25th April 2020
Can. Light haze on this gold beer, small bubbly off white head. Palate is light, minerally crisp and fairly dry. Thin malts barely abate the hop bitterness. Crisp but bitterish citrus and citric peel. Spicy bitter grapefruit and thin orange peel. Thin dry spicy bitter finish. Somewhat thin and aggressive but not hating this. Some passion fruit.

Beer #1 of 17 (8 beers on either side of #8000 plus the magic 8000th itself) Canned on 13-November-2017 // Purchased on 02-December-2017 // Sampled 15-April-2020 Deep dark, almost perfectly pitch black coloured body that seems to be 'void of light' with a sliver of light going through the sides when the glass is tilted, with a two to three centimetre tall light brown head that fades relatively quickly, especially for the age of this one and the pressure in the can when it was cracked. Aroma of soy sauce, meat, mushrooms, roasted malt, burnt coffee, deep dark chocolates, some pitted fruits and plums and finished off with a heavy dose of oatmeals. Medium-bodied; Strong soy sauce and meaty components with the oatmeal are by far the strongest with some sweetness from chocolate and plums and prunes with a dose of a creamy or lactose note showing some more sweet stouty side of things, but the bitterness and pungency from the export/foreign side of the house is way stronger. Aftertaste shows the deep and robust notes with the meaty and umami flavours coming out by far the strongest with a lot of alcohol and pungency towards the end that does highlight the smoked peat, burnt malts and roasted coffee flavours. Overall, a deep and strong beer (as expected) with a pungency, astringency and range of flavours that wasn't the best for the style or after this period in a can. Not a bad beer, but as far as foreign stouts, this was ho-hum, which is slightly sad, as this was the first beer of my 8000th celebration and started on a bad note. I can only get better from here. I sampled this sixteen ounce can, purchased from Milk & Hops in New York (9th and Broadway, now defunct, I believe), New York on 02-December-2017 for US$3,99 sampled at my house in Washington on 15-April-2020, as Beer #1 (of 17) of the 8000th Beer Celebration!

Ridiculously hazy, almost chunky, with a very large four to five centimetre tall, very-large-bubbled yellow and tan head that fades very quickly. Aroma of citrus, grass, flowers, oranges and a touch of fake sugars - very funky in the nose. Medium-bodied; Deep, highly tart and citrusey flavours dominate with blood oranges, grapefruit, flowers and astringent alcohol with a lot of medicinal, funky, herbal and very odd flavours at the end that do show a bit of tropical and fruity flavours as well. Aftertaste shows the alcohol, funk, fruits and especially the dry grassy and very citrusey flavours with some light alpha acids, a good deal of tropical fruits and way more super funky notes from fake sugars and astringency. Overall, a very odd beer that has way too many off-flavours and super fake notes that gives this a horrible artificial note. Not recommended, obviously and not worth trying to find, no matter how many Gun Hill beers you've previously enjoyed! I sampled this sixteen ounce, pint-sized can, purchased from Joe Canal's in Lawrenceville, New Jersey on 06-January-2020 for US$4,29 sampled at home in Washington on 06-April-2020.

Can from Malt & Mold. Pours clear amber with large frothy whitish head, earthy-vanilla aroma, adequate carbonation, mildly bitter and salty earthy taste with vanilla flavor, thin body, long earthy finish. Quite strong earthy flavor.

Draught @ Albion (2/5/20). Very faintly cloudy golden with foamy off-white head, sweet malt aroma, high carbonation, mildly sweet malty taste with light hops bitterness, thin and smooth body, abrupt finish with faint sweet malt aftertaste. Smooth and easy to drink.

How: Draught.
Where: SBWF 2019.
Appearance: Hazy dark golden colour with a white head.
Aroma: Malt, sour, acidic, some fruit.
Body: Light body, medium carbonation.
Flavour: Sour, fruit, tea, acidic.

Draught @ Ted's Corner Tavern (1/13/20). Faintly cloudy very pale yellow with foamy off-white head, citrus peel aroma, adequate carbonation, mildly bitter citrus peel-apricot taste, thin watery body, longish finish. Nice, but a bit watery.

16 ounce can. Honey gold pour. Rocky white head. Earthy, wheat malt nose. Slightly tart, grainy malt flavor. A bit of wheat and spice on the palate. Mild boozy notes in middle. Peppery hops in finish.

Draught @ Gebhard's Beer Culture (12/12/19). Hazy bright yellow with large foamy off-white head, lightly acidic lemon aroma, high carbonation, medium sour taste with lemon flavor, thin body, long sour finish. Good, balanced sour.

Draught @ Albion. Clear pale yellow with foamy whitish head, faintly citrusy malt aroma, high carbonation, medium bitter piney taste, thin body, long bitter finish. Decent brew.