Holger Danske (with Kissmeyer)
Hill Farmstead Brewery

 

 

 

 

 

 

On-tap at Armsby in Worcester. Can’t remember the last time I had a HF beer. This is incredible. Subtle smokiness on top of all that makes a brown ale delicious. Heavily roasted malt, chocolate, coffee, wood, earth, sweet sugary syrup. This is killer stuff.

 

This one pours a very dark brown color- it's very rich looking. There's a small foamy white head, and a little bit of lacing.

This smells like warm and toasty smoke, with caramel, rustic bread, rye, chocolate, and coffee.

There's a lot going on here. The malt is perfectly smoked- there's absolutely none of the off-flavors often associated with smoked beers- no plastic, no bandaid, no nothing. It's just warm and toasty and like a great campfire. The base brown ale is so rich. It feels richer than George- there's some definite dark roast coffee, lots of chocolate, a dark and spicy breadiness, and some very light caramel. This is so good.

This is creamy and rich, with a medium sized body, and a great level of drinkability. I could drink this all day, and I couldn't say that about most smoked beers.

Hill Farmstead has turned probably the least sexy style into an amazing beer. This is absolutely wonderful.

 

 

 

Solid robust smoked brown ale. Taste of dark chocolate and smokiness. Clear color and smooth for a beer of it style. Definitely drinkable at 7% ABV.

 

This is a collaborative beer with Danish brewer Kissmeyer.

Near black in color but light shines through the very edge of the glass stem. Large beige head which leaves a many, many spots. It settles with a dome.

The smell reminds me of a Porter with only a hint of the advertised smoke.

The flavor starts dry with black patent malt notes like black coffee and burnt toast. From there the taste becomes drier and more like ash. The smoke is more pronounced but definitely not the major flavor. Moderate body with a higher carbonation than most stouts. This was advertised as a "smoked brown ale". It is far stronger in flavor than that style and is much closer to a robust Porter or dry stout.

 

 

 

Filled a growler with this mysterious brew on a whim; figured I’d try something other than familiar names or literary references. Not a fan of smoked beers but the thinking goes that, if I could be turned, HF would be the ones to do it.

Growler filled on Saturday, consumed Wednesday. Dark brown pour with a moderate off-white head that lingers.

Aroma! Couldn’t help myself; was expecting burning tire, chimney or campfire. What I got was a subtle campfire smokiness layered atop toasted malts, light cocoa and that ethereal earthiness. Whew.

Taste is fire-toasted malt, bitter chocolate, cocoa powder, char and, well, smokiness. The latter brings a different element of taste to the fore that sets this beer apart. Otherwise feels like an Irish Stout - dry with a balanced bitterness.