Lindley Park - Olde Hickory Brewery

ArchEnemyBrew

Washington

4.1/5  rDev -6.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Poured into Darkness tulip 2-12-12

A: Black with a khaki colored head. Ruby around the edges with a nice bit of lacing.

S: I absolutely love the smell of this beer. Dark chocolate and charred malt with a wonderful sweet raspberry puree aroma. Mild oak as well.

T: Taste is intense charred/roasted malt and a bitter chocolate and tart raspberries. Just doesn't work for me, the raspberries add a bit of acidity and make the stout feel a bit thin and taste a bit more bitter.

M: A little thinner than I'd like. Medium bodied to thin for the style.

O: I really enjoyed sipping on this beer and could not stop smelling it. I do not get much honey from it but that may be because there are so many other elements to it.

Serving type: bottle

02-13-2012 01:01:13 | More by ArchEnemyBrew

maximum12

Minnesota

4.2/5  rDev -4.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Thanks to beerness for this bottle: for those keeping score at home, that's two nights in a row of beerness. I think I'm getting a callous. 22 oz. bottle split with my wife.

Pours a distinctly black dark with minimal carbonation. Smell is a winner: certainly suffused with raspberries, nearly the level of Kuhnhenn's Raspberry Eisbock: pretty wicked nice. Little vanilla, more sweet. Definition of promising.

Lindley Park certainly has a bite to go with its nose. Yow! Alcohol roundhouse to the synapses starts the experience. The raspberries aren't as pronounced as in the nose, being cut with sweet malts & what I can only assume is honey. Chocolate is restrained but shows. Bourbon arrives only as a warmth in the back of the throat. Sweet fruit really lightens this one up compared to your average big stout; & the drinkability is the star. A sipper you can't sip. Big Gulps are the norm.

Not quite life-changing, but an excellent beer that really brings all the components together with a masterfully light touch. More & more impressed with Olde Hickory with every beer I have.

Serving type: bottle

02-08-2012 04:23:33 | More by maximum12

KickInTheChalice

Illinois

4.65/5  rDev +6.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Poured from a 22 oz. bottle into a snifter. Thanks to RC0032 for bringing this over.

The beer itself has a nearly black mahogany color with dark ruby edges. Not much light makes it through anywhere in the glass. A small tan head forms initially and fades pretty quickly.

The aroma and flavor are fairly consistent. There is a little bit of honey in the aroma, not as much in the flavor. Some milk chocolate, some dark, bitter chocolate, slightly tart raspberries all work very well together. a little bit of booze tingles the tongue and warms the stomach. The carbonation is on the light and creamy side, working well with the chocolate covered raspberry flavor and full body.

As someone who has a soft spot for raspberries, the chocolate covered raspberry flavor is pretty dead on accurate and enjoyable.

Serving type: bottle

01-23-2012 00:52:33 | More by KickInTheChalice

AgentZero

Illinois

4.33/5  rDev -1.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

A - Black colored beer with a nice, brown head that faded to a little bit of a ring. Pretty good looking, appropriate.

S - Bourbon, oak, vanilla. There's a great raspberry presence to this one that adds some berry sweetness and depth. The honey coming through reminds you it is an Olde Hickory brew.

T - Nice raspberry, good chocolate. As far as raspberry/chocolate stouts go, this is fantastic. The chocolate is more of the roasted, slightly unsweetened type. Honey adds a bit of sweetness.

M - Heavier side of medium bodied, fairly creamy. Moderate to slightly lower carbonation.

O - Very good beer, expected this to be another initially hyped and underwhelming brew. Would like to drink this again.

Serving type: bottle

01-16-2012 19:12:31 | More by AgentZero

oline73

Maryland

3.93/5  rDev -10.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

We opened this up during the tasting this weekend. Poured into my Chimay goblet.

Appearance: Pours almost black with some red at the edge. There is just a layer of off white head that fades to a thin ring on top of the pour.

Smell: Smells like raspberry truffles. I'm picking up some of the honey and lots of raspberries with chocolate and some roast. Quite smooth with very little alcohol.

Taste: Chocolate and raspberries dominate. There is a tartness from the berries, but it doesn't clash with the roast. Quite sweet and warm from alcohol in the finish.

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

Overall: The raspberries were tastefully done. There is a good balance and this makes a really nice desert beer. I'd have another given the chance.

Serving type: bottle

01-16-2012 03:29:13 | More by oline73

Ungertaker

Minnesota

4.78/5  rDev +9.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5

Received this in a trade from n2185 today. I was too anxious to put it away!

A- a red-hued, semi-translucent espresso with a 1/8" white head that leaves a sticky lacing.

