The ninth beer in Holgate's 25 Years Of Beers series was the German Dunkel: a showcase for the subtleties that can be enticed from darker malts and noble hops. Like its immediate successor, it's a dark beer, but that's pretty much where the similarities end; number ten is less about subtleties, more about grabbing your attention in the way a wrecking ball greets a building.
Sure, as the tasting notes for this pinot noir barrel-aged imperial stout claim, there’s rich dried fruit, dark chocolate and hints of vanilla and coconut at play. There’s some booziness reminiscent of a cherry liqueur too. But mainly there’s a whole lot of: "Fuck you. It's time to put some hairs on your chest."
Such sentiments come courtesy of a no-holds-barred roasted malt and hop-derived bitterness (maybe with some tannins adding another layer). Picture, if you will, a war game in which an army of juiced-up haze bros are taking on a horde of wizened, gnarly old school craft beer drinkers; this would be the beer charged with carrying the latters' standard into battle.
James Smith
Published June 29, 2024 2024-06-29 00:00:00
