As I’ve mentioned before, I’m vice president of the ABNormal Brewers homebrew club here in town. Tonight we have our monthly steering meeting to discuss our plans for the next meeting. It’s a great chance to get together to discuss topics for the meeting, as well as try some of the good beers on tap at Fat Jack’s.
Location: On tap at Fat Jack’s in Bloomington, IL.
Numbers: 6.2% ABV, 80 IBUs, 75 AA, 14.5º Plato OG, 20º Lovibond, 194 Calories
Ingredients: Malt: Carastan, Chocolate, Micro Barley Farm Dare™ & Risk™ Malts; Hops: Amarillo, Rogue Micro Hopyard Revolution & Rebel Hops; Yeast: Rogue’s Pacman Yeast.
Appearance & Aroma: It was a very deep read color and was fairly cloudy. There was a thin creamy head on it, allowing me to pick up on a slightly caramel malty aroma with hints of citrusy hops.
Taste & Feel: The body was medium and it had a smooth, somewhat creamy mouthfeel. There was a lightly milk chocolate, mostly caramel sweet maltiness up front, which was quickly followed by a floral and grapefuit-like hop flavor that continued to grow well into the aftertaste.
Food Pairing: Since this beer is dedicated to Captain Sig from the TV show the Deadliest Catch, I considered pairing it with crab. However, I think the solid malt backbone and big hop flavor requires a much heartier pairing. Therefore, I would suggest pairing this with a big steak. The maltiness would go nicely with it, and the meat will help balance the grapefruit hop flavor that sticks around in the aftertaste.
Overall Impression: This had some very interesting malt flavors, which I found difficult to describe. The sweetness was a bit like light milk chocolate and caramel. Just as you would get a sense of the malt flavors, a big floral and grapefruit hop flavor kicked in. It was a very good mix of unique malt flavors with a sold hop flavor that lasted. Overall, I thought this was a pretty good beer.
My Rating: 
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