Helluland Batch 1000
Revolution Brewing

 

Released fall 2016; drank 5/28/20 @ the Yarchives.

Opaque dark brown appearance; champagne bubbles throughout.

An even pour yielded a small noisy khaki head which quickly dissipated; no lace.

This smelled like an Old Fashioned; bourbon, orange peel & faint cinnamon notes in the nose.

Sticky, medium mouthfeel -- again, like an Old Fashioned.

Bourbon, orange peel, mild oak & faint caramelized sugar flavors; booze heat notes on the finish. As this warmed, cinnamon notes emerged.

This was drinkable, especially after almost 4 years, but you should probably just drink an Old Fashioned if that's what you're in the mood for.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I can get why this is polarizing or why many would not care for it. Helluland is very forward with the orange zest flavor. I would not characterize it as overpowering, because there is a lot of subtlety and complexity underneath it--as the beer warms--but it is certainly the dominant, strongest impression. It's also not the sort of sweet orange flavor that everyone goes nuts for in "juicy" IPAs; it's very apparent that the zest was used, as the nose in particular has a significant pithy bitterness. The style itself is useless for rating, but there does appear to be a brown ale with nutty and malty notes lurking underneath the orange zest, along with a moderately dry finish from the surprisingly high ABV. The barrel character is present, but it plays second fiddle.

If you know what you're getting into and like the sound of it, you'll be predisposed to really enjoy how flavorful this is. Enjoy it as a dessert (my wife compared it to a Pimm's and lemonade). But if you're expecting a brown ale with some orange-infused accents, you may be understandably turned off by its intensity.

 

 

 

 

 

The smell isn't quite as bad, but I was a little worried after one whiff. The orange zest is just too much; it tastes like cleaning product mixed with cough syrup. Good concept, and maybe dialing back the adjunct a bit could help, but I just couldn't enjoy this beer at all.

 

22 ounce bottle into a snifter, also had on tap.

Pours a medium brown amber, cloudy, with no real head and light, soapy lacing. Aromas of bourbon, caramel, toffee, some orange- more as it warms, some chocolate, light char, a generally spicy aroma. The flavor is bourbon, dates, malt, caramel, some chocolate and figs, orange as it warms- especially on the finish. A light citrus bitterness up front, a spicy overall flavor. Smooth, a good medium to full body, well carbonated.

The barrels and the orange are the stars, here. The solid base displays both very well. This is at it’s best fully warmed, especially the orange. Very enjoyable.
H010419