Traditional Brackett
White Winter Winery, Inc.

Traditional BrackettTraditional Brackett
Beer Geek Stats
From:
White Winter Winery, Inc.
 
Wisconsin, United States
Style:
Braggot
ABV:
7%
Score:
Needs more ratings
Avg:
3.65 | pDev: 9.86%
Reviews:
7
Ratings:
7
Status:
Retired
Rated:
Feb 27, 2007
Added:
Mar 23, 2005
Wants:
  1
Gots:
  0
No description / notes.
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Recent ratings and reviews.
Ratings by Skidz:
Photo of Skidz
Reviewed by Skidz from Wisconsin

3.71/5  rDev +1.6%
look: 5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
Pours out golden amber and sits a foggy reddish amber-brown in the glass. Big billowy off-white head caps the beer. Fades slowly down to a thick layer of head that stays for the duration, coating the glass in thick rings of lace. Very nice.

Smells semi-sweet with strong notes of honey and toasty malts. Rather strong dusty aroma with some wooden notes and some spiciness.

Taste is a rather sharp blend of toasted malts, some biscuits and nuts, and honey driven alcoholic warmth. Fairly bready, but toasted on all sides. Mild fruity presence with dried apples and plums. Finish is well bittered, holding some spicy hop flavors. Alcohol is only noted upon exhaling and overall warmth, and is otherwise well incorporated.

Fairly crisp and lifting in the mouth with a thick load of carbonation. Medium bodied, somewhat chalky feel.

Not bad, but I can't see myself grabbing another one of these again. It's quite an appealing looking brew, but has some roughness here and there. Then again, it's not without some charm.
Mar 23, 2005
More User Ratings:
Photo of DaPeculierDane
Reviewed by DaPeculierDane from Wisconsin

4.12/5  rDev +12.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 5 | overall: 3.5
Wow! More than 18 months of aging (in my fridge!!!) have done wonders for this beer. What an improvement.

Appearance: Deep amber-bronze. No bubbles. Moderate tan head dissipates rapidly to a skim around the glass.

Aroma: Vanilla, deep, deep vanilla. Oak. Light honey, subtle strawberry jam.

Taste: Deep jammy sweet fruit, followed quickly by earthy toffees and finally by semi-dry vanilla, hazelnut, and hoppy flavors. The transition is noticeable and complex. Nice.

Mouthfeel: Outrageous. Front is heavy, super sweet, syrupy. Center is sweet. Finish is tangy and bubbly. It almost becomes sour as it warms. After finish goes back to heavy and syrup.

Drinakbility: Moderate. This seems to pack a big punch. Is it possible that this has continue fermenting in the bottle this whole time? It seems impossible yet I feel rather buzzed off this.

Overall, very interesting and deep. Tasty, with the mouthfeel being the highlight. This has improved so much over time. I can’t wait to try another bottle next year!
Feb 27, 2007
Photo of joe1510
Reviewed by joe1510 from Illinois

4.15/5  rDev +13.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
12oz. Bottle

This is my first expierence with a braggot. I'm looking forward to it. Poured into a snifter after letting warm for about 10 minutes. A big billowy frothy head poked above the rim of my glass and very slowly faded leaving sticky lacing in its path. As the head faded it turned rocky and craggy. This all on top of a glowing slightly hazed amber body. Rising carbonation in streams from all over. After describing the appearence the head is still over 1 finger and staying put.

The smell is very interesting and enjoyable. Wasn't really all that sure what to expect. There is a subtle honey note thats soft and in the background. I'm picking up a little fruit that seems to be white grapes and occasionally even some oak. The honey adds a sweetness the more this one warms. Toward the end I pick up an earthiness reminiscent of damp soil and a mild hop spiciness. There is even some toffee in there. Seems like I get something different each time. Now after some time in the glass I'm picking up a lot of tart green apple. Complex. Nice.

