Samuel Adams 'Thirteenth Hour' Dark Belgian Style Stout. 9% abv. Nose of dark fruit, raisin, strong plum, wood notes. Front taste of heavy dark chocolate, black coffee, plum, cherry. Aftertaste of red wine grapes, bittersweet chocolate, sour berry. Full body. Mouthfeel is hot, alcoholic, thick, resiny.
This is a wonderfully decadent beer, with a complex profile of dark fruits, strong cocoa and wine notes, all coupled by an oak presence throughout. The wood impression is round and mild, likely from the fact that this particular bottle was aged two years before my friend and I popped its cork. This mellowing of the barrel taste allowed the fruits to pop, with a tartness that approaches a sour beer. Superb all around. Highly recommended.
From the brewery:
"The 13th hour is the witching hour, and a time when strange brews can occur. With 13 ingredients, we combined the roasted chocolate and coffee flavors of a stout with the complex spicy character of a Belgian-style ale aged in oak for a deep, robust, and captivating brew."
[source: samueladams.com]
"“With 13 ingredients, we combined the roasted chocolate and coffee notes of a stout with the complex spicy character of a Belgian-style ale aged in oak for a dark, robust, and bewitching brew. One of our brewers’ favorite places to experiment is in the barrel room at our Boston Brewery. It’s here that each of our Samuel Adams Barrel room Collection brews was born."
[source: bottle]
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