Sandy Claws
Avery Brewing Company

Deep brown color with very little foam. Only the thinnest of rings around the edge of the glass. The nose is chocolate and mint, like a York peppermint patty. On the taste dark chocolate come first followed immediately by mint. The finish is a dry oakiness with a wee bit of booze. It is medium bodied with sparse carbonation. This is a super. Maybe a bit sweet but the barrel brings it back into balance. Nice Avery gold top.

 

Looks unassuming altogether.
Peppermint, chocolate...very nice on the nose. A punch of alcohol follows out. But really there’s a GS Cookie Thin Mint to it.
Taste is like much of the same. The peppermint is strong. It’s done cleanly though, except at times it teeters toward a mouthwash effect, although the moderately sweet malt stops it from emerging.
Feels medium and smooth; with medium carbonation. Nicely.
Not a thick imp. stout but that works to compliment the ingredients. It works to a success in the end. Avery always seems to reliably pull-off this style. Fun to drink and tasty, just like examples from Prairie, another brewery making high gravity & flavorful stouts.

12 ounce bottle, bottled on NOV 12 2018. Served in a snifter, the beer pours dark brown/black with about a half inch tan head that didn't stick around for too long. There's a small amount of lacing. I like the aroma, the brew smells like peppermint, milk chocolate, vanilla and bourbon. Taste is similar to the aroma, but there's also the addition of some roasted malt, oak and dark bready flavors. Bourbon character isn't strong, as I think the chocolate and peppermint flavors are stronger compared to the others. Mouthfeel/body is medium/full, it's coating and smooth with a low/moderate amount of carbonation. I'm not big on peppermint in general, but I thought it worked well in this brew. Would have liked to try this one fresher, but I think I bought this a month or 2 ago as I hadn't it around before. I liked it, definitely worth picking up if you've never tried it before.

On shelf at Spec’s, Schertz, TX. $ 16.19 (Including tax)/12 oz bottle ($ 1.35/oz). Reviewed 3/1/20.
Bottle stamped on front label “Bottled Nov 12 2018”. Stored at home at 42 degrees and served at 60 degrees in a hand washed and dried Jester King snifter.
Appearance – 3.
First pour – Dark brown, opaque. Some lumps fall from the bottle at the end of the pour.
Body – Dark brown/black, opaque. When held to direct light, the same.
Head – Small (Maximum 8 mm, aggressive center pour), khaki, high density, average duration, diminishing to a 0.5 mm ring of bubbles. The aforementioned lumps rise to the surface and leave coffee-ground like patches among the partial cap. As with icebergs, most of the lumps’ volume lie below the surface.
Lacing – None.
Aroma – 3 – Weak bourbon and weaker peppermint. Neither alcohol nor chocolate in the aroma.
Flavor – 3 - A distinct alcohol burn (14.5% ABV as marked on the label) begins at the hard palate and continues all the way down. Allowing it to warm to body temperature in my mouth only accentuates the alcohol but fails to make the peppermint or bourbon come to the front. A bit of chocolate does appear in the aftertaste. No diacetyl, no dimethylsulfide.
Palate – 3 – Just short of full, almost creamy, lively carbonation.
Final impression and summation: 3. Disappointing. At 14.5% ABV I wouldn’t expect any bacterial growth from contamination, so where did the peppermint and chocolate go and where did the lumps come from? My past experiences with Avery’s barrel-aged series has in general been very positive and I won’t let this miss stop me from future purchases but I will hesitate and ponder the cost/benefit ratio a bit longer before I grab another bottle from the series (except Rumpkin – I buy all of those I run across).

 

 

L:. Pours a thick pitch black with a small tan white head and no lacing on the glass..

S:. Very reminiscent of Andes mint, rich peppermint, mixes with a strong rich milk chocolate, smells very decadent.

