Brewer’s Reserve Dark & Stormy
Central Waters Brewing Co.

 

 

Tastes like a kid found the bar kit and randomly mixed Coca-cola, lime, rum, and ginger beer. Too much lime spoils everything else. Maybe this is a winning combo, but not in the quantities used here.

 

Definitely smells very much like a cocktail in the glass - which is a good thing, seeing as that's obviously the goal. Coca-cola, lime, rum, and ginger.

Flavor can't deliver on the requisite sweetness to pull off the feat. Ginger is quite strong on the palate, as are the woody notes from the rum barrels. Flavor lasts forever, too, in particular those two notes. Quite a bit of chest heat.

There's a bit of a smoky note up front often associated with Scotch ales (right or wrong). There's a leathery woodiness as well, separate from the rum barrel notes. Quite a bit of lime up front, although it lacks the staying power of the ginger and rum. The heavy amount of ginger (and lime, up front) starts to make the beer rather sharp and aggressive after only a few sips.

Is this what they intended to execute? I'm going with not quite. Ginger beer (which is in the cocktail, instead of fresh ginger as they used here) isn't overly sweet, but there's still some sweetness to it. Actual rum, as well, will carry more sweetness than the flavor imparted by used rum barrels. This beer simply lacks any sweetness to balance it all out - and that sweetness might make this an outstanding cocktail-inspired beer. As it is, it's a creative but ultimately mediocre brew.

Pours opaque, copper in color with one inch head. Taste is big ginger, lime, and rum. Heavy body, slightly sweet, low carbonation. Captures the cocktail perfectly. Very ginger forward..Bermuda in a bottle.

 

Scotch ale shouldn't contain acidic lime and bitter ginger. Yuck.

12 ounce bottle into a tulip snifter. A 2022 release, had 6/21/22.

Pours a dark amber, fairly opaque, with a half inch foamy head and light, foamy lacing. Aromas of lime- pretty strong lime, some caramel- more as it warms, light rum, some ginger. Flavors of lime- again, strong, ginger, some rum and caramel, some malt. The ginger lingers in the aftertaste. Smooth, a very good medium body, appropriately carbonated.

You have to get this really warm to get anything to peek through the lime curtain. Ok, the ginger is always there, too. Once you get to that point, this is actually pretty good. As formulated, I probably wouldn’t buy this a second time.

 

2022 vintage

I bought this one a whim last year, but after seeing the rather negative reviews, I tend to pass it by when I see it in the fridge. But tonight I'm feeling something weird, so I might as well get this one out of the way. Let's pop it open and see what it has to offer

Pours a murky light brown with a finger of creamy light tan head that slowly fades to a ring and leaves minimal lacing

Goddamn, the ginger in the nose is through the roof, but I don't necessarily hate it. I'm picking up on aromas of raw ginger, allspice, lime zest, funky rum, sweet caramel, brown sugar, and light nutmeg

Things get a little weirder in taste, still a lot of ginger but without much sweetness to balance it out, especially on the back end. On the front end of the sip I'm tasting dark toast, lime zest, nutmeg, cooked ginger, toasted oak, light caramel, and spiced rum. The swallow brings notes of raw ginger, lime zest, allspice, brown sugar, black pepper, and light rye

A medium body pairs with gentle tingling carbonation, resulting in a sharp and slightly boozy beer. Finishes dry but bracing from the ginger

I can't say I hate this, but it's super strange. Points for creativity, but it could use some balance

Dark brown in color with a very murky complexion. There’s fingernail of beige around the rim. The aroma is of ginger, light rum, and a touch of lime. I’m tasting rum, ginger, lime, and alcohol. The mouth is thick and boozy. There’s nothing subtle about this beer, but it is well balanced with the lime and ginger elements.

 

 

I don't get the hate on this one it kind of reminded me of a sweeter margarita plenty of lime and ginger to cut that sweetness and the flavors are consistent hiding the massive ABV. Purest would say its not a true scotch ale but I rate most on enjoyment and this beer was better than I expected!

 

bottle into glass
Thin and creamy tan head. Very murky and really dark caramel look. Overly toasted toffee with a spearmint note, for the aroma with a sweet, medium dark and caramelized, toasted barley with a note of sassafras (root beer). Very strong and harsh, black pepper and root beer flavor, and has a big zing, which is nearly vinegary, but not, and a touch of, non-sweet cough syrup flavor. Quite peppery and flavors simply clashing with each other, unpleasant.

 

 

From the Jungle..
Smells amazing but the taste is so much off. It just does not work together.