We’ve been in the midst of an ice storm this weekend, and now that it’s Monday it’s foggy and raining out. Either way, the winter weather has got us all in a funk. Therefore, I decided to open this beer, which my friend @Bettywriter sent to me as a Christmas gift a few weeks ago. I love it when she sends me stuff from the Pac-Northwest that I can’t get around here.
Location: Poured into a large Perfect Pint glass at my home in Bloomington, IL
Numbers: 7.2% ABV, 60 IBUs, 270 Calories
Appearance & Aroma: It’s a deep dark brown color, with some brown and ruby highlights when held up to the light. It has a big, tan, creamy head on it which lasted for quite a while. The aroma is malty-alcoholic with some earthy hoppiness underneath.
Taste & Feel: The body is surprisingly light for a bigger beer, and the mouthfeel is slightly watery with some creaminess from the head on it. There’s a sweet malty-alcoholic flavor up front, much like the nose, but the alcohol flavors quickly fade in the middle. The warm maltiness grows in the middle and is joined by a solid dose of earthy-spicy hops in the dry hop finish. The earthy-spicy hoppiness is what sticks around in the aftertaste.
Food Pairing: The nice sweet maltiness and earthy hop bitterness would make this a perfect beer to go with BBQ. However, since it’s a winter beer, it would probably go good with chili, or a good beef stew.
Overall Impression: This beer had a nice sweet maltiness and an earthy-spicy bitterness that was great for a warming winter beer. I enjoyed the mix of flavors for this type of beer, and it was quite flavorful. The flavors reminded me of some nice hoppy red ales I’ve had. Overall, it’s a great winter beer, and I’m super appreciative my friend @Bettywriter thought of me and sent this!
My Rating: 
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