Endelig en berliner weisse som har mye kompleksitet og moderat syre, i stedet for det omvendte. Nydelig. Dette kan. Stone være bekjent av, selv om de solgte berlin-filialen som skapte denne herligheten.

One of the ‘groundbreaking collaborations’ (their own words) Stone Berlin – no longer in existence – has done, in this case with Mahr’s Bräu in Bamberg and legendary Avery in the U.S.; from an impressive magnum bottle shared by Filip Van Damme at Nieuwjaarsreceptie Gentse Biervereniging, cheers! Medium thick, mousy, pale greyish off-white head lacing in shreds over a clear, copper-hued burgundy red-brown beer. Aroma of cooked sausages, fried horse steak, dusty old wood, hard caramel, walnut purée, dried figs, marzipan, wet toast, mushrooms pan-fried with brown sugar, brandy. Sweet onset with impressions of dried fig and date as well as some apple peel and blue plum; medium carb, full oily and bit vinous mouthfeel. Caramelly malt core with a soft brown-bready edge as well as an upcoming smoky note, reminiscent of smoked sausages and even (vaguely) bonfire, plunging into a long, warming, complex finish coloured by a late peppery hop bitter touch, lingering malt sweetness and smokiness as well as brandy-like alcohol. Nice, full, complex ‘Rauchbock’ – Aecht Schlenkerla’s example amplified with American craft brewing boldness. Different and alluring, one of the most interesting and satisfying beers of the whole evening for me.

18-01-20 // 750ml bottle shared with local crew. Released May 25 2017 and held up incredebily well. A classic west coast dipa. Resinous and malty. But great citra hop aromas. Mild roasted coffee in the back. From Berlin local Five Elephants. Very well balanced.