Birth Of Tragedy: Kochere
Hill Farmstead Brewery
Beer Geek Stats:
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- Style:
- American Imperial Porter
- ABV:
- 11%
- Score:
- 96
- Avg:
- 4.65 | pDev: 5.59%
- Reviews:
- 7
- Ratings:
- From:
- Hill Farmstead Brewery
- Vermont, United States
- Avail:
- Retired (no longer brewed)
- Wants
- 8
- Gots
- 5
SCORE
96
World-Class
96
World-Class
Notes:
We have chosen two barrels of Birth of Tragedy as the base for this single origin coffee experiment. After aging for 20 months in apple brandy barrels, we conditioned the beer atop Ethiopian Kochere coffee beans sourced and roasted by The Coffee Collective in Copenhagen, Denmark. These friends long ago changed our worldview as to what coffee could be. After months of bottle conditioning, the beer is ready for release.
Reviews: 7
| Ratings: 51
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4.6/5 rDev -1.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
Enjoyed at GAB bottle share
Decent foamy head, little lacing and retention, pitch black thick
Nose big cocoa chocolate, nice mild smooth coffee, mild sweet apple brandy, dark chocolate
Taste sweet candy notes, big apple brandy, dark chocolate and little roast, cocoa, mild toasted smooth coffee, touch of booze
Mouth is med to heavier bod but smooth, touch of warming alcohol
378 characters
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
Enjoyed at GAB bottle share
Decent foamy head, little lacing and retention, pitch black thick
Nose big cocoa chocolate, nice mild smooth coffee, mild sweet apple brandy, dark chocolate
Taste sweet candy notes, big apple brandy, dark chocolate and little roast, cocoa, mild toasted smooth coffee, touch of booze
Mouth is med to heavier bod but smooth, touch of warming alcohol
378 characters
4.69/5 rDev +0.9%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.75
375ml bottle, bottled Nov. 2016, poured into an oversized Hill Farmstead wine glass.
The beer pours a deep jet black color, cola brown hues, very opaque and thick with a bit of sediment at the bottom of the glass, a thin but firm khaki head rises with good retention and spots of lace. The aroma is stunning, chocolate leaps from the glass, smooth coffee, apple brandy barrel is wonderful, adds a bit of acidity that helps balance this beer, offers some fruit, some oak, honey, dark grain, a bit of stone fruit and a hint of booze. The flavors are great, so balanced but so expressive, tons of chocolate, apple brandy barrel, a hint of charred oak, smooth liqueur, stone fruits, fruit forward coffee, a hint of acidity with lingering grain and a touch of sweet honey. The mouthfeel is perfect, thick full body, a nice prickly of lively carbonation props up the beer with a coating, full finish and a touch o warmth.
Verdict: A stunning beer from Hill Farmstead. Excellent Apple Brandy expression with beautiful coffee and chocolate flavors that are so balanced and bring out some nice complex layers. So drinkable, so rich and decadent, just an awesome beer.
1,160 characters
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.75
375ml bottle, bottled Nov. 2016, poured into an oversized Hill Farmstead wine glass.
The beer pours a deep jet black color, cola brown hues, very opaque and thick with a bit of sediment at the bottom of the glass, a thin but firm khaki head rises with good retention and spots of lace. The aroma is stunning, chocolate leaps from the glass, smooth coffee, apple brandy barrel is wonderful, adds a bit of acidity that helps balance this beer, offers some fruit, some oak, honey, dark grain, a bit of stone fruit and a hint of booze. The flavors are great, so balanced but so expressive, tons of chocolate, apple brandy barrel, a hint of charred oak, smooth liqueur, stone fruits, fruit forward coffee, a hint of acidity with lingering grain and a touch of sweet honey. The mouthfeel is perfect, thick full body, a nice prickly of lively carbonation props up the beer with a coating, full finish and a touch o warmth.
Verdict: A stunning beer from Hill Farmstead. Excellent Apple Brandy expression with beautiful coffee and chocolate flavors that are so balanced and bring out some nice complex layers. So drinkable, so rich and decadent, just an awesome beer.
1,160 characters
3.9/5 rDev -16.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 4
375 mL bottle. Jet black. Almost no head. Smells of strong apple brandy. Rich chocolate. Booze. Tastes of sweet chocolate. A hint of coffee. Less of the apple brandy here, but there's a tinge of sharp fruitiness. Tingly alcohol. Big and very sweet. I like this better than regular Birth, but it's really sugary.
