The Hills Have Envy
Crooked Stave Artisan Beer Project

Grown from eyes to envy, the hills have much more than observations and resentment, they also house a stout constructed form fifty six months of select barrel aging and brought to the tastebuds of beer enthusiasts. I would probably have envy too.

Jet black and releasing little in the way of froth, The Hills Have Envy seduces the senses with a sultry and savory scent of dark roast coffee, dark chocolate, booze soaked sweetness, vanilla, coconut, caramel and smoky char. Rich malt sweetness slathers the tastebuds with blackstrap molasses maltiness, bittersweet chocolate, caramel and cream to suggest a burnt nougat character. More robust espresso flavors pull from the roasted grains and continue down a bourbon and s'mores finish with low-lying bitterness and a continued smooth malty sweetness.

Full bodied, playfully cloying and truly designed as an after dinner digestive, these hills are on par with fine port and sherry.

A - Dark brown pour with lots of viscosity and no lacing.

S - Bourbon and molasses on the nose with some chocolate malt.

T - Bourbon, oak, molasses, alcohol warming, some brown sugar. A little astringent overall.

M - Big silky body, warming on the way down.

O - Pretty boozy but enjoyable.

 

Black thick dark with a thin tan ring around the edge. The nose is cherries, very boozy, vanilla, and raisins. It tastes of fig, caramel, woody char, molasses, and ever present whiskey. There is a nice chewy mouthfeel with a slightly bitter finish. This is a pretty good beer but the booze is a bit overwhelming.

 

On-draught at Tabletop Tap, Colorado.

A bit sludgy in its thickness, but th bourbon tones are nice.

B- / WORTHY

Poured very dark out of the bottle, with a super dense, brown head. I am shocked how much creamy carbonation is in this beer after nearly 5 years of barrel-aging. While it sits black in the glass, the edges are a transparent, ruby brown when held up to the light. Swirl the beer in the glass, and the dense head re-emerges. ➡️ You could almost eat it with a spoon.

Unsurprisingly, the nose is very oaky, with notes of caramel apple, smoked raisins and dark chocolate.

Flavor is strangely light, with big barrel tannins, raisins, pipe tobacco, smoky malts, roast, and finishes with a dry bitterness that’s like eating a piece of high cacao dark chocolate. Definitely heats up as it warms.

Mouthfeel is super rich, and the smoothness of the dense carbonation fills your palate. The dark chocolate bitterness is a pleasant tingle on the tongue.

I liked this beer, but I wanted to really love it. The dark fruit, smoke and oaky tannins just drove this beer to a part of the flavor spectrum that I have a hard time with. It’s very good, and I can certainly appreciate the balance and the time that went into it, but it’s not exactly the profile that I am looking for.

Abyss black body topped with a thick, light brown head; heavy brown sheets of foam streak the glass. Outstanding aroma of roasted grain, charred wood, and a suggestion of coffee. Rich, powerful flavors of milk chocolate and cocoa; well-blended and subtle bourbon peaks in midway through each sip; earthy sweetness and faint esters; brief note of sweet cherries. Heavy body; velvety and chewy; huge residual sugar presence; warm boozy character.

Crooked Stave created a wondrous barrel-aged imperial stout. The standard superlatives of depth, balance, and complexity almost seem inadequate here, but they do fit. This is a very limited release, so grab some of you find it.

Pours pitch black with a thin dark brown head.

The nose is dark chocolate, vanilla, apple, and hints of savory depth.

The taste features rich notes of dark chocolate, vanilla, and raisin. Medium sweetness rides out on the finish and rounds out the beer.

The mouthfeel is medium+ for the style.

Overall, very good.