Samuel Smith's Yorkshire Stingo
Picked one of these up at West Lakeview liquors. Served in my trusty Surly pint glass. A - Poured with 2+ fingers of off-white foam that dissipates to a hazy partial cap. Not much in the way of lacing here. Attractive slightly hazed coppery brown-red color with a touch of orange at the bottom of the glass. S - Spices, sweetbreads, caramel apple, a touch of oak and vanilla, a bit of leather, and some light floral and slightly dank hops. I really dig the balance and complexity in the smell - it's not a style I usually drink but it's very nice. T - The taste is more fruity, with sweet caramel, nuts, and rum-cake. Not as wonderfully complex as the aroma, but still quite nice. There are some light tannic notes in the finish, but not as much as I expected. M - On the lighter side of medium bodied, with some light carbonation tingle. Slightly gritty texture - perhaps from the oak aging. Well hidden 8%. D - Gets a little too sweet after a while. This is going to take me hours to work through the 550ml bottle. There's some booze and oak when I burp that isn't super pleasant either. I'm excited to see the English doing some barrel-aged brews, although I'm under the impression these are ancient beer barrels (?). This is definitely a mellow chill-out dessert kind of brew, so don't expect to be putting these back, even with the mid-level ABV.