311 characters
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 4
375 mL bottle. Jet black. Almost no head. Smells of strong apple brandy. Rich chocolate. Booze. Tastes of sweet chocolate. A hint of coffee. Less of the apple brandy here, but there's a tinge of sharp fruitiness. Tingly alcohol. Big and very sweet. I like this better than regular Birth, but it's really sugary.
311 characters
5/5 rDev +7.5%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5
A porter just cannot get any better than this. Dark with a brown roasty honeycomb head with good retention. Beautiful Brandy and coffee nose and taste, with sweet honey like tones in the background. Rich smooth full mouthfeel! One of Hill farm's best ever!
257 characters
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5
A porter just cannot get any better than this. Dark with a brown roasty honeycomb head with good retention. Beautiful Brandy and coffee nose and taste, with sweet honey like tones in the background. Rich smooth full mouthfeel! One of Hill farm's best ever!
257 characters
4.82/5 rDev +3.7%
look: 4.75 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.75
A~ very dark brown with very little head
S~ good amount of coffee without being overpowering, touch of apples.
T~ coffee, apples and just the right amount of brandy; not too much as I often find with barrel-aged beers
M~ good and solid, bordering on stout mouthfeel; not watery at all
O~this grew on me more and more the more I had it; by the time I was done I wanted another bottle!
388 characters
look: 4.75 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.75
A~ very dark brown with very little head
S~ good amount of coffee without being overpowering, touch of apples.
T~ coffee, apples and just the right amount of brandy; not too much as I often find with barrel-aged beers
M~ good and solid, bordering on stout mouthfeel; not watery at all
O~this grew on me more and more the more I had it; by the time I was done I wanted another bottle!
388 characters
4.74/5 rDev +1.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.75
375ml bottle poured into a Plan Bee tulip.
A~ black as night with a tan head that dissipates quickly leaving a little lacing.
S~ tons of sweet roasted coffee and roasted malt with a touch of honey covered apples.
T~ amazingly rich dark coffee rushes the pallet followed by a lot of vanilla and honey sweetness finishing with a touch of apple brandy that brings it all together! love!
M~ silky smooth that drinks like a dream! nice carb. and some how refreshing... hmm...
O~this was an absolute treat! i heard it was good, went in with high expectations, and was still blown away! now i'll admit i'm a tad bit biased because i love regular Birth of Tragedy and i know a lot of people out there aren't the biggest fan. but this was perfectly executed all around!
765 characters
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.75
375ml bottle poured into a Plan Bee tulip.
A~ black as night with a tan head that dissipates quickly leaving a little lacing.
S~ tons of sweet roasted coffee and roasted malt with a touch of honey covered apples.
T~ amazingly rich dark coffee rushes the pallet followed by a lot of vanilla and honey sweetness finishing with a touch of apple brandy that brings it all together! love!
M~ silky smooth that drinks like a dream! nice carb. and some how refreshing... hmm...
O~this was an absolute treat! i heard it was good, went in with high expectations, and was still blown away! now i'll admit i'm a tad bit biased because i love regular Birth of Tragedy and i know a lot of people out there aren't the biggest fan. but this was perfectly executed all around!
765 characters
4.73/5 rDev +1.7%
look: 4.75 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.75
From a bottle on-site at Hill Farmstead. I'm a big Birth of Tragedy fan and I really enjoy apple brandy barrel-aged stouts, so I was really looking forward to this one. It does not disappoint. The barrel flavor is not overwhelming and is perfectly integrated into the flavors of the base beer - there is none of the astringent alcohol flavor that is present in other AB stouts. And the coffee variant is stunning - aromatic and flavorful, but without being a coffee bomb. I put this one tick behind Apple Brandy Noir, but it is really close.
541 characters
look: 4.75 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.75
From a bottle on-site at Hill Farmstead. I'm a big Birth of Tragedy fan and I really enjoy apple brandy barrel-aged stouts, so I was really looking forward to this one. It does not disappoint. The barrel flavor is not overwhelming and is perfectly integrated into the flavors of the base beer - there is none of the astringent alcohol flavor that is present in other AB stouts. And the coffee variant is stunning - aromatic and flavorful, but without being a coffee bomb. I put this one tick behind Apple Brandy Noir, but it is really close.
541 characters
Birth Of Tragedy: Kochere from Hill Farmstead Brewery
Beer rating:
96 out of
100 with
51 ratings
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