S- dark chocolate, roasted coffee beans, raspberries, very faint vanilla

T- raspberry hits immediately and remains throughout. Bitter dark chocolate and a subtle cappuccino come in the middle. A sweet honey finish tops it off.

M- The balance of carbonation and viscous mouthfeel is amazing!

O- an incredible beer! This is the first Olde Hickory brew I have had and definitely won't be the last. The raspberry stands out, but does not dominate. I would love to try this again.

Serving type: bottle

01-13-2012 03:52:48 | More by Ungertaker

SpdKilz

Illinois

4.43/5  rDev +1.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

A big thanks to Peter (mullenpc) for this beer. Enjoyed a second time thanks to Sean (Sean9689) this past weekend.

Appearance – Pours a deep black into a tulip with some great looking brown head that sticks around the entire time.

Smell – Massive ripe raspberries mixed in with milk chocolate. Slight roast at the end. Mainly raspberries.

Taste – Exactly like the nose (thankfully). A rich raspberry flavor combined with sweet chocolate and just a hint of coffee. A subtle trio of oak, vanilla, and alcohol from the bourbon emerge later in the sip. Very tasty.

Mouthfeel – Medium bodied, creamy, decent carbonation.

Overall – At both tasting’s I’ve had this at, the consensus was this was a very good beer and not just due to hype. Glad I have one left in the cellar to enjoy on yet another occasion.

Serving type: bottle

01-12-2012 02:36:25 | More by SpdKilz

Sean9689

Illinois

4.4/5  rDev +0.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

22oz brought by me to the good beer/bad beer tasting. Poured into Bell's tulip.

A - Pours black, mocha-colored head, thin film on top.

S - Big chocolate covered raspberry nose, very sweet & rich, some burnt sugars, slight oak, sweet honey. The raspberry is integrated perfectly with the stout and the sweetness isn't over-the-top.

T - Tastes like chocolate raspberry cheesecake. Again, the raspberry and chocolate are perfectly balanced and the honey gives it a nice smoothness. Not too sweet, but obviously, not something you're going to pound through.

M - Full, rich & smooth, creamy finish.

O - An excellent beer that I really enjoyed. I am going to locate another bottle here soon for future tasting to see how it ages. I really think it's ready to go now, but hey, it's always fun to see what happens. Recommend!

Serving type: bottle

01-09-2012 18:56:28 | More by Sean9689

MasterSki

Illinois

4.47/5  rDev +2.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Thanks to Sean, I think? Served in a Captain Lawrence tulip.

A - A half-finger of tan foam that settles to a collar and spotty lace. Very dark brown body with a lighter shade of brown at the fringes of the glass.

S - Big earthy bourbon character, oaky vanilla, roasted grains, dark chocolate honey, and an increasingly prominent raspberry character as the beer warms up.

T - The taste is actually a tiny bit better (although not enough to warrant a perfect score). A super smooth raspberry dark chocolate cheesecake is as apt a description as any. Well-hidden alcohol.

M - Solidly hefty medium-full body, chewy texture, lightly tannic in the finish with mild lingering stickiness. Again, minimal alcohol warmth.

D - A great barrel-aged raspberry imperial stout. I'd like to get a bottle of this to enjoy on my own, as it's an excellent take on The Event Horizon. Old Hickory seems to have this style figured out. Worth seeking out and surprisingly drinkable considering the style and ABV.

Serving type: bottle

01-08-2012 20:56:30 | More by MasterSki

drabmuh

Maryland

4.25/5  rDev -3%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Another big thanks goes out to Huhzubendah for cracking this one open at a recent tasting, served in a snifter. At the time of this review, this beer is the #41 beer on the beeradvocate.com "Top Beers - American Double / Imperial Stout" list.

Beer is black, with a thin lazy tan head of small bubbles, low retention, minimal lacing, low carbonation. Looks good.

Aroma is bourbon and raspberries, smells awesome.

Beer is sweet up front with a nice bourbon character and then the raspberries take over. Very fruit forward in this beer, strong but not annoying or too cloying. Big presence on the palate, the finish leaves you tasting more raspberries, the bourbon is entirely front palate, a nice beer overall I'd have it again. I might have enjoyed it a little bit more if the raspberries were subtler but I understand how this beer works. good.

Serving type: bottle

01-03-2012 01:18:23 | More by drabmuh

Huhzubendah

District of Columbia

4.43/5  rDev +1.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

The beer is a deep, dark brown shade, nearing black. Atop the beer is a half inch of soapy, beige head that leaves random traces of lacing on the tulip.

