Melange Barrel-Aged Cuvee
Fremont Brewing Company

 

Might be the only Fremont BA beer that I didn’t give a score over 4.
The pour is stout black with a 1 cm head that leaves sparse lacing.
The taste is curious, the Rusty Nail aspect is definitely present and accounted for, though the cinnamon is muted to the point of not really tasting like cinnamon. Whatever it tastes like is prominent though. The rest of it seems like a very strong porter or a fairly weak stout. Not bad at all, they did a great job, but it is inevitable that mixing a porter and an imperial stout is going to meet somewhere in the middle.
The feel is lighter than I expected, but considering the beers involved, perfectly appropriate.
OA, happy to have tried this one, but wouldn’t want to stock up.

Acquired one year ago 2-16-24 courtesy of @muchloveforhops3, thanks Doug! Canned 10-11-23; consumed for review 2-16-25.

Beer poured dark brown with a beautiful brown head with the original pour.

Nose is nice, got a good blast of barrel upon opening. Getting primarily cinnamon with some molasses in the background as i sip.

Taste is a larger malt base with a lighter roasted malt base that gives a cinnamon dominant slant. Molasses and licorice arise a tad in the background. Barrel is a balancing agent and keeps the sweetness balanced. Finishes with cinnamon in post sip aspirations.

Mouthfeel is medium to full bodied and very smooth.

Overall, a little cinnamon goes a long way in beer and seems to have a long half-life but unfortunately brewers don't dial it back when using this adjunct. Otherwise, this is a fine sipping beer on a cool Sunday afternoon.

From the can.
Pretty. Deepest brown attainable before black. Assertive foam at first, khaki in hue, tapers off quickly to a thin film. So for style, decent retention with lite lacing.
Nose carries a mild medley of spice notes, including cinnamon, but they are smooth in the nose. Some boozy warmth ushers in more subtle sweet notes: cocoa, caramel, toffee and a hint of char.
Flavor follows the nose faithfully. Again, the cinnamon is lite and the flavors really wash back and forth. At times the barrel note is firm and warm in its presentation. Then the malt notes smooth out in a mildly sweet presentation that also makes room for some barrel char. Cocoa and subtle toffee chime in too.
Mouthfeel is chewy, warm, and finishes a bit oily.
Pretty solid.

Blend 2, 2023 can. Tan head, dark brown, black color.

The spiced stout (rusty nail?), really shows. Bakers spices, gingerbread, molasses, cocoa. Orange peel. Chocolate, caramel, dark dried fruits. Little vanilla as it warms. Light on the barrel side but bourbon in the finish.

This tastes like a Christmas cuvee. For $6 a can, it’s solid.

Edit: let this warm up. The cinnamon comes out a ton.

 

Cellared almost a year. Pitch brown opaque body, brown head that sticks around. Smells of toasted caramel, coffee grounds, dark nut, licorice, cocoa, gingerbread, various dark wet wood including amburana, bourbon and anise emerge as it warms. Taste features the amburana, licorice, anise, roasted malt, bourbon, cocoa with a touch toasted caramel, molasses, and a touch of finishing cinnamon and vanillins. Feel is smooth yet has roast and wood tones, booze is modest and refined with elevated feel. Really enjoyed this strong ale, sneaky complex! Hopefully this becomes an annual series of blended ales

2023 vintage. Pours dark, healthy fluffy head. Scents of dark malt and sweet vanilla and wood barrel. Taste is sweet, notes of vanilla and dark fruit. Medium bodied, subtle booziness, clean finish, more of the Porter character on the feel than the stout. Pretty good.

De Beer Republic. En copa Teku. Con caña de lomo de bellota. Viendo Casa del Dragón 2x07 y jugando a Rayman Legends. El toque a canela está muy bien integrado, dandole personalidad con un agradable toque especiado de recuerdos navideños sin resultar para nada excesiva y dejando disfrutar de la strong ale que hay por debajo

 

 

Canned on: 2023 Release
Many thanks to muchloveforhops3 for this can!

A - Black pour with dense caramel lacing.

S - Light chocolate toast with cinnamon and a little bit of Bourbon barrel.

T - Light chocolate malt base, cinnamon, Bourbon, and spicy.

M - Big thick body with some warming going down the hatch.

O - Solid.

 

 

16oz can shared with the wife, I really enjoy these Fremont cuvee's. Opaque pour, black and inky with a large cap of dark mocha-colored head that quickly fizzles away. Pretty strong spice characteristics immediately on the nose, with roast and spirit barrel apparent as well. Notes of cinnamon, coffee, brewer licorice, marshmallow and minor impressions of vanilla through the bourbon barrel, faint tobacco...rich dark chocolate, smooth full-bodied mouthfeel with some present viscosity.

The Rusty Nail is apparent here, but I feel like the porter that Fremont blended it with may be a adding a nice bittersweet chocolate and roasted characteristic that balances nicely with the 'bigness' and spices of the RN. Good stuff, as always.

 

 

 

2024-01-12
16oz can served in a footed pilsner glass. Don't see a date, other than the "2023 Release" on the label.

Pours black with a medium sized dark tan head. Head settles into a thick ring and a thick skin. Smell is burnt molasses, cinnamon, oatmeal, chocolate.

Taste is cinnamon, chocolate, burnt toffee and molasses.

Mouthfeel is thick and silky. Overall...it's well made, but it's not my jam. I'm glad I gave away the other three cans. Don't let that deter you if you like cinnamon in your beer, you'll probably love it.

Melange (2023 Limited Edition) - Mystery Beer #4 from @muchloveforhops3 in BSBIF #1, 16 fl oz can. Reviewed 07/01/24 (Review 3212). Note that I use DD/MM/YY protocol.
Undated can other than “LIMITED 2023 Release”. Stored at 34 degrees F at home. Served at 52.2 degrees F in a hand washed and dried Jester King snifter. The final temperature was 57.5 degrees F.
Appearance 4.
First pour: Amber Brown (SRM 18), slight haze.
Body: Black (SRM 40), opaque. Under direct light, same. When rear-lite, same with slight penetration at the edges – ruby.
Head: Average (Maximum four cm, aggressive center pour), brown sugar, high density, average retention, dropping to a uniform 0.5 – 0.8 cm undulating crown and a thin complete cap. As the crown oxygenates, the top becomes wheat.
Lacing: None.
Aroma: 4.5 Begins slightly sweet with brown sugar and molasses(?). No hops, no yeast, no alcohol, no hints of whiskies or barrels.
Flavor: 4 Begins slightly sweet with roasted malt, quickly becoming slightly bitter. No hops, no yeast. No barrels. Moderate gastric warming, maybe a slight whiskey burn. A bit of chocolate appears on the aftertaste.
Palate: 4 Medium; watery; lively carbonation.
Final impression and summation: 4.25 Good name for a mixture of dark chocolate, brown sugar, molasses - too bad the barrels are so weak. Still, it’s a decent drink.