T5 Express
The Brew Kettle Taproom & Smokehouse / Production Works

Continuing to clear out the backlog... canned on 3/16/21, but not the first I have had and will be referring to past tasting notes. 12 oz can poured into a tulip.

Look - It's dark black with muddy brown head that fades away quickly, leaving little lacing.

Smell - The barrel smell is powerful. It's a lot of alcohol with a little peanut butter lurking underneath it. Malty. Yeah, I can agree it's brutal but still enjoyable.

Taste - It's really not as sweet as you would think. I think it's chocolate and caramel forward, with some pretzels thrown in. Plenty malty, quite strong, but not as much bourbon. The peanut butter is more peanut than butter imho.

Feel - Thinner than the average stout but has a way of lingering. Think it's that caramel-chocolate. Even some lingering salt. Alcohol is hidden.

It's a good beer. Not as crazy as one would think, but still enjoyable. Just be wary of the ABV. It will creep up on you.

This is a collaboration beer from The Brew Kettle and Duclaw
poured from a can dated 3/16/21

Pours dark brown very little head and no retention

There is a funky almost off putting aroma of moldy or fermented peanut butter or wet oak. It over whelms the roasted caramel. It might be the bourbon barrel influence.

Taste is a different story, really nice peanut butter flavor, roasted malt and a bit of caramel, I did not get a lot of bourbon but it's there.

mouthfeel is on the thin side, a little prickly up front but mostly creamy, no alcohol burn to speak of and a nice lingering peanut butter finish.

Overall it's pretty easy drinking, peanut butter is the most dominating flavor, aroma was weird but did not affect the taste. You can tell it's been barrel aged. I liked it.

 

 

Collaboration with DuClaw Brewing Co. Canned on 3/16/21. 12oz can poured into a tulip. Pours almost black; dark khaki head that fades quickly leaving very little retention and lacing. The aromas are malt forward. There's a mild blend of bourbon, peanuts, caramel and pretzel dough. The flavors follow the nose. More peanuts leading the way. More caramel along with some cocoa. The pretzels come through. The bourbon is mild and subtle, but blends well with everything. Subtle hints of maple in the mix. It's not really as sweet as you might think, but it's not bitter either. Malts do their thing. Alcohol is well hidden and goes unnoticed. Mouthfeel is on the lighter side of full-bodied with moderate to active carbonation. It's slightly thin but pretty smooth.

This brew is kind of odd, but not in a bad way. It gets bonus points for being unique. The peanuts shine, but they come off as actual peanuts and not peanut butter, which is fine, for whatever it's worth. The bourbon is pretty subtle but ultimately noticeable. Not bad or anything, but it's not as crazy as I was personally expecting due to the allstar ingredient combination. All of the ingredients do come through though.

 

Wow. A collaboration of DuClaw and Brew Kettle, which opened a site two miles from my house at the beginning of the pandemic. Two well respected brewers, by me, anyway.

It pours with a slight, brutal head. The aroma is a terrible stench - but beautiful. It is harsh smelling, with loads of alcohol, monster-loads of nasty chocoholic, malty and slightly peanut buttery... it is raw. The overall effect, for me is quite raw, with a ridiculous amount of flavor married to alcohol. It feels like 15%, not 10%.

Recommended. A nice find. Hopefully this listing works for other lucky samplers.