commonwealth brews.

At a tasting we had last month REL shared an Australian beer that appears in The Book. It was really exciting, because beers from Australia and New Zealand hardly ever cross my path. Too remote, too local. If anyone from these areas are into trading, please leave a comment and I’ll get back to you – I can offer you crafty goodness from The Holy Land, and if country ticking is your thing, I can also get you pale lager from Jordan and Ethiopia.

Anyway, not sure whether the bottle of Mountain Goat Hightail Ale that’s originated in Richmond, Victoria, was brought all the way from the Land of Oz or from East Coast US. For us, it’s one of the little miracles that always happen within REL’s network of beer buddies. Anyway, this beer pours clear dark amber-brown with white ring. It has a nice grainy and toasted aroma – something I always enjoy in a beer, and tastes a little sweet and malty. It is light-bodied, has soft carbonation, and a long, bitter finish.

I shared a bottle of Dieu du Ciel Route des Epices, which is a rye beer brewed with both black and green peppercorns. Rye’s one of my favourite grains and I’m always up to spiciness – in this beer it is derived both from the grain and the spice. Clear-to-hazy brown with a quickly dissolving white head, it has black pepper and rye aroma, with a little barley malt and bread. Dry bitterness with black pepper dominance in the mouth and presence of rye. Medium-bodied, smooth carbonation, peppery finish – hot aftertaste. Pretty awesome.

We also tasted another version of Goose Island Bourbon County Stout – Brand Coffee Stout 2013 – but I have already ticked Bourbon County Stout off my list. Not that I have any objections to try all the editions, because it is such a great beer, only that I don’t bother writing about it.

Mountain Goat Hightail Ale and Dieu du Ciel Route des Epices are Beers #357 and #358 I Must Try Before I Die.

American Imperial Stout and Barley Wine Recap

Just a few US Imperial Stouts and Barley Wine I drank recently. “Recently” is kinda stretching it, as you’ll see.

Brooklyn Black Chocolate Stout – poured from bottle, one night at home. Turns out I drank it like two days before starting this blog, so I had to drink it again in the 1001 Beers context. The Winter 13-14 edition that The Secret Agent and I shared had a slightly sour and cucumber aroma that beneath it some chocolate, soy and cherry can be found. It tastes a little roasty, rich bitterness, with some caramel. Full-bodied, burnt and sweetish finish. Pretty good winter beer and robustness and ABV (10%) that demands sharing.

  A 2012 vintage Goose Island Bourbon County Stout was shared by The Beer Greek at a tasting in the winter. With 15% abv. it is no surprise that this beer felt really alcoholic, but after a few minutes of rest in the glass vanilla popped up. The finish showed some chocolate. It’s a very smooth and round imperial stout, ideal for aging. Goose Island experiments with this beer and in the tasting I reached 2K ratings on Ratebeer.com, Dead Swedish Girl opened a bottle of Proprietor’s 2013, aged in Templeton Rye barrels with toasted coconut. I liked this version even better: plum, a little alcohol, vanilla, a little roasty, chocolate and nuts aroma, smooth chocolatey taste and some Frangelico liquor. Full-bodied, smooth, a wee-bit alcoholic, long, sleek finish. Dead Swedish Girl shared his bottle of Backyard Rye in this tasting, too: deep aroma, a little ink and blueberries as well as cherries. Deep taste, a little sweet, some raisins and chocolate. Smooth, full-bodied, long maple finish with prune, berries and chocolate. Being the cocktail nerd that I am, I’d love to try the Manhattan Barrel version, “aged in a 2nd use Heaven Hill bourbon barrel (10-16 years) that was previously used to aged barrel-aged Manhattan cocktails (composed of Weller 107 Bourbon, Punt e Mes Italian Vermouth and Angostura bitters)”.

I was almost certain that Foothills Sexual Chocolate Imperial Stout would be one of the holy grails of this blog/ journey; it is brewed once a year and only a limited number of bottles are sold. Dead Swedish Girl scored the amazing  2012 vintage barrel aged version of this beer; soy, vanilla ice-cream and very rich in the nose, chocolate syrup, very dark and rich and a little alcoholic in the mouth, smooth, a little carbonated, full-bodied and cocoa-bourbon finish.

 

Next, Barley Wine. Only one American drank and not reviewed:

Anchor Old Foghorn – drunk and cherished at home one mild winter evening. Vinous, chestnuts, a little chocolate aroma, deep alcoholic sweetness and a little cocoa in the mouth. Full body, no carbonation, smooth texture, raisins finish.

 

 

 

Brooklyn Black Chocolate Stout, Goose Island Bourbon County Stout, Foothills Barrel Aged Sexual Chocolate Imperial Stout and Anchor Old Foghorn are beers #325, #326, #328, #329 I Must Try Before I Die.