Homebrew Submission #1 - Winter Dark Ale

Hey everybody!  Today's review will not be the first homebrew that I've ever reviewed, but it will be the first one submitted to me for just such a purpose.  I could get used to this.  There's no "brewery" name nor even a name for the beer, but it has been enthusiastically made by someone that enjoys beer enough to brew it themselves and that says something about one's initiation, their dedication to the craft, and also to the finer things.  Thanks to my buddy Jim for ponying up 12 oz. of something he put his elbow grease into.   The only information that I have on this beer is that it is a "dark winter ale."  Shall we see what homebrewing prowess awaits us?  Let's pour!

I wish.

Aroma 9/12

True to style and nicely so.  This is a dark, malt-centered beer that has a healthy amount of dark fruit aromas.  Raisins and fig are easy to discern and are often a welcome addition to a nice dark beer.  Spices are next and, thankfully, avoid the pitfall of overwhelming everything in their path.  This is lightly spiced with nutmeg and a distant clove note.  An additional sweetness also comes through that cannot be attributed to the dark fruit flavors.  The nearest I can come to describing it is Belgian candi sugar.

Reviewer Confesstion:

All the previous sentences in the "Aroma" category were written while the beer was still relatively chilled.  Upon warming, the beer opens up and releases what I will at this time describe as a banana aroma.  Normally, I would associate this with Belgian yeast, but that would be a bit unusual for the style.  I question myself.  "Maybe it's the ripening bananas in the next room?  Naw, your nose isn't that sensitive.  Maybe it's that your nose is a little stuffy?  I don't think so.  That's never caused 'aroma hallucinations' before."  I can't deny what I find, but right now this seems to be shaping up to be a Belgian Strong and less like a traditional winter ale.  Not that I'm complaining mind you...  The latecomer aroma steals the show, but still lets the previous aromas maintain a supporting role.  Even later still this aroma disappears completely.

Appearance 3/3

This poured much darker than I anticipated, especially for the style.  Most winter warmers and seasonals are a nice chestnut or maduro brown.  This brew, on the other hand, pours almost black.  When held to light only a brave few magenta glints show through the darkness.  It's not as black as say some top end stouts, but definitely more than a winter ale requires.  A nice surprise!  The head was the only weak part of the appearance.  It rose to less than a finger in height and then settled quickly as a almond colored ring around the circumference.

Flavor 16/20

The brew had set some pretty high expectations with the prior two categories, but doesn't quite match them in the flavor.  Far from saying that this is a bad brew, but it doesn't capture all the exciting nuances of the aroma.  After smelling, I would've expected lots of dark fruits, maybe a faint hint of warmth, perhaps some Belgian yeasty goodness, and all the sweetness that these things bring.  The beer instead introduces itself with darkly roasted malts, a light bitterness that one would associate with that, and a very distant hint of the dark fruits detected in the aroma.  The fruit flavors consist mostly of the flavor without the often associated sweetness.  None of the spice from the aroma is to be found.  The small amount of sweetness that does exist is nutlike behind the roast/bitter combo, but gives the idea of what this beer is trying to achieve.  The finish is a continuation of the nutty bitter, but eventually settles into combination of dark roasted malt and an appropriate bitter.

Mouthfeel 4/5

This has a very light mouthfeel in general and especially after considering the style.  Either the style listed (winter dark ale) or the style alluded to by the aroma would require a more substantial body.  Going by the style given, it would require a full-bodied, richer brew that also might not be afraid to be a little boozy.  Instead, this drinks like a nut brown ale in its body.  If the carbonation were a bit higher, it would be easy to confuse the two.  The bubbles of this beer would be perfect for a big, ol' winter ale by offering only the slightest of textures toward the end of the glass.  This is a unexpected find of  light, mouth-watering, refreshing brown ale, in what would normally be a more sturdy beer.  For those who like winter ale flavors, but not a big, heavy body (or booze) this would be ideal.

In that trusty, brown, label-less bottle.

Overall Impression 7/10

This is a hard beer to score!  It misses some major marks of its intended style, but picks up another style in the process.  If I were guessing based solely on flavor, I'd say a nut brown ale with some subtle complexities.  If I were taking a blind guess at this beer based on the aroma, I'd tell you a lighter version of a Belgian strong.  Another guess on mouthfeel would point me again toward a smooth brown ale.  On top of all this the beer remains remarkably drinkable.  I'd be more at home downing a few of these after raking some leaves in the fall than quaffing one with company in front of a winter-time fire.

Total 39/50

Does either one of the seasonal activities I mentioned in the previous sentence sound bad?  No.  Neither is this beer.  Just because I gripe on and on about how it misses its style, it still turned into a beer that I'd drink anytime.  In fact, with more carbonation this would easily be an above-average nut brown ale.  Note: This may be the only time I've mentioned a home brew being under carbonated.  If I am to consider this a nut brown ale, then I must give extra credit for having an aroma that far exceeds that style.  Also, this batch is pretty early in this particular brewer's career number of batches.  It's encouraging to see this early effort nailing some things that more experienced home brewers miss regularly.  Cheers to you, sir, and thanks for the bottle!  You're brewing better beer than I am.

