Old World
Tree House Brewing Company

 

 

Pours a very dark chestnut with a large off-white head that fades to a thin cap of bubbles. Smell is rich and malty with some coffee and molasses notes. Taste is roasted malt, coffee and dark fruit with a hint of smoke. Sweet, but with a touch of bitterness in the swallow that keeps it from becoming cloying. A slow sipper of a beer (just a well considering the 8.2% ABV).

This appears to be on fairly regular rotation at Treehouse, and they're also making barrel-aged versions.

16oz. can into a Spellbound pint.

Pours a super dark amber. Foamy head. Nose is hints of molasses, coffee, roasted malt, and burnt toffee. Sweet. Nice complexity here. Beer opens coffee, roasted malt, and toffee. Some hazelnut shell in the middle with a roasty, coarse bitterness towards the end. Molasses and toffee on the finish. Body is light to medium with ample carbonation. Prickly and foamy on the palate and goes down aggressive and sparkling. I wish this was a touch less carbonated.

Decent overall but not a great interpretation at the end of the day.

Had on tap at Charlton. Pours clear, dark brown in color, with one inch head. Taste is roasted malt, toffee and peat. Medium body, low carbonation, slightly bitter. This one hits all the style points but is not up there with the classics in this style. Is definitely and Americanized version of a Scotch ale. Drinkable and above average with no major detractors but not one I see myself getting again.

 

 

 

Pours a dark chestnut brown with a finger of beige head. The nose has caramel notes with a hint of smoke in the background. The flavor profile has a deep maltiness that has a definite molasses-like sweetness.

 

 

From a 16oz can dated 2022 into a tulip.

Pours an opaque very dark brown with about three and a half fingers of tan head. Moderate retention, slight lacing.

Smells bready with some caramel. Light roast in the background.

Taste is slightly sweet. Caramel notes, light smoke. Some dark fruit.

Full-bodied, heavy mouthfeel. Medium carbonation. Sweet, dry lingering aftertaste.

Really nice beer. Not a style I'm an expert on, but this is really enjoyable.

 

2022 vintage

It's odd to see Tree House go this traditional with their style, I really never expected a Wee Heavy from them. I also find it odd that it is only dated with the year, as their cans usually have a full canning date. Oh well, let's see how they do with this rarely found style

Pours a very dark brown with 2 fingers of light tan head that fades to a thin cap and leaves minimal lacing

It's quite fruity in the nose, but it's also nicely balanced. I'm picking up on aromas of golden raisin, brown sugar, dates, peat smoke, toffee, biscuity malt, light molasses, and herbal hops

In taste it's pretty similar yet a tad sweeter, but still good. On the front end of the sip I'm tasting brown sugar, toasty malt, caramel, molasses, sweet raisin, light pepper, and herbal hops. The swallow brings notes of peat smoke, sweet caramel, burnt sugar, earthy hops, golden raisin, biscuity malt, and molasses

A medium body pairs with gentle tingling carbonation, resulting in a silky yet boozy beer. Finishes mostly dry with a oozy heat but it goes down easy

I quite enjoyed this one. A total side step for Tree House, but a welcome one. I'm excited to see what different style they do next

 

16 oz can poured into a snifter. Pours a dark chestnut brown with a large creamy head that fades away to a thin ring of bubbles. Almost no lacing. Aroma is complex and intriguing: smoky peat, caramel malt, earthy hops, hints of chocolate and coffee, toffee, dark fruit, and a hint of booze. Flavor is almost identical with the addition of a slight, faintly perceptible metallic twang. Mouthfeel is smooth, moderately carbonated, and hides the abv well. Overall this is a fantastic Scotch ale that is almost but not quite extraordinary.

Tree House Brewing Co. "Old World"
16 fl. oz. can coded "2022" and sampled on 05/28/22
$18.20/4-pk at the brewery on 05/12/22

Notes via stream of consciousness: It's poured a really dark mahogany brown that appears almost black in the full pont beneath a short head of yellowed tan foam. If you hold the glass up to the light you can see some ruby and orange highlights glimmering at the base of the glass. The head has already dropped a bit and it doesn't look like it will hold on for too much longer. The aroma is richly malty with notes of cocoa powder and caramel. The taste is quite similar but also much fuller. It's grainy, cereal like, and sweet with notes of golden caramel, milk chocolate, toffee, nuts, honey, brown sugar, and a delicate bit of molasses. Some alcohol comes through, and there's also a light fruitiness that's like apple. A smear of leafy hops and an edge of smoky roastiness rounds it out. The bitterness comes through. It appears moderate but there's probably more there than you might think because it has a lot of sweet malt to balance. It finishes mainly dry with the malt eroding quickly, although a limited amount sticks. The bitterness shows, and thus it's bittersweet with some toffee and an edge of smoky roastiness lingering shortly. It's nicely balanced but it could be a little more polished. How that would happen I don't know other than to suggests a little more time in the fermenter; and I think that perhaps some cellaring might help it as well. That's not to say that it's bad, just that it's not hitting the highest level that it could. In the mouth it's medium-full in body and a bit dextrinous. The carbonation is moderate and fine-bubbled leaving it smooth, and that explains at least part of its limited head retention and lacing; alcohol content might account for the rest but it is only 8.2% ABV. All in all I'm enjoying it quite a bit.
Review #8,019