Andy and Fred's Excellent Adventure Vol. 1
Hoppin' Frog Brewery

 

 

 

 

12 ounce bottle, 2018 vintage/collaboration. Served in a snifter, the beer pours dark brown/black with almost an inch tan head. Head retention and lacing are both decent enough. I like the aroma, the brew smells like dark fruit (plum, raisin, red grapes), coffee, cocoa, caramel and leather. It tastes like dark fruit (plum, raisin, prunes), dark chocolate, caramel, earthiness, licorice, dark bread, burnt/charred malt, pine and molasses. Mouthfeel/body is medium/full, it's slick and creamy with a moderate amount of carbonation. I liked this a lot, it's certainly worth picking up! $7.99 a bottle.

 

From the 12 oz bottle in a teku snifter. This strong beast pours
a rich obsidian with a fantastic head of tan foam that settles
to a thick ring big bubbled ring, thin layer, and show some
exceptional lacing. Nose of woodsy pine, bakers cocoa,
dark fruit, coffee, STRONG booze, and char. Flavors follow the
nose with excellence----right on Ted!---char and dark breaded fruit
notes follow coffee and bakers cocoa to a finale of moderately sticky
pine and char with a nice anise flavor. Excellent mouth feel; full
body, medium light carbonation that is just enough to give
this critter some heft, and a rich char laden malt and pine
forward finish.

Overall, a SOLID little brew that is a bit muddled
but still excellent from the Frog folk up north
in Ohio.

Cheers

Hoppin' Frog Andy & Fred's Excellent Adventure Vol 1, 12.7% ABV. Pours black with a half-finger brown head. Nose is chocolate, citrus, dark fruit, leather (belt, not shoe), and pine - really complex, lot's more there that I couldn't identify. Taste is chocolate, dark fruit, roast malt, with leather on the close - like chewing on a belt. Excellent mouthfeel - thick for a porter, overall outstanding - for the complexity, which I fully expect to change further as it warms.

 

12 ounce bottle into tulip glass, 2018 vintage bottling. Pours opaque dark brown/black color with a 1 finger fairly dense khaki head with great retention, that reduces to a thin cap that lingers. Nice spotty soapy lacing clings on the glass, with a fair amount of streaming carbonation. Aromas of big milk/dark chocolate, cocoa, coffee, caramel, brown sugar, molasses, toffee, raisin, prune, licorice, orange, grapefruit, pineapple, peach, plum, apricot, fig, date, nuttiness, and toasted dark bread; with lighter notes of smoke, charcoal, leather, tobacco, herbal, pepper, pine, and yeast/roast/toasted earthiness. Damn nice aromas with great balance and complexity of dark/roast/bready malts, fruity yeast, and citrus/earthy hop notes; with great strength. Taste of big milk/dark chocolate, cocoa, coffee, caramel, brown sugar, molasses, toffee, raisin, prune, licorice, orange, grapefruit, pineapple, peach, plum, apricot, fig, date, nuttiness, and toasted dark bread; with lighter notes of smoke, charcoal, leather, tobacco, herbal, pepper, pine, and yeast/roast/toasted earthiness. Light-moderate roast, char, pine, herbal, grassy, peppery bitterness on the finish. Lingering notes of milk/dark chocolate, cocoa, coffee, caramel, brown sugar, molasses, toffee, dark fruit, orange, grapefruit, pineapple, peach, nuttiness, toasted dark bread, smoke, charcoal, leather, tobacco, herbal, pepper, pine, and yeast/roast/toasted earthiness on the finish for a while. Great complexity, robustness, and balance of dark/roast/bready malts, fruity yeast, and citrus/earthy hop flavors; with a great roast/hop bitter/sweet balance, and minimal acrid/astringent flavors after the finish. Lightly increasing dryness from lingering hop/char bitterness. Light-medium carbonation and fairly full body; with a very smooth, creamy/silky/bready, and fairly sticky/chalky mouthfeel that is great. Lightly increasing warmth of 12.7% after the finish. Overall this is an excellent Baltic porter. All around great complexity, robustness, and balance of dark/roast/bready malts, fruity yeast, and citrus/earthy hop flavors; very smooth and dangerously easy to sip on for the huge ABV, with the modestly bitter/drying finish. Really unique stuff, Americanized Baltic style. Very rich malts; with balanced fruity yeast, and American/noble hops. Not overly sweet/heavy from lingering bitter dryness. Label says it uses Lager yeast, but I would have guessed English ale since it is labeled as a Russian Imperial style. A lot of fruitiness, but not overdone. A very enjoyable offering, and well made style example as expected.

A dark brown to black body has a creamy tan collar.

Smell is kind of dank and hoppy of grapefruit and pine with charred roast and nuts.

A potent yet somehow perfect punch of hops is woody, cedary, piney and a little grapefruity. This is deftly paired with cocoa, coffee, tobacco and a little boozy sting that comes together really well, and quite uniquely so.

A firm, substantial carbonation runs through the medium-full body, finishing dry.

This is like a heavier, bigger take on a Black IPA, and one of the few good ones at that.