T:. Strong peppermint, mixes with a luscious milk chocolate, and some roast malt. Bourbon is there but plays a backseat to the mint and chocolate. A fantastic decadent dessert beer.

F: Very thick body, smooth and slick, exactly how a stout should be.

O:. This beer is basically boozy Andes Mints in beer form which is amazing.

 

 

 

 

Bottled on Nov 12, 2018. $8.99/12 oz bottle. Poured into Goodwill, Good Cheer Holiday snifter.

Dark black as expected with a beige-brown ring of head.

Aroma is that of mint M&Ms straight from the tear. Nice minty profile with supplemental chocolate and slight nuttiness.

Tons of fantastic plain mint and peppermint, with just the perfect amount of chocolate and then a great supplemental sweetness from the bourbon barrel, also bringing heat. The heat is intense, unmistakable, like a raging fire, and lights up your head instantly. I can feel a quasi-sweat forming on my forehead. This is a quality beer.

Feel is slick, with equal levels of creaminess and carbonation, with lots of heat, almost like chili pepper but more polite, and a drying "sandy" finish though still enjoyable.

Overall, a kick ass beer, I'd say it's worth the price of admission. On par with something Prairie would do if they ever did a mint stout, sorry if that's insulting Avery but they are an industry standard in my opinion. Great beer, get it when and if they brew it again.

 

 

 

Bottled November 12th 2018.

Pours a pitch black with an initial head of tan foam. The foam went away leaving no lacing.

The smell is about the equal of Bourbon and mint. Got lamb? Lol.

Taste is sweet, big Bourbon notes, bigger notes of mint, boozy yet not something that you can put down cuz it's overwhelming. It does come close. 14.5% can be a deterrent...

Not quite full bodied, carbonation is on the lower side.

The mint really throws me off of what an Imperial Stout can or should be. In the end, I can appreciate the difference.

This is an alcoholic candy cane, and a very strong one at that. Avery loves them some double-digit ABV beers, and they're really good at making them, so I do too. You really get the strong taste of the peppermint and the imperial stout flavor much more than what comes from the bourbon barrel, so that might make this beer too sweet for some people. But it's a great dessert/sipping beer. Just be careful - with an ABV this high, you're probably gonna have a headache the next morning. It's worth it.

Turning the frown of any grinch upside down, a lavish and lush stout oozes out of the Avery Brewing Company to turn even the most drab bar into a winter wonderland.

Jet black and pouring like rich and inky darkness, Sandy Claws draws in the senses with a Christmas medley of chocolate, latte, peppermint and good old fashion Kentucky bourbon before a quick dissolve of froth beckons. Decadence ensues as a devilish malty sweet taste and cakey texture slathers the early palate with molasses, caramel, sweet cream, dark chocolate, dark and a fudgy flavor.

As the luscious flavors of malt and whisky saturate the middle palate, its rich sweetness turns over to bourbon nuances of coconut, vanilla, toasted oak, cherry and caramel for an even keel taste. The striking flavor of peppermint bring a sense of cheer to the late palate as its evaporative cooling spice enlivens the senses with both menthol cooling and peppery spice for a final pep of glee.

Full and ridiculously dessert-like, this version of adult hot chocolate leaves a long, savory and spicy taste on the finish with the prickling spice of whisky winning out in the end. The peppermint addition heightens the whisk spice for a bitter and slightly solventy linger into the next sip.

Poor head production with minimal retention. Brew has tons of sediment- likely spices - coating the glass and the top of the brew.

Peppermint, roasted barley, dark chocolate, and bourbon tease the nostrils in a relatively tame nose.

Flavor is thick and rich, featuring notes of dark coffee and caramelized brown sugar from the malt, and mint and chocolate from the adjuncts. Bourbon is smooth, adding a nice vanilla and mash tone, as well as some boozy back end heat.

Full bodied and warming, although very easy to drink.

This is a perfect holiday ale. It’s tasty and festive, big and bold, yet still smooth and drinkable.