The aroma brings raspberries, roasted malt, chocolates. Smells like a gourmet raspberry chocolate candy.

Really enjoyable. Lots of raspberry throughout. Chocolate raspberries. Not too sweet. Well balanced, with a present alcoholic warmth. I love raspberries, and they work beautifully in this stout.

Smooth on the palate. Easy drinking and teeming with flavor. Moderately low carbonation.

Overall, very glad I traded for this. I definitely recommend it.

Serving type: bottle

01-01-2012 19:16:49 | More by Huhzubendah

Thorpe429

Illinois

4.22/5  rDev -3.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Thanks to Geist for this bottle. Served in a SAVOR wine glass.

Pours near black with a thin off white head and some slight lacing. The nose brings a good amount of raspberry plus chocolate. Faint roast as well. Raspberry is a really nice component of the flavor along wi traditional stout. Quite well balanced. Medium body with a smooth finish and a bit of booze. Boom.

Serving type: bottle

01-01-2012 18:59:43 | More by Thorpe429

HopHead84

California

4.38/5  rDev 0%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

12/30/2011

Bottle courtesy of ASUbeer. Snifter.

A: Black with an inch of tan froth.

S: The nose is very fruity. Raspberries blend nicely with aromatic dark chocolate. As you might have expected, bourbon is a great addition to the raspberry truffle theme. Oak is restrained, and there's a little caramel in there. I don't get any booze in the nose. Smells very good.

T: It tastes like dark chocolate raspberry cake. The raspberries do the base beer much credit, and bourbon blends in splendidly. There's a lower moderate bitterness and a touch of alcohol, though it's not at all detracting. Roasted grains accompany oak and a shadow of honey. I get cocoa and a little coffee on the back end. There's a very low level of tartness throughout.

M: Full in body with medium carbonation. The mouthfeel is silky, sticky, and lightly tannic, with warming on the palate.

Overall: Very good, but not something I'd want to drink large quantities of. I haven't had very good luck with this brewery and this beer sounds a little strange from the description, but it's well executed and I recommend you give it a try.

Serving type: bottle

12-31-2011 01:22:43 | More by HopHead84

beerwolf77

Wisconsin

4.43/5  rDev +1.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Another elusive bottle shared by BeerFMAndy. Thanks man!

Pitch black hue. Mocha head. The raspberry is front and center in the nose. Loads of chocolate as well. The raspberries blend perfectly with the chocolate in the flavor. Neither really over takes the other. Like a well made chocolate cake with raspberry filling. Full thick body. This one was a treat from start to finish.

Serving type: bottle

12-30-2011 22:30:17 | More by beerwolf77

craytonic

District of Columbia

3.48/5  rDev -20.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3

Appearance: Nice dark black pour with a small beige head, small amount of lacing

Smell: Event horizon + raspberries, and the raspberries seem out of place. Nice notes of malt, oak, coffee, dark chocolate and bourbon

Taste: The Raspberries are dominant but not pleasant or integrated. Very odd mixup. The base beer, minus the berries, has great notes of malt, oak, coffee, bourbon and chocolate.

Mouthfeel - medium/full body and mouthfeel

Overall: I was really looking forward to this one and definitely disappointed, the raspberries just do not play well with this imperial stout.

Serving type: bottle

12-28-2011 02:43:44 | More by craytonic

kenthoggard

North Carolina

4.5/5  rDev +2.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Starts with a nice aroma of fresh raspberries and chocolate. Taste Starts with a hint of raspberries, blends into a choclatelaty raspberry finish with light hints of bourbon on the back end. Light to medium carbonation. Nice light finish! Great Beer!

Serving type: bottle

12-17-2011 01:33:06 | More by kenthoggard

mechamifune

North Carolina

4.05/5  rDev -7.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Pours a near pitch black with a slight brown head. Carbonation is evident and good for the style. Nice lacing.

Smell is sweet malt and rasberries. A little bit of alcohol in the nose but not a lot. Bitter chocolate on the back end.

Taste is rasberries up front, followed by chocolate and a bit of a licorice taste. Finishes with a bit of a medicinal aftertaste. Rasberries are integrated pretty weel with the traditional stout flavors. Taste is pleasant though not overwhelming, overall slightly sweet and not particularly bitter or sour.

Mouthfeel is very strong and the best element of the beer. Very smooth and creamy, making it easy to drink despite the relative heaviness.

Overall this is an enjoyable beer and one I would drink again if readily available. The way the rasberries are integrated into the traditional big stout flavors shows a lot of skill, but in the end the slightly medicinal finish detracts a little. As a "special release" beer it doesn't quite register in the upper echelon for me, but that shouldn't be held against it.

