Category Archives: Style

4 - Good (buy), Beer Reviews, Farmhouse Saison, Oxbow Brewing Company, USA

Oxbow Barrel Aged Farmhouse Pale Ale

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Brewery: Oxbow Brewing Company
Country: USA
ABV: 6.5%
Style: Farmhouse Saison
Other Notes: Barrel-aged farmhouse ale

Brewer Description: (from bottle) Barrel Aged Farmhouse Pale Ale is an American-hopped mixed-fermentation saison aged in American and French oak barrels.

My rating: 4
My beeradvocate.com rating: 4.27
My ratebeer.com rating: 4.1

Intro: A 500ml bottle, bottled on 7th June 2021, and poured into a 3 Fonteinen stemmed glass.
Appearance: A nice hazy golden straw yellow colour with a two finger white head that had good retention while leaving nice lacing.
Aroma: Citrusy, lemon, lemon zest, lime, oak, dusty, vanilla, brett, light funk.
Taste: Light sour, lemon, lemon zest, lime, peach, with light oak and funk.
Mouthfeel: Light to medium bodied with moderate carbonation.
Overall: Enjoyable, refreshing, and really easy to drink.

3 - Indifferent (might buy, probably drink), Beer Reviews, Oxbow Brewing Company, USA, Wild Ale

Oxbow First Fruits

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Brewery: Oxbow Brewing Company
Country: USA
ABV: 6%
Style: Wild Ale
Other Notes: Barrel-aged farmhouse ale with fruit. Production time: 12 months

Brewer Description: (from bottle) First Fruits is a mixed-fermentation farmhouse ale aged on cherries, raspberries, and strawberries.

My rating: 3
My beeradvocate.com rating: 3.9
My ratebeer.com rating: 3.7

Intro: A 500ml bottle, bottled on 1st July 2021, poured into a 3 Fonteinen stemmed glass.
Appearance: A lightly hazy strawberry pinkish red colour with a very thin light pinkish head that dissipated quickly, while leaving only sparse lacing.
Aroma: Jammy, strawberry, raspberry, cherry, oak, tart, an acetone and vinegar zing, with light funky notes.
Taste: Light sweetness, sour, tart, sharp, strawberry, raspberry, cherry, fruit vinegar, light funk.
Mouthfeel: Sharp, medium bodied, with moderate to soft carbonation.
Overall: Nice fruitiness in the aroma and flavour, but the acidity was just a bit too sharp to be easily enjoyed.

4 - Good (buy), Beer Reviews, Nøgne Ø, Norway, Stout - Imperial

Nøgne Ø Dark Horizon 7 Barrel Aged

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Brewery: Nøgne Ø
Country: Norway
ABV: 16%
Style: Stout – Imperial
Other Notes: Coffee, Chocolate, Licorice. Bottle# 0587/7750

Brewer Description: (from bottle) The Dark Horizon series from Nøgne Ø is unique. 15 years after we launched the first version in 2006, we are proud to present Dark Horizon 7. This barrel-aged version of Dark Horizon 7 has spent up to 3 years in barrels that have previously contained cognac, aquavit and whiskey respectively.

My rating: 4
My beeradvocate.com rating: 4.27
My ratebeer.com rating: 4.1

Intro: A 330ml bottle in a nice looking circular metal case, bottle# 0587/7750, bottled on 25th August 2021, with a best before date of 4th July 2031. Poured into a snifter glass.
Appearance: Black in colour with a nice one finger brown head that had decent retention while leaving some nice lacing.
Aroma: Roasted malts, chocolate, dark fruit, licorice, brown sugar, whiskey, cognac, boozy, oak, with light notes of coffee.
Taste: Moderately sweet with a light bitterness, roasty, coffee, chocolate, licorice, whisky, cognac, boozy, brown sugar, oak, molasses.
Mouthfeel: Boozy, full bodied with soft carbonation.
Overall: Definitely a sipper, but a good one. The booze is noticeable, and at 16%, it’s not surprising. Not too sweet, which is good, and on top of the alcohol, there’s lots of nice chocolate, coffee and licorice.

3 - Indifferent (might buy, probably drink), Beer Reviews, Farmhouse Grissette, Oxbow Brewing Company, USA

Oxbow Past Tense

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Brewery: Oxbow Brewing Company
Country: USA
ABV: 4.5%
Style: Farmhouse Grissette
Other Notes: Dry-hopped stainless-aged farmhouse ale with sea salt and lime

Brewer Description: (from bottle) Past Tense is a farmhouse ale brewed with wheat, sea salt and lime juice, dry-hopped with whole leaf American hops and conditioned with Brettanomyces.

My rating: 3
My beeradvocate.com rating: 3.71
My ratebeer.com rating: 3.6

Intro: A 500ml bottle, bottled on 17th December 2020, and poured into a 3 Fonteinen stemmed glass.
Appearance: A nice hazy golden straw yellow colour with an almost two finger white head that dissipated fairly quickly, while leaving only sparse to no lacing.
Aroma: Strong citrus zest and rind, lemon, lime, brett, funk, leather, hay.
Taste: Citrusy, lime zest, lime soda, floral, lavender, dishwashing soap, funk.
Mouthfeel: Crisp, light bodied with moderate carbonation.
Overall: The aroma was great and the citrusy part of the flavour was enjoyable, but there was also this floral and soapy flavour on the back end that just wasn’t my thing.

4 - Good (buy), Beer Reviews, Belgium, De Struise Brouwers, Stout - Russian Imperial

De Struise Black Damnation XX – Ma Boule

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Brewery: De Struise Brouwers
Country: Belgium
ABV: 13%
Style: Russian Imperial Stout
Other Notes: Bottle 1555/2000, 2012 vintage

Brewer Description: (from bottle) A massive stout from Flanders, matured in Calvados barrel.

My rating: 4
My beeradvocate.com rating: 4.21
My ratebeer.com rating: 4

Intro: A 750ml bottle, number 1555/2000. 2012 vintage, bottled on 26th March 2017. Poured into a snifter glass.
Appearance: Black in colour with pretty much no head and no lacing.
Aroma: Roasty malts, calvados, apple peel, chocolate, oak, with notes of dark fruit, plum, prunes.
Taste: Lightly sweet and bitter, roasty, chocolate, caramel, calvados, dark fruit, plum, toasty wood, with a spicy herby note.
Mouthfeel: Medium bodied with soft carbonation.
Overall: I’m not big on calvados, but I tend to be surprised by how much I enjoy calvados barrel aged imperial stouts. For some reason they just work, and this was no exception with good balanced flavours, and just a very good sipper on a night where temperatures are going down again… strange for an April in Hong Kong.