Allagash Burnham Road

Brewed by Allagash Brewing Company
Style: Smoked
Portland, Maine USA

Draught at TND: Aroma of malts, slight herbs, light smoke, slight bamburg wood, and a hint of hops. Poured brown/flaxen in color with a medium-sized, rocky, off-white head that diminished but lasted throughout. Cloudy. Sparkling. Good lacing. Flavor is lightly bitter. Tastes of smoke, bamburg wood, light malts, light grains, slight vegetables, and hints of spices, chