Nomad Oak
Tree House Brewing Company

 

Nearly obsidian in color with with fluffy, tightknit, reasonably lasting foam. First thing I noticed while drinking was its creamy velvety feel. Ya, this is going to be good. Pumpernickel toast, hints of chocolate, roasty malt, drying wood, faint floral hops. Oaking this is the capper as it drowns out any unwanted sweetness and allows the beers complexities to come forward. Incredibly drinkable or if you're so inclined, a nice sipper as well. Not to be missed.

 

 

 

among the best in its class, certainly among the best ive ever had, the oak is subtle but also defining, and this is a beer if insane complexity, refined to the max, wow. a dark brown ale looking pour with good shine gives rise to nearly two inches of tight cream head, looks almost nitro from the pint can, a generous gift from a new beer friend. its too cold from the fridge, smells kind of minimal at first, so i give it some time to come up a little bit, and its worth the wait. fine european malts with a ton of depth greet my nose, a trace of smoke but its not intense, some roasted bitterness, cocoa, espresso, dark volcanic soil and attendant minerality, raisin, but also exceedingly dry, with bready old world lager yeast patiently done, a subtle earthy thing from the wood, trace vanilla but again drying, slate, very autumnal to me. the flavor has the wood all woven though, flashing in and out the whole drink, but more apparent as it warms, not any kind of barrel aged intensity, its more neutral than that, just mellowing. the malt is awesome, and this has some body, a little richer and more substantial than most actually czech examples of the style i have known, but its not heavy to drink. not at all, its airy and crushable, but still creamy and palate coating. dry chocolate character, wet wood, forest floor, and bread crusts are all there late, a mocha thing, hazelnut, bran. smooth as can be, lively but also kind of nitro feeling to me, so creamy and frothy and long. this is a luxurious lager, dialed in to the highest degree, and a beer i would drink every single day if i had it available to me. perhaps a new gold standard in the style, i cannot think of a better beer in this space. its always the hops that get the hype from these guys, but this is about as good as any tree house beer ive ever consumed...

Pours a very dark brown with a good head that quickly subsides to a thin layer of light tan bubbles. Aroma is of rye bread, malt and possibly a hint of oak. Taste brings out a little more oak and some dark chocolate notes. Carbonation is strong but not overdone. Mouthfeel is creamy and coating.

 

 

 

 

Yep, this is pretty great. Roasty, slightly overdone toasted dark bread with seeds is what I get primarily. The oak and grassy hops at the finish close this out nicely.

Pours a dark opaque brown color. Reddish around the edges when held up to the light. Thick, frothy tan head forms on the beer upon being poured. The head recedes, but a thin residual layer of foam remains on the beer at all times. Aroma has notes of lightly roasted malts, some subtle cream notes and a touch of oak.

Taste is excellent - notes of rye bread, dark malt, light toast, some cream, maybe a touch of coffee and then this smooth oaky character on the finish. This is perfect - I honestly am enjoying this flavor profile so much I can't think of anything that could be better. Feel is light, easy drinking, smooth, almost velvety. Moderate carbonation. Semi-dry finish.

Overall Tree House call this the crown jewel of their lager program and I can see why - it's the best Tree House beer I have ever had.

From a 16oz can, date-stamped simply ‘Winter 2022’ which, considering the possibility that they post-dated these cans like they have some others, makes this can anywhere between, what? four and six months old? Not such a big deal considering the style maybe but I fucking hate that you’re doing this. Whatever. Served in a Deerfield Taproom First Anniversary pub glass.

Pours a rich, dark cola colour with two fingers of pouffy beige head. Retention is unremarkable, maybe because it folded down while I was bitching about canning dates and not watching my glass. See? This is what happens. Leaves a fizzy cap and a rousable, thin sheet of sudsy lacing.

Nose is mildly roasty and has a sharp mineral/metallic tang.

Taste is slightly thin, charred, and with a woody, tannic, almost camphor-like quality. Tasting burnt coffee and sawdust on the palate and mothballs in the sinuses.

Feel is clean and dry, medium-thin bodied with seltzer-like carbonation. Tannic, drying finish.

Overall, pretty OK. Crown jewel, yada, yada, yada, whatever. But tbh I’m still pissed about the date.

 

Had on tap at Sandwich. Pours opaque, black in color with one inch head. Taste is dark bread, chocolate malt and a touch of oak. Medium light body, moderate low carbonation, slightly sweet. Excellent lager. A beer drinkers beer. Reminds me of drinking in Germany.

on draft at the brewery, served from Lukr tap, in a half liter mug.

Almost black in color, thick khaki colored head. Great mild roasty flavor, dry finish, touch of oak. Nice fuller bodied and creamy feel. Overall this is an outstanding Czech Dark Lager, probably the best I have drank.

On side pull draft at Tree House Brewing Company in Charlton, MA.

This one pours a dark creamy looking black color, with a big fluffy and creamy looking head.

This smells like clean roasted malt, char, smoke, dark chocolate, licorice, and peppery hops.

This is just about spot on, and probably the best Tree House lager that I’ve had so far. There’s a charred oaky bark sort of character, with licorice, dark chocolate, roasted malt, with just a touch of hop character.

This is creamy, and very rich for the lower ABV here, with a fantastic drinkability.

This was pretty easily the best beer I had on a recent first Trip to Tree House, and it’s really not like I had any bad beers there.