Eisbock
Swiftwater Brewing Company

generous gift from a friend, not sure why i thought this was a behemoth that could and should sit indefinitely in the cellar, but my bottle only says 7.5% abv, and this already tasted a little bit like it was fading when i cracked it with my wife last night. gorgeous pour though, rich bronze color to it with a high rising and very thick german creamy white head, looks the part. big stone fruit nose, slight tartness too maybe, at least a little astringency i guess, hard to tell if its fruity warmer fermented lager yeast character or a little bacterial element creeping in, but its not at all unappealing, green pear, dried red apple, dried apricot, and golden raisin on a rich german grain base in the toffee range and definitely a bit sweet. similar flavor, a hint of vanilla in here and some grain sugar all the way through but not overly long boiled or concentrated or anything, and this really doesnt hit with the depth, weight, and heat of most eisbock types i have known in my life, lighter, crisper even with the sugars, and way more drinkable, oddly effervescent in texture too which is cool. apples and honey late, very autumnal to me, a little twang to it is kind of out of place, wouldnt have wanted to wait any longer on this, some acidity would really kill the mood of this one, but its not there yet and we enjoyed this quite a lot. neat take on the style, definitely a little different and more approachable than many. i have not had nearly enough beers from these guys, but it seems like they are doing some neat stuff!

This one pours a golden honey amber color, with a small head, and not much lacing.

This smells like toffee, pear, dark berries, breadiness, and grassiness.

I imagine this would be excellent with some barrel time, but as it is now, it's still a tasty "little" thing. It feels a bit like a fruitier, drier, and more vinous dopplebock, which is cool. There's definite pear and dark fruit here, with bittersweet caramel, some molasses, and a very dry finish.

This is medium bodied, with not much booziness at all, and a good drinkability for the style.

Swiftwater's one of the few local breweries who would even attempt this style, and I'm glad they did.