicious fresh. Recommended.

Serving type: bottle

05-26-2012 19:57:06 | More by Pencible

LiquidAmber

Washington

4.08/5  rDev +9.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Poured into a Maudite snifter. Pours a very dark brown, appearing black in the glass. Thin light brown head that dissipates to a ring around the glass with slight lacing. Aroma of caramel and toasted malt, whiskey, oak, light chocolate and dark dried fruit. A lot going on here. Flavor is dark and dried fruit, cherry juice with a caramel malt in the background, finishing with light, slightly sour fruit, vanilla, whiskey and oak. Nice complexity and the lgiht sour element is just enough to add interest to the other components. Moderate body with light creaminess. An unusual and fun to drink strong ale that I wouldn't mind seeing again. From the great 2012 gift pack.

Serving type: bottle

12-02-2012 04:53:07 | More by LiquidAmber