Brooklyn Black Ops

4.2/5

AROMA 8/10 APPEARANCE 4/5 TASTE 9/10 PALATE 4/5 OVERALL 17/20

750 ml bottle into signature tulip glass, bottled 10/21/2010. Pours pitch black, with a nice 2 finger fairly dense tan head with good retention that reduces to a thin cap that lingers. Spotty lacing on the glass; with a good amount of carbonation streaming up. Aromas of big bourbon, caramel, toffee, vanilla, chocolate, roasted malt, light dark fruitiness, and a bit of alcohol. Nice and well balanced aromas. Taste of big caramel, bourbon, chocolate, vanilla, molasses, oak, roasted malt, light coffee, and a bit of spiciness. Lingering notes of chocolate, bourbon, vanilla, caramel, and oak on the finish for a bit. Medium carbonation and fairly full bodied; with a fairly creamy and slick mouthfeel. A bit of prickly carbonation from the bottle conditioning. Alcohol is well hidden at 11.3% with only a warming after the finish. Overall this is an excellent, balanced, and smooth barrel aged imperial stout. A bit different due to the champagne yeast bottle conditioning. Probably not worth $22 for another bottle, but it was nice to try once.

A great and well balanced bourbon barrel aged imperial stout. Probably not worth another buy in my opinion though at that price.

Brooklyn Local 1

4.4/5

AROMA 8/10 APPEARANCE 5/5 TASTE 9/10 PALATE 4/5 OVERALL 18/20

750 ml bottle into tulip, no bottle date. Pours hazy golden straw color with a fairly dense 2 finger white head with good retention that reduces to a thin lacing cap that lasts. Some nice lacing clings around the glass as well. Aromas of lemon, pepper, spices, banana, light tropical fruits, and some bread. Some nice and balanced aromas with good strength. Taste of big lemon, tropical fruit, banana, pepper, spices, grass, clove, bread, and other light fruitiness. Finish is fairly dry, but not too dry. No bitterness on the finish; but there are lingering notes of lemon, bread, spices, and clove on the finish with a bit of a yeasty tang as well. Medium-high carbonation and medium bodied; with a fairly prickly mouthfeel that drinks very smoothly and is slightly creamy. Alcohol is very well hidden with a warming on the finish that is hardly noticeable. Overall a fantastic Belgian strong pale, fantastic balance and complexity.

Brooklyn really has a lot of good things going on with their 750 releases that I have had thus far. Looking forward to trying the Local 2 in the future.

Post Road Pumpkin Ale

3.8/5

AROMA 8/10 APPEARANCE 4/5 TASTE 7/10 PALATE 4/5 OVERALL 15/20

12 ounce bottle, best by Jan 2012. Pours hazy golden orange color with a nice 2 finger dense off white head with great retention that reduces to a thick lacing cap that lasts. Tons of carbonation streaming up from the bottom. Aromas of big fresh pumpkin, nutmeg, cinnamon, clove, caramel, and bread. Some very nice aromas here, probably the most pumpkin forward aromas I have ever had in a beer. Taste of pumpkin, cinnamon, nutmeg, clove, bread, and allspice. No bitterness noticed, but there are some lingering notes of pumpkin, bread, allspice, and cinnamon on the finish. Taste is a bit on the watery side, but overall really solid and enjoyable. Medium carbonation and body; with a bit of a creamy mouthfeel that goes down very smoothly. Nice balance of flavors. No alcohol noticed in the taste or finish as expected. Overall this is a really nice and sessionable pumpkin ale. I would have this again.

A surprisingly nice and authentic smelling pumpkin beer. Probably the most pumpkin forward one I have had as well.

Brooklyn Sorachi Ace

4.4/5

AROMA 9/10 APPEARANCE 4/5 TASTE 9/10 PALATE 4/5 OVERALL 18/20

750 ml bottle into wine glass. Pours hazy golden amber color with a fairly dense 2 finger white head with incredible retention that reduces to a fairly thick lacing cap. Small amount of lacing sticks to the glass. Aromas of lemon, pepper, clove, basil, a bit of grass and other spiciness. Great aromas here, very strong as well. Taste of lemon, grass, basil, pepper, and other spices. Lingering notes of pepper, spices, lemon and some citrus on the finish. A slight bit of tartness noticed on the finish as well, but not much. Fantastic balance of flavors, no bitterness noticed as expected. Medium-high carbonation and medium bodied, nice crisp finish. Very smooth drinking with no notice of alcohol anywhere other than a slight warming after the finish. Nice and refreshing as well. Overall, an outstanding saison. I think this is the newest batch as well, so it is drinking fantastic fresh.

So I am finally getting into trying the Brooklyn 750's. I have Local 1 and 2 in the cellar, plus Black Ops. I will probably re-review Black Chocolate Stout, because I have one down there as well. BCS is still extremely available around here in most supermarkets. I may have to pick up some singles of the other brews to try. I visited Brooklyn last Saturday when I was in NYC(came home this week). Got a tour, and had some draft beer, including both of the Brewmasters Reserve they had on tap(Blast and Concoction). Blast was a very nice DIPA, and Concoction was certainly interesting. It was a beer brewed with ginger and spices. It was alright.

I may post up my visit pics on here, but it wasnt much, just a short tour explaining what they do, and the plans for the future(I think they said they are going to bottle Blast in 750's that will be nice). Cheers!

Brooklyn Monster Ale

3.7/5

AROMA 7/10 APPEARANCE 3/5 TASTE 8/10 PALATE 4/5 OVERALL 15/20

12 ounce bottle, 2008 version. Pours clear copper-red color with a small foamy off white head with fair retention, no glass lacing. Aromas of caramel, molasses, dark fruits, and alcohol. Taste is quite malty with caramel, molasses, and some dark fruits. A bit of bitterness on the finish, but not much. The alcohol in this beer is well hidden, with only a bit of alcohol warming on the finish. Very smooth drink for its ABV level. Medium carbonation and full body. Nothing spectacular, but a solid barley wine.

Only my second Brooklyn beer, I have heard some mixed thoughts on their normal offerings.

Brooklyn Black Chocolate Stout

4.2/5

AROMA 9/10 APPEARANCE 4/5 TASTE 8/10 PALATE 5/5 OVERALL 16/20

12 ounce bottle. Pours completely opaque with a small tan head with good retention that reduces to a fine lacing. Fair amount of lacing on the glass. Aromas of roasted malts, chocolate, smoke, and alcohol. Taste of bitter chocolate and smokiness. The finish on this is unbelievably creamy with a fantastic chocolate flavor that lingers on the palate. Some alcohol noticed on the finish. Goes down amazingly smooth and easy. Perfect amount of carbonation, just enough. Delicious and quite outstanding.

This is a winter seasonal, but I have seen it recently in Acme so it should be pretty easy to find if you know where to look. This is a huge stout.