Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 8 | Flavor - 8 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 7.5
Dark reddish porter with a thick lacing moka head. Aroma of chocolate and figs and vanilla. In mouth, bitter chocolate, raisins, molasses, figs and harsh hops. Rich bodied and smooth. Tap at the Sunset Grill, Boston, Feb.11, 2006.
Appearance - 6 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 6.5
Thanks to ClarkVV for this bottle - 2004 vintage (labeled as Troutbrook) - very cloudy amber/chestnut with very minimal white lace - very musty, almost funky/cheesy aroma, with hints of vanilla, bourbon and oak - the funky/cheesy quality appears in the flavor as well, along with bourbon, toffee, a hint of smoke, nutmeg and cinnimon - the beginnings of oxidation are apparent in this sample - very flat, which works for some barleywines, but not this one - decent, but I was expecting more.
Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 6 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 6 | Overall - 5.5
Draught pint at Redbones on 2/4/06. A pale copper to tangerine flesh colored body is clear and rather bubbly. Frothy, small, but moderately well-retained white colored head sticks atop, with some light, spotty lacing. The aroma conveys a deep and intricately woven hoppiness amongst light caramel, plenty of pale malt sugars, a bit of dough and slight toasted grains. Floral, but with a light citrus edge, fairly light, almost lemon-oriented, but gaining some soft green fuzziness as it warms and perhaps a bit of strong, fresh herbs or grass. The flavor shows basic pale malts with lychee, hickory nuts, limes and wet grass. A fair amount of citrus begins to build, with a good amount of round acidity and drying bitterness. Even seems like some munich malt dryness on the end, creating a bit of breadiness. Creamy, thick mouthfeel, very wet and rather heavy, actually. No alcohol apparent. Carbonation is firm.
Appearance - 10 | Aroma - 6 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 6 | Overall - 7.5
Bottle: Poured a clear dark brown color beer with a huge brown foamy head with perfect retention. Aroma of roasted malt with some butterscotch. The roasted caramel malt with subtle hints of banana also dominates taste. Body is above average but could have been fuller and carbonation was at the right level for the style. Alcohol is well hidden. Overall, this is a very good beer but would have appreciated a bit more complexity (more chocolate, more banana).
Appearance - 10 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 8 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 7.5
Draught pint, 12/20/2005, at Sunset Grille. Deeper than expected, lightly transluscent ruby-auburn with chestnut-rufous (to steal a word) highlights on the edges. Foamy cream colored head atop is well retained and laces ever so slightly. Aroma has a deep and ponderous roast. Toasted grains of caramel and even a slight hint of vanilla flavored coffee. Husky vienna-like malts and a sweet, almost honeyish-like note arising on the end, to sooth the nostrils. Certainly some light hops, herbal and fresh that rise gently, but persistently from the liquid. The flavor is immediately toasty, with plenty of caramel and a distinct nuttiness, adding a playful chewy texture, while hops brighten the picture with a crisp and leafy balance. All the while, a honey-vanilla malt sweetness lingers in the background and adds potent, supportive body and a lightly creamy texture. Carbonation is low, and deep earthy barley, hints of light coffee and more herbs pepper the palate. I keep speaking of coffee, but it’s not as one would expect, certainly no dark roasty coffeeness from a stout, but it’s there, well-integrated with the earthiness, almost like a peaty-whiskey note you get in some scotch ales. No skimping on the malt or hops and a wonderfully round and succulent mouthfeel. This beer has to be experienced on draught, as do the pale and blonde, as the contract brewed bottles, while well-made don’t do Paul’s talents justice.
Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 8 | Flavor - 8 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 7.5
Dark brown, opaque beer with a thin moka head. Sweet prunes in aroma and brown sugar. In mouth, sweet maple with nuts and prunes, llight hops in beginning, and smooth alcohol final. Rich bodied db, with alcohol warming you. Enjoyed at YEHa!05 Christmas Party on Dec. 17th, 2005.
Appearance - 10 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 8 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 8.5
A hazy orange-brown beer with a small brown head. The aroma is very hoppy, and the flavor is sweet, but also very hoppy combined with hints of sour grapefruit and wood.
Oakes (33493) reviewed Oktoberfest from Thomas Hooker Brewing Company 20 years ago
Appearance - 6 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 8 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 8
Bright brick orange colour. The aroma is earthy, caramelly with hints of toffee. Very flavourful malt character - smokey, toffeeish and earthy, with some spicy hop in there as well. Vibrant, lively example leans towards rusticity over cleanliness, but for me that’s a good thing in this style. It fits so well with wet leaves and wood fireplaces and that makes it a great beer for October.
Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 7.5
Deep amber body with a nice tight off-white head. Good malt aroma. Clean, malty and well balanced with no hops as it should be. Clean and medium bodied. Decent Oktoberfest.
Clarkvv (16523) reviewed Oktoberfest from Thomas Hooker Brewing Company 20 years ago
Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 7.5
2005 bottle consumed 9/6/2005. Copper-amber beer with light ruby highlights and a huge amount of well-retained, yellow-cream colored head. Filtered and force carbonated, but must be the freshness creating such a lasting head (little to no lacing though). Very spicy nose with a sponge-cake like note as well. Dry, some malt graininess. Floral hops with a light hint of vanilla. Light bread, some maple and toffee. Flavor is malty with a spicy hops background. Dry grains and a very soft, flowery mouthfeel. Still, a bit aerated and unsubstantial in texture. Retronasal spicy, fresh hops. Fairly quick finish. Sweet brown bread and fresh 2-row barley flavors. Grains and hops linger through the sweetness easily. Palate does get a bit annoying, as the big, spacious bubbles burst all over the mouth, though at least it is not prickly and sharp. You know what’s great about Hooker beers? Even these contract brewed money-makers are better than most other breweries specialty lines. I can definitely live with having these beers fund the masterful creations brewed in CT by Mr. Davis. 6/3/7/3/13
Cask pint at Hop Devil Grill on 9/22/06. Bright and well-tended seems the cask, by appearance. Everything the bottle shows potential for it to be. Add in the fantastic texture, fresh yeast and light, natural carbonatoin. Mossy/herbal hops are not too spicy, nor is the malt overly bready. Goes down very easily and is quite the sessionable octoberfest, as it should be. Not overly high in melanoidins, but certainly bits and pieces of piquant fruits are present. A slight chewy toffee note adds a bit more sweetness. Could stand to be a bit more assertive in its yeastiness, as it seems very clean. But the fresh, flavorful hops, without any real bitterness works very well. Fantastic stuff. 7/5/8/5/16. Rating is an average of the two scores.