Great Northern Brewing SnowGhost
This is a review of a promotional sample received from the brewery.
As noted the other day, I received a couple samples from Great Northern Brewing Company. Due to the colder weather, I’m drinking these a bit out of order, as the SnowGhost is the brewery’s Winter seasonal and the fresh hopped Frog Hop is for the Fall (I’ll be tackling that one tonight since it will be a bit warmer outside).
SnowGhost is an unfiltered winter warmer that’s been brewed with six varieties of malt and weighs in at a respectable 6.3% ABV. I’m not sure of which particular malts it was brewed with, but from the press material I received with the samples, it looks like it at least has caramel and honey malts in the mix, as well as Aurora and East Kent Goldings hops. The result is a pretty smooth, drinkable and tasty little brew.
Appearance
SnowGhost pours a rather dark mahogany in color with a large, dense head that faded slowly with excellent retention and lacing.
Aroma
The beer has a nice roast to the malt with hints of caramel. There’s also a nice bit of hop spice that comes out as the beer warms in the glass.
Taste
The combination of the lightly roasted malt, caramel notes and the balancing hop component makes SnowGhost a nicely complex, yet easily drinkable brew. The medium bodied beer has a moderate level of carbonation that pushes the rich malt profile around the palate nicely as the beer transitions to a more pronounce hop presence in the lingering finish.
Overall
This is a well crafted winter seasonal that’s right on par with many of the larger breweries that release beers of the same style. It’s got a good flavor, is smooth drinking and with the slightly elevated ABV wamrs nicely on a cold evening. If it is ever sold in the Eastern states, I’d be willing to pick up a six pack or two.
Rating: 3/5