Brewed By: Pipeworks Brewing in Chicago, IL
Purchased: 22oz bottle (Batch #234) bought at Binny's in IL; 2013 (bottled 10.30.13)
Style/ABV: White Russian Imperial Milk Stout, 10.5%
Reported IBUs: ?
I'm pretty excited about tonight's Unofficial Pipeworks Thursday™. Maybe it's because The Big Lebowski is one of the greatest films of all time, or maybe it's the fact that this so-called "White Russian Imperial Milk Stout" is brewed with lactose sugar, cacao, coffee, and vanilla. About Pipeworks:
"Way out west there's this beer...beer I wanna tell ya' about. Beer by the name Hey, Careful Man, There's A Beverage Here. Beer inspired by a certain Dude's favorite potable. This Imperial White Milk Stout is brewed with vanilla beans, an abideable amount of cacao nibs and cold-pressed coffee that really tied the beer together, did it not? It is the perfect oat soda for those days when you're out of your element and all you can do is say " F it, Dude, let's go bowling. " "
This beer pours into a Barleywine-amber/cream soda body, and kicks up one or two fingers of caramel/amber tinted head. Bright light confirms the body's amber/caramel/orange color, and a ring of amber head has settled around the edge of my glass with a cauldron effect on top. There's scantly any carbonation rising upwards, and what is there is lazily floating upwards. There's some alcohol legs and lacing.
On the aroma: Wow. You know, this one plays things pretty straight...I'm getting a lot of coffee, vanilla, creamer, and lactose on the aroma. It smells like ------ drum roll ------ Kahlua. There's a lot of prominent coffee and espresso, and tons of earthy hazelnut. I love hazelnut, and I'm reminded of the Founders' Frangelic Mountain Brown.
I'm intrigued by how this tastes. It's like a Stout...without any of the roasted/black patent malt. There's a ton of sugar in this, and you can feel sticky sweet coating your mouth. The main flavors I'm pulling out of this are coffee, espresso, rich hazelnut, vanilla, Kahlua, creamer, and lactose sugar.
This really is a top-notch high gravity beer. The 10.5% is completely blunted by all the coffee, sugar, and vanilla. I don't even want to know how many calories is in this beer. The only thing hindering drinkability might be the sticky sweetness of this libation. The mouthfeel is full-bodied and dense, with very moderate carbonation that is just getting by. Palate depth is outstanding, but complex this is not. You get a lot of vanilla, creamer, and coffee up front; that rolls into big coffee and hazelnut with some hazy grains; the back end has some grain, hazelnut, lingering lactose sugar, and fade to sticky and dry. Kind of simple, to be honest.
Rating: Above-Average (4.0/5.0 Untappd)
I'm feeling a Decent Above-Average here, which means this beer isn't as good as the movie. Dang. Having said that...I really dig this style. If this beer was advertised as a hazelnut coffee beer, it would be ranked among the best. The coffee is strong in this...and the lactose and vanilla isn't far behind. And you really do get those Kahlua vibes. What's missing is maybe the vodka kick. I understand that this is a Stout interpretation of a White Russian, but maybe throw this beer into some Bourbon barrels or Oak Barrels spiked with vodka? Could be a fun twist that really brings this home. I dunno what you pair a beer like this with. Probably ice cream, a cigar, or as a standalone Winter Warmer or dessert. I recommend you buy it and drink it with the movie.
Random Thought: If you haven't had the pleasure, do go make a real White Russian. It's a great cocktail, and if you drink a few of them you'll have a nice buzz in no time.
Reported IBUs: ?
I'm pretty excited about tonight's Unofficial Pipeworks Thursday™. Maybe it's because The Big Lebowski is one of the greatest films of all time, or maybe it's the fact that this so-called "White Russian Imperial Milk Stout" is brewed with lactose sugar, cacao, coffee, and vanilla. About Pipeworks:
Pipeworks has humble roots. The brewery was founded in Chicago in 2011 by Beejay Oslon and Gerrit Lewis. The duo were both homebrewers that met while while working at West Lakeview Liquors. In 2011, they began to raise money for their brewery using the online Internet site, Kickstarter. Olson and Lewis were both educated at De Struise Brewery in Oostvleteren, Belgium. With that knowledge, and the money from their kickstarter, Olson and Lewis created a unique brewery that is smaller in size, and intended to brew smaller batches of beer. The company's motto is "small batches, big beers." And indeed, since the brewery has been around, they've been releasing a lot of one-offs and small batch releases. The goal is to release a new beer every week. You can read more about the brewery at their website HERE.
Fuckin' A.
In case you aren't privy to where this beer's name came from, it's a reference to THIS SCENE. A White Russian is, of course, a drink loved by The Dude, made out of vodka, Kahlua, and light cream or milk. The back of the bottle states:
"Way out west there's this beer...beer I wanna tell ya' about. Beer by the name Hey, Careful Man, There's A Beverage Here. Beer inspired by a certain Dude's favorite potable. This Imperial White Milk Stout is brewed with vanilla beans, an abideable amount of cacao nibs and cold-pressed coffee that really tied the beer together, did it not? It is the perfect oat soda for those days when you're out of your element and all you can do is say " F it, Dude, let's go bowling. " "
 |
| Hey, Careful Man, There's A Beverage Here! |
On the aroma: Wow. You know, this one plays things pretty straight...I'm getting a lot of coffee, vanilla, creamer, and lactose on the aroma. It smells like ------ drum roll ------ Kahlua. There's a lot of prominent coffee and espresso, and tons of earthy hazelnut. I love hazelnut, and I'm reminded of the Founders' Frangelic Mountain Brown.
I'm intrigued by how this tastes. It's like a Stout...without any of the roasted/black patent malt. There's a ton of sugar in this, and you can feel sticky sweet coating your mouth. The main flavors I'm pulling out of this are coffee, espresso, rich hazelnut, vanilla, Kahlua, creamer, and lactose sugar.
This really is a top-notch high gravity beer. The 10.5% is completely blunted by all the coffee, sugar, and vanilla. I don't even want to know how many calories is in this beer. The only thing hindering drinkability might be the sticky sweetness of this libation. The mouthfeel is full-bodied and dense, with very moderate carbonation that is just getting by. Palate depth is outstanding, but complex this is not. You get a lot of vanilla, creamer, and coffee up front; that rolls into big coffee and hazelnut with some hazy grains; the back end has some grain, hazelnut, lingering lactose sugar, and fade to sticky and dry. Kind of simple, to be honest.
I'm feeling a Decent Above-Average here, which means this beer isn't as good as the movie. Dang. Having said that...I really dig this style. If this beer was advertised as a hazelnut coffee beer, it would be ranked among the best. The coffee is strong in this...and the lactose and vanilla isn't far behind. And you really do get those Kahlua vibes. What's missing is maybe the vodka kick. I understand that this is a Stout interpretation of a White Russian, but maybe throw this beer into some Bourbon barrels or Oak Barrels spiked with vodka? Could be a fun twist that really brings this home. I dunno what you pair a beer like this with. Probably ice cream, a cigar, or as a standalone Winter Warmer or dessert. I recommend you buy it and drink it with the movie.
Random Thought: If you haven't had the pleasure, do go make a real White Russian. It's a great cocktail, and if you drink a few of them you'll have a nice buzz in no time.
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