 krisbierjaeger (844), dolores, Colorado, USA
| 4.1 | Aroma | Appearance | Flavor | Palate | Overall | | 8/10 | 4/5 | 8/10 | 4/5 | 17/20 |
Dec 24, 2007
remember seeing this bizarre story in the news? a truck driver from a major candy factory crashed headlong into a nearby glue factory. the resulting inferno took up the century old oak beam structure. what a mess it was. but, after the blaze was extinguished, someone had the presence of mind to sop up some of the sticky, caramelized, phenolic ooze and bottle it. his name is samael, and while he’s under indictment for tampering with a crime scene, his beverage is now available to us, and this resinous, still dangerously flammable oak-butter bears his name. like a liquid candy cane, with caramel and strawberry, it is intensely sweet, with enough honey to fuel every indigent bumble bee from boston to berkeley. so dessert-like, i suggest enjoying samael with a double espresso-- but you’ll want to periodically monitor your heart rate just to be safe. the sheer gravity of samael will put a little extra bulge in your snifter. it drops innocently enough into a glass, showing a buttery baked pineapple bronze color-- and in spite of the roiling turbulence of alcohol--rising like a summer storm cell over texas-- it actually manages a tight little fellowship of foam. the beer has an admirably daring crudeness about it, one can imagine that it might have been based on a recipe found smudged on the wall in a sooty, pre-historic cave. it’s a formula that combines elements for a ceremonial bonfire: it weds volatility and sweetness, it’s a lumber-based lamp oil mixed with caramelized apricot syrup, grains, and for good measure, the gastric juices of a huge, obese honey badger that died of gout. full on the tongue, it etches perfectly configured and sinuous golden rivers of bitterness across the palate like micro-circuits on a memory chip. it’s a heavy fruit brandy, vulgar enough to fart some fusel alcohols in mixed company, refined enough to spin a rococo tapestry of toffee fibers, earthy enough to tell of bitter root tinctures, elevated enough to raise a rocket into space with it’s jet fuel potency. i awoke after dawn back at the scene of the accident-- having run out of bottled samaels-- i was found delirious and licking the curb where he’d long ago collected this hypnotic nectar. next time i may try simply injecting it into my arm-- that’s how much i crave that sweet oak, man.
decaturstevo (2065), decatur, Tennessee, USA
| 3.8 | Aroma | Appearance | Flavor | Palate | Overall | | 8/10 | 4/5 | 7/10 | 4/5 | 15/20 |
Feb 1, 2010 Cherry red pour with light off white head and lace. Aroma is raisins, oak, and abv. Flavor mirrors the aroma with a very sweet malt front and some toasted malt. Medium/full bodied with decent carbonation. A hint of fizzy threw it off a tad. A very nice beer.
Hoptagon (151), Arlington, Virginia, USA
| 4.1 | Aroma | Appearance | Flavor | Palate | Overall | | 7/10 | 4/5 | 9/10 | 4/5 | 17/20 |
Jan 29, 2010 12 oz. Bottled in May 2006. Batch 2. Have been sitting on this one for a few years and it has definitely paid off. The oak hits you as soon as you open the bottle. Pours a dark ruby color with no head whatsoever. Big strong nose of caramel, wood, dark candied fruits, smoke and a subtle trace of booze. Unbelievable flavor complexity with just about every malt flavor I can describe. Huge caramel flavor with overly ripe old people fruits (dates, figs, prunes) and sweet vanilla. The oak flavors come through towards the end and the bitterness is very minimal, but enough to prevent this from being a sugary disaster. Viscous, syrupy texture that reminds you that this beer is supposed to be a monster. Carbonation is kept to a minimum which also contributes to the heaviness on the tongue. Ends with some oak and some lingering vanilla. So much better than the "green" bottles I’ve tried in the past. Worth sitting on, this is a masterful sipper.
DragonsHead (139), Cranberry Township, Pennsylvania, USA
| 3.6 | Aroma | Appearance | Flavor | Palate | Overall | | 7/10 | 3/5 | 7/10 | 4/5 | 15/20 |
Jan 21, 2010 this beer is no joke.... pours thin, with almost no head. Tons of sweet malt aroma, unable to escape the richness.... The first taste is of sweet oaky fruit.... would be great with some spicy bbq ribs or a rich steak.... not much hop body, but still serious beer.... Tons of malt and roasted oak with some citrus spice...... this bottles has been cellared for almost 5 years... couldn’t imagine how brutal it was when young. Overall, I enjoy the complexity of this beer... definately not for sessioning, but a nice sipper at the end of a long night of work....
dalekliz (567), San Diego, California, USA
| 3.9 | Aroma | Appearance | Flavor | Palate | Overall | | 8/10 | 3/5 | 8/10 | 4/5 | 16/20 |
Jan 16, 2010 Bottle. Pours a clear dark amber with a white ring. Huge aroma, of malt, oak, meat, smoke, candied citrus. Taste is very rich, of sweet malt and dark fruits, smoky meat and oak. Lingering sweet-smoky wood. Rich as hell, but my kind of beer.
rmussman (936), California, USA
| 3.3 | Aroma | Appearance | Flavor | Palate | Overall | | 5/10 | 4/5 | 7/10 | 4/5 | 13/20 |
Jan 7, 2010 Sampled in a 12oz. A very powerful beer. Tastes just like an average strong ale but has an insanely high alcohol content. A few minutes later the malts and alcohol got to me.
chemicalcraig (7), Eugene/Seattle, Washington, USA
does not count  | 4.2 | Aroma | Appearance | Flavor | Palate | Overall | | 8/10 | 5/5 | 8/10 | 3/5 | 18/20 |
Jan 2, 2010 2006 12 oz. bottle. Poured clear deep amber. Small head w/ large bubbles. Aroma is of sweet and dark fruit, fig, dates, and malt. Flavor is oaky, high caramel, slighly vinous. Only slight alcohol warmth in the finish, surprisingly low for this abv. Very good, but a bit too heavy on the caramel to drink any more than a few ounces at a time.
luttonm (329), Belgrade, Serbia
| 3.9 | Aroma | Appearance | Flavor | Palate | Overall | | 7/10 | 4/5 | 8/10 | 4/5 | 16/20 |
Dec 29, 2009 Huge, intimidating stout. Intense syrupy bourbon, in the class of bourbon county and dark lord. The bourbon isn’t as forward as those two, but still this is a big, complex and roasty beer.
scoth (311), Fort Collins, Colorado, USA
| 3.7 | Aroma | Appearance | Flavor | Palate | Overall | | 7/10 | 4/5 | 7/10 | 5/5 | 14/20 |
Dec 28, 2009 Bottle from April 2009, batch 5. Pours mostly clear dark copper, some very small particulates, with a one-finger beige head, very fine and lasting lacing. Aromas of alcohol, toast, vanilla, wood, and grass. Full body, sharp, hot, and zesty. Sweet and chewy, with flavors of toasted barley, caramel, cherry, pepper, oak, and grass. Has a sharp, almost citric aftertaste, with just a hint of bitterness.
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