North Coast Le Merle

4.2/5

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

750 ml bottle into tulip, no bottle dating. Pours hazy golden orange color with a nice 2 finger dense white head with incredible retention that reduces to a nice cap. A fair amount of lacing clings to the glass. Plenty of carbonation streaming up from the bottom. Aromas of big lemon, orange zest, tart apple, grass, pepper, yeast spiciness, and a nice bit of funk. Very nice aromas here with great balance. Taste of lemon, grass, pepper, breadiness, clove, apricot, spicy yeast, light tart apple, and a bit of wheat-like tang. Definitely a lot of complexity going on here. Lingering notes of pepper, lemon, clove, breadiness, wheat, and spices on the finish for a while. Medium-high carbontion and medium bodied; with a bit of a prickly mouthfeel that still drinks extremely smoothly for being over 7%. Alcohol is well hidden with only a slight warming after the finish present. Overall this is an excellent, smooth, and very complex saison. Highly enjoyable stuff.

A great saison offering. I have no idea how old this bottle was, but I have a feeling it improves with age.

North Coast Old Stock Ale

4.2/5

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

2010 12 ounce bottle into snifter. Pours clear dark red color with a fairly dense 1 finger off white head with good retention, that reduces to a lacing cap. Some very thick lacing on the glass. Aromas of strong bourbon, molasses, caramel, dark fruits, honey, and some booze. Some very strong aromas. Taste of raisins, honey, molasses, toffee, caramel, and other fruits. Some very light bitterness on the finish that almost goes unnoticed. Also has a fairly dry finish, but there is some lingering sweet notes after the finish with a fairly large alcohol warming. Incredibly smooth for its alcohol content(11.7%) and there is absolutely no alcohol burn going down. Full bodied with medium-low carbonation. Overall a very enjoyable brew, I would like to seek this out and age it for a while to see how it is with age on it.

A very delicious beer from North Coast. I should definitely cellar a couple of these in the future.

North Coast Pranqster

3.5/5

AROMA 6/10 APPEARANCE 3/5 TASTE 8/10 PALATE 4/5 OVERALL 14/20

12 ounce bottle into snifter. Pours hazy light amber color with a foamy 1 finger white head with decent retention that reduces to a slight cap that leaves minimal lacing. Aromas of dark fruits, banana, honey, spicy yeast, and some clove. Also a slight bit of alcohol noticed in the aroma. Taste of banana, spice, and honey with some clove coming in near the finish. Very sweet on the front with the spices coming in on the finish. Fairly high amount of carbonation with a medium body. Decently strong alcohol warming felt after the finish. The mouthfeel is as smooth as I have had with some other Belgian styles, but comes in a bit thin. Overall this is a solid Belgian style. I was hoping for a bit more complexity, and the aroma was fairly weak, but I would probably give another go in the future.

It wasn't as amazing as I thought it was going to be, but still fairly solid.

North Coast Red Seal Ale

4/5

AROMA 7/10 APPEARANCE 4/5 TASTE 9/10 PALATE 4/5 OVERALL 16/20

12 ounce bottle. Pours clear red orange color with a 2 finger off white head with decent retention. Aromas of citrus, floral, pine, caramel, and some spices. Taste matches the nose very well, with a nice crisp clean bitterness that lingers for a bit on the finish. This goes down very well, and is very drinkable. Very nicely balanced flavors. Medium body and fairly high carbonation. Overall this is highly enjoyable, and full of flavor. Before I knew it my glass was empty. Excellent stuff.

Definitely a tasty beer, with a lot of flavor for its alcohol content. Delicious.

North Coast Old No. 38 Stout

4.2/5

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

12 ounce bottle. Pours dark brown with a nice 2 finger tan head with very good retention that reduces to a lacing cap. Some very nice lacing on the glass as well. Aromas of a ton of molasses, coffee, chocolate, caramel, and toffee. Taste of molasses, caramel, chocolate, coffee, and roasted malts. The finish was pretty dry as expected, but there is some slight chocolate, caramel, and coffee notes the linger very slightly after the finish. Also a slight amount of bitterness on the finish as well. Medium body and carbonation, with a creamy mouthfeel. A very tasty and impressive Dry Stout, and I would definitely pick up a pack of this in the future. Delicious.

Fantastic offering from North Coast, can't wait to try more of their lineup.

North Coast Old Rasputin Russian Imperial Stout

4.5/5

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

12 ounce bottle. Pours opaque black color with a 2 finger tan head with great retention. Insane glass lacing. Aromas of tons of chocolate with some coffee, roasted malts, molasses, and licorice. Taste of chocolate and some bitter coffee, with a bit of alcohol present on the finish. The chocolate finish lasts for a good amount of time as well. Full creamy body with medium carbonation. Wow, this is an amazing stout.

So yea, if you have not tried this yet, you are missing out on A LOT. Seriously this is one of the best out there.