Left Hand Brewing Co. - Wake Up Dead Imperial Stout

Very excited to sample this brew!  A friend of mine had recommended Left Hand's "Fade to Black," and since I was not able to find it, I figured that this would be a close second.  I have had it in my fridge for a few weeks now and it has been taunting me while waiting for its own entry.  Here it goes.

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

Aroma 6/12

The first aroma after pouring a nice 3-4oz. sample was the hops.  In fact, it was almost dominated by the hops, oddly enough.  It was a sweet smell, not unlike fresh alfalfa in the field or the sweetness that corn can attain.  Now I realize that those are grains and usually attributed to the malt, but I am allowing myself some leeway on this one.  In an Imperial Stout one would expect to the aroma dominated by the dark, roasted malt.  However, the smell does not come until much later - once the head had reduced by 1-2 cm.  Only after I had finished taking the photos was I able to smell the toasty scent of the malt really come through (and even then, only lightly).

Appearance 2/3

To steal a Sam Elliot line, an Imperial Stout should be "darker'n a black steer's tookus on a moonless prairie night."  This is not.  It is also where the diversion from the imperial stout style becomes grossly apparent.  This does have a great opaque color, but there are hints of dark copper toward the edges and especially if held to light.  Red?!  In an imperial stout!??!  Unheard of!!  Looking into this glass should be like staring into a cave; no hints of light and seemingly bottomless.  It fails in this respect and, unfortunately, is not the last time it will be accused of not being dark enough.

     Its head was a dark cream color (not the dark brown I had hoped for) and stayed present til about half way down my pint.  Very little lace, but it did cover the surface of the beer.  The head was thin and bubbly, not creamy.  On a side note, I would love to give this beer some extra credit points for its bottle art!  Really nice imagery.  I should have taken the red graphics on the outside of the bottle as a foreshadowing of things to come.  Note to self: next time look for imperial stouts that only have labels in monochrome.

Picture is my own.

Flavor 10/20

Please, let me first clarify by saying that this rating is not to indicate that this beer does not have any flavor!  It has a rich, dark flavor that I would rather drink that many more popular stouts.  That said, this is FAR from an imperial stout and is being deducted points for its vast differentiation of the style.  In opposition to the aroma, the malt made its appearance known first in the flavor.  Again, this brew is just not dark enough!  First impression?  Sweet like brown sugar or dark toffee or über-dark vanilla.  I even had to ask my wife to take a sample.  Was I missing the forest for the trees?  Was I paying too close attention to the minutia that I was missing the big picture?  No.  My wife is by no means a beer drinker and her (paraphrased) first words were, "Its really dark, but its sweet."  Trust me, if this beer was dark and bitter, her face would have let me know poste haste. In addition to the sweet "sugary" taste, there was also that of some darker fruits like figs or dates or dark cherries.  Something like that.  There were not fruit esters in the aroma, but a few were present (though complimentary) in the flavor.

     But where is the bitter?  Where is the toastyness?  Where is the coffee?  The hops are present (and earthy when they arrive), but this is an imperial stout and its bitterness should make me want to sit down with a slight grimace.  I expect to be knocked back by a bold(er) flavor and a high alcohol content.  This beer hints at those, yet gives me neither.  The hops are most present while exhaling during the "aftertaste."  This would be a ridiculously good brown ale and that thought keeps returning as I descend down the bottle.

Mouthfeel 3/5

Extremely light creamy texture - medium body overall.  I almost feel guilty calling it creamy at all.  It is a little too bubbly for stout.  There is a hint of warmth initially, but it gives way almost immediately.  The finish is cloying (along with the rest of the of the beer) and very sweet.  Insert disappointed sigh.

Overall Impression 8/10

This is by no means a bad beer.  In fact, I rather enjoyed the whole bottle, but it is far from what the style demands.  It is too sweet!  I want an imperial stout to dry my mouth and impress me with its big, bold, bitter, bad-boy flavor.  I want it to make me question if I should have ordered it when I look at its opacity/viscosity. I want it to suplex my tongue and put it in a choke hold until I tap for mercy.  I should probably feel the strange need to listen to Rolling Stones' "Paint it Black," while drinking it.

Look!  See!  Imperial Stout is supposed to be the blackest of black beers!!!

 Total: 29/50 Good

                                           

This score (the top "good" score given before being rated "very good") states that this beer "misses the mark on style and/pr minor flaws."  While I was worried about not seeing the forest for the trees, I found that my impressions were correct (a satisfying moment for a budding beer taster).  This beer, with modifications to the type of sweetness (nuts instead of fruit), would be a TREMENDOUS brown ale, given the characteristics in its flavor, mouthfeel, and appearance.  As it stands currently, it is an imperial stout with a lot of flavor, just not the right ones, nor were they strong enough.

     I would really like to see some darker malts involved and lots of them.  Of course, once you add all that malt, you are going to need a lot of good hops not only to balance the malt, but to give this beer the bitter kick that is, not only essential to its history, but true to its style.