Evil Twin Brewing Lil' B Imperial Porter

Hello beer lovers and welcome to another edition of the NorCal Beer Blog's brew review.

Tonight’s featured beer is Evil Twin Brewing Lil' B Imperial Porter.

From the Evil Twin Brewing website: “Shall one compare thee to a fair beer,
Not even this perfect porter before thou will do thee justice.
Thou art more complex, brave and cunning.
Thou have changed more than a brew will ever.
Thou may be lil’, but thy mind is greater than words can speak and beer will ever taste.”

Let’s get started!

Appearance: Pours black with a thin tan head and leaves very little lacing.

Aroma: Roasted malts, chocolate, coffee, dark fruits and a slight licorice scent.

Taste: Bitter roasted malts, dark chocolate, dark fruits with hints of licorice and coffee.

Overall: Full and rich, Evil Twin Brewing Lil' B Imperial Porter is a big flavorful Porter.  This 11.5% ABV offering is intensely good and worth a try if you’re a fan of the style.

Cheers!

Mark Harvey

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Great Divide Brewing Company Old Ruffian Barley Wine Style Ale

Hello beer lovers and welcome to another edition of the NorCal Beer Blog's brew review.

Tonight’s featured beer is Great Divide Brewing Company Old Ruffian Barley Wine Style Ale - bottled on 12-13-2013.

From the Great Divide Brewing Company website: “OLD RUFFIAN is a hefty, hop-forward Barley Wine. Seemingly mellow at the start with subtle fruit aromas and complex caramel sweetness, it quickly becomes aggressive with its bold hop flavors and huge hop bitterness. Ultimately, the big body, succulent sweetness and massive hop character come together to work wonders on your palate.”

Let’s get started!

Appearance: Pours a dark brown/amber color with a good beige colored head and nice lacing on the glass.

Aroma: Lots of hop scents up front, pine and citrus, caramel, toffee, roasted malts, some chocolate and dark fruits.

Taste: Sweet caramel, toffee, dark fruits, pine and citrus hop bitterness, slight cocoa and bready malts.

Overall: Thick and balanced, Great Divide Brewing Company Old Ruffian Barley Wine Style Ale is delicious and tremendously drinkable. This 10.2% ABV offering is boozy, but in the best way possible. If you’re a fan of the style this is a must try.

Cheers!

Mark Harvey

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Happy Thanksgiving!

May the good things of life
be yours in abundance
not only at Thanksgiving
but throughout the coming year.

Cheers!

Mark Harvey

If you haven’t already, please like the NorCal Beer Blog on Facebook (here)

High Water Brewing Le Petit Diablotin Specialty Ale

Hello beer lovers and welcome to another edition of the NorCal Beer Blog's brew review.

Tonight’s featured beer is High Water Brewing Le Petit Diablotin Specialty Ale.

Commercial description: “Le Petit Diablotin is a barrel aged sour version of our Pom Cherry Bomb. The beer was aged for three years in American Oak with a blend of various souring cultures prior to its official release in July 2014.
Le Petit Diablotin, "The Little Devil" is an American Sour Ale. The beer was aged in wine barrels with local sour cherry and pomegranate juice. The beer is delicate and precious treat for those who enjoy the subtle nuances of things from "the wild side".”

Let’s get started!

Appearance: Pours a somewhat hazy golden orange color with a small off-white head and good lacing.

Aroma: Sour berries, funk, oak, pomegranate and a slight scent of sweet malt.

Taste: Tart and funky with a nice blend of berries, pomegranate, oak wine barrel notes and sweet malts in the background.

Overall: Refreshing and tasty, High Water Brewing Le Petit Diablotin Specialty Ale is delicious.  This 6% ABV offering is yet another well done beverage from Steve at High Water Brewing.

Cheers!

Mark Harvey

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Prairie Artisan Ales Wine Barrel Noir

Hello beer lovers and welcome to another edition of the NorCal Beer Blog's brew review.

Tonight’s featured beer is Prairie Artisan Ales Wine Barrel Noir - Imperial Stout Aged In Red Wine Barrels. I picked this up at Santa Clara Liquors (here). If you get a chance, head in there and tell ‘em that Mark from NorCal Beer Blog sent you.  You’ll be glad you did – they have an incredible selection!

