Barrel Aged Schmaltz's Alt
August Schell Brewing Company

Barrel Aged Schmaltz's AltBarrel Aged Schmaltz's Alt
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From:
August Schell Brewing Company
 
Minnesota, United States
Style:
Altbier
ABV:
5.1%
Score:
88
Avg:
3.95 | pDev: 13.42%
Reviews:
39
Ratings:
46
Status:
Retired
Rated:
Nov 26, 2021
Added:
May 07, 2010
Wants:
  3
Gots:
  0
No description / notes.
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Ratings by doucmehu:
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Rated by doucmehu from Oregon

5/5  rDev +26.6%

Nov 16, 2011
More User Ratings:
 
Rated: 4.09 by LesDewitt4beer from Minnesota

Nov 26, 2021
 
Rated: 3 by GringoKid from Minnesota

Jun 02, 2012
 
Rated: 4.5 by pisomojado8 from Minnesota

May 21, 2012
 
Rated: 3 by ponbon63 from Minnesota

Dec 22, 2011
 
Rated: 4 by theCoder from Minnesota

Dec 16, 2011
Photo of mikesgroove
Reviewed by mikesgroove from South Carolina

4/5  rDev +1.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
amber in color with copious amounts of carbonation bubbling up toward the surface throughout. Nice white head on top, maybe an inch and a half before settling down to coat the inside of the glass for a minute. Interesting aroma, mix of grains, light bready malts, and a touch of a grassy, herbal hoppiness. Nothing crazy here but nicely balanced. Same could be said for the flavor, nice pale taste, light bready notes balancing a herbal sort of hop
Dec 04, 2011
Photo of ktrillionaire
Reviewed by ktrillionaire from Florida

3.59/5  rDev -9.1%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
This brew pours a deep cola-brown hue, and is topped with a modicum of micro-bubble and some encircling lace. The aroma is fruity and somewhat sweet; it reminds me quite a bit of Rodenbach. The flavor is, again, in Flemish sour territory. Raisin-y maltiness is prevalently featured, as are light balsamic notes. Wood flavor is very slight. The feel is medium-bodied, and more quenching than dry. It's not what I expected (though I hardly knew what to expect); overall, it is pleasantly surprising.
Nov 07, 2011
Photo of trxxpaxxs
Reviewed by trxxpaxxs from New York

4/5  rDev +1.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Huge thanks to LaCoursiere for this bottle:

A: Pours a deep mahogany. A very rich brown/red with a beautiful ½ finger tan head. Some nice lacing at first, but that fades quickly as I drink.

S: The beer smells of wood, raisins, plums, smoke and sour. I also get a little bit of molasses in the nose. The red wine ageing is detectable too. I’m excited to try this.

T: Initial hit is malty sweetness with a lot of flavor from the wine barrels. After the initial notes fade I pick up on the smoke and wood, followed by the some more red wine aging (mostly fruity and sour). This is a really interesting beer. I don’t think I’ve ever had anything quite like it.

M: The mouthfeel is great. It’s not light, not too heavy. Nothing too thin and nothing too chewy/sticky. Fantastic.

O: I’m really diggin’ on this beer. It has a great look, and a wonderful nose. The taste is something that I’ve never experienced before. I wouldn’t want to drink this all the time, but I’d keep coming back to it when I’m in the mood for it.
Aug 07, 2011
Photo of AgentZero
Reviewed by AgentZero from Illinois

3.5/5  rDev -11.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
A - Mohagany colored beer with no real head and nothing left on the sides as far as stick goes.

S - I'm not a huge fan of Altbiers, but this does have some other stuff going on in there. Some hops, a bit of vinous influence. It is a little fruity as well.

T - Sweet malts, wine influence on it, and a little fruity. There are some darker, chocolate notes that I was not anticipating from this beer, as well as some vanilla and generic barrel taste.

M - Medium bodied with some active carbonation bite.

O - Not bad, it's a little above average and has some unusual things going on for an Altbier, but nothing I would really seek out or drink again.
Jul 24, 2011
Photo of LaCoursiere
Reviewed by LaCoursiere from Minnesota

4.1/5  rDev +3.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 4
22oz bottle with a date of 09/19/10.

A - Poured into a Duvel tulip glass. Poured dark brown w/ a dark red hue. It had a 1/2 finger khaki head that dissipated quickly to a thin collar that remained. The clarity of the beer could be seen by holding to the light.

S - Fruits of cherry and grape. The oak notes are there kind of mixing with the fruit to smell kind or like port wine. Slightly smoked malt peeks through the fruits.

T - Dark fruity wine notes up front that fade to roasted and slightly smoky malts. The oak characters peaks through at different points depending on the sip. Faint molasses and brown sugar sweet notes from the malts are present in the middle.

M - Medium bodied with light carbonation and a dry, slightly chalky finish. No alcohol presence.

O/D - I was lucky to find this still on the shelf several days ago. Excellent brew from Schell's. I can say this is my favorite from them thus far. The smoke and wine flavors work very well together. Sometimes I tasted more wine and sometimes I tasted more smoke. Quite a fun tasting experience.
Jun 12, 2011
Photo of dbossman
Reviewed by dbossman from Nebraska

3.75/5  rDev -5.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5
A: Deep brown with a golden amber tint; this looks like thin motor oil; a nice head that dissipateds rather quickly to a thin, tan film; beautiful lacing that fades a bit too quickly

S: Sweet caramel and raisins on top of a sweet bready malt quality, but this also has a strong, deep red wine aroma--lots of dark fruits and grapes as well as a smokey oak quality; a tad boozy

T: This is pretty subdued and thin but a pleasant grainy and wine quality does persist; a bit of a peaty oaky quality but mostly grains with dark fruits--grapes, raisins, cherries, etc.

