[Cellar Review] Samuel Adams Imperial White (Imperial Series) (Vintage 2012)

Brewed By: Boston Beer Company in Boston, Massachusetts 
Purchased: Single bottle (12oz) from a 4-pack bought at Jewel in Chicago, IL; 2012 
Style/ABV: (Imperial) Witbier, 10.3%

Reported IBUs: 15

Tonight's beer should be a lot of fun. Back in 2012, I cracked into a bottle of the Sam Adams Imperial White. I found the beer to be equal parts cloyingly sweet, boozy, and over-the-top. It's a divisive brew, even by my own standards. But I'm curious to see how this one has held up down the stretch. About Sam Adams:

The Boston Brewing Company/Sam Adams is, of course, the brain child of Jim Koch (and Harry M. Rubin and Lorenzo Lamadrid). Founded in 1984, Jim Koch got the ball rolling after college when he decided to resurrect and brew his favorite family recipe. That recipe belonged to his great-great grandfather, Louis Koch, and dates back to the 1870s (where it was brewed in a St. Louis brewery). That infamous family brew is the Sam Adams Boston Lager, of course. You can read more about the history of the Boston Brewing Company HERE, or check out their website HERE.  

The Imperial White has since changed from its 4-pack, 12oz format. Now part of the Sam Adams Small Batch series, this beer is described as having "an exotic blend of spices reminiscent of medieval brewing." Suggested tasting notes include coriander, dried plum, anise, orange, and citrus. This one is brewed with wheat and pale malts; Hallertau Mittelfrueh hops; and orange & lemon peel, dried plum, grains of paradise, coriander, anise, hibiscus, rose hips, tamarind, and vanilla. At 10.3% and 15 IBUs, this is one big, malty, sweet beer. But the real question is....how does it age?

[Cellar Review]  Samuel Adams Imperial White 2012

This one pours into a murky golden-orange body that is super swampy and absolutely filthy. The beer kicks up three-plus fingers of thick, creamy, porridge-like head. The head is golden/orange-tinted, and is sustaining like a wheat beer. It's impressive for a 2-year old beer. Along with the impressively swampy body and thick creamy head, there are some yeast floaters in the glass. Bright light confirms the same stuff.

On the aroma: huge Twizzlers, Doppelbock-like sweetness, oranges, weird medicinal funk and band-aids, eggnog, and lots of intense spice. I'm pulling out big anise, clove, coriander, and some spicy funk. There's an underlying bready heaviness to the aroma as well. 

Age has done a lot for this beer in terms of mellowing out the taste. I'm getting a lot of that classic apple/raisin/apple juice flavor you get from aged wheat beers. Gone is the cloying sweetness, orange spice, and booze. I'm picking up mild orange, bready notes, grains of paradise, anise, Twizzlers, and tons of bread. It's stuck somewhere between a Wheatwine and an Imperial White...and it really reminds me of the Pipeworks' Elijah's Revival. 

Aging this beer was a good idea, and I'm happy I took the gamble. At 10.3%, this beer was not only originally cloying and sickly sweet, it was also boozy. Now that the cloying and sweet part has dropped off, you are just left with the boozy aspects. As it stands now...the booze is not nearly as noticeable. Palate depth is good and the beer has good duration, but this isn't very complex for the grocery list of ingredients involved. This one kind of flat-lines after the mid-palate. You get big wheat, apples, raisins, Twizzlers, and bready orange and spice up front; that rolls into a huge, sweet, bready middle, with tons of orange and spice; the back end is trailing apple juice, raisins, wheat, and bread. The finish is actually kind of dry and bitter relative to the immense sweetness. This one is full-bodied but nowhere near as full-bodied as it is when fresh.

Rating: Average (2.5/5.0 Untappd)

I'm feeling a Light Average here. This is just okay...I'm happy I cellared it, but this isn't doing much for me. Honestly, I need to revisit this beer fresh, but this is one of those beers that is having a serious identity crisis. It's an Imperial White...so it's not a proper Wheatwine, it's not a proper Wheat Ale, and it's not a proper Belgian Strong. You can get a lot of the notes and characteristic from this beer in other, better beers. But anyway, food pairings here include grilled meats, lamb, and anything with a rustic, raw vibe. Would I recommend cellaring this one? Maybe? I dunno. This beer is divisive and problematic when it is fresh, but it also has some good qualities that are lost in this aged version. Then again, the aged version cuts out a lot of the problematic and cloying sweetness, and that's always a plus. 

