I’ve
just crossed the midway mark of this project, so it’s time to take a look at
what I’ve experienced over the past couple months. This analysis includes…
North
Coast Brewing – Old Stock Ale Otsuchi 2012
(#1)
Alaskan
Brewing – Winter Ale (#2)
Widmer
Brothers & Cigar City – Gentlemen’sClub (New Oak Spirals) (#3)
Eel
River – Triple Exultation (#4)
The
Bruery – Coton (#5)
Greene
King – Olde Suffolk English Ale (#6)
Harviestoun
Brewery – Ola Dubh 30 (#7)
Prairie
Artisan Ales – The Beer That SavedChristmas (#8)
AleSmith
– Old Ale (#9)
Ballast
Point – 8.9 on the Richter Ale (#10)
O’Hanlon’s
Brewing Co. – Thomas Hardy’s Ale
(#11)
Hangar
24 – Vinaceous (#12)
San
Diego Brewing Co. – Saxon Old Ale
(#13)
I
feel like these thirteen beers have already given me a pretty good idea of what
to expect with this style. The nose
generally presents aromas that resemble brown sugar, molasses, dark pitted
fruit, dried fruit, and dark breads. You
can often get a whiff of alcohol and the barrel it was aged in (if applicable
for the latter). I have actually come to
appreciate the smell of this complex style of beer perhaps even more than the
taste.
Flavors
tend to follow the bouquet with brown sugar, molasses, dates, figs, cherries,
and deeply toasted malts. The mouthfeel
is consistently full with light carbonation.
As for appearance, I generally expect a deep chestnut body, with a few
streams of rising bubbles, and a thin, beige head. I believe that brilliance is preferred, but
not always achieved.
The
most important aspect of this style that I have picked up thus far is the genuine
need for aging. I have had both old and
young, and decidedly prefer the former.
Age and proper cellaring completely round out any harsh edges on this
beer. Ballast Point’s 8.9 on the Richter Ale and San Diego
Brewing’s Saxon Old Ale were nice
pints, but both were a little too sharp for me (please note that these both
came from draft handles that weren’t marked with a vintage, so I am assuming
that they came from this year).
Conversely, The Bruery’s Coton
and O’Hanlon’s Thomas Hardy’s Ale
were both carefully aged, and the result was incredible. Rounded sweetness, sherry-like flavors, and a
velvety mouthfeel appear to be the reward for patience. Greene King’s Old Suffolk English Ale is a blend of both old and new, and this
seems to be the ideal technique for perfecting this style.
Also,
I like to perceive the alcohol in an Old Ale, but not be beaten over the head
with it. This beer should be warming…
not hot. Hangar 24’s Vinaceous and AleSmith’s Old Ale were both a little on the hot
side, although I much preferred AleSmith’s effort.
In
addition, I have found that hops are better here when they are restrained. Eel River’s Triple Exultation was a
nice beer, but the amplified hop character made it feel like the odd man
out. Light bitterness and minimal hop
aroma seem to be the way to go.
Finally,
oak flavors and barrel aging are a good fit for the style, but, as with my
other observations, they need to be handled with grace. Widmer and Cigar City’s Gentlemen’s Club was so oaky that I could barely even finish
it. Conversely, thought and planning was
clearly put into the barrel aging of Prairie Artisan Ales’ The Beer That Saved Christmas, which definitely enhanced the
overall experience. I would like to
continue to find wood in my Old Ales, but not enough that I could pick my teeth
with.
Well,
I’ve got another twelve to go. The herd
is quickly thinning, so I’m hoping I can come up with a complete flight of
twenty five. Wish me luck.
-Matt
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