F: Not much carbonation and a bit thin but the beer does manage to coat the mouth fairly well

O: The wine and thinness become a bit grating after a while; this beer does have complexity and it grows on you as you drink but it's a sipper and one you will want to share
May 16, 2011
Photo of wisrarebeer
Reviewed by wisrarebeer from Wisconsin

2.95/5  rDev -25.3%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3
$10.49 for a 22 oz. bottle.

A: deep, dark mahogany color, very little head
S: mild nose, some roasted malt with hints of barrel aging but not much else
T: nice ale but really not much with respect to barrel aging, well-made beer but not much of anything for standing out
M: somewhat disappointing, thin, watery mouthfeel
O: very disappointed, I was expecting more from the barrel aging
Mar 27, 2011
Photo of Urbancaver
Reviewed by Urbancaver from Ohio

3.48/5  rDev -11.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4
An interesting Beer for sure... Pours reddish with a bit of head. Very clear. Smells like wine and malt. A lot of red wine on the nose. Tastes like a malty red wine... Vry weird. A bit thin but well carbonated. Not really all that flavourful. Not something i would drink again
Jan 07, 2011
Photo of BieresDesMoines
Reviewed by BieresDesMoines from Iowa

3.82/5  rDev -3.3%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Pours a very pretty deep reddish brown with a medium head leaving some lace. The aroma is fruity and earthy with some oaky wood notes. The flavor is fruity at first with some banana and some dark fruit the beer is just mildly roasty and very dry. There are plenty of earthy notes and the red wine character is there, although I don't know if I would detect it say if the bottle didn't say "aged in a red wine barrel" This is very tasty none the less. If anything this rounds Schmaltz Alt out very nicely and drops the metallic note that can sometimes be mildly off putting in a beer I otherwise love.
Dec 20, 2010
Photo of TMoney2591
Reviewed by TMoney2591 from Illinois

3.68/5  rDev -6.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Served in a Half Acre shaker pint glass.

Thanks to VDubb86 for sharing this BIFed bottle!

I don't believe I've tried a barrel-aged alt before, so here's to another BA tick (nickd would be so proud...)! It pours a deep ruby-brown topped by over a finger of dirty ecru foam. The nose comprises musty red grapes, plum, orange peel, soap, buttery caramel, and some light oak. The taste holds notes of figs, raisins, plums, and red grapes. From then, it delves into a weak red table wine, disregarding all that preceded it. Allowing it to warm up a bit allowed the wine to consume all else, resulting in a sort of weak port. This is truly odd, but not altogether off-putting. The body is a straight medium with a very light moderate carbonation. Overall, this is quite the oddball brew, but with every sip I feel I must go for yet another very soon, if for no other reason than to see what lies beyond the next taste.
Dec 12, 2010
Photo of Vdubb86
Reviewed by Vdubb86 from Illinois

3.82/5  rDev -3.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 4
Served in a pint glass

Thanks to Lenny1203 for this beer

Pours a super dark amber color with an ecru foam on the surface. There are aromatic notes of oak, red grapes, plums, and brown sugar. The taste is malty up front and finishes more oaked. The flavors are muddled together, but not wholly bad. There are distinct tannins from grapes in this beer. The mouthfeel is a tad bit astringent and way too watery for my liking. It still drinks pretty well, but I must admit it's not one of my favorite beers.
Dec 12, 2010
Photo of kenito799
Reviewed by kenito799 from New York

4.35/5  rDev +10.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
22 oz bomber. Rare tasting.
Pours a clear dark brown, at 1 inch you can read through it. Foamy tan head recedes, active carbonation.

Aroma is clean and fresh, toasty, consistent with a good alt.

I love this style and this is a great one. The crisp clean toastiness is wonderfully refreshing. There is a slightly tangy tart apply quality, perhaps that hint of fruit is imparted by the red wine barrels. It is a lovely effect. Great session beer!
Nov 25, 2010
Photo of BuckeyeNation
Reviewed by BuckeyeNation from Iowa

3.58/5  rDev -9.4%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 4
Roasted chestnut with sunny Sunkist edges. The pour produced a good-sized crown of pale caramel colored foam that has a bubbly surface and looks like it wants to hang around for a spell. Lace is pretty nice and so is the overall appearance.

The nose is too subdued. Essentially none of the dark malts are noted... nor is much else. Even though it's probably nothing more than the power of suggestion, a lightly tangy red wine essense is appreciated. This offering is the standard Schmaltz's Alt that was aged in barrels that had previously held pinot noir.

It isn't overpowering, or even prominent, but there's a definite red grape quality to this brew that matches the medium-dark malts pretty well. It isn't quite enough, though, to turn an above-average (3.5) altbier into a solidly good (4.0) altbier.

ASBC's BASA needs more POP! on the palate, which could easily be achieved with a more focused hoppiness. Specifics include brown bread with a thin layer of fruit jam, miniscule amounts of dark caramel and nuts... and a splash of red wine. More power and more definition would easily add a half-point to the taste score, because it's almost there already.

The mouthfeel is a disappointment. It's a little too thin and the carbonation gives it almost no lift or volume. More malt and better bubbles would fix it right up.

In the end, Barrel Aged Schmaltz's Alt is slightly better beer than Schmaltz's Alt by virtue of having been barrel-aged. Unfortunately, time in the wood has impacted the mouthfeel negatively, as it often does. This is batch #1 in the new Stag Series.
Nov 12, 2010
Barrel Aged Schmaltz's Alt from August Schell Brewing Company
Beer rating: 88 out of 100 with 46 ratings