Weyerbacher Sixteen
A bragging Braggot?I’m not sure what happened to tell you the truth. The Belgian-style stout that was XIII was pretty good. I loved the Fourteen — especially after it had settled down for a while in the cellar. But for the life of me, I don’t recall ever seeing Weyerbacher’s 15th anniversary release.
Hopefully, I’m back on track now that I’ve secured a bottle of Sixteen, a 10.5% ABV Braggot. I can’t recall if I’ve ever had a beer of this style before, though for some reason I have the feeling I have at some point along this long road of craft beer drinking. At any rate, this particular brew uses four different malts (Caramel, crystal, munich and chocolate), as well as “…an absurd amount of honey from Pennsylvania bees.” The end result is a rich and complex brew that I wish I had more of to cellar away.
Appearance
Sixteen pours dark brown in color with a garnet edge. The light tan head fell slowly.
Aroma
This beer has quite the nose on it as hints of chocolate, raisin, earthy honey, a light sweetness, herbs and spices all come together. It’s not an overwhelming aroma, but fairly complex nonetheless. There’s a hint of alcohol present, as well.
Taste
I don’t know what I was expecting this beer — something leaning on the sweet side, but beyond that I went in with blank expectations. What I encountered is a rich, almost full bodied brew that is warming and smooth. The four malt combination provides a solid base with a light roast and caramel for the earthy honey to work with. Hints of herbs and spices accompany a decent level of sweetness that’s not cloying. That sweetness helps take the edge off of the higher alcohol content which is present through out the life of the beer, but seems to come through more as the beer warms in the glass. The finish is on the dry side and compliments the beer wonderfully.
Overall
In hindsight, drinking this beer before dinner wasn’t the way to go. It’s a rich beer that would be better served for dessert, but my timing didn’t affect my enjoyment. It’s a full flavored brew with plenty going on and, as my first “official” braggot, I’ll be looking for more examples of this style whenever I can.
Rating: 4/5