Sierra Nevada Kellerweis

Brewery: Sierra Nevada
Location: Chico, CA
Style: Hefeweizen
Brewery Website
Rating: A-

In my glass today is the Sierra Nevada Kellerweis. This is their year-round hefeweizen. The Kellerweis pours up a hazy, golden-tan color with a thick white head. The nose detects fruit, grass and Eurolager notes.

On the palate the malt has notes of wheat bread. There is a slight sweetness, which is highlighted by notes of vanilla and liquorice (as in real liquorice candy, not black licorice/anise). There are some berry notes here, along with some yeast. The Kellerweis is medium bodied, with both a touch of creaminess and a touch of juiciness. The finish has sweet spices that linger after the malt starts to fade.

This is my first taste of the Sierra Nevada Kellerweis, and while I have never been a huge hefeweizen fan, I really like this beer. There is some nice unique flavor going on here. I know I will be adding this to my rotation of beers for the spring as the weather warms.

Sierra Nevada Stout

Brewery: Sierra Nevada
Location: Chico, CA
Style: Stout
Brewery Website
Rating: A

Today we are tasting the Sierra Nevada Stout. This stout pours up an opaque mahogany color with a huge dark tan, foamy head. Right away the nose detects some good things. There are waves of complex aromas with roasted cocoa, earth, and wine along with both fruity and floral contributions from the hops.

The complexity continues on the palate. Aromatic hops lead off with both fruit and floral notes. This is followed by roasted coffee notes from the malt. A second wave of hops then rolls in with pine, juniper and a mild bitter bite. There are also some highlights of rye bread and wine. The Sierra Nevada Stout is medium-bodied and quite drinkable for a stout. There is also a bit of warming alcohol as well. The finish has a lingering hops bite over unsweetened cocoa and espresso

The Sierra Nevada Stout is a great, unique stout. This is a rather hops-forward style for a stout. The roasted malt flavor pairs excellently with the hops, but the hops are really the top dog here. The hops flavors are well-balanced. While there are some fruity hops notes, you aren't getting hammered with a big Cascade monotone which really wouldn't work here. The Sierra Nevada Stout drinks like a "roasted IPA" (especially since the body is a bit on the lighter side for a stout). This is a great showing from Sierra Nevada and the perfect dark beer for hopheads.

Heavy Seas Winter Storm - Category 5 Ale

Brewery: Clipper City Brewing Co.
Location: Baltimore, MD
Style: ESB
Brewery Website
Rating: A

Today's beer tasting is Heavy Seas' winter seasonal, the Winter Storm Category 5 Ale. The Winter Storm is a big ESB. It is deep amber in color with an off-white, clumpy head and fine bubbles of carbonation. The nose has a big citrus-hops aroma with some faint sweetness.

The Winter Storm leads off with a solid bitter kick up front. Fruity hops flavors pass by quickly but distinctly. The bitter hops then take on a pine/juniper quality with some floral notes as well. There is a hint of sweetness, some mineral notes and a background of pretzel maltiness. The Winter Storm has a fairly heavy body, which suits it well. The finish is long bitter hops balanced by a hint of sweetness.

It's not often that I taste a seasonal beer and wish it was available year-round, but the Heavy Seas Winter Storm is a rare exception. This is simply a fantastic ESB. There is a considerable bite for the hopheads, but it is balanced by a faint residual sweetness. Its heavy body and high alcohol content (7.5% ABV) help hold everything together as well. This is a top-notch beer for the hopheads, get some soon before it's gone.

Unibroue Chambly Noire

Brewery: Unibroue
Location: Chambly, Quebec
Style: Belgian Dark Ale
Brewery Website
Rating: A-

Today's beer tasting is the Chambly Noire from Quebec's Unibroue. The Chambly Noire is pitch black and opaque with a faint hint of amber. The head is light tan in color and there is notable carbonation and sediment visible in the glass. The nose has notes of butter, wine and toast.

On the palate there is an initial butter note that fades leaving a toasted malt flavor that isn't overly strong despite the deep black color. Yeast is a prominent flavor as well. Cocoa and espresso as well as some champagne notes are present. There are also some cherry and citrus fruit notes in the background. The Chambly Noire is dry, but not bone dry. It has a medium body with some carbonation fizz and a slight coating sensation. The finish has black coffee and buttered toast.

The Unibroue Chambly Noire is a novel concept as Belgian-style beers go. This is essentially a dark witbier, and it works pretty well as such. The Chambly Noire is just dry enough without going too far and the strong butter note on the nose is tamed down to a more balanced level on the palate. What can I say, this is another great showing from Unibroue. If Belgian-style beers are your thing, then the Chambly Noire should be on your "must-try" list.

One other point of note: The Chambly Noire provided an excellent pairing with the Domori Puertofino that we recently reviewed on our sister site The Dark Chocolate Blog.

Southern Tier Porter

Brewery: Southern Tier Breing Company
Location: Lakewood, NY
Style: Porter
Brewery Website
Rating: B

In my glass today is the Southern Tier Porter. This porter is a deep orange-brown color with a deep tan head. The nose detects sweetness, winy notes, chocolate and faint hops notes.

On the palate, there are notes of smoke and roasted cocoa up front. There is a distinct mineral note. Notes of oatmeal, caramel, and earthiness are here as well. There is some alcohol, leaving a bit of a warming sensation. Faint notes of hops and cola are in the background as well. The Southern Tier Porter is medium-bodied with a slight carbonation fizz. The finish has roasted coffee and dark toast.

The Southern Tier Porter is a bit understated for a porter. It is not the typical big, bombastic, roasted porter. The flavor is well-rounded, but it could use a bit more hops for my tastes to fill the void left by easing back on the smokiness. This one is worth a try if you prefer your porters to have the smoke dialed back a bit.