Duck Billed Platypus
Oakshire Brewing

I'm very glad that Adam (ccrida) already posted the story behind this beer, so I don't have to. :-) Suffice it to say, however, that this was a very welcome surprise to see on tap at the Brewer's Union Local 180 yesterday evening.

The beer pours a dark cola color with good head retention and lacing. The nose looks good enough, but then I took my first sniff of this bad boy. The nose on this beer is just outrageous (in a good way), with an aroma profile that includes chocolate, pepper, dry citrus, brown sugar, clove and considerable underlying spice. The flavors replicate the nose pretty closely, and given the fairly sweet flavor package in this beer, it's almost overwhelming. As it was, I found this beer to be nearly cloying, but ultimately it was a beer I just took my time with and really enjoyed. On the finish, I detected a hint of hoppy bitterness, where the flavors tended to dry out just a bit. Mouthfeel is medium bodied to full, with a longlasting finish. Drinkability was OK, but the intensity of unusual flavors in this beer, coupled with the sweetness, really pushes the envelope, making drinking this beer fairly slow going. In the end, I was impressied by how rich and complex the flavor profile was in this interesting, well made beer.

Was told this beer's abv. was in the 8% range, but truth be told, I would have guessed something a bit higher then that. In any event, I thought this a very solid beer from Oakshire brewing. Good stuff!

Duck Billed Platypus is Oakshire's take on the 2010 KLCC Brewfest Collaboration Ale, a "Belgian Style Cascadian Dark Rye Ale". Several Eugene area breweries made a brew based on these guidelines, with Cascadian Dark Ale (CDA) being the term for Black IPAs (for those not from Cascadia). Since their are no style entries for CDAs, Belgian Stouts, or anything else this really is, I went with Rye Ale...this is my second of this collaboration, the first being Block 15's (more on that later).

On draught at Bailey's, Duck Billed Platypus is a murky blackish brown with a light tan head that leaves heavy lace.

Smell is big on the fruity Belgian esters, saison if I had to guess, maybe the same Ardennes strain as this year's Cheers to Belgian Beers. Really like the smell, it plays off that (what I assume are mostly) noble hops.

Taste is nice, more congealed then the Block 15, roastier as well (hence my reference to Belgian Stout). Big herbal hop profile, really nice Belgian esters providing the fruitiness, on top of what is basically a very smooth, tasty stout, with just enough clean ethanol to remind you it's on the stronger side.

Mouthfeel is pretty smooth, dry and slick, medium bodied.

Drinkability is pretty good, I preferred it to the Block 15, which I found a bit disjointed, but it also showed it's strength a bit more, and was more robust overall.