Druid Pines
HammerHeart Brewing Company

 

From a 16oz can with no date on it.

This beer has a nice dark golden color to it, and is clear looking. There's a small stream of carbonation bubbles that are rising in the glass to the top. There's a 2 finger white head to the beer that has decent head retention. There's no lacing on the glass.
There's a light smoke aroma to this beer. This smoke doesn't overpower the grain hints in the aroma that lean toward cereal. There's also a cooked wild rice aroma to this beer, which makes sense, since they used wild rice in making the beer.
The flavor has a lot going on. The smoke seems to hit my taste buds right away, but isn't a strong smoke - very subtle. The grain, barley, hits next. The wild rice also provides a hint of an earthy, grassy flavor to this beer. There's a sweetness on the finish that is mild. The thing is about this beer, none of the flavors fade away. They build and add to the previous flavor.
The body is clingy in my throat. Very full bodied for the style. Smooth, almost creamy feeling.
This beer is a damn winner. Wow. Very happy and impressed with it.

From a pint can, pours a slightly cloudy, darkish gold. Smell features slightly sweetish grains, a bit of smoke, and some pine and floral hops. Taste follows. Feel has enough heft to make this a really satisfying beer that drinks bigger than its ABV. This is a beer that's not quite like anything I've had. I'm a big fan, it's awesome.

 

Appearance: Clear dark gold, good head.

Smell: A bit of smoke, and what I think is wild rice-grainy, earthy.

Taste: A bit of sweetness, then the browned rice comes in afterwards. Medium bodied. Mild smoke through the middle and in the finish.

Overall: Always pumped to see a new Hammerheart release, this is a “Laurentian Pilsner” with wild rice and smoked beechwood malt. It's pretty solid, there is smoke but not over-the-top, and the wild rice gives an interesting flavor.