The Walnutter
The Bruery

Black color, big, beige head. Dark chocolate, roasted malt, bourbon, and walnuts in the aroma. Rich, balanced taste with moderate sweetness. Another great sipper from The Bruery.

750mL bottle (2022 edition) into a tulip. Pours a deep dark chocolate blackish brown with a thin head that disappears quickly, leaving behind a thin collar.

Aroma is rich and dense, earthy. Literally there’s this loamy, soil-like quality to the nose that I can’t quite pin down, smells slightly like this liquid fertilizer (Dr. Earth Pot of Gold) I use on our houseplants—that stuff does not smell good, but it works. Also the usual bitter roasted dark malt, chocolate, coffee etc. But I’ll be honest, the smell is making me a little nervous about how this will taste. Here goes.

OK, this isn’t bad. It’s a bit sweet but it doesn’t taste like fertilizer, thank God. Rich chocolate, vanilla, condensed milk maybe—definitely more sweet than bitter. But pretty good. Actually pretty complex as it warms. Nutty.

Mouthfeel is on the heavy side, slick, coats the palate with a lingering finish.

Overall, OK, this is an imperial porter, or a stout, who am I to say. It’s OK. Not my favorite but also not bad.

i was so stoked to learn the bruery was opening in greater boise, and that they were pouring all these rarities, but i have to confess i was a little disappointed with many of them, this seemed old, oxidized, and past its moment, even if its not really all that old. the sweetness is insane, there is a cardboard thing to it, and the flavors beyond the dulce de leche are minimal or absent, i had way way way higher hopes for this one, especially since nut beers have been a bit of a muse for me lately. somewhat lighter looking than expected, without hardly any head by the time it got from the bar to where we were sitting, some haze to this, almost murky, like we are at the very bottom of the keg or something, more brown than black for sure, uninspiring in the glass, near still. the roasted grain is there in the nose, a little newspaper oxidation with it, a coffee note, and i think the rye whiskey is pretty apparent too. its sweet from the dulce de leche and the vanilla, which come at the expense of everything else, and the flavor is about the same, with some bitterness running through it along with the sweetness, but rather than seeming balanced they just seem to be fighting with each other, somehow unresolved in a way that leaves something to be desired. no sign of salt in the flavor, but now i kind of want it, the nuts are way back behind all the caramel richness, and there is a cheap chocolate thing here, like waxy and kind of gross. i bet this was great when it was new, and maybe its holding up well in bottles, but what they are serving at the new taproom here is pretty bad. i wanted to love this, expected to, and was fired up for it, even at an absurd price, and i still think its cool to get to drink beer i thought id never be able to, but either im getting old and just dont get it anymore, or this is so far past its prime it shouldnt have been served. a couple of misses like this at their new spot, crazy to me. so much potential, i hope to try it better one day, but for now this is squarely in the miss department, expectations nowhere close to met with this, bigtime oxidation brings it way down, diabetic sweetness too, tons of body, on the palate for ages, just not really working, hate to say it...

 

750 ml bottle into a tulip snifter. Bottled 1/18/22, had 5/20/23.

Pours near black and opaque, with a quarter inch quickly dissipating head and light foamy lacing. Aromas of bourbon, caramel, a nutty aroma- could be walnuts, vanilla, malt, raisins, light chocolate, light oak and char. Flavors of bourbon, caramel, vanilla, walnuts- more definitively, malt, salt, some butterscotch, light chocolate, light oak. Smooth, a very good medium body, appropriately carbonated.

Really liked this. The barrels and dulce de leche are the stars, but they were Rye barrels and I didn’t really notice any rye or spiciness. The walnuts showed pretty well, too. Very creative stuff.

Bottle pour - dark as night with big chocolate milk head leaving minimal lacing and a ring of tiny bubbles. Nose is roasty and nutty with hints of vanilla and booze. Taste follows with more walnutty goodness and a hint of salt that lingers on a dry finish. Tiny bit of alcohol creep in there too.

 

On tap at the brewery. Pours a very dark with light brown head. Nose is nuts, chocolate, vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg, and some nice rye barrel. The taste follows the nose. Sweet chocolate, cinnamon, nutmeg, vanilla, maple, wood, walnuts, and some rye. So good! Mouthfeel is pretty thick.

750 ml bottle, 2022 vintage, bottled 01/18/22. Served in a snifter, the beer pours dark brown/black with about an inch tan head. Head retention and lacing are both good. I like the aroma, it's really nutty and the walnut stands out to me. There's also some vanilla, roasted malt, cream, salt, caramel and rye whiskey noticeable. For the most part I think the taste is similar to the aroma, but there's also the addition of some oak, dark bread, dark chocolate and burnt/charred malt flavors. Mouthfeel/body is full, it's coating and a bit creamy with a moderate amount of carbonation. If you like walnuts and/or rye barrel aged brews then give this one a try. I liked it a lot!

Look: very dark brown. Some ruby highlights when held to light. Modest tan head on the pour that dwindles to a ring around the glass.
Smell: vanilla and salt, roasty porter. Subtle caramel, and walnut.
Taste: caramel more prominent than in the nose. Like most Bruery big beers, super easy drinker.