From the Prairie Artisan Ales website: “Wine Barrel Noir is our imperial oatmeal stout aged in freshly dumped red wine barrels. Coffee and chocolate notes in the beer are complimented by tart berry flavors and oak we derive from the wine barrels.”

Let’s get started!

Appearance: Pours black with a large and dense tan head and lots of splotchy lacing.

Aroma: Roasted malts, coffee, chocolate, red wine, oak and berries.

Taste: Dark, bitter roasted malts, chocolate, coffee, loads of red wine flavors – similar to merlot or a cabernet, oak, vanilla, dark fruits – reminding me mostly of raspberries with some sour cherries and maybe plum mixed in.

Overall: Complex and unusual, Prairie Artisan Ales Wine Barrel Noir was great to try.  The combination of the roasty and sour flavors of this 10% offering was enjoyable.

Cheers!

Mark Harvey

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Clown Shoes Beer Ride The Lion Wee Heavy Ale

Hello beer lovers and welcome to another edition of the NorCal Beer Blog's brew review.

Tonight’s featured beer is Clown Shoes Beer Ride The Lion Wee Heavy Ale - Malt Beverage with Natural Flavor and Aged in Bourbon Barrels. I picked up this bottle at Cork 'n Bottle Liquors (here) in Fremont, CA. They have a great selection of craft beer as well as a number of beers on tap.  Add Cork ‘n Bottle to your list of craft beer destinations.

Commercial description: “Descended from a notorious clan of Scottish lore, head brewer Dan Lipke channeled the Tartan tapestry encoded in his DNA to create a formidable Wee Heavy. The beer has been aged 100% in fresh bourbon barrels. Ask yourself, “Who needs to ride the lion?””

Let’s get started!

Appearance: Pours a murky caramel color with a dense khaki colored head and good lacing.

Aroma: Caramel, toffee, brown sugar, dark fruits, bourbon, oak, coconut, vanilla, peat and a touch of smoke.

Taste: Malty upfront with caramel, toffee, toasted malts and butterscotch followed by brown sugar, dark fruits, vanilla, oak, bourbon and peat.  Light earthy, nutty and smoky flavors are also present.

Overall: Complex, balanced and delicious, Clown Shoes Beer Ride The Lion Wee Heavy Ale is yet another excellent beer from Clown Shoes.  This 11% ABV offering is a “must drink again” sort of beer. It is a touch boozy, but it falls directly into my wheelhouse.  A great beverage!

Cheers!

Mark Harvey

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Belching Beaver Brewery Peanut Butter Flavored Milk Stout

Hello beer lovers and welcome to another edition of the NorCal Beer Blog's brew review.

Tonight’s featured beer is Belching Beaver Brewery Peanut Butter Flavored Milk Stout. I picked this bottle up at The Wine Club in San Jose (here). They have a small craft beer section, but they have an incredible selection.  If you're anywhere near The Wine Club go visit them and tell 'em Mark from NorCal Beer Blog sent you!

From the Belching Beaver Brewery website: “Our Peanut Butter Milk Stout is simply irresistible. It’s like dark chocolate Reese’s in a glass! Rolled oats and Lactose add to the creamy body of this beer while heavenly aromas of roasted buttery peanuts and chocolate greet you with every sip. Try this out with a scoop of vanilla ice cream for a real treat!”

Let’s get started!

Appearance: Pours very dark brown, nearly black with a large tan head and spotty lacing.

Aroma: Peanut butter, dark chocolate, toffee and roasted malts.

Taste: Peanut butter, milk and dark chocolate, roasted malts, oats, Lactose and a very slight coffee flavor.

Overall: Creamy and smooth, Belching Beaver Brewery Peanut Butter Flavored Milk Stout is amazingly good.  I had reservations about picking up this 5.3% ABV offering, but after hearing all the great reviews I decided I needed to pick this up (strictly for review purposes).  I am VERY glad I did.  All the flavors worked together and I’ve since pick up another bottle.

Cheers!

Mark Harvey

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Fifty Fifty Brewing Company Old Conundrum On Wood

Hello beer lovers and welcome to another edition of the NorCal Beer Blog's brew review.

Tonight’s featured beer is Fifty Fifty Brewing Company Old Conundrum On Wood - Barley Wine Style Ale Aged In Bourbon Barrels. I picked this bottle up at The Wine Club in San Jose (here). They have a small craft beer section, but they have an incredible selection.  If you're anywhere near The Wine Club go visit them and tell 'em Mark from NorCal Beer Blog sent you!

