Forest Bänger
Põhjala Brewery & Tap Room

Copenhagen 2/1 2021. 33 cl bottle from Meny, Østerfælled Torv, Kbh. Ø. Very earthy and wet colors on the label to imply that I am tumbling through a damp, Estonian forest.

Pours opaque, dark brown with a small creamy beige head. Settles as thin, patchy layer of foam unable of covering the surface of the beer. No lacing.

Aroma is intense with a dark, boozy sweetness mingling with an earthy scent. Brown sugar, caramel and toffee. Leather, humid cellar and tobacco.

Light carbonation. Thick, fat, soft, creamy, silken texture.

Flavor is intense with a medium strong sweetness followed by a slightly stronger bitterness. Aftertaste is bitter and a little harsh. Lingering. Dry finish.

A nice tumble through the forest floor of a wet, Estonian pine forest.

Purchased a bottle of this beer at the Dallas Craft Beer Cellar.

Poured into a tulip glass. Oily dark brown color with brief brown head and light lacing. Smell and taste of dark berries. Dark chocolate with an earthy bitter finish. Definitely dark fruit with a woodsy aftertaste. Not a full a feel as I would expect. Enjoyable beer but have had better from this brewery.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Look: It pours very dark brown with a brown head. Head retention is low.

Smell: It has a smokey aroma with chocolate. There are some roasted notes in the background.

Taste: There are roasted malts with chocolate and smoke. There is also a bit of bacon and some juniper notes.

Feel: It has a full body with a bittersweet finish.

Overall, the combination of smoke and juniper with a stout is quite intriguing.

Deep, dark brown, nearly black body; excellent light chocolate head, creamy and lasting. Beautiful nose; chocolate with blueberries and strawberries; spruce. incredibly complex taste; roasted grains; some fiery flavor that seems like hot chili pepper; boozy, sipping gin. Heavy body; thick and velvety; bold alcohol warmth; sticking, lingers on the palate.

If you love a strong stout with interesting adjuncts thrown into the mix, Põhjla has a beer for you. Juniper and rowanberries among other adjuncts give this beer distinction and a memorable twist.

Poured at 56.3° F; no bottling information noted although the label and brewery's web site note that this is one of their Forest Series beers (retired per the web site).

 

 

Bottle: Poured a pitch-black color stout with a large dark brown foamy head with good retention and some lacing. Aroma of roasted malt with some black cholate notes with some juniper notes clearly noticeable. Taste is also a mix of roasted malt with some black cholate notes with some residual sugar notes and juniper notes with light berry notes. Body is full with good carbonation. Nice mix of flavour and complexity.

Landing at =10th position of the highest ABV% beers I've ever rated is this one at 12.5%. What I have learned along the way is that high ABV% is in no way a measure of overall enjoyment... though occasionally it provides the foundation for something really special. We shall see!
L- Inky black, pours with fleeting 2mm deep tan head. Zero surprise it's fleeting as this high an ABV% hasn't the physical surface-tension to sustain foam.
S- Oh yeah.... you just know this is pungent, but at the same time it isn't clearly screaming coffee or cocoa. Is it a kind of smokey stewed dark fruit scent... ?
T- BOOM! Smokey, woody, then distinctly charry. Then I again seem to get a very dark deep fruit note peeking out from behind the 'smoke and fury'.
F- It is BIG and somewhat rich; well it has to be to hang together. Perfect for winter, as a slow-sipping fire-side beer. One of those rare beers where you can feel the ABV% head south towards your stomach, interesting as you wouldn't from a 12.5% wine.
O- Big, very bold, way too very easy to drink :)
Now I'll read the lable and try and figure out what this beer is all about. Hmmm... contains barley, rye + oats. Contains rowanberries and juniper, plus smoked malt. There you go QED.
330ml bottle BB: ? No BB on bottle lable, glass or cap - at this pungency perhaps indestructible. Bought from TremblingMadness/York. £5.25

 

 

 

L: Black brew with a thin tan head settling to a partial cap with good retention and minimal lace spots on the glass.

S: Reminds me of a cherry-forward dark ale. This aspect is present in a lot of Põhjala brews but it sets in nicely to the very roasty and sweet aspects of the aroma.

T: Follows the nose but brings in a wet stone to the palate, lots of roast, a little soy sauce, and a bitterness that is reminiscent of coffee or very dark chocolate.

F: Oily medium-heavy weight. Smooth overall.

O: This is one of their better brews. Upper middle of the pack for me.

$ 11.49 (Including shipping)/11.2 oz bottle ($ 1.026/oz). Received 5/30/20 from Craftshack, San Diego, CA. Reviewed 6/15/20.
Undated bottle. Stored at home at 42 degrees and served at 54 - 60 degrees (per bottle instructions) in a hand washed and dried Jester King snifter.
Appearance – 3.25.
First pour – Amber brown (SRM 18), translucent.
Body – Black (SRM 40), opaque. When held to direct light, same.
Head – Tiny (Maximum one cm, aggressive center pour), dark tan, high density, fizzy, gone before I could measure it, diminishing to a less than one mm crown and a no cap.
Lacing – None. Not surprising at 12.5% ABV.
Aroma – 3.75 – Begins with faintly smoky roast malt with hints of some sweet berry. No hops, no yeast.
Flavor – 3.5 - The first sip is slightly sweet roasted malt, noticeably light and barely tasted. This is followed by an immediate gastric warming. No alcohol (12.5% ABV, as marked on the label) taste or aroma. There is a very faint berryness present as well; the smoke is added by mirrors. No diacetyl or dimethylsulfide.
Palate – 3.5 – Full, creamy, soft carbonation.
Final impression and summation 3.75. The appearance is much the same as every other Impy stout, nothing to see here. Aroma and flavor are both typical of the style but tending toward the mellow end of the spectrum. I’ve never tasted, smelled, or even heard of rowanberries prior to this beer so I really cannot make an intelligent comment on their presence or absence. There is some berryness present, but I will not commit beyond that. Juniper? Not that I can detect. Overall, an above average Impy stout that is best suited as a gateway for those who find Impy stouts too harsh. Leaves my lips sticky.