Brewed By: North Coast Brewing Company in Fort Bragg, California
Purchased: 500ml bottle purchased at Binny's in IL; 2013
Style/ABV: Strong Ale, 12.9%
Reported IBUs: ???
At 12.9%, tonight's beer is the Winter warmer I have been craving. It's also a beer I picked up a few months back that has been chilling in my fridge. It's high time we drink this thing. About North Coast:
Whoa...I was not expecting this beer to pour out into a golden-orange/honey/amber color. The beer also produces two fingers of white head that is super soapy and thin, and quickly fades off into a white ring around the glass. Bright light confirms the radiant golden-orange body, and you can see streams of tiny carbonation rising upwards with intensity. There's some glossy legs and tight lacing as well.
The aroma on this beer is raw and boozy. It reminds me of the Two Brothers 16th Anniversary Ale and the Allagash Curieux. I'm getting coconut (shredded, toasted, bourbon, and coconut rum), vanilla, bourbon, wood and wood tannin, orange, pineapple, mango, agave, and Belgian candi sugar. I'm also getting a ton of Quad-like aromas. If you've had a really intense American Belgian Quadruple (like THIS or THIS), you'll know what I'm talking about. I'm getting Quad-like cherries, overripe stone fruits, plums, and huge bananas soaked in alcohol. You know...this beer kind of reminds me of the Sam Adams Imperial White.
The taste: interesting...this is very fruity, with tons of apples, wheat, and then HUGE bourbon and vanilla and coconut expanding on the back. I'm reminded of the aged bottles of the Schneider Weisse Tap 6 Unser Aventinus, only with bourbon and more booze. I'm getting a lot of wheat, apples, banana, cherry, Quad-like stone fruits and overripe fruits, some pineapple and tropical fruits, coconut and coconut milk, and then BAM, big blasts of vanilla, bourbon, bourbon-coconut, and some barrel. It's really a tale of two beers here, with the thinner and fruity beer up front, and the giant 12.9% bourbon-barrel aged Belgian Ale in the back. There's a sherry/raisin/oxidized thing up front as well, and some nondescript spiciness from the Belgian yeast. Really nice spice and oak.
I'm seeing a lot of dodgy reviews for this beer, and why? I dunno, I'm finding this to be a fun beer to review. This probably isn't a fun beer to drink at the bar, but this is some complex shit. This is the type of beer I daydream about when I am at work. This is a beer you want to mull over in your snifter. You know? Super complex. The palate depth and duration are good too. And this medium-bodied beer has good carbonation, and hides the 12.9% very well. Although...you do pick up some booze on the back. Let's walk through the progression of this beer one more time. Up front is huge wheat, apples, pears, cherry, Quad-like fruits, stone fruits, overripe fruits, banana, sherry/oxidized/raisin, and spicy Belgian esters; mid palate hits you up with some coconut, pineapple, tropical fruits, coconut rum, coconut milk; then the beer just fucks your face with HUGE vanilla, bourbon, coconut, light wood tannin, and dynamite barrel character. The finish is boozy and dry. I really like this.
Rating: Above-Average (4.0/5.0 Untappd)
The North Coast Brewing Company was founded in 1988 as a local brewpub in Fort Bragg, on California's Mendocino Coast. The brewery was founded by brewmaster Mark Ruedrich, president and brewmaster. Under his leadership, the brewery has won over 70 national and international awards, and has carved a definitive niche in American craft beer. For more information, check out their website here.The North Coast Grand Cru was originally brewed as the North Coast Twentieth Anniversary Ale to commemorate the brewery's 20th anniversary. The bottle is nondescript, not even hinting at the vintage (I think this is a 2013 or 2011????). It says: "Ale brewed with agave nectar and aged in bourbon barrels." This beer features pilsner malts, and is fermented with Belgian yeast.
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| North Coast Grand Cru |
Whoa...I was not expecting this beer to pour out into a golden-orange/honey/amber color. The beer also produces two fingers of white head that is super soapy and thin, and quickly fades off into a white ring around the glass. Bright light confirms the radiant golden-orange body, and you can see streams of tiny carbonation rising upwards with intensity. There's some glossy legs and tight lacing as well.
The aroma on this beer is raw and boozy. It reminds me of the Two Brothers 16th Anniversary Ale and the Allagash Curieux. I'm getting coconut (shredded, toasted, bourbon, and coconut rum), vanilla, bourbon, wood and wood tannin, orange, pineapple, mango, agave, and Belgian candi sugar. I'm also getting a ton of Quad-like aromas. If you've had a really intense American Belgian Quadruple (like THIS or THIS), you'll know what I'm talking about. I'm getting Quad-like cherries, overripe stone fruits, plums, and huge bananas soaked in alcohol. You know...this beer kind of reminds me of the Sam Adams Imperial White.
The taste: interesting...this is very fruity, with tons of apples, wheat, and then HUGE bourbon and vanilla and coconut expanding on the back. I'm reminded of the aged bottles of the Schneider Weisse Tap 6 Unser Aventinus, only with bourbon and more booze. I'm getting a lot of wheat, apples, banana, cherry, Quad-like stone fruits and overripe fruits, some pineapple and tropical fruits, coconut and coconut milk, and then BAM, big blasts of vanilla, bourbon, bourbon-coconut, and some barrel. It's really a tale of two beers here, with the thinner and fruity beer up front, and the giant 12.9% bourbon-barrel aged Belgian Ale in the back. There's a sherry/raisin/oxidized thing up front as well, and some nondescript spiciness from the Belgian yeast. Really nice spice and oak.
I'm seeing a lot of dodgy reviews for this beer, and why? I dunno, I'm finding this to be a fun beer to review. This probably isn't a fun beer to drink at the bar, but this is some complex shit. This is the type of beer I daydream about when I am at work. This is a beer you want to mull over in your snifter. You know? Super complex. The palate depth and duration are good too. And this medium-bodied beer has good carbonation, and hides the 12.9% very well. Although...you do pick up some booze on the back. Let's walk through the progression of this beer one more time. Up front is huge wheat, apples, pears, cherry, Quad-like fruits, stone fruits, overripe fruits, banana, sherry/oxidized/raisin, and spicy Belgian esters; mid palate hits you up with some coconut, pineapple, tropical fruits, coconut rum, coconut milk; then the beer just fucks your face with HUGE vanilla, bourbon, coconut, light wood tannin, and dynamite barrel character. The finish is boozy and dry. I really like this.
Rating: Above-Average (4.0/5.0 Untappd)
I'm feeling a Strong Above-Average on this. Wow...this has to be one of the most underrated, misunderstood beers you can find. Look at these reviews on Ratebeer and Beeradvocate shit-panning this. It's possible that there is some bottle variation...it's also possible that this beer benefits from age. I'm not drinking a fresh bottle, but I don't know how old it is. Also, drink this beer warm. The bottle says to drink around 50F, and I agree. Food pairings: unless you plan to pair this beer with pineapple upside-down cake or coconut cake, don't pair it with anything. This beer deserves to be mulled over for an hour in your snifter.
Random Thought: Are the low ratings all that surprising? This is a weird, sugary beer, with no particular style guidelines. It's good though. It's subtle and complex...unlike the Two Brothers 16th Anniversary Ale. 
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