Warlock
Southern Tier Brewing Company

 

 

 

It's always fun to break out the Pretentious Glass Company Pumpkin Chalice, lid and all. Warlock produces a fine chestnut foam that holds one inch for a few minutes before settling to a thick ring. The beer is essentially black with no highlights. A fine webbing of lace forms below a concentric ring.

First off I am noticing graham crackers with nutmeg and ginger. Café latte follows as brown sugar begins to build. The roasted malt is mild. Warmth muddies these aromas.

Roasted malt has a modest bitterness and subdued sweetness. Black coffee with cinnamon is apparent while warmth brings baker's chocolate. The finish is long with a mild roasted malt.

A velvety texture leans towards creaminess, while the body is medium to full. The alcohol is controlled and about as expected. Modest carbonation helps clean the palate of light astringency.

Warlock used to be a favorite within this style and I was surprised to realize I hadn't reviewed it yet. It is fun and enjoyable on cold, dark November evening.

I drank my first warlock back in 2015 and it instantly became my favorite beer ever. Back then the recipe was 10% abv and not 8.6 like it is now. In 2016 the beer changed and it wasn't as good anymore. It was like they were skimping on ingredients. It was still a good beer, just not 2015 quality. Unfortunately southern tier doesn't distribute anywhere in Texas anymore and its been years since ive has a warlock and I would find my self day dreaming of having one. I finally found a place online willing to ship, so I wanted to make it worth it and i ordered a 24 case. When I got the beer I noticed it was only 8.6% now instead of 10%. When i poured it into a snifter immediately noticed it was thinner. The smell was no where even close to what i remember. The old warlock had an almost enchanting smell that you just couldnt stop whiffing. This new warlock was like 'uh.. hello?? Anything there???' the taste sealed the deal. No signature graham cracker pie after taste. It was gone. This beer new recipe is nothing ill ever go looking for again. Southern tier really lowered the bar.

 

 

Pours a dark caramel brown with minimal head. Aroma is pumpkin, caramel and nutmeg. Taste is sweet pumpkin, burnt caramel, cinnamon and nutmeg, which comes in at the very end. Carbonation is lower than expected. One of the better pumpkin brews.

I’m not much of a pumpkin beer fan but this beer is quite good. Subtle pumpkin on the nose and flavor. It finishes very dry and not too sweet. This is a nice offering.

 

 

 

Black body and caramel head.
Basically tastes like the Pumpking but as a stout. Exact notes from the pumpking ale which falls short of being super pumpkin or pumpkin pie like, but this one is better as it's a stout first and pumpkin beer second, so there isn't as much of an assumption of beer pumpkiness.

Slightly caramelized pumpkin, cinnamon, cloves, banana, and a little bourbony sourness made their presence known when I popped the top. A fat finger of cafe latte-colored foam formed over the opaque molasses brown when pouring into the glass. Cloves and bourbon scents became a little stronger in the glass, and this was echoed in the first taste. Alongside, a hint of coffee, maybe a bit of pumpkin that lends a touch of roundness... which goes away on subsequent sips. What doesn't go away is a slightly bilious sourness that gets stronger with each sip and dominates (along with some metallic astringency) the aftertaste. I think I'll get through the bottle once I start eating something, but this was more a trick than a treat.

 

Stoutly black with a tiny bit of crimson near the bottom of the glass. Comes with a fairly large tan head and modest lacing. Nice aroma. Getting chocolate nut brownies, dark fruit, pie crusts and seasonal spices. Could easily inhale this all day.
Taste almost keeps up. Roasted malts at the core along with some nuttiness (pecans?) while the pumpkin spice factor adds depth. Full bodied, decently carbonated mouthfeel. Lingering finish. Overall, this one sets a high bar for other pumpkin beers.

