Redhook Winterhook

Brewed by Redhook Brewery
Style: English Strong Ale
Woodinville, Washington USA

Serve in English pint, Trappist glass

12 oz bottle. Pours out a deep brown with a mild tan head and little lacing. Aroma a solid mixture of caramel malt and light earthy hop notes. Flavor is more bitter than I’d like, but also too sweet in the finish, a very strange mixture in a beer. Not one of my favorite PNW holiday offerings.

bottle, darl brown color with good tan foam, hoppy caramel aroma, flavor is caramel , hoppy bitterness with an underlying papery texture, finishes ok

nose filled with hops, a great foil to wonderful burnt brown appearance. well balanced flavor brings hops to greet nicely developed malt character which borders on roasted qualities, light coca cola flavors. palate is dry and a tad wet, which suits this beer just fine. good ABV makes this a very solid daily drinker, and then some!

Some spices in a sweet malt composition which is drowned by the wet texture to the point that it would be a better beer if it was dryer.

My Winter Hook was a brazenly clear dark copper with amber highlights streaking through her brilliant body. A generous head fades quickly into a miniscule ringlet circling her newly established territory. A couple aggressive swirls produce a bit of a rough and tumble head, but once more, she quickly fades into submission. Right away, a crisp lemon zest snags my tastebuds and doesn’t let go. Mingling in the background are dry winter spices, molasses and caramel, brown sugar, and moist dark raisins. While I enjoy the spices, caramelized sugars, and warm dark fruits, I am constantly distracted by the dominant presence of sharp, citric lemon zest and esters. As I cautiously delve into her brew, I am met immediately by a thin body and mouthfeel which is replete with lemon zest which lingers on top of my tongue. Her warm spices mingle with the lemon while faint toasty warmth hints of her softer, sweeter side. The caramel and brown-sugar coated toast I enjoyed in her nose is just a whisper on the wind, overpowered and domineered by too much lemon and citrus. As I reach the finish, I wish for less lemon and toastier malts, caramelized sugars, and soothing warm spices.

I had hopes, and all hopes are of course a figment of one’s expectations and understandings. But, included in that is a spectrum of experience and knowledge. I wouldn’t go so far as to say that Winter Hook was a horrible beer, but I would say that winter warmer priorities were off-kilter and unbalanced. The lemon should have been but a whisper of brightness while soothing winter spices atop crunchy toasted bread drizzled with gentle molasses and maple notes seduced my senses.

Had bottle, draft and cask at brewery. Nice on cask. Some good spice to add to the creamy malts. Aroma has some spice and sweetness. Full body even on cask.

Bottle. Pours an amber body with a tan head. Chewy nutty taffy, hints of light woodiness and caramel malt. Some light pine and spices. Decent brew.

UPDATED: DEC 5, 2009 Location: Had it many times, can find it almost anywhere

Aroma: Malts, dark fruits, some spice
Appearance: Nice looking dark red color
Flavor: Mostly malty sweetness, some roasted flavor
Palate: Medium body, dull mouthfeel
Overall Impression: An average, OK, just decent winter ale...Not a lot of very interesting flavor here. Looks better then it is. **Update 12/5/09: Just had some of a bottle of this, but the rating seems about right, so I’m going to leave it here.