Fear And Trembling (Cabernet/Bourbon Blend)
Hill Farmstead Brewery

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

500ml bottle from December 2016. Served in a Hill Farmstead stemmed glass. Pours a dark black body, cola coloured head which brings out about one finger, with a nice medium collar that has a lot of staying power, good retention and minimal lacing as expected. Smell is rich milk chocolate, touch of smoked wood, mild whiskey sweetness, a bit of cocoa and a nice dark chocolate. A bit of nougat also. Flavour is milk chocolate, caramel-like nougat sweetness, slight smoky oak, light bourbon smoke that certainly complements the intrinsic smoked malt, red tannic character lingering on the backend with a touch of vanillin sweetness. Really rich, complex and fascinating admixture of smoke and barrel. Mouthfeel is full bodied, creamy and soft, one of the more substantial Hill Farmstead stouts/porters I've had. Wonderful silky body with a lot going on the finish, with oak, tannins and vanillins playing around on a background of milk chocolate. This isn't a super smoky beer, similar to the base, and the barrels have a nice interplay amongst each other without overshadowing the base porter which has a lot of chocolate character in its own right.

Bottle thanks to Eric

 

 

 

 

 

Recent released version from I think December? Massive thanks to Steve for the hookup. Like most, I am not a big fan of smoked beer but this is about as immaculate as a smoked beer can get. The barrel blends are phenomenal and really dialed in. This is actually thirst quenching. Paint me impressed.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Bottle: Poured a pitch-black color porter with a large dark brown foamy head with good retention and some lacing. Aroma of roasted malt with black chocolate notes with some bourbon and vanilla notes is quite exquisite. Taste is also a mix roasted malt, black chocolate with some bourbon, vanilla notes with oak and subtle smoked presence. Body is full with oily texture and good carbonation with no overly apparent alcohol notes. Quite the complex porter with great drinkability level.

 

 

 

A - Dark brown/black pour, thin creme colored lacing.

S - Some smokiness, chocolate char, red grape skins.

T - Smokey/char, big lingering dark smoked chocolate, cabernat red grape skins.

M - Full bodied.

O - Held up well.

 

 

 

 

 

2017 release.

This one pours a fairly dark black, with a small white head, and not much lacing.

This smells like vinous red wine and dark cherry, with oak, vanilla, fudgy chocolate, and light smoke.

This is aged in a combination of red wine and bourbon barrels, and the red wine comes through a bit stronger for me, as this is fairly vinous and there's some nice dark fruit layered throughout. The chocolate malt aspect of the base is amplified through the time in barrels, and the smoke is definitely downplayed, which is slightly unfortunate. There's a nice spicy oak character, though.

This is medium bodied, creamy, with both a lightness and richness at the same- which obviously makes no sense.

This is a really fun beer. I'm not sure if it's a big improvement from the base- as the base integrates smoke flavor so well into the porter base. Despite that, it's a very tasty beer that shows careful barrel aging.

 

Poured from a 20 oz bottle into a tulip glass. Appearance is jet black with some brown around the edges and very little head. Smell is a good mix of chocolate brownie and bourbon with notes of molasses, oak, and a hint of smoke/roast.

Taste is creamy Chocolate brownie and bourbon up front with some of the smoked wood showing up on the back end. The flavor profile and complexity is very nice throughout. Some red wine shows up on the finish, which I did not get in the aroma. There is a hint of oxidation present, which actually works well. Mouthfeel starts out nice and creamy, but I was searching for more body on the finish. Carbonation was moderate and well executed.

Overall this is an interesting and well executed Baltic Porter. The bourbon barrels are much more prominent than the wine, which works well. The smoked wood notes added a nice element. Unfortunately, the lighter mouthfeel holds this beer back from being great. Regardless, if the opportunity is there, it is a treat.