 

Smells/tastes sorta like an extra spiced piece of frosted carrot cake. It's black with no head. Smells very spicy while the taste is more subdued and "stout-y", easy to drink, sweet. Better than expected

Almost black with a light tan rim.
Nose is molasses with fall spices.
Taste is buttery on the lead with dark malt, allspice and nutmeg following through and ginger dominating on the end with that signature warm note in the back of the throat.
An interesting brew but the pumpkin was lost to me and the spice made it a little too confected for my taste.

 

Solid black appearance.

Light carbonation with a just above average body with a bit of a thick slick feel.
Aroma is definitely pumpkin pie,with some malt,coffee,and a boozy alcohol blast at the end.
Taste has a very mild sweetness, boozy,a bit dry,with some pumpkin pie spice.
It well done,flavorful, and the warmth from the spice makes me think this would be great on a cool night

 

 

 

 

 

Look - 12 oz. bottle poured into a tulip glass. dark brown in color, approaching black. under light, beer is actually clear. very small head with a little bit of lacing.

Smell - literally smells like a pumpkin pie: cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, ginger, and pleasant brown sugar sweetness. the smell is so good it almost feels artificial, but it's pleasant to my nose.

Taste - initially, all of the pumpkin pie aspects detected in the smell comes through. the flavor profile quickly transforms to that of a lighter bodied stout, with moderate coffee notes. spices, dominated by ginger, finishes off the beer, along with a bit of warmness.

Feel - despite the color, medium bodied. high carbonation, and quite heavy on booze at 8.6% ABV. alcohol somewhat masked but detectable from the warmness.

Overall - a medium bodied pumpkin stout that is extremely reminiscent of pumpkin pie in the scent, and partially follows through on the taste together with some usual stout characteristics: a potent but tasty brew.

This one is like the offensive lineman on your senior squad who walks into the party with a 24 pack of swill on his shoulder and doesn’t give a damn. Warlock just busts on the scene like the introduction of “Touch of Evil.” It’s not perfect (nothing is), buts it’s all kinds of solid like a single flusher.

Waboom.

Appearance: Very deep amber in color, nearly black, with a sparse tan head, which soon collapses to a ring of foam about the glass wall. A scattering of very fine-beaded lacing adorns the glass wall.

Aroma: An abundance of ginger and dark malt define the aroma. As well, there is a moderate presence of brown sugar and sweet alcohol. A little cold coffee is notable, also.

Taste: The taste opens with dark roasted malt and cold coffee, soon followed by pumpkin pie spices and sweet alcohol. Among the spices, the cinnamon seems most prominent. There is also a pleasant note of toasted dark bread. Later in the taste, there is a fairly prominent note of bitter chocolate. I am made to think of traditional pumpkin pie drizzled with bitter chocolate. There is a mild earthy undercurrent throughout and the alcohol provides a moderate and pleasing warmth. Finishes with a lingering note of bitter chocolate.

Mouth feel: Smooth and full, very soft, with only a hint of carbonation.

Drinkability/notes: A very elegant example, far removed from typical pumpkin beers. It pairs very well with chocolate desserts.

Presentation: Packaged in a standard 22 ounce brown glass bomber with a pry-off crown, served in a La Fin du Monde tulip, at The Lake House.

 

 

 

 

12 ounce bottle.
Best By 07/15/23.

Moderate pour yields a one inch light tan head over a near black body with sticky lacing.

Nose of roasted malt, malted milk, milk chocolate, and pumpkin.

Taste mirrors nose nicely exhibiting flavors of chocolate, pumpkin, a bit of spice and vanilla throughout with a finish of dark chocolate and bitter chocolate.

Nice, creamy sort of pumpkin pie like feel.

Overall, I would drink this again.
Cheers!!!

 

 

 

 

 

12 oz bottle

very dark brown, almost black. cream colored head. big aroma that is a mix of roasty malt and nutmeg and clove, maybe a little ginger. similar flavor, with a bit of that pumpkim/yam sweetness in the mix. it works. fuller bodied.