The flavor is very mellow. All the flavors seem to be in harmony with each other. Everything in the nose is detected at some point or another in the taste. Grapes and a mild honey sweetness go very nicely together. A subtle toffee flavor also goes really nicely with the earthiness. Spicy hops barely leave a tingle on the tongue. Finishes off with a toffee sweetness that lingers momentarily. All in all this is a subtle complex braggot. I really have to work to pull out all the different flavors but it is definately worth it. My only complaint is that the flavors just don't last long enough.

The mouthfeel really impresses me. This braggot enters your mouth in liquid form but somewhere between mid-palate and the finish it turns into some sort of sea foam. There is no sign of swallowing a liquid. I have never drank anything before that makes that abrupt of a transition. Somehow it does it very well. The only problem with the mouthfeel is that it pushes the flavors through a little faster than they should be. Otherwise it's a pretty cool expierence.

This is something I would only drink one at a time. It feels more along the lines of a special occasion libation. When I am drinking it it goes down very easy.

This was a really nice surprise. If I see this again I will definately pick up some more. A good way to get my feet wet with braggot. This is much better than I expected with many complexities. I believe you could share this with beer and wine drinkers with good results. I believe I picked this up for $1.99 a bottle.

Slainte!
Dec 31, 2006
Photo of demcorhip
Reviewed by demcorhip from Canada (ON)

3.31/5  rDev -9.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4
Appearance
This interesting beverage poured a clear deep amber. It was a well carbonated brew that produced a huge head and very nice lacings.

Aroma
Smells of nutty bread, honey, wine and spice.

Taste
There was alot to taste in here. Nutty malts, floral honey, lemon and grass from the hops, a strange almost soapiness, and a dry sherry like finish.

Mouthfeel
This was a well balanced creamy substantial and well carbonated brew. Only complaint is the strange soapiness. Finished dry as stated above.

Drinkability
Im not hardcore enough to consider this session fare, and its likely too challenging to consider as crossover fare either. This was my first braggot, and i hope its not my last. I could see the appeal of a brew like this on a cold winter's night after a day out in the cold. Ill probably drink this one again, and look for more in this style.
Aug 30, 2006
Photo of CharlesDarwin
Reviewed by CharlesDarwin from Rhode Island

3.12/5  rDev -14.5%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3
Originally reviewed August 22, 2005. 12 Oz Bottle. Clear orange brown pour, with flecks of yest and a creamy white head. Light fruit and oak aromas. Sugar. A little light tobacconess in the flavor. Spicy, warm, really sweet and bitingly tart. A little sour. Not really to my palate. Seems strong, harsh and burning. Unbalanced.
Aug 12, 2006
Photo of beveragecaptain
Reviewed by beveragecaptain from New Jersey

3.68/5  rDev +0.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
12 ounce bottle. White Winter Traditional Brackett pours out a dark amber color with a big head. Malty aroma with lots of honey, as well as fruit and whiffs of alcohol. Very wooden flavor. I would guess this is aged in oak or something. Honey is very noticable. A bit of toasted malt. Peppery spice in the finish. Alcohol is strong and a bit distracting. A little thin in the mouth. High carbonation. Interesting beer (is it considered beer?), but I don't have a lot to compare it to.
Dec 25, 2005
Photo of Gueuzedude
Reviewed by Gueuzedude from Arizona

3.48/5  rDev -4.7%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3
This bottle is at least a couple of years old if not more.

This pours a clear deep ruby, amber color and is topped by a thin tan head. It is pretty well carbonated as well. The aroma is an interesting mix of caramel malt and dry honey notes. I get hints of citrus fruits, floral mead notes, a bit of wine-like alcohol notes and some aged malt notes that remind me a bit of sherry. Over all the aroma is pretty muted though. The taste is lightly sweet up front, and it is quite spritzy from the carbonation. This does have interesting notes of both mead and beer. The finish has that sort herbal, wine like note that is from the finish of a nice dry mead as well as a hint of bitter hoppiness.

This is actually pretty tasty and has not oxidized/ aged nearly as much as I had expected, and I really do like the balance between the malt (caramel and biscuit) and the honey notes.
May 01, 2005
Traditional Brackett from White Winter Winery, Inc.
Beer rating: 3.65 out of 5 with 7 ratings