Point - Whole Hog Raspberry Saison

June is almost over and so is my almost perfect adherence to drinking local beers.  This review's beer comes from Wisconsin.  Those of you who have been paying attention know that I currently dwell in Illinois.  However, I was born in Wisconsin and lived there for many years so I feel I get a pass on this one.  This is part of Point's "Whole Hog" series.  When I first saw it I thought that, per the name, it would be for a bacon beer(!), but upon closer inspection I realized it was simply a limited release of various styles.  Not that a limited release is a bad thing, but it cowers a bit to the excitement over the potential for bacon beer.  Have I blathered on enough yet?  Good.  Let's pour!

Picture is my own.  Bottle art image used without permission for educational uses only.

Aroma 10/12
There are some great sniffs on this one!  It, of course, starts out with the raspberry esters that also add a light acidic note to the brew.  The acidity is good to have in there as it is true to the fruit and indicates natural ingredients.  Some floral notes come in later to compliment the raspberries.  As the head fizzles away, there are spicy Belgian yeast notes as well as light caramel aromas.  The banana aromas from the yeast become apparent as the beer warms and is odd that it appears almost separate from the spice.  There could be a hop citrus in there as well, but I could very well be confusing the tartness of the raspberries.

Appearance 1/3
A hazy Belgian pale orange fills the glass.  The white head is small, dissipates quickly, and leaves no lacing.  A somewhat smaller head is to be expected when brewing with acidic fruits, but even with that consideration this seems small and brief.

Picture is my own.

Flavor 16/20
This beer does not pull any punches in its beginning!  You are almost instantly hit by a bready, caramelly, spicy pile of banana-y goodness.  The malt is present with a strong bready note, but this disappears almost completely by the time the backbone fades in.  One would expect the backbone to consist strongly of raspberries and maybe even be a bit acidic given the nose of this beer.  You would be wrong.  Where are the raspberries?  Make no mistake, the beer that is present is full of caramel and Belgian yeast flavors of pepper and bananas - it is darn tasty.  I just expected a raspberry beer to taste like raspberries.  Call me crazy.  The finish is darkly sweet from its caramel and very smooth.  It also shows a hint of the warmth that his brew has previously held a very close secret (7.2% ABV).  The aftertaste is also appropriate for the style, being mostly clean despite the sweet/peppery backbone, but with a light hop bitter to keep things refreshing and mouth-watering.

Mouthfeel 4/5
Medium-heavy body with plenty of creaminess and carbonation that starts out adequate, but fizzles out completely before the end of the pint.  Very little warmth is shown despite is relatively high ABV.

Overall Impression 6/10
This is a very tasty and stylistically accurate saison:  Belgian yeast, low to moderate malt presence (caramel), spicy, creamy, and it even gave us some unexpected warmth.  All very nice.  Unfortunately, the aroma was the only place the raspberries made themselves known.  The lack of head and raspberries are the major areas of concern with this beer.  Thankfully the rest of the beer is strong enough to carry it.

Total 38/50
If this was JUST a Belgian I would have given it a higher rating in flavor.  However, the raspberries were absent from everything except the aroma!  I want to rate it higher because it is darn tasty, but how can you make a raspberry beer that doesn't taste like raspberries.  Aren't there sensory people for exactly that task?  For the saison style, it is pretty darn close to the mark, but that is not what I was promised by this bottle.  I was hoping for something a bit more crisp and refreshing (hence the raspberries).  Overall, I would buy this again, but for the saison style and NOT the raspberries.

Point - Burly Brown

Happy Friday, brew fans!  It has been far too long since I have had a brown ale and I look to remedy that ASAP.  Tonight's pouring is from Point Brewery in Stevens Point, WI.  I tend to trust beers from Wisconsin as the vast majority of Wisconsinites are of German descent and can whip up a tasty brew before you can say "Reinheitsgebot."  That in mind I am excited to try this latest offering.  Let's pour!

Picture is my own.  Bottle art image used without permission for educational uses only.

Aroma 9/12

The aroma is very malt-heavy and not entirely inappropriate for the style.  The medium roast and notes of caramel great compliments to one another and are a pleasant way to make this beer's acquaintance.  Once the  head dies down, the sweet nutty aroma shows lightly.  The nutty aroma somehow mixes with the caramel and sweetness to occasionally remind the drinker of something cola-esque.

Appearance 2/3

The color is a bit light for the style, bring almost amber/reddish under better lighting than the above photo.  However, the beige head was generous for the gentle pour, retention was solid at worst, and left some nice lacing.  A collar remained to the end of the pint.

Picture is my own.

