White Birch Oak Aged Old Stone Wall Ale

Formerly brewed at White Birch Brewing
Style: Old Ale
Hooksett, New Hampshire USA

Serve in English pint, Snifter

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Bottled 4/28/2010 batch 1 sampled 12/17/2010 after sitting in my fridge for the better part of two months. Pours a deep clear shade of claret with a good two finger tan/white head that slowly recedes, but leaves lots of sticky lace behind. Smells of caramel, toffee, hints of vanilla and oak mixed with an herbal spicy aroma that I assume is from the hops. This almost smells like it was aged on cedar, but that could be some weird play of the hops and the oak. This beer tastes malty sweet with tastes of caramel, cherries, currants, plums and toffee mixed with an earthy oakiness, some higher alcohol and a slight twinge of wet cardboard. Strangely the oxidized quality went away as this warmed or maybe as I imbibed I noticed it less. Slightly spicy herbal tastes in there as well. Has an almost lactic quality to it, but also reminds me of the taste you would get from a stout that has had lactose added to it. Medium body with a creamy velvety mouthfeel and a medium low level of carbonation. Decent beer, not my favorite White Birch offering. I think a little tweaking to the recipe or change in the oaking schedule could do wonders for this brew.

Dated: April 28, 2010. Batch One; no. 15 of 408. The pour is a rich opaque brown with a one inch off-white foamy head and steady carbonation. The aroma is full of malts, thin hops, bread, and alcohol. The body is oily and of medium texture. The taste has an malt bitterness with an aged backdrop. The finish is dry. White Birch continues to satisfy. This is a nice beer.