One Brazilian Dollars
Against The Grain Brewery

 

 

 

 

 

If you live long enough, you taste everything.
And I am glad to have tasted my first from Against The Grain who, obviously, has a passion for brewing and smoking (malt.)

I do not have a strong urge to unpack what goes on in One Brazilian Dollars. But I'll share some condensed thoughts.
I'm not Looking at an ale that gets as interesting as it gets... although its amber has enough red tinge to call it pretty.
Smells and Tastes are largely in locked step and in pretty much the same priority: smoked, bourbon, hops for balance and a yeast that multiplies the complexity. The drying finish is more than this beer needs and probably keeps it from being great... although it is soft in the mouth as wheat beers should be. The concealment of its alcohol is one more sign of a crafter who accomplishes its craft.

Have it again? Probably not. I think I'll look for one of their Belgian renditions and see if they get can prove themselves on that yeast.

750 ml bottle into snifter, no bottle dating. Pours slightly hazy medium orange/amber color with a 2 finger fairly dense and rocky cream colored head with fantastic retention, that reduces to a nice cap that lingers. Nice dense soapy lacing clings around the glass, with a moderate amount of streaming carbonation retaining the cap. Fantastic appearance. Aromas of wood smoke, honey, vanilla, brown sugar, bourbon, toasted oak, golden raisin, peppercorn, wheat, bread dough, and biscuit; with lighter notes of nuttiness, caramel, toffee, cinnamon, leather, peat, herbal, grass, and yeast/oak earthiness. Some spicy booze in the aromas as it warms, but not overwhelming. Nice and pleasant aromas with good balance and complexity of bready/smoked malts, bourbon barrels, and light-moderate fruity yeast/earthy hop notes; with solid strength. Taste of big wood smoke, honey, vanilla, brown sugar, bourbon, toasted oak, wheat, bread dough, and biscuit; with lighter notes of nuttiness, caramel, toffee, cinnamon, peppercorn, leather, peat, golden raisin, herbal, grass, and yeast/oak earthiness. Light-moderate herbal/peppery bitterness and bourbon/oak tannin spiciness on the finish. Lingering notes of wood smoke, honey, vanilla, brown sugar, bourbon, toasted oak, wheat, bread dough, biscuit, peppercorn, cinnamon, leather, raisin, herbal, grass, and yeast/oak earthiness on the finish for a while. Very nice complexity, robustness, and balance of bready/smoked malts, bourbon barrels, and light-moderate fruity yeast/earthy hop flavors; with a nice malt/bitterness and bourbon/oak spiciness balance; with minimal hop/oak astringency lingering after the finish. Lightly increasing dryness from lingering bitterness and bourbon/oak spiciness. Medium carbonation and medium-full body; with a very smooth, creamy/bready/silky, and fairly sticky/tannic balanced mouthfeel that is nice. Mildly increasing warmth of 9%, with minimal barrel booziness lingering after the finish. Overall this is a delicious barrel aged wheatwine style. All around nice complexity, robustness, and balance of bready/smoked malts, bourbon barrels, and light-moderate fruity yeast/earthy hop flavors; very smooth and easy to sip on for the big ABV, with the mellowly bitter/tannic/drying finish. Balanced bready/smoked malts, and barrels; with solid earthy hop presence/balance. Tastes kind of like a blend of peaty scotch and bourbon barrels in a way, with the added smoked wheat malts. A very enjoyable and unique offering. Spot on style example.