Charkoota Rye - New Holland Brewing Company

Bung

North Carolina

4.5/5  rDev +26.1%

01-12-2013 02:37:33 | More by Bung

TastyIsBeer

Illinois

4/5  rDev +12%

05-12-2013 02:41:22 | More by TastyIsBeer

dalepryor

Kentucky

3.75/5  rDev +5%

05-07-2013 21:54:31 | More by dalepryor

nrbw23

Ohio

3.25/5  rDev -9%

05-04-2013 15:42:52 | More by nrbw23

FLBeerGuy

Florida

3.75/5  rDev +5%

04-28-2013 02:49:23 | More by FLBeerGuy

tectactoe

Michigan

3.71/5  rDev +3.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

On tap at the Park bar in Detroit. Pours a dark mahogany and woody-brown color, laced in deep, ruby red edges. The head is a darker shade of tan with a light ruby tint to it, showing decent retention and some wet legging. This beer looks pretty damn good.

So this is a smoked doppelbock? I guess I can see that. The aroma gives way to a plentiful amount of smoked malt - liquid smoke, mild charcoal, and a certain campfire-like woodiness. Smoked malt tends to be pretty damn potent, and can often engulf and shadow any other present aromas and/or tastes if used too liberally. In the aroma, however, I can still discern the "doppelbock" qualities of this one; sweet molasses is probably second-in-command behind the smoke. A light bit of salt, dark fruit, burnt caramel, and more wood bring up the rear.

The first sip opens up wit a blanket of liquid smoke that comes out strong, but quickly gives way to some of the other flavors lying beneath it. Heavy wood, molasses, deep prunes, and even a mild nuttiness. The more I drink, the more I realize how intact the smoke remains from start to finish, giving off mild hints of campfires, bacon, and smoked meat. Mild bitter twinge on the tail end, cutting through the sweetness from the malt, making for a surprisingly dry finish. Then again, maybe it's the rye that helps provide for the dry finish. I don't taste much rye in itself, but maybe it can be held accountable for that ending bitterness. Medium bodied, slick mouth feel, low carbonation.

Smoked beers are very hit and miss, mostly due to the finesse needed when dealing with smoked malt. This beer wasn't bad at all. I would have liked a little bit more flavor to pop - though the smoke wasn't "overdone", by the end of the beer, my palate was starting to get tired of it. Good in smaller doses, and still pretty tasty overall.

Serving type: on-tap

03-13-2013 11:54:35 | More by tectactoe

CaptainNomihodai

Illinois

4/5  rDev +12%

03-03-2013 04:14:54 | More by CaptainNomihodai

Myst

District of Columbia

3/5  rDev -16%

03-02-2013 23:59:31 | More by Myst

hollywood_15063

Pennsylvania

4.5/5  rDev +26.1%

02-19-2013 22:31:27 | More by hollywood_15063

XicanoBeerRun

Texas

3.5/5  rDev -2%

02-06-2013 17:42:09 | More by XicanoBeerRun

KJabo

Illinois

2.5/5  rDev -30%

02-05-2013 17:29:19 | More by KJabo

adamdd

Michigan

1.5/5  rDev -58%

01-22-2013 13:48:46 | More by adamdd

BeerOps

Illinois

3.25/5  rDev -9%

01-19-2013 20:57:18 | More by BeerOps

BlissJunkie

Michigan

2/5  rDev -44%

01-14-2013 23:04:39 | More by BlissJunkie

StoutHunter

Michigan

2.5/5  rDev -30%

01-13-2013 20:12:14 | More by StoutHunter

Lukass

Ohio

4.5/5  rDev +26.1%

01-03-2013 01:31:35 | More by Lukass

ejimhof

Pennsylvania

3/5  rDev -16%

12-25-2012 17:23:01 | More by ejimhof

Ego

New Jersey

3.68/5  rDev +3.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

2011 vintage

eyes...
nearly black, one full finger plus a smidge of micro bubble constructed head, ebbs and flows like the ocean tide, nice retention after a good 10 minutes of sitting here, a solid looking brew

nose...
hyper sweet molasses in a fire, upon further snorting the smoke is really starting to race to the front and dominate, the smoke is mouth watering, it really does remind me of bamburg type brews with just a mere hint of fruity sweetness at the tip if the smoke, if you dig smoke, dig this...

taste etc...
ever been utterly confused by a first taste? I'm there... (pausing to try and begin to describe what is going on right now)...
first glance you get some sweet malts (briefly), then there is a very strong sour flavor, hard to compare, not sour like lemon or a lambic... but sour ... like tart cherries. I suppose, that's the best I can do right now, then the smoke HITS, and boy does it, the sour would make this undrinkable but the smoke tames it.... enough? hmm... not sure about that. This drinks smoothly and the carbonation is perfectly matched to the body.

verdict?
the smoke is absolutely wonderful here but the sour note really is a touch too strong, maybe this is better was a dessert type after some righteous bbq pig etc. I can't imagine this through an entire meal, might make a hell of an interesting sauce/marinade/braising liquid....

Serving type: bottle

12-16-2012 05:55:35 | More by Ego

lillitnn92

Virginia

2.75/5  rDev -23%

12-10-2012 15:36:18 | More by lillitnn92

drewone

California

3.25/5  rDev -9%

12-08-2012 08:18:00 | More by drewone

sprucetip

Alaska

2.35/5  rDev -34.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 1.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 2

201 vintage. Darker than mahogany, minimal head and retention, no lacing, and not alot of activity. It's thin enough to see through if you look at it with the lighting or angle just right.

Smoke. That's about it.

Smoked malt and malty sweetness with some dark fruit. Mostly smoky. Tad bit of bitterness in the finish.

The feel is probably the best part, and normally the feel isn't a super important element to me. Lightly carbonated, medium body, slightly bitter finish.

My brother bought 2 bottles, and didn't like it. He gave me the other. I like Alaskan Smoked Porter and to a lesser extent Stone Smoked Porter. I'm down with a good smoked beer. But I'd heard some other folks say it was not good, so it took me a couple of years to get around to opening it. It isn't as horrible as one guy told me ("the worst beer I've ever had"), but I think most of it is going down the drain so I can drink something I really like. The smoke is way overdone here (though Alaskan Smoked Porter is very smoky and I love it), and it is almost cloyingly sweet too. I'm not really a drain pour type of guy unless something is infected, but I will be going against my typical tendencies in this case.

Serving type: bottle

12-06-2012 02:40:03 | More by sprucetip

rolandboy

Michigan

2.25/5  rDev -37%

11-10-2012 18:54:44 | More by rolandboy

skaboom420

Pennsylvania

3.5/5  rDev -2%

11-09-2012 20:42:10 | More by skaboom420

Zaphog

Michigan

3/5  rDev -16%

11-09-2012 03:35:14 | More by Zaphog

Trulius_Slackerus

4.25/5  rDev +19%

10-27-2012 02:50:12 | More by Trulius_Slackerus