Flavor 10/20

An extremely light flavor especially when considering the name (let alone the style).  Initial flavors are so light as to nearly be non-existent.  The backbone of the beer is malty, but not in a roasted way as the style demands.  The malt could very well be pale (or even crystal!) with caramel flavors added; a disappointing departure from the aroma.  The finish is again a nutty, malt sweetness with an almost complete lack of roast flavor.  In a true example of "better late than never," the aftertaste has some nutty tones and a nice round bitter.  The flavor is almost like getting a little bit of the shell or lining when eating a walnut - some earthy, sweet taste and a stronger bitter counterpart.

Mouthfeel 2/5

The first impression when sampling this beer had to do with its mouthfeel: thin.  While the carbonation is just about perfect, the body is watery.  This results in a brown that is easier to drink than most, but with too high of an alcohol content (5.43% ABV) to make it truly sessionable.  For a thin beer, it somehow manages to obtain a desirable level of creaminess.

Overall Impression 4/10

A brown ale that is not quite brown, has little roasted malt flavor, light body, and very little nut flavor is overall very disappointing indeed.  The whole beer needs to be bolder, especially to be labeled as a brown (or known as a good one).  The was some good promise in the aroma, but it turned out to be more of a let-down when actually discovering the flavor.

Total 27/50 (Good)

For a beer that is labeled as such, it is anything but, "Burly."  It seems to lighten the best parts of a brown ale every chance it gets.  Perhaps this beer is one of many that loses its way when a brewery grows in size and enjoys the recent spat of success that Point Brewery is currently riding.  It seems light in flavor and more designed for the masses than those who enjoy a quality beer.  For the money, there are certainly more robust brown ales to be had out there.

Stevens Point Brewing Co. - 2012 Black Ale

As you may have noticed, I have been a bit out of commission since St. Patrick's Day.  While it certainly felt like the end of the world, I indeed recovered and decided to get cracking on some new brew reviews.  I decided to take on the "end of the world" theme and review Point's - 2012 Black Ale.  Let's pour!

Picture is my own.  Bottle art image used without permission for educational uses only

Aroma 6/12
The aroma is rather light for something claiming to be a black ale.  Instead of robust bitters and über-dark roast there is a dark roast present (though not nearly dark enough) with a hint of chocolate.  Perhaps even a smoky scent peeking its head out, but only ever so faintly.  But sweetness in a black ale?  It is a bit troubling and I carried on to other areas of the beer hoping for more hints.

Appearance 2/3
When they said black ale, they were not kidding!  This thing is opaque!  It is pitch black and you can barely catch a brown from the edges even when held to light.  Very nice.  The head is a dark tan that cannot maintain retention long enough for me to even take a few snapshots and take a sip.  It leaves only a small collar and no lace.  I wish I could tell you its consistency, but it had vanished.  It keeps its points for its color and clarity (or lack thereof).

Picture is my own.

Flavor 12/20

This beer definitely has flavor, but it is not true to style.  It should be considered a robust porter before it is considered a "black" anything.  Perhaps the marketing folks are getting a bit out of hand?  I have had other great beers from Point, but this particular brew misses the mark.  The first sensation is sweet; the aroma did not mislead.  While the chocolate I detected in the aroma was a mix of sweetness and roasted malt, the flavor lacks chocolate.  Instead, there is a caramel that is made darker by the roasted malt.  Hops are not individually detectable, but do make their presence noticed with a slightly bitter finish and their contribution to the coffee afters.

Mouthfeel 3/5

There were some conflicting sensations here.  However, the mouthfeel is one of the more noticeable attributes of this beer.  Before noting any flavors whatsoever, I noted at least two different mouthfeel sensations.  The first was that this beer is smooth.  I almost confused it for a creaminess, but the body was not heavy enough for that.  This is a light bodied beer (again, not true to style) but tries to cover that up with a technique that could come in handy with some other styles of beer.  That technique was the carbonation.  The carbonation in this beer was almost that of nitrogen and not carbonation at all.  It was a very light, thin carbonation that made this beer feel "creamier" than its body actually was.  A neat trick and I would not mind seeing it again.

Overall Impression 5/10

This is not a bad beer.  It is simply not to style.  This is a porter masquerading in a black ale's bottle.  It is dominated by sweetness with very little in the way of bitter.  The appearance was fantastic!  I have had imperials that were not this black.  Overall, I'd say this beer takes some of the finer points of a stout (thin carbonation, color) and a porter (sweetness, lighter body) and mashes them together quite pleasantly.

Total 29/50
This ranking puts this beer in the very top of the "Good" category as that it "misses the mark on style and/or has minor flaws."  There were no flaws I could detect.  All I can say is that this beer was sweet and that is not what one expects from a black ale.  It was a dark sweet from the get-go in both aroma and flavor and while it would be pretty darn good as a robust porter, it is not a black ale.  In fact, as a porter or brown ale, this beer would rank significantly higher.  If someone was looking to get into the "super dark" beers, I would recommend this as an introduction to the style or a transition beer from something lighter.  After all, there are few things as nice as introducing friends to new beer experiences - or exbeeriences.  Oo!  Consider that trademarked.