21st Amendment Fireside Chat
The past few summers I’ve been able to enjoy the hell out of 21st Amendment’s Brew Free or Die IPA. It’s a super tasty IPA in the convenience of a can. You just can’t beat that in any hamburgers-on-the-grill setting.
Besides, Oskar Blues, this San Francisco brewery is the only other one that cans their product that I will routinely purchase. So it was only natural that I check out their new winter seasonal — Fireside Chat.
21st Amendment Fireside Chat label
Appearance
Fireside Chat pours a dark brown with a dense, light brown head that slowly faded to a thin, patchy lacing.
Aroma
There is a boatload of spice wafting off the top of the glass — cinnamon, nutmeg — as well as light caramel, bready malt and a slight roast. There’s not much of a hop presence on the nose.
Taste
For as much as the nose let on about the spices, it didn’t nearly warn me enough. There is a heaping amount of spices in this beer. It’s a little over spiced for my own personal liking. Along with those spices is a sweet, lightly toasted malt that transitions to a slightly biting finish that lingers for a good while. There’s not really much else going on besides the spices. The 7.9% ABV isn’t a factor on the palate.
Overall
This is an interesting brew to say the least. I’m all for a nicely spiced winter warmer to comfort me after a cold weather day, but there’s just a bit too much spice for my own palate in this particular brew. I want any additional spices to compliment the malt and hop components, not necessarily be the dominant feature in the brew. That said, I’m sure there are some folks out there that will go nuts for the amount of cinnamon and nutmeg in this brew.
Rating: 3/5