Ride The Wendigo
Clown Shoes

 

 

 

 

 

It’s been a long time since I rode a Wendigo. Probably about 25 years, & I believe I was a 4th level Halfling Thief at the time. 22 oz. bottle split with my wife.

The pour is dark clay, like the old pits out near the Minnesota Renaissance Festival (now those Wendigo were FUN). The nose is large-knuckled vanilla (LOOK AT MY HANDS), honeyed sweetness, cognac that comes & goes depending on the whiff. Mostly barrel.

Ride the Wendigo could be repackaged as light cognac - I see a market opening, capitalists. The cognac barrel is draped over this beer like a thick fungus, albeit a tasty one. Warm cognac, vanilla, sweet malt, a slight tang reminiscent of a toned-down pinot noir. Caramel & desert-baked oak come in on the end, leaving me high & dry. Belly-warming alcohol begins to sneak up after several sips. Nice light body makes it easy to drink despite the bell-ringing ABV.

The beer gets lost in the barrel, but at least it’s a decent barrel. Pretty good beer that I’d like to see more beer in.

 

L: Pours brilliant brown with ruby highlights under a ½” tan cap that fairly quickly recedes.
S: Smells like cognac, alcohol, rich malts, kettle sugars.
T: Starts with big rich malts quickly followed by a wave of cognac alcohol, big kettle sugars with some caramel with hints of chocolate, coca cola, very faint coffee and root beer. The malt flavors are medium high and the hop bitterness and flavor are medium low.
F: Very smooth and creamy, full bodied medium low carbonation.
O: A big bold full bodied beer.

 

 

22oz bottle from Justdoit1234 (thanks man!). Bottled 10/22/15. Served in a Clown Shoes snifter.

Pours a ruddy, opaque mahogany with a quarter finger of manilla head. The froth dissipates to a milky haze and full halo. Only a few scattered specks of lace remain.

Sweet, inviting aroma od apples, oak, toffee, vanilla and cherries. The cognac notes make this mich more interesting to me than the average scotch ale.

A blast of sweet, fruity, semi boozey cognac rides the palate throughout. Under that blanket are flavors of apple, wet wood, cherry skins, toffee, caramel, vanilla, a hint of peat and a hearty kick of alcohol. The relatively straightforward malty base is ideal to showcase the phenomenal cognac barrel character here. Outstanding.

Creamy, medium full texture with softly prickling carbonation. Toffee, cognac and vanilla continue delivering a delicious gustatory experience in the finish.

Clown Shoes surpassed my expectations with Ride The Wendingo. The smooth, malty wee heavy proves an ideal springboard for the cognac barrel character. I wish I'd acquired more but I'm quite glad to have tried it and have another bottle to enjoy this again in the near future.

 

 

 

This beer pours a dark brown with a minimal head. The aroma is not very powerful, with small hints of dark fruit and spice. The flavor is surprisingly reserved for how big a beer this is, with notes of plum, fig, cinnamon, clove, banana, caramel, and anise. The mouthfeel is rich with low carbonation. Overall this was an incredibly smooth and refined sipper.

Tan head. Caramel ruby colored.

Flavors are very sweet. Toffee and caramel. Candied malts. The cognac shows much more than I expected. Very oaky. Vanilla. Molasses.

Nice offering. Huge barrel flavors. Very sweet and cloying.

 

This beer actually surprised me in the taste, much better than most of clown shoes offerings (always disappointed) The big knock on this beer is the body might be the thinest I have ever experienced in a beer. Thin to the max...this makes some of central waters reserve series offerings seem like whole milk consistency

 

NOTE: I let this age a year.
I bought two RTW's, opened one up fresh and the other I let sit for a year. The fresh RTW was a bit strong in taste and finish, I would not say harsh, but the first few sips will definitely wake you up. Aged one year though...WOW! Same dark appearance and wonderful brandy like aroma as fresh But veeeery smooth taste and finish. Whatever semi-harshness was there is now completely gone. No idea what two years might do, but one year seemed perfect to me.