Manhattan
Hidden Cove Brewing Co.

 

 

 

 

EBF sample. Pours a dull brown color. Nose is sour and of brown malts. Maybe some sourdough bread. Some oakiness. Flavor is of caramel and some darker malts. Medium sourness. Light oak. Sourdough. I guess this is supposed to taste like the cocktail but I've never had one so I cannot say. It was a decent sample of beer. Could stand to get some more of this to better dissect it. Hey, maybe even order a Manhattan so I know what I'm talking about.

 

 

 

The online info for this is sparse and conflicting. I sampled it on tap yesterday at the Naumkeag Ordinary in Salem, MA, and the bartender said it was a sour brown that had been aged in rye barrels that had previously been used to age their Pecan beer. So... stylistically it's kind of up in the air.

Poured like a higher ABV sour brown: dark and a little limp. Smells like a pretty normal sour brown, with just a little touch of whiskey smoothness cutting through the tart.

But, man, it tastes good. The intent of name didn't hit me until I was nearly halfway through the pint: it tastes like a goddamn manhattan. Like, the drink that has rye and sweet vermouth. Whiskey up front, moving into a piercing sweet and sour middle that finishes with a pleasant touch of booziness.

Very neat beer, well worth seeking out.