Eccentric Ale 2016
Bell's Brewery - Eccentric Café & General Store

 

 

12 ounce bottle into tulip glass, bottled on 11/30/2017. Pours dense fairly hazy deep reddish/orange/copper color with a 1 finger dense cream colored head with awesome retention, that reduces to a small cap that lasts. Great thick soapy lacing clings on the glass, with a fair amount of streaming carbonation retaining he cap. Fantastic appearance. Aromas of big lemon, raisin, plum, fig, pear, red apple, berry, orange, coriander, cardamom, juniper, spruce, ginger, peppercorn, peppers, lavender, hibiscus, leather, tobacco, caramel, maple syrup, brown sugar, toasted brown bread, light molasses/cocoa, herbal, floral, grass, and yeast/toasted earthiness. Damn nice aromas with great balance of dark/bready malt, spices, maple/sugar/molasses, and light-moderate earthy hop notes; with great strength. Taste of big lemon, raisin, plum, fig, pear, red apple, berry, orange, coriander, cardamom, juniper, spruce, ginger, peppercorn, peppers, lavender, hibiscus, leather, tobacco, caramel, maple syrup, brown sugar, toasted brown bread, light molasses/cocoa, herbal, floral, grass, and yeast/toasted earthiness. Mild herbal/floral/grassy hop bitterness and peppery spiciness on the finish. Lingering notes of lemon, raisin, plum, fig, pear, red apple, berry, orange, coriander, cardamom, juniper, spruce, ginger, peppercorn, peppers, lavender, hibiscus, leather, tobacco, caramel, maple syrup, brown sugar, toasted brown bread, light molasses/cocoa, herbal, floral, grass, and yeast/toasted earthiness on the finish for a while. Awesome complexity, robustness, and balance of dark/bready malt, spices, maple/sugar/molasses, and light-moderate earthy hop flavors; with an great malt/bitter/spiciness balance, and zero cloying sweetness after the finish. Lightly increasing dryness from lingering bitter/spiciness. Light-medium carbonation and fairly full body; with a very smooth, creamy/silky/bready, and lightly slick/syrupy/sticky balanced mouthfeel that is great. Mildly increasing warmth of 13.7% after the finish. Overall this is an awesome spiced American strong ale! All around great complexity, robustness, and balance of dark/bready malt, spices, maple/sugar/molasses, and light-moderate earthy hop flavors; very smooth and dangerously easy to sip on for the huge ABV with the mildly bitter/spicy/drying finish. This drinks like a spiced up American barleywine. So much going on, but it is perfectly balanced with rich malts/sugars and earthy spices. Nothing feels overwhelming or out of place. A really enjoyable and unique offering. Glad I was finally able to try one of these. They change the spices every year.

Strong booze smell when first opened. VERY strong beer.