Archive for the 'Grand Cru' category
Green Flash Grand Cru
Happy New Year! For this installment of SevenPack Beer Blog, I’m practically cleaning out the fridge, which doesn’t happen often here at SevenPack Central. Tonight I’m drinking from a bottle of the Green Flash Grand Cru. To be honest, I’ve rarely been very impressed with Green Flash’s offerings, so that’s why this one has been in the fridge so long. However, I also love a good Grand Cru, so I’ve got high hopes…
This Grand Cru pours a very dark and debrisious(?) brown color that just barely lets in some light when held up to a light. The head on this is caramel and very dense, thickening to a couple of fingers before slowly dissipating. The aroma here is very nice – lots of grain and nuttiness with some light hints of licorice spice. It is rather pungent, but in a good way. In the mouth, this beer is surely flavorful, although I can’t say that this is entirely a good thing. The beer’s first sensation is spicy with a light burn. This spiciness quickly becomes sweet in a slightly cloying manner on the center of the tongue, but only for an instant. After this, the beer settles in to something that is more nutty and grainy, and this flavor stays fairly consistent through the mouth. However, around the periphery of the mouth, the cloying sweetness seems to persist as two distinct flavor profiles develop around different parts of the tongue. Towards the back of the mouth, while the sweetness maintains around the sides of the tongue, a light bitterness develops, and this bitterness persists into the aftertaste, offering a lightly peanut-y flavor that doesn’t exactly complement the syrupy sweetness that sits everywhere else. Honestly, this isn’t bad, but it’s not quite my cup of tea. That being said, it’s not hard for me to imagine someone else liking this quite a lot. It has a big flavor profile, and distinct sections of flavor through the mouth. Assuming you like all of these flavors and how they coexist, then this might be a winner. In my case, the flavors seem a bit harsh and don’t play well together, so I’m not digging it. But, I’ve found some of this harshness in other Green Flash beers, so it could be a trademark of sorts. If you’re into a more abrasive flavor, then maybe this is for you!
Avery The Beast Grand Cru Ale
As previously noted I am a huge fan of the Avery Brewing Co. so I jump at the opportunity to try one of their creations. This is by far the strongest beer I have had the pleasure of reviewing at 14.9% abv. It pours a deep amber color and, no surprise, smells heavy of alcohol. It is very rich and complex as flavors of nut and a sort of maple syrup sit on the tongue and cling to the roof of the mouth. The Beast is less abrasive and more sweet than I had imagined. This is without a doubt a dessert beer and one that should be enjoyed slowly. It seems very expensive at $9 for a 12 oz. bottle but given the alcohol content I guess it isn’t that bad. It’s not a beer I will put on my grocery list, mostly because of the price, but one that I wouldn’t mind revisting every now and again.
