Hard Cuts
Cellarmaker Brewing Co.

 

Appearance: Pours a clear coffee color with a thin khaki foam that fades away; no lacing but quite leggy

Smell: Fig, raisin, caramel and molasses with bourbon and rye tones wafting

Taste: FIg raisin and molasses forward with caramel and burnt sugar tones adding sweetness; after the swallow, the bourbon and rye element build, adding a boozy finish

Mouthfeel: Full bodied with low carbonation; warmth in the gullet

Overall: Interesting to taste the Munich malt in a Barleywine; this is a really big beer with a massive flavor profile

Look - Pours a very dark brown- black color with little/ no head, and lots of lacing on the glass when swirled.

Smell - Smell is nice. Dark fruit, molasses, port, rye barrel, and honey.

Taste - Taste is also very good. Lots of dark fruit, molasses, rye barrel, port, rum, and a hint of tobacco.

Feel - Has a wonderful creamy feel for a Munichwine.

Overall - I really enjoyed this. I'm SO impressed with Cellarmaker barleywines/Munichwines!

375 mL bottle into a snifter

Dark brown brew yields a wispy head on a hard pour. Nose is of molasses, prunes and grainy oak.

Flavors are whisky-forward, strong notes of grain - rye and barley. Suggestions of pit fruit and maraschino cherries lead to a long, sweet finish. Lots of oak to balance the complexion, along with a good amount of carbonation, which gives the brew levity.

Booze is unbelievably masked making this dangerously delicious. This one could age pretty much indefinitely.

Drank from a 12.7 oz bottle purchased on Tavour
Served in a snifter

The beer poured a super syrupy and viscous, but nearly crystal clear, deep mahogany hue. A thin, fizzy, caramel colored cap of froth topped the liquid, but it dissolved within seconds. The resulting liquid looked completely flat and almost spirit like.

The aroma was outstanding. It was super intense and complex with a huge dark fruit presence. Raisins and figs dominated initially. Tawny port definitely came to mind. There was a punchy and sweet, rum-like character as well. Loads of caramel malt sweetness too. Nice nutty/almond character. Good dose of vanilla. Crème brûlée perhaps. There was a prominent sticky, boozy, wheat wine-like quality as well. For a 16% ABV beer, however, the alcohol was noticeable but not at all excessive.

The flavor profile carried on exactly where the aroma left off. It too was super rich, boozy and complex with a nice balance of both sweet and savory notes. Huge caramel malt and toffee presence up front. Dark fruit notes kicked in next. Loads of raisin, date, plum and fig character. An aged sherry came to mind. Really sugary and sweet but also fairly savory and earthy. Molasses was noticeable too. Nice nutty/almond presence in the center. Boozy bourbon and/or spicy rye notes came through on the back end and carried into the finish. Some leathery and tobacco notes were also apparent here. More boozy warmth and lingering sweet/savory dark fruit notes after the swallow.

The mouthfeel was the only aspect of the beer that was somewhat disappointing. It was rich and syrup but not to the degree I anticipated. The liquid contained a finely beaded, somewhat spritzy effervescence that seemed a bit odd for a beer of this magnitude.

Hard Cuts was definitely one of the more unique and complex beers I have tried in recent memory, and yet it was also surprisingly easy to drink. This was my first time trying a “Munichwine,” and I definitely plan to seek out more of them in the future.

 

 

Seems like a barrel aged Barleywine more than anything. Sweet and sticky with vanilla, brown sugar, honey, and barrel notes. Subtle alcohol presence. Not bad.

Opaque super dark brown body, tan cap. Wow the smell is laced with that sweet munich malt, barley, brown sugar, and bourbon, no nuance but plenty of potency. Taste is very sweet with an emphasis on the malt, raisin, jammy fig, brown sugar laced molasses, toffee, toasted earth, barley, and oak counter a bit, but ultimately is very sweet as back with the bourbon. Feel is dry, but the sugars do add up for the sip, cooler for barleywine

Sweet and sticky caramel-toffee, a hint of honey and butterscotch, dark fruity, and a bourbon barrel boozy nose on this one! Taste follows with a sweet brown sugar candy, raisiny-figs, and balanced bourbon barrel finish. More a a full, medium-bodied mouthfeel to this one, but this is drinking fantastic right now!

 

Devoured my first sustained liquids from these two breweries during a recent visit to San Fransisco, so interested to see what comes out of this 375 ML bottle.