Serving type: bottle

12-13-2011 02:52:42 | More by mechamifune

marvin213

North Carolina

4.13/5  rDev -5.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 5 | overall: 4

Pitch black with a tan head, it dissipates quickly. A neat red tinge appears on the swirl. It smells almost like a stout sour or a Belgian impy or something. That sweet honey/sour raspberry combo offers what smells like a sweet tartness. I mean, really, my nose wrinkles and my brows furrows as I try to figure it out. The mouthfeel is sensational as the berries do add a neat and tingly sensation to the big ol chocolate stout feel. It tastes simply like an OHB impy + raspberries. It's not even that the berries impart so much flavor, but they do enhance the overall feel and appeal to it. A winner.

Serving type: bottle

12-07-2011 22:27:01 | More by marvin213

thagr81us

South Carolina

3.78/5  rDev -13.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Big thanks goes out to sincereNC for sharing this one with me! Served from bottle into a Mikkeller taster flute. Poured a massively dark brown with a half finger brown head that subsided to a minimal amount quickly. Maintained decent lacing throughout the glass. The aroma was comprised of sweet malt, subtle roasted malt, dark chocolate, raspberries, and a subtle tart note. The flavor was of sweet malt, dark chocolate, raspberries, and tart cherries. It had a medium feel on the palate with medium carbonation. Overall this was a decent brew. I'm not sure how I feel about the new 'let's add fruit to this stout to make it better' movement, but this one just did not do it for my palate. While it was quite easy to drink, it just didn't continue to make me come back for more and more as I would have hoped. While still good, it just feel a little short of my expectations.

Serving type: bottle

12-06-2011 14:49:26 | More by thagr81us

corby112

Pennsylvania

3.9/5  rDev -11%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 4

Thanks to BubbaBeerMan for sending me a bottle of this in a recent trade.

Pours viscous and pitch black with a thin beige head that quickly settles into a lasting ring. Sporadic spots of lace left behind.

Sweet, vinous aroma that's dominated by the raspberries. There's also a decent barrel presence and some roasted dark malt notes underneath. The nose is bursting forth with fresh raspberries but they are countered by the dry oak and sweet bourbon along with hints of dark chocolate, coffee and toast.

Medium bodied but a bit thinner than expected with subtle oxidization and tight carbonation up front. The beer looks viscuos and oily but it's slightly watered down and not as chewy/full as I had hoped for.

This beers has a complex flavor profile with a balance of fresh fruit, earthy oak, bourbon and dark malt. There's a huge burst of sweet, uber-fresh raspberry up front that dominates the flavor and lingers throughout. This beer is still young so I suspect that this will fade over time but for now the flavor is really strong. It seems like I can even taste the seeds which give it a slight earthy presence. The fruit flavor is countered by the dry toasted oak and near burnt dark malts. Subtle coffee roast, dry wood and bitter dark chocolate notes along with some boozy bourbon sweetness. The bourbon is faint and there is more of a non descript alcohol flavor than anything but the beer never becomes harsh or overly hot. Still, the oxidization and dry wood/roast flavor hurt the drinkability for me. This beer has the potential of being a chocolate covered bourbon raspberry delight but it well a little short of my expectations.

Serving type: bottle

12-06-2011 02:56:52 | More by corby112

mikesgroove

South Carolina

4.8/5  rDev +9.6%
look: 4 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

dark brown, nearly opaque, save for a few touches of reddish highlights coming through on the side and the bottom of the glass. A huge head of tan foam, perhaps three inches high, came over the top and settled down only gradually,

The aroma was rich with fruit. This was very nicely done. You could definitely tell there was a nice sweet stout underneath though, as touches of chocolate and lactose came through from underneath of it. But the main player by far was ras[berry. Not overly tart, but enough to offset the rest of what was there. The flavor was more of the same. The initial taste was that of a rich milk stout, butt hat was very short-lived as sooner then later the fruit took over. I am a fan of fruit beers, and have had quite a few. They can go right or horribly wrong, Rich, almost decadent dessert like flavor here. Rich notes of cranberry sorbet like flavor swirled around in a light chocolate base, with hints of vanilla and a touch of bitter in the finish. This was by no means a heavy stout, nothing big about it at all, more subtle then anything. The feel was al little light, not as full as I would have wanted, however it was still done very well. Good carbonation and an easy sipper. I would guess the ABV was in the neighborhood of 5-6%, no more as this was easy to put down and did not really leave much of a lingering effect on me.

Serving type: bottle

12-04-2011 06:18:56 | More by mikesgroove

Viciousknishs

Virginia

4.22/5  rDev -3.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A- pours sludge black with a dark dark brown head. Decent retention.