Random Thought: The 12oz format here is nice. I can't imagine trying to drink 22oz of of this beer, aged or fresh.

Pipeworks Elijah’s Revival

Brewed By: Pipeworks Brewing in Chicago, IL  

Purchased: 22oz bottle (Batch #293, 296) bought at West Lakeview Liquors in Chicago, IL; 2014 (bottled 01.09.2014)

Style/ABV: Wheatwine, 10.0%
Reported IBUs: ?

It's an Unofficial Pipeworks Thursday™, and this weekend is Super Bowl weekend. I happen to be kind of-probably-most likely rooting for the Broncos, so tonight's orange-labeled beer seems appropriate and whatnot. 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.

Tonight's beer is a "wheat wine style ale aged with orange and spices." This one is brewed with Niche (based out of Gevenva, IL), and punches in at a gentle 10%. The back of the bottle states:

"Ladies and gentlemen, step right up and take a pull of this desirable imbibable wonder! Now, I'm not hawking a ballyhoo for any old flukum. No, this prestidigitational flavor rambunction is brewed in inspired conjunction with Niche. Wegotcher orange, wegotcher Mandarina Bavaria hop, wegotcher spices, wegotcher all things nices. This ale is the best on either side of the river or my name's not Elijah (which it is) and this is not my revival (which it is)."

Pipeworks Elijah’s Revival

The beer pours into a murky and swampy dark orange color, with some dark brown and golden straw clouds floating in the haze. The beer kicks up a finger of amber/orange-tinted head, which is very Belgian-esque. In bright light the beer is a cloudy orange color with peppery dots of carbonation cascading up, there is some nice lacing, and a centimeter of creamy, sea foam head just hanging around.

The aroma is really bready and sweet...if you pull away from the beer, you start to pick up some of the orange and spice as it wafts towards you. I'm getting raisins, ginger, nutmeg, bread, candi sugar, cream, vanilla, and some wheat malts. This beer has a similar base to the Hey, Careful Man, as you get that obnoxious and loud wheat/vanilla aroma. Really big wheat and vanilla...it just grows the longer you take in the aroma. 

I'm drinking this pretty warm, which you probably should for a 10% Wheatwine. The big thing that I'm getting here is pillowy wheat, dry bready notes, dry fruit cake, raisins, alcohol, vanilla/cream/wheat, and some subtle orange and spice. There are hints of bready and cakey stone fruits in here, with hints of fruit cake. 

This beer reminds me of some sort of Egyptian ancient ale. It has a rustic edge, and I can't say I have ever had anything quite like it. It's entirely unique, and the orange and spice is a lot more toned down than I was expecting. This is just dense...like bread or cake, but dry and creamy thanks to the wheat. It's...fuckin' weird. This is medium-bodied, but drinks much more full-bodied thanks to pretty laid back carbonation and the creamy wheat malts doing their thing. Palate depth is really outstanding, where complexity is kind of like, "huh," or, "meh," or, "????" Like...I don't even know? There's the dry bready thing, the wheat, the subtle orange and spice, the general sweetness...what's going on here....up front: sweet orange, cream, vanilla, wheat, and then some dry bread, spice, raisins, hints of hops; the middle rolls into more slight bitterness, dry fruits, dry bread, wheat, spice; the back end ramps the cream/wheat/vanilla/sweet bread/cake thing back up, and the finish is malty and dense and then dry.

Rating: Above-Average (3.5/5.0 Untappd)

I'm feeling a ??? Light Above-Average on this...I don't know. I really don't. This is pretty enjoyable though. The 10% is completely hidden, and the beer favors sweetness and rich cream/wheat/vanilla. It's not a bad vibe, and I find myself wanting to pair this beer with fruit cake or something sweet. Speaking of sweet...I'm picking up a dash of honey and saffron in this. Seriously, this beer is like the ancient ale Dogfish Head wanted to brew but then they didn't. You can also pair this beer with SUPER SPICY FOODS, like mango habanero wings, or ghost pepper marmalade sauce. Actually, the fruity and spicy notes in the ghost pepper play off this beer in wonderful ways....Pipeworks should try making a version of this beer with some ghost peppers. But yeah, I'm really intrigued, I'll have to try this one again.

Random Thought: Ghost peppers and sweet peach/mango/marmalade. Do it. Now. I had Chinese food tonight, and the fried chicken things came with a sweet sauce...I dumped some ghost pepper sauce into the mix and walla. Success. Instant classic.

