Prestigious best-of-class libation counters sharp hop-oiled pine needle bittering against tranquil spruce-sugared apricot, nectar, and red grape sweetness to wanderlust cherry-soaked bourbon finish. Sour grapefruit and pineapple shine through cereal-grained midst. As awesome as advertised.
All posts by John Fortunato
ALESMITH HORNY DEVIL ALE
Great representative Belgian-styled pale ale boasts resounding malt-thickened 11% alcohol strength and expansive sugar-candied fruit juicing. Coppery whitish-sided Lucifer eulogizer crams compact raisin-prune-plum conflux into red apple ripeness, spicy coriander tingle, mild banana daiquiri sweetness and milky coconut snip. Tangy apricot-tangerine-passionfruit crest washes over brandied bruised orange warmth at luscious fruited finish, comparing favorably to Dogfish Head’s finest hop-infested malt-sweetened brews.
ALESMITH ANVIL ALE
Sweet malt-wafted English-styled Extra Special Bitter lacks appropriate enriched bitterness then finishes weak and predictable. Blunt hops disturb initial toasted grain development, blemishing delicate chocolate malt insistence and maple sap suggestion. Nowhere near as thick and heavy as false “Anvil” signifier.
ALASKAN WINTER ALE
Divergent tawny seasonal perks chewy caramel-butterscotch reliance with harvested spruce tips, mild chestnut-pine wood tones, and insurgent floral hops, abandoning predictable cinnamon-nutmeg wintering for heavily alcoholic dessert warmth. Complexities abound when syrupy flow turns bubble-gummy at thawed finish.
ALASKAN SMOKED PORTER
Seasonal black-hued porter with rich tan head, burnt maple aroma, and creamy smoothness. Black coffee frontage, chocolate milkshake richness, and wood-smoked malted hop insistence receive clean mountain watered appropriation similar stylistically to Rogue Smoke A Rauch, only drier. Prune-juiced roasted chicory, burnt cedar, pine tar, cigarette ash, and scabrous Band-Aid illusions increase ersatz nutty bitterness. Outstanding with barbecue foods.
ALASKAN PALE GOLDEN ALE
Golden-hued butterscotch-sweetened pale ale relinquishes slight malt tingle and clean water texture to mellow cracked wheat insinuation. An understated brew in need of better up-front assertion.
ALASKAN OATMEAL STOUT
From the Great White North comes this sturdy black-hued brown-headed brisk-watered hop-toasted stout. Sweet mocha barleymalt richness, honeyed oats essence, and mineralized cereal graining enliven silken ash tongue. Not nearly as heavy as mahogany appearance indicates, yet second only to heralded Samuel Smith’s Oatmeal Stout.
ALASKAN FRONTIER AMERICAN ALE
Billowy beige-headed auburn-hued fruit-scented Alaskan incisively spice-hopped and sharply grained; reminiscent of mildly bitter red ale. Deceivingly strong, despite watery auspices, gaining creamy malt richness and slim orange tang mid-palate.
ALASKAN E.S.B.
Russet Extra Special Bitter gives laid-back fruity waft concise chocolate-caramel initiation quickly juxtaposed by peppery hop bite, orange peel souring, and floral spicing to ample maple malt finish. Warning: high acidity may prelude amateurs.
ALASKAN AMBER ALT ALE
Creamy reddish golden Scotch-malted alt nestles brown-sugared caramel nuttiness alongside subtle hop bitterness. Vanilla-creamed cherry, peach and spiced apple illusions come and go while wispy grape, orange and fig undertones barely register. Stronger grain roasted resilience would’ve been nice.
AKTIEN ST. MARTIN DUNKLER DOPPELBOCK
Rich honey-soaked barley-roasted moderate-bodied bock pours like prune juice. Barleywine-swirled caramelized molasses malting delicately seeps into heavy cream texture but staid dried-fruited finish could be more convincing.
AKTIEN KAUFBEUREN
Blah pale appearance, dank malt aroma, and slim flat head not redeemed by soapy phenol sourness. Soft-grained flow lacks full-bodied German traits, finishing thin, plain, and watery.