Tag Archives: ba

4 - Good (buy), Beer Reviews, Clown Shoes Beer, Stout - Imperial, USA

Clown Shoes Exorcism At Sunset

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Brewery: Clown Shoes Beer
Country: USA
ABV: 12.5%
Style: American Imperial Stout
Other Notes: Imperial Stout Aged in Bourbon Barrels

Brewer Description: (from bottle) A priestly Party Crasher saw an evil demon strolling by Sunset Grill in Boston, disguised as a dirty cretin sporting Crocs. He caused quite a scene when he whipped out his bible and cast away the evil spirits, but it’s what he had to do. To commemorate the occasion, we aged Undead Party Crasher (our imperial stout) in bourbon barrels for 3 months.

My rating: 4
My beeradvocate.com rating: 4.4
My ratebeer.com rating: 4.3

Intro: A 22 fl. oz. bomber, bottled on 2nd February 2017. Poured into a snifter glass.
Appearance: Dark dark brown to black in colour with a thin mocha brown head that dissipated quickly but left some nice spotty lacing.
Aroma: Roasted malts, milk chocolate, bourbon, oak and a touch of vanilla.
Taste: Roasted malts, chocolate, coffee, sweet bourbon, oak and a nice light bitter finish.
Mouthfeel: Rich, smooth, full bodied with soft carbonation.
Overall: A very nice rich and balanced Imperial Stout with the right amount of bourbon notes and good light booze.

3 - Indifferent (might buy, probably drink), Avery Brewing Company, Beer Reviews, Stout - Imperial, USA

Avery Uncle Jacob’s Stout

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Brewery: Avery Brewing Company
Country: USA
ABV: 17.1%
Style: American Imperial Stout
Other Notes: Batch No.5. Stout aged in Bourbon Barrels

Brewer Description: (from bottle) Jacob Spears, our 6th Great Grand Uncle, is credited as the first distiller to label his whiskey “Bourbon”. He built his distillery in Bourbon County Kentucky in 1790 – 203 years before we began brewing. While obviously a bit too late to produce Uncle Jacob’s wash, we’ve instead created something far more complex. In his honor, we present this robust, silky smooth, full-bodied and altogether extremely American rendition of an Imperial Stout aged for 6 months in the very finest bourbon barrels. This explains a lot about our penchant for big brews! It’s in our blood!

My rating: 3
My beeradvocate.com rating: 3.59
My ratebeer.com rating: 3.4

Intro: A 12 fl. oz. bottle, Batch #5, bottled on 19th February 2016. Poured into a snifter glass.
Appearance: Dark dark brown to black in colour with a one finger mocha head that had decent retention and left sparse spotty lacing.
Aroma: Bourbon, roasted malts, chocolate, espresso, dark fruit, prunes, plum, raisin, oak, brown sugar and booze, with hints of caramel and banana bread.
Taste: Boozy, sweet-ish, bourbon, oak, some dark fruit, prunes, with hints of roasted malts and chocolate.
Mouthfeel: Medium to full bodied with soft carbonation.
Overall: Lots of booze and bourbon, with minimal and not enough Imperial Stout, roasted malts and chocolate. Perhaps closer to a Scotch Ale / Wee Heavy. Definitely a sipper, but also could have been a better balanced Imperial Stout. Just not to my taste.

4 - Good (buy), Beer Reviews, Firestone Walker Brewing Co., USA, Wild Ale

Firestone Walker Feral Vinifera #4

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Brewery: Firestone Walker Brewing Co.
Country: USA
ABV: 9.8%
Style: American Wild Ale
Other Notes: Wild Ale fermented with grapes. Barrel ratio: 70% French Oak & 30% American Oak

Brewer Description: (from bottle) Feral Vinifera is our foray into a new and exciting adventure in the Santa Ynez Valley that expresses our collaborative effort with local grape growers and winemakers. We have carefully fermented, matured and blended this beer with our friend Andrew Murray, proprietor and winemaker at Andrew Murray Winery. The resulting cuvée and partnership of Sauvignon Blanc, Chenin Blanc, Viognier, and Chardonnay grape/beer fermentation bends the mind and senses. Dried apricots, guava, and vanilla mingle with Meyer lemon and roses. A funky, savory yeast bouquet lays down a firm foundation. A flinty minerality and oaky tannic depth add to body and structure that mingle with a soft-finishing acidity and fruity esters carrying assertive vinous perfume. Cheers!