The Bruery White Oak

Brewed By: The Bruery in Placentia, California  

Purchased: 750ml bottle bought at West Lakeview Liquors in Chicago, IL; 2013

Style/ABV: Wheatwine, 11.5%

Reported IBUs: 20

Continuing with the barrel-aged, bourbon beers...we have The Bruery: 

The Bruery are based out of Placentia, California. As with many craft breweries, The Bruery began as a homebrewing adventure when Patrick Rue, his brother Chris, and his wife Rachel brewed their fast batch of beer. Patrick Rue continued to homebrew during his first year of law school, until he decided that he had a passion for brewing beer. The Bruery opened up in 2008, and since then, they have built a reputation around their experimental, and wild ales brewed with a Belgian flair. To read more, check out the Breuery's website.

Tonight's beer is part of The Bruery's "special collection." The White Oak is is a blended beer, 50% Wheatwine aged in Bourbon barrels, and 50% Mischief (the brewery's Golden Strong Ale). Clocking in at 11.5% and 20 IBUs, this beer is described as having vivid caramel, coconut, and vanilla flavors...blanketed in a crisp yet robust wheat ale. Let's see how she stacks up.

The Bruery White Oak

In low light, this beer pours a darker golden color, with two fingers of fluffy, white head. In bright light, the body of the beer is a murky/hazy golden-orange, and the head is bright white with maybe a hint of gold. There's a lot of tiny carbonation bubbles streaming up in this, and the head is creamy and sustaining nicely like on a nice Belgian Ale.

I was expecting more aromatics on this, but what I am getting on the subtle nose is big whiskey aroma, pears, berries, banana, clove, mango/pineapple, and some light caramel/white sugar. You do get some of that coconut and pina colada thing going on.

Like the nose, this is a subtle beer. But there's a lot going on. You definitely get some big whiskey, oak, vanilla, and coconut in this...but you get a blast of refreshing citrus, mango/pineapple, banana/clove, and wheat up front. As the barrel and whiskey character settles in, you get coconut, pina colada, vanilla, caramel, and lingering wheat beer. 

This is a really awesome blend. I don't know how they did it, but the way this beer transitions from a solid Belgian-style Golden Ale/Wheat beer to those whiskey characters is amazing. The 11.5% in this is completely within reason, as you get much more whiskey than alcohol heat. The whiskey is done with a deft hand, and has a mild character with big vanilla/coconut/caramel. This is a medium-full beer, with Belgian Strong Ale-like carbonation that smooths things out. The wheat gives the mouthfeel a creamy edge, and the beer is dry/attenuated. It finishes with whiskey and some whiskey heat. Palate depth is good, complexity is good...up front is big wheat, clove, apples, pears, citrus, mango/pineapple...this rolls into whiskey/wood...that rolls into big coconut, vanilla, caramel, pina colada. The finish is super dry, with lingering whiskey, wheat, and coconut.

Rating: Above-Average (4.0/5.0 Untappd)

I'm feeling a Strong Above-Average on this. Not surprisingly, as this warms, the Bourbon comes out even more, with pronounced vanilla, whiskey, and coconut notes. All-in-all, this is great stuff...almost like two beers in one. I wish some of the flavors and aromas were a bit more pronounced, but I can't complain. I'm hesitant to recommend food pairings, as this strikes me as a sipping beer with the potent ABV + the 750ml bottle format. You might do well sharing this with a friend. You could serve this with coconut cream pie, lemon meringue pie, strong cheeses...maybe even something like friend calamari. It's very wine-like, and has a dry finish. You can't miss the whiskey though. I don't remember the price per bottle, but this one will age for a year or two, so it's worth checking out if you're a fan of the style.

Random Thought: I'm so behind on movies. I have so many movies to go see...I'm hoping to knock out one or two movies this weekend, so we'll see how that goes.

Two Brothers Bare Tree 2012 (Barley Wine Style Weisse Beer)

Brewed By: Two Brothers Brewing Company in Warrenville, Illinois

Purchased: 12.7oz/375ml corked bought at Evolution Wine & Spirits in Chicago, Illinois; 2012

Style/ABV: American Barleywine/Wheatwine, 11.0%
Reported IBUs: ?

