The Duck-Rabbit Pauls Day Off

Brewed by The Duck-Rabbit Craft Brewery
Style: American Strong Ale
Farmville, North Carolina USA

Draft at Revolution Pizza Charlotte NC. Very nice almost black pour into a snifter. Good sized tan head. Roasty aromas, malt, light coffee and nut. Some toffee, tea and barrel like aroma. Taste is a very smooth blend of roast malt, tea, tobacco, smokey oak, some molasses. Finish has most of the barrel qualities though they are subtle. Mouthfeel is not nearly as thick as the appearance would leave to believe, but still very filling. Drinkability is good in that the alcohol is well hidden, but this is a sipper and it would be an effort to have more than a couple of these. As a side note, the American Strong Ale does not have to have a huge hop presence, that’s what IPAs should be for.

Brick Store - THIS WAS AWESOME! I just had to get that out of the way. I think I started smelling the bourbon before the server even sat the glass on the table. Lots of bourbon notes, butterscotch, candied fruits and brown sugar, light fruits and that ever warming alcohol in the finish.

On tap during the final day of the Brick Store 12th Anniversary festivities. Pours a deep chocolate brown with light only showing through at the edges. There’s a big, creamy tan head that shows excellent retention and lacing. The aroma doesn’t mess around and has all kind of things going on. There first thing I got in the nose was the bourbon which I could smell from pretty far away. As I got closer, the next wave of aromas is the citrus and floral hops, and finally the huge caramel malt and dark fruit sweetness. Big, bold, but fairly well integrated nose. The taste is big and probably bigger on the sweetness and bourbon than the hops. The toasted caramel malts form a backbone with lots of sugar-coated fruit on top. The finish is very boozy with plenty of oaky tannins. The mouthfeel is medium to full bodied and well-carbonated. This was one of my favorites of the day and had plenty of bourbon presence. A bigger hop presence in the taste could have put this one over the top, but it’s still one of the best beers I’ve tasted from Duck-Rabbit.

Went to NC for this one. Pours a cloudy brown with a thin head. Grainy malt aroma with caramel and a bit of booze. Caramel malt flavor giving way to some alcohol and a surprisingly dry finish.

Appearance: Very dark brown, near black body with a half inch of light tan-colored foam on top. Smell: A true bounty of dark malts and pungent hops and a full-on bourbon barrel notes. Loads of chocolate, deeply scorched grains, roasty coffee, citrus, and bourbon (oh, the bourbon!). Taste: Roasty, blackened malts with full tastes of bittersweet chocolate, licorice root, and coffee-flavored ice cream. There’s a bold sweetness without too much sweetness, you know. Light touch of dark fruitiness. Citrusy, earthy hops, and, along with the roasted malts, provide a moderate amount of balancing bitterness. Fair amount of vanilla-infused oak. Finishes dry and bitter with some enduring hints of spicy resin and black malts. Mouthfeel: Medium-plus body. Medium carbonation. Drinkability: Flavorful and loaded with rich, malty nuances and hop complexities, to say nothing of the fine barrel-aging. At times I was reminded of Avery Fourteen and New Holland’s Dragons Milk, though, having said that, I’ll take this over them. A very pleasing brew and a fine way to kick off the Brick Store Pub’s Anniversary Event! Paul needs to step out of the office more often.

Dark brown pour with creamy tan head and lace. Light abv, coffee, and toasted malt on the nose. Molasses, toasted malt, with a good malt bitter finish. Medium bodied with very good carbonation. A very nice beer.

On tap at the brickstore as part of their 12 kegs in 12 hours, or was it 12 hours of 12 kegs, I don’t know. Pour was a dark brown, opaque, with a nice tan head. Paul, you take a tasty day off. The pappy aging gave it a nice vanilla aroma. Past that you get a waft of some roasted malt and cocoa in the bacground. The vanilla comes through to the flavor a tad but mostly you have roasted chocolate malt. There is some wood character from the ageing and a bit of hotness from the barrel ageing as well. Light english style hoppiness mid palate. The finish is cocoa and chocolate. Would love to drink this all day today but smartly the pub put me on a one of each keg minimum.

Tap at ACBF 2009: Deep amber brown with a tan film of head. Meaty aroma- earthy oak with a peat note, raisin, cocoa and a vanilla cask like character. Firm body with apparent alcohol in the flavor- nice malt depth- some tobacco, minty spruce notes, peat, very hoppy spruce like finish. Solid and balanced.