The Pint Jockey Online: The 2-4 Beers of Christmas 2018 Edition Day 22: 11.05 2018 Edition by Sawdust City

Beer # 481 11.05 2018 Edition, Belgian Quad with Cherries Collaboration

Brewery: Sawdust City Brewing Company

Type: Independent Microbrewery Est.: 2014

Location: Gravenhurst, Ontario, Canada

Brewery: Nickel Brook Brewing Company

Type: Independent Microbrewery Est.: 1992
Location: Burlington, Ontario, Canada

Beer Style: Flavoured Belgian Quadrupel

ABV: 11.05% IBU: 28

Format: Aluminium Can Size: 473 ml

Cost: $6.95 CAD Purchased At: The Brewery

sawdustcitybeer nickelbrookbrewing

@Sawdustcitybeer @NickelBrookBeer

Well, it seems to be a Christmas Tradition that I talk about Sawdust City and Nickel Brook's yearly collaboration brew celebrating the shared birthdays of their two brewmasters. Sam Corbeil of Sawdust and Ryan Morrow of Nickel Brook were both born on November 5th so every year they select a new style of beer and brew it to 11.05 % ABV. The resulting beer is always an interesting experiment in producing great tasting high alcohol beers. This year they selected a Quad which is typically a higher alcohol beer, to begin with, and added cherries and oak spirals

Let's try this one out.

Pours a deep chestnut with an off-tan head made up of small bubbles. Nose is very oaky with hints of chocolate and cherry. Deep malt notes with earthy hints and a touch of mushroom. First sip is deeply roasted malt with a fair amount of sugar. Tart cherry comes in through the middle with hints of grenadine and cherry candy. Aeration gives off some raw wood and caramelised sugars.

Impressions: Fail, So-so, Pass, Exceptional

Cost: 5/6 PASS
Colour: 5/6 PASS
Beer Style: 5/6 PASS

Re-Order: 5/6 PASS
Experience: 5/6 PASS
Christmas Cheer 5/6 PASS

Final Thoughts:

This year's edition was a good beer, but I had an issue with it and it took me a while to figure out what it was. It ended up being the "Oak Spirals." They left an interesting raw wood taste that, while it wasn't unpleasant it was very distracting to the overall flavour.

CJT

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