S- a touch of milk chocolate up front that transitions into a massive tart raspberry covered in honey aroma. Some warm booze blends with a soft oak aroma on the finish.

T- rich juicy raspberry and a touch of honey hit the palate at first. Roasty dark malt bitterness blends in with a hint of warming alchohol. Soft oak flavors on the finish with a lingering mocha on the aftertaste.

MF- creamy rich mouthfeel with a chewy heavy body and soft carbonation.

D- a sipper of a after dinner beer.

Overall a delicious blend of chocolate stout and rich real fruit flavor.

Serving type: bottle

11-29-2011 03:00:13 | More by Viciousknishs

cosmicevan

New York

4.1/5  rDev -6.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Thanks for the trade, Msquared2.

a - pried the wax off and cracked the cap and filled my E snifter. nice rich sludgy pour...settles like an oil spil with a thin just shy of a finger's worth of milk mocha frappacino looking head. head fizzled away within a minute but left small milky bubble clusters on the surface. swirling rebuilds slightly and coats the glass with a thin layer or spotty lacing.

s - during the pour the smell started to fill the air. upon inspection...chocolate covered raspberries. the honey is present as well but not as much so as the raspberries. kind of like the imperial stout with some raspberries in it...as advertised. it really smells decadent...like a raspberry brownie you'd get at a steakhouse...INTENSE.

t - just as the nose advertised, i'm drinking a dessert. it is rich and thick and chocolate raspberry cake. 50 times thicker than a ten fidy (well, maybe not 50 times, but you get where i'm going with how thick and rich this one is). might be too intense for some. the raspberry is good, but VERY dominating. i am expecting the chunks that you get when eating raspberry yogurt...picture that but in a chocolate cake beer. i don't get anything from the oak barrels and i cannot pick out the honey as well as in the imperial stout.

m - full bodied and leaves a cooling crisp alcohol tingle in my mouth.

o - overall, this is all about the raspberry. very sweet and very desert like. delicious, yes...but 22 oz seems like i've got my work cut out for me. i'd probably take the imperial stout over this one if given the choice...both great beers, but the raspberry is an interesting treatment to a great beer...doesn't necessarily make it better for my taste buds.

Serving type: bottle

11-26-2011 00:39:28 | More by cosmicevan

jpmclaug

South Carolina

4.03/5  rDev -8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Bottle poured into my Bruery snifter.

Black body with hardly any head. A circle of brown around the glass but no head.

Smells like what I would expect. Sweet, soy sauce-y, maybe a hint of barrel aging but not as much as I expected. Not really any raspberry aroma but has a hint of that aged, almost oxidized aroma.

Taste is in line with the aroma. Maybe not as sweet as the nose would make me believe. still some hints of soy sauce, I pick up the raspberries in the finish a little. A little chocolatey but not as much as the label would make you think. More dark fruit flavors and hardly any roasty notes. Nice mouthfeel that I'd expect from a big stout but not quite as heavy as Dark Lord and it's ilk.

Overall a solid beer and a definite improvement over the regular IS from Olde Hickory but not at the level of Event Horizon. I wouldn't mind drinking this one again but I don't think it is worth going crazy trying to obtain it. I wish the raspberries were more present. I'm not sure what some age will do to this one but I can't imagine it helping too much since it already has a hint of that aged stout taste.

Serving type: bottle

11-24-2011 02:09:09 | More by jpmclaug

kiddynamite920

Pennsylvania

4.43/5  rDev +1.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Thanks to Slentz for sharing this one.

A: Bottle split into a few snifters. Pitch black with a small, off-white head. Almost want to say I see a raspberry red glow, but it's surely in my mind.

S: Aroma is full of raspberries and roasty goodness. Very impressed with how much the fruit shows through the base stout. Incredibly balanced with tart berries, chocolate malts and some nice bittering hops.

T: A mouthful of raspberries with huge chocolate and coffee flavors following. Flavors compliment themselves very well. Very sweet, the only downfall I find with this beer. Definitely a beautiful combination of an Imp Stout and fruit.

M: Alcohol hits a bit hard, thins the mouthfeel out a bit. The body of the beer is quite nice though. Starts sweet, midway is roasty and bold, finishes a bit tart. Interesting beer.

O: Haven't really had a raspberry beer that I haven't enjoyed...maybe I'm partial. This beer is phenomenal. Has everything that an Imp stout should have plus the added fruit on top. Would work well as an aperitif, even works well on its own.

Serving type: bottle

11-20-2011 22:06:18 | More by kiddynamite920