Charkoota Rye - Brandy Barrel-Aged
New Holland Brewing Company

From notes. L: Pours brilliant chestnut under a clingy 1” light foam collar. S: Smoke, spice, dark sugars. T: Rich and malty, smoke, sweet, some rye spiciness, rich dark sugars, brown sugar to treacle or light molasses, slight cola to almost root beer. The smoke is moderate and not over bearing. The brandy barrel is there but you have to hunt for it. F: Medium low carbonation, soft and smooth, medium body, a little sticky. O: An excellent Doppel Bock from a brewery that has developed a knack for aging beer in barrels.

 

Vintage 2012

Light, woody smoke blankets the nose, but notes of dark, dried fruit and caramels push thru, backed by a touch of heat from the ABV.

Lightly roasted malts and rich caramels. Lots of rich caramels, with a touch of milk chocolate and molasses. Hints of toffee with just a touch of black cherry in the finish. ABV completely hidden. Smooth and very delicious. Wish I'd snagged a couple more bottles of this.

22 ounce bottle into tulip glass, 2012 vintage. Pours nearly opaque dark brown color with a 2 finger fairly dense tan head with good retention, that reduces to a small cap that lingers. Light spotty soapy lacing clings on the glass, with a fair amount of streaming carbonation. Aromas of big wood smoke, chocolate, caramel, toffee, toast, brown sugar, brown rye bread, raisin, plum, cherry, brandy, oak, light char, and oak/smoky earthiness. Damn nice aromas with good balance and complexity of dark/smoked malt, brandy barrel, and dark fruit notes; with good strength. Taste of big wood smoke, chocolate, caramel, toffee, toast, brown sugar, brown rye bread, raisin, plum, cherry, brandy, oak, light char, and oak/smoky earthiness. Slight smoke/roasted bitterness on the finish; with lingering notes of wood smoke, chocolate, caramel, toffee, toast, brown sugar, brown rye bread, raisin, plum, cherry, brandy, oak, light char, and oak/smoky earthiness on the finish for a while. Damn nice complexity and robustness of dark/smoked malt, brandy barrel, and dark fruit flavors; with a great malt/barrel balance and zero cloying flavors after the finish. Light-medium carbonation and medium-full bodied; with a very smooth, moderately creamy, and lightly slick mouthfeel that is great. Alcohol is very well hidden with only a light warming present after the finish. Overall this is a damn nice barrel aged smoked doppelbock style. All around great complexity and balance of dark/smoked malt, brandy barrel, and dark fruit flavors; and very smooth to sip on for the big ABV. A very enjoyable offering.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Dated 2012, poured into a Chimay goblet.
Head is almost nonexistent, even pouring a bit high yielded only a finger at most.
Looks a very dark brown or black, though held up to a light you can see it is a very deep red. Smells of chocolate and cherry, bit of smoke, very pleasing smell to me. Taste is initially a heavy smoke giving way to chocolate and a predominant cherry sweetness. No overbearing alcohol flavor or burn to speak of. Nice full body with a good amount of effervescence.

Overall a very good barrel aged from New Holland yet again. Love the Dragons Milk a bit more but this is a close second in my book.

Poured from an undated/unmarked 22 oz. bottle into a tulip.

Appearance: There was hardly any head, but a ring of foam remained in the glass. The beer is an opaque black/brown with red highlights.

Aroma: Sweet brandy with hints of caramel, chocolate and cherry.

Taste: In general, this beer has a deep flavor. The predominant character is definitely the smokiness. The rest of the taste follows the aroma. There is minimal hops bitterness. Smoke and sweet (almost too sweet) give way to a lesser sweetness with bitter chocolate. There is only a slight alcohol heat; perhaps a bit more would have balanced-out the sweetness.

Mouthfeel: Perfect! This beer has a full body and a pleasant level of carbonation.

Overall: This beer is a part of my barrel-aged kick that I'm currently on. I liked it and would look for it again. Since the smoky taste is quite pronounced, it is recommended for those who like smoke. It is recommended with pork (a pairing that I wasn't able to try but it sounds interesting). As noted above, the sweetness is also quite pronounced, and perhaps another flavor component would have been nice to balance-out some of this sweetness. As the beer warms, the sweetness and smoke become more noticeable (maybe this is a well-known phenomenon...).

 

 

 

 

 

2012 Charkoota Rye aged in brandy barrels. Pouring into pint glasses.

Pours darker than burgundy, but as a very dark brown. The head was tough to get to form, but a high pour yielded almost two static inches. The foam is beige in color and dimpled with surface bubbles.

Sweet doppelbock aromas of raisin and dark malts, but with added components of bonfire smoke and brandy. Dark fruits, steakhouse bread, grill smoke, and barrel wood.

Caramelly sweet and meat smoky. Not as offensively huge as regular Charkoota Rye. The brandy barrel-aging works to accent the fruits and provide some woody bitterness. Still a little bit too candied. The smoke comes through in the middle and finish, and resounds sweet and porky (which is probably the intention). The more it warms, the more apparent this becomes. Rye malts are a big plus and give the beer some spiciness and tanginess. The alcohol, on the other hand, makes itself known as a main ingredient.

A little hot, but almost appropriate for 9.35%. Carbonation is slightly softer than medium. The body is fuller than medium with light tackiness and mouthcoat. Not outrageous for the style, especially for the way it's been revamped.

I like this brandy barrel-aged version. It's still a big brawny doppelbock, where in this case, the smoke and barrel-aging mutes the dark fruits. But, the flavors are bold, but not repulsive, in this form. I'd certainly have this again.

Thanks to jmgrub for sharing this one at drewone's tasting.

Pours a clear dark brown with a foamy khaki head that settles to wisps of film on top of the beer. Small dots of lace form around the glass on the drink down. Smell is of smoked malt, smoked meats, and smoked cheeses. Taste is much the same with a very medicinal and smoke-forward flavor that doesn't meld together very well. This beer has a lower level of carbonation with a slightly crisp and medium bodied mouthfeel. Overall, this is a pretty average beer that sounds good on paper but it's pretty weird and somewhat of a chore to drink.