Tonight will mark the first time I've tried tried Two Brothers' Bare Tree series. This one comes in a fancy, mini-champagne bottle, with a cork, cage, and the works. The bottle suggests you can age this for 2-5 years. Let's see if this one is worth investing in to age. About Two Brothers:

Two Brothers are based out of Warrenville, Illinois, a town not far from Chicago. Two brothers was founded in 1996 by brother Jason and Jim Ebel. Their brewery and Tap House Restaurant are both located in Warrenville. Their distribution and production seems to be increasing with each year, and along with their beer you can buy home brewing equipment and supplies at the Tap House Restaurant.  

I'm having a heck of a time finding any info on this beer, aside from Ratebeer's brief description. According to Ratebeer, this is a Barley Wine-style beer made with 57% wheat, and 43% barley, and German hops. Apparently this beer starts fermentation using a Hefeweizen yeast, and is then finished with Scottish Ale yeast. This one is apparently oak aged for over one year before being released. Evidently the vintages do not differ in recipe, but do differ in barrel usage. The back of my bottle states: "Our magic 8 ball indicates this beer can be enjoyed now or cellared."

Two Brothers Bare Tree 2012

This one pours into a hazy orangeish color, with a pinky of off-white head that rapidly dissolves into a long-lasting cauldron effect. There's some head just chilling on the sides of the glass, and in bright light, you can see a TON of carbonation streaming upwards in towers made out of tiny bubbles. The head is white/orange-tinted in bright light, and the beer is murky like orange juice. There's some lacing, and the creamy, strong head duration really suggests a Belgian Ale or Hefeweizen. This one has some nice alcohol legs, and they betray the aroma, which doesn't necessarily suggest a huge beer.

The nose is kind of Belgian or German Hefeweizen-esque, with some hints of clove, big banana, bubblegum, and vanilla. When you focus on the vanilla, you pick up some oak, wood, and light woody vanilla. There's some fruity and boozy complexity on the nose as well, with suggestive alcohol aromas. There's maybe a dash of caramel or heavier malt as well. It's kind of a laid back and subtle nose, but what you can pick up on the aroma is suggestive of complexity lurking beneath.

WOW. This is ridiculously smooth and creamy, like drinking chocolate milk. There's subtle and light carbonation, but you mostly get blasted with chocolate milk mouthfeel, Wheat-malt-smoothness. This is insane...so creamy, so smooth. It's like a smoothed out Weizenbock/Doppelweizen. 

I'm getting a ton of creamy banana, clove, caramel, vanilla ice cream, caramel on vanilla ice cream, pleasant wheat malt astringency, and wheat malt in this. A hint of citrus shows up, with light grass, apricot, and some mild peppery spice. There's a huge boozy complexity beneath the super smooth surface, and you get some oak, and hints of wood. There's some hints of grain with the malts as well, and a hint of grape/apple in this.

This one is full-bodied, and creamy as hell. Wow, what a mouthfeel. It's like Demeter the Goddess of Grain did the female equivalent to bricking a load of wheat in my mouth. Despite being a supped up wheat beer, you really want to sip this at its presumed 11.0% ABV. This one is boozy, and you can feel it. The booze adds to the complexity, and never hinders drinkability. If you love German Hefeweizens and Weizenbocks (I know I do!), you'll feel right at home drinking this. Palate depth is outstanding, and complexity is high. You get creamy banana, clove, vanilla, caramel, oak, wood, ice cream, and massive booze up front; this rolls into apples, fruity booze, peppery spice, tons of wheat, hints of grape; the back end trails of with complex booze, grapes, grain, apples, lingering clove...wowza.

Rating: Divine Brew

Strong Divine Brew on the 2012 version of this. I don't know what the fuck I was expecting but it certainly wasn't this. This is fantastic, and might be one of the better beers I've had from Two Brothers. Maybe the timing is just right. This is a 2012 bottle, and I'm not entirely sure how much age this has on it. Regardless, the apple/grape/grain booze complexity combined with the giant, creamy, wheat-forward mouthfeel wins this beer. This would go well with aggressive/strong cheeses (as does any solid Hefeweizen). You could also pair this with peppery meats, shrimp, rissoto, or a salad topped with cheese. You might even go the dessert route with banana pudding, yellow cake, or fruity baked goods. These were selling for like 7 or 8 bucks a bottle...grab two of these. I bet this ages well.

Random Thought: I think we fought off the last bout of winter in the Midwest. It's currently back up into the 50s and 60s, with rain and thunderstorms all week. Does that mean Spring is finally here?