The pour is dark with a bit of tan around the edges; what little head there is deflates rapidly. Surprisingly light on the nose, just a little molasses.

Hard Cuts is certainly hard. Hard alcohol for hard men & all that. The depth to this is remarkable, mostly in the barrels. There’s bourbon with a strong side shot of rye bourbon & soft molasses. Mid-palate brings sweet cherry, burnt wood, & the beginnings of a swelling booziness (that doesn’t interfere with the taste). The sweetness, however, does build. The finish is the purest expression of toffee I’ve sensed in a beer & something I can’t put my finger on. I’ll call in Munich. Given the sugary smile this is the correct amount, despite the tastiness.

Private Press & Cellarmaker barreled this one up; 114.5 MPH off the bat, nice launch angle. Unique, delicious, full of bourbon & rye & molasses. What more does one want? Fantastic beer.

I'm just coming off my second beer from Cellarmaker earlier today, and it was great. So far the Smoked Porter and NEIPA I've had from them have both been awesome, and this is yet another wildly different style. I've never had a straight up Munichwine, but it should still be interesting even though it is a smaller component of the blend here. Let's crack it open and find out what it has to offer

Pours an opaque medium brown a finger of creamy tan head that quickly fades to a ring and leaves minimal lacing, has nice legs though

It’s sweet and boozy in the nose, really reminding of something like Utopias or Hair Of The Dog’s Don. I’m picking up on aromas of port wine, apple skin, toffee, toasted walnut, molasses, black cherry, burnt caramel, smooth oak, pear brandy, sweet bourbon, tobacco, and vanilla bean

It continues down the same path in taste, very sweet but incredibly balanced at the same time. On the front of the sip I’m tasting port wine, burnt caramel, apple skin, toasted walnut, molasses, cherry pit, smooth oak, raisin, medium roast coffee, and vanilla bean. The swallow brings notes of molasses, sweet rum, port wine, smooth oak, toasted walnut, fig, cherry pit, apricot jam, vanilla bean, burnt caramel, and light leafy hops

A medium full body pairs with gentle carbonation, resulting in a smooth and slick beer. Finishes surprisingly dry and drinks well below its abv

Holy shit, Cellarmaker is quickly becoming one of my favorite breweries. I’ve tried three wildly different styles from them and each one has been great, but this one takes the cake. Phenomenal beer

poured from a 375mL bottle into a TG DBA tumbler. pours a thick, muddy brown (like a good barleywine should) with a crackling, fizzling head that disappears as quickly as it shows up. bourbon, oak, toffee, dark fruit and dark bread on the nose. taste follows with bourbon-soaked toffee, pumpernickel bread and plums leading the way. there’s a ton of barrel character yet this does not drink like 16%. thick, full mouthfeel. the carbonation i suspected from the foam upon pouring is hardly there at all. this is super good. very barleywine-esque (i mean i guess that’s what munich wine is going for) and loads of barrel presence. highly enjoyable.

The pour looks dark brown and clear, producing a relatively thick, tan head. Incredibly rich aroma; dark roasted grains with notes of roasted nuts, barrel wood, charred caramel, and a bit of boozy waft. Immensely dense and complex flavors; dark chocolate and caramel nougat; brown sugar; roasted nuts; a fine boozy undercurrent; deep overall sweetness but not cloying. Heavy mouthfeel; rich and chewy on the palate; excellent alcohol warmth courses through the residual sugars.

This is likely my first experience with munichwines. While the beer is actually a blend of a barrel aged barleywine and two barerel aged munichwines, I'm really intrigued to know more about the munichwine style in general. In the meantime, this barrel-aged blended barleywine/munichwine hybrid is simply a killer. There are layers of flavor and feel to this beer and the aroma is to die for. This is just one fantastic mammoth dark ale.

ABV: 16%; pouring temperature: 49 °F; bottling info: n/a
Source: Tavour

Dark, ruddy brown with a thin khaki head that quickly settles into a wisp and crown.

Thick dark caramel, vanilla and toffee candies in the nose.

Caramel and molasses up front in the taste, joined by some jammy and complex port wine sweetness, that’s cut slightly in the finish by the rye pepperiness and a mildly bitter aftertaste.

Thick bodied with some zippy carbonation cutting through.

The Private Press munichwine I had on tap was one of the best beers I’ve tasted. This is also very good. Great flavor profile, including distinctive rye character, coupled with a hefty mouthfeel.