Widmer Brothers Brrr Seasonal Ale
Back in 2013, I was lucky enough to receive variants of Widmer Brothers’ Brrrbon — the bigger, barrel-aged version of their winter seasonal, Brrr. Two years later, I get a chance to sample the base beer for those tasty, wax-sealed options. At 7.2% ABV, Brrr Seasonal Ale is just a few notches less potent than the barrel-aged release, and no less intriguing.
Every where I’ve encountered this beer, it’s labeled as a winter warmer, but with the hop profile it presents, Brrr takes a page from the Sierra Nevada Celebration book more than anything else. I’d say this beer is certainly more amber ale than anything bready and malty as expected when encountering most winter warmers. That’s not necessarily a knock against this beer, as Brrr is still pretty darn tasty.
Appearance
A frothy cap of beige foam drops slowly atop the mahogany brew, leaving decent lasting at is goes.
Aroma
A surprising amount of grapefruit and pine based on what I was expecting. Spices and caramel linger in the background.
Taste
The flavors on this beer — as I noted in my initial review of Brrrbon — screams amber ale more than it does winter warmer. Grapefruit, a fairly aggressive hop bite and pine dominate while soft bread notes and caramel sit placidly in the background. The beer finishes drying and warming.
Overall
I should have remembered the hop presence within Brrrbon, or at the very least looked back on the older reviews to see what I may be in store with Widmer Brrr. I guess part of me didn’t want to be influenced by past experience, which made this beer that much more unexpected. At any rate, the beer is pretty decent with good flavor, but it, as expected, doesn’t quite match the dynamic nature of its bigger, bourbon barrel aged sibling.
Rating: 3.75/5
This is a review of a promotional sample.