Commercial description: “Barley Wine aged in Oak Bourbon Barrels. A showcase of malty richness and complex intense flavors. Vanilla, caramel and oak shine through with the barrel character.”

Let’s get started!

Appearance: Pours a hazy brown with a thin tan head and good lacing.

Aroma: Sweet caramel, oak, bourbon, toasted malts, toffee and vanilla with a slight pine and spice hop scent in the background.

Taste: Sweet caramel, bourbon, oak, toasted malts, toffee, vanilla and what seems like a touch of maple and earthy, herbal and spicy hops.

Overall: Rich and sweet, Fifty Fifty Brewing Company Old Conundrum On Wood is a delicious barrel aged Barley Wine. This 9.8% ABV offering was so good I picked up another bottle to cellar for a little while.  Highly recommended!

Cheers!

Mark Harvey

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Boulevard Brewing Company Coffee Ale

Hello beer lovers and welcome to another edition of the NorCal Beer Blog's brew review.

Tonight’s featured beer is Boulevard Brewing Company Coffee Ale - Malt Beverage Brewed with Coffee - A Collaboration with The Roasterie - Air Roasted Coffee.

From the Boulevard Brewing Company website: “Neighbors for nearly twenty years, Boulevard Brewing Company and The Roasterie share a passion for making extraordinary beverages. In Coffee Ale, our two celebrated brewing traditions come together in a long-awaited collaboration. Ethiopian Sidamo from Africa’s Great Rift Valley has been carefully blended with rye, oats, and malted barley, and spiced with Perle and Styrian Golding hops. The delightfully fragrant beer presents a glowing, tawny-amber hue. The clean, crisp acidity of the air-roasted coffee mingles with malt on the palate, lingering faintly in a subtly sweet finish.”

Let’s get started!

Appearance: Pours dark auburn brown with a large cream colored head and good lacing.

Aroma: Coffee is upfront followed by toasted malts and slight toffee and caramel scents.

Taste: Coffee, toasted malts, some rye spice and caramel sweetness and a slight earthy hop bitterness.

Overall: Light in body and highly drinkable, Boulevard Brewing Company Coffee Ale is sweet, bitter and enjoyable. This 9.3% ABV offering drinks lighter than the ABV would suggest and isn’t as heavy as many of the coffee beers I’m accustomed to drinking.  I’d drink this one again.

Cheers!

Mark Harvey

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Sierra Nevada Brewing Company Barrel-Aged Narwhal Imperial Stout

Hello beer lovers and welcome to another edition of the NorCal Beer Blog's brew review.

Tonight’s featured beer is Sierra Nevada Brewing Company Barrel-Aged Narwhal Imperial Stout. I picked this bottle up at The Wine Club in San Jose (here). They have a small craft beer section, but they have an incredible selection.  If you're anywhere near The Wine Club go visit them and tell 'em I sent you!

Commercial description: “Barrel-Aged Narwhal is our deliciously dark Imperial Stout aged in Kentucky bourbon barrels. Barrel aging is a strange science; it mellows some characteristics of the original beer while intensifying others. Narwhal’s aggressive roastiness has calmed, but the rich, chocolate-like malt backbone is brought to the fore. Black as midnight, this intense stout is complex with notes of cocoa and espresso balanced with hints of vanilla and toasted coconut from the oak casks. Nearly as rare as it’s nautical namesake, try Barrel-Aged Narwhal while you can because like the creature itself, it will soon dive into the depths and leave nary a trace behind.”

Let’s get started!

Appearance: Pours black with a dense and thick tan head and lots of lacing.

Aroma: Chocolate, caramel, toffee, roasted malts, oak, bourbon, vanilla, espresso, coconut and the slight scent of anise.

Taste: Cocoa, roasted malts, bourbon, oak barrel, vanilla, coconut, espresso, anise and slight toffee and caramel flavors.

Overall: Full-bodied and smooth, Sierra Nevada Brewing Company Barrel-Aged Narwhal Imperial Stout is an excellent BA Imperial Stout.  This 12.9% ABV offering is a must try for fans of the style.  Pick up a few – you’ll be glad you did!

Cheers!

Mark Harvey

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