Newport Storm '14
Newport Craft Brewing & Distilling Co.

Rich malty with a hint of maple and a clean finish. Very well constructed beer. One year old and unable to replace it. ....sad. this was a keeper. On to 2015.

Courtesy of Cara Jean. 750ml waxed and corked bottle served in a tulip. Cork had to be pushed in, strained and decanted before serving. Poured slightly darker than unpasteurized apple cider with a similar clarity. Quite a bit of carbonation was still present. Head was half an inch, cream-colored and quickly dispersed into a froth. Nose reveals banana esters and a strong bready quality as well as a suggestion of toffee muddled in the middle. Taste follows nose - more toffee, as well as figs and mild oxidation expressed as wet cardboard notes. There's also a trace of cocoa. Mouthfeel is light-medium in body with a low, even carbonation (probably due to the prolonged opening and decanting experience). There's also a kiss of alcohol heat. Overall, the beer has surprisingly held its own although it's definitely on the decline. I'd suggest cellaring on it's side to possibly preserve the cork. The wax did a nice job of keeping the air out.

 

 

Not getting the sub 4 reviews here. This is an excellent beer. The smell has all the wheat breadiness and fruit you're looking for, but with a unique funk backing that sets itself apart - very distinguished. Taste - The funk hits first and quickly gives way to the malty bready flavors. I like that this beer has just enough alcohol burn to keep you sipping. IMO, this is one that is way better than its grade indicates.

 

Poured from a 750ml corked and wax-sealed bottle into a mug glass.

A: The beer is a bright reddish amber color, with a large off-white head that fades quickly and leaves a spotty lace on the glass.

S: The aroma contains wheat, caramelized malts, fruit, spice, bananas and a touch of hops.

T: The taste starts out sweet with flavors of caramel, fruit, balances and some spice. Then some breadiness comes in from a hearty but not too heavy malt character and wheat. Considering the 11.40% ABV there is not much of an alcohol sting. The hops presence is very mild but brings a little balance. The after-taste is slightly sweet and slightly bready.

M: Crisp and a little smooth, medium body, medium carbonation, finish is slightly sticky.

O: Flavorful, goes down ok, not too filling, strong kick, nice variation of style adding the Eisbock principle to it, it’s an interesting concept but just a mediocre beer overall.

Dark fruit, cider & medium malt on the nose, taste is bread malt heavy, warm alcohol feel with some boozey latency, as some others have said it taste like a Belgian strong / quad, certainly not a hefeweizen. If that was what the brewer was shooting for then they missed the mark, but a solid beer either way.

 

 

 

Huge newport storm fan. Love strong beers. But this one was just off. Have tried every annual release since '09, and although each may not have been my cup of meat, ive atleast respected/slightly enjoyed them. but just missed this one i guess. I think the whole novelty of it may have tainted it in the wrong way. They hype up using 10k lbs of real snow, and then proceed to explain freezing out the water to raise the ABV. So if it was all that important, they probably wouldnt have removed it. Sounds like freezing the brew killed it. Oh well. Theres always next yr.

 

 

 

This one is dark and rich, and it was brewed with fallen snow! I'm not sure if there's any availability outside of Rhode Island. If you can get your hands on it, grab a bottle. Nose and flavor-wise, this is more quadrupel than strong ale.