Hill Farmstead Fear and Trembling (French Oak Cabernet)

Formerly brewed at Hill Farmstead Brewery
Style: Baltic Porter
Greensboro, Vermont USA

Serve in English pint, Shaker, Snifter

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Pours almost black with a thin tan head. Aroma is of lots of smoked malts, earth, light chocolate, mild wood. Taste is dark dried fruits, light earthy smoke, chocolate, light wine notes, oak and a touch of alcohol on the finish. Body slightly thin for the ABV.

Sampled March 2011; RBWG
The beer pours with a dark, browned head that sits on top of a concentrated brown, leaning towards black color; it shows a clearish brown hue when held up to the light. The aroma has a big, salty, peat like smokiness to it that is backed by a dark, burnt grain character, notes of spicy wood, and even a bit of hot alcohol.

Sweet molasses flavors up front lead into big, burnt grain roasted notes, and a smoke character that is really the dominant note in the flavor; the last is almost oily in its intensity, sort of peat like, lots of umami like savory notes, with a woody smoky character. There is a bitterness in the finish that is derived from both the roast character and the hops; the burnt notes really linger on in the plate, and really help to dry out the finish significantly. Woody flavors contribute an astringency, a subtle spicy oak character, and a definite tannic edge. The body is fairly chewy, thick even, with a nice viscosity to it. This is quite nice in the end, it is definitely a sipping beer, and I had no idea what to expect when I was poured this beer.

500 mL bottle. Sampled with the bourbon and blended versions. This was my favorite of the 3. Pours a darker brown with thin, frothy mocha head that gradually fades away. Mild smoke presence in the nose, with the cab barrels dominating; vanilla, oak, chocolate, fruit, spice and roast. Bitter chocolate and roast malt start flavor with spicy smoke throughout. Slightly tannic finish of red wine and bitter chocolate. Excellent balance and loads of complexity.

20th April 2012
Opaque dark brown beer. Tidy tan head. Palate has body and is semi dry with fine carbonation. Nice dark malt - it has weight but avoids roast or bitterness. Very mild smoke and mellow coffee. Unsweet dark chocolate and mild wood. Subtle red wine presents itself at the end and lingers in to the aftertaste. Goods stuff - charms with it’s balance.

Bottle at home. Pours jet black with a medium beige head. The aroma is smoke, oak, wood, oat, roasted malt and toasted caramel. The flavour is ham, smoke, smoked sausage, roasted malt and wood. Long smoked malty finish. Just slightly vinous. ---Rated via Beer Buddy for iPhone

500 ml bottle from glouglouburp. Pours a clear dark brown color with reddish hints and a small beige head. The aroma is roasted malts, oak, smoke with mild cab notes. The flavor has some meaty, savory smoke, oak, roasted malt, cab. notes and tannins. Medium plus body with quite a bit going on.

Bottled sample via and shared with oakbluff. Near black in colour with moderate carbonation. Aromas are of dark chocolate, caramel, sweet pale malts, and faint red grape. A bit more tart and woody than the other versions, but the chocolate and char are still very strong. Medium bodied and a touch savory. Very nice.

UPDATED: AUG 13, 2012 A friend shared this with me. It’s a year old now and still tasting great. Enjoyed in a Hill Farmstead Glass. (Reviewed on my iPhone)

A one finger coffee head , oily slick black. Pitch black. Lacing some alcohol legs

S cocoa nibs. Coffee. Cream espresso , maple syrup, sugar

T wood smoked wood and malt. Red wine (Cabernet)

M - 50% mouth feel. Heavy bodied. Wood and oak linger

O - Pretty good. Definitely an A grade

Bottle shared by Thorpe429. Thanks Mike! A: Dark brown hue with a thin, tan head that recedes rapidly, leaving but a little lacing. S: Roast, bacon, smoke (rauchbier), hints of oak. T: A very nice beer, though I think the aroma is better than the flavor. The beer has a nice tannic character, with the booze aspect the most hidden of the three variants. M: Medium to thin bodied with moderately low carbonation. D: Overall, this was my favorite of the Fear and Trembling beers. Serving type: bottle Reviewed on: 12-20-2010

Big thanks to ygtbsm94 - rock on, Brad! This was quite simply a ridiculously good beer. Smoked, maple wood, cab-aged Baltic porter with a nod to Roarin’ Soren? Yes motherfucking please. Very handsome pour, silky, a bit chalky-looking, deep oily dark brown, and garlanded with a firm but minimal head. Nose is pretty glorious with confident, assertive chocolate malts holding together lactic notes and vinous qualities. Sharp wood here and there. The taste is even more exquisite, with dry grape and oak giving the already fine beer depth and contrast - dark chocolate here, mildly dry porter there, and smoke flitting hither and yon. Superb stuff.