My rating: 4
My beeradvocate.com rating: 4.41
My ratebeer.com rating: 4.3

Intro: A 375ml corked and caged bottle. Batch No. 004, bottled on 20th October 2017. Poured into a 3 Fonteinen stemmed glass.
Appearance: A brilliant clear golden colour with a one finger white head that dissipated quickly with a half replenishing thin layer, while leaving sparse to no lacing.
Aroma: Vinous, white wine, grape, oak barrel, apricot and a touch of vanilla.
Taste: What you’d expect from the aroma, Light sour, vinous, white wine, grape, dried apricot, woody, oak, and a hint of vanilla.
Mouthfeel: Medium bodied with moderate carbonation.
Overall: Wow, doesn’t feel at all like a 9.8% ABV brew. So easy to drink with nice aromas followed by even better taste. The oak comes through nicely and is complemented well by the vinous and fruity grape, white wine and apricots.

3 - Indifferent (might buy, probably drink), Beer Reviews, Firestone Walker Brewing Co., German Berliner Weisse, USA

Firestone Walker Bretta Tangerine

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Brewery: Firestone Walker Brewing Co.
Country: USA
ABV: 6.2%
Style: German Berliner Weisse
Other Notes: Berliner Weisse style fermented with tangerines. Barrel ratio: 100% French Oak

Brewer Description: (from bottle) Our region is blessed with an abundance and variety of fresh fruit. South of Barrelworks in the hills surrounding the hamlet of Ojai, there are groves of citrus-oranges, lemons, grapefruit and tangerines. We’ve been lucky to work with the Ojai native Friend’s Ranches who specialize in tangerines. Friend’s offered the W. Murcott tangerine which we zested for aroma, juiced for flavor, and then fermented with our base beer of Bretta Weisse to create a metamorphosis. Brought to life was Bretta Tangerine! A bountiful bouquet of citrus mingles with pronounced herbal notes, leading to funky, yeasty, citrus flavors. Soft cereal and oak aromas are enveloped by a firm acidity and tartness and punctuated by zesty tangerine. The finish is dry and crisp; a thoroughly enjoyable beverage. Santé!

My rating: 3
My beeradvocate.com rating: 3.88
My ratebeer.com rating: 3.7

Intro: A 375ml corked and caged bottle. Batch No. 001, bottled on 1st May 2018. Poured into a 3 Fonteinen stemmed glass.
Appearance: A lightly hazy golden orange colour with a one finger white head that dissipated fairly quickly to a thin replenishing layer, while leaving only sparse to no lacing.
Aroma: Funky, orange juice, mandarin, unripe mango, unripe apricot, and a touch of oak.
Taste: Light sourness, tangerine, mandarin, orange candy, oak, with a light funkiness.
Mouthfeel: Light bodied with moderate to soft carbonation.
Overall: Not up to the standard of Bretta Rose, but still nice and easy drinking with good citrus, funk and barrel notes. Carbonation could be higher for a Berliner Weisse, but the lack of, doesn’t take too much away from it.

4 - Good (buy), Beer Reviews, BFM (Brasserie des Franches-Montagnes), Italian Grape Ale, Switzerland

BFM Degustator Edizione Vin Santo

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Brewery: BFM (Brasserie des Franches-Montagnes)
Country: Switzerland
ABV: 6.5%
Style: Italian Grape Ale
Other Notes: Barrel Aged IGA Italian Grape Ale

Brewer Description: (from bottle) (translated from French as best as I could) Intense nose, roasted note, subtle, vinous, woody and honey. Velvety and ‘friante?’ beautiful texture, nervous acidity on the palate, long finish with aromas of bread and marzipan.

My rating: 4
My beeradvocate.com rating: 4.02
My ratebeer.com rating: 3.8

Intro: A 375ml bottle, 2016 vintage, bottled in February 2017, and with a notched best before date of February 2019. Poured into a Holy Mountain tulip glass.
Appearance: A hazy golden orange colour with small bits of sediment and a very thin white head that disappeared almost immediately and left no lacing.
Aroma: Lightly funky, vinous, white grape, honey, oak barrel, acetone and a touch of vinegar.
Taste: Sour, acidic, vinous, grapes, white wine, oak, vinegar and every now and then I was getting a herbal element near the finish.
Mouthfeel: Medium to light bodied with soft carbonation.
Overall: I haven’t had much opportunity to try Italian Grape Ales, but this was quite nice. Aroma was good, but the taste and mouthfeel had a slight harshness that would have been better without. However, the more I drank it, I grew to like it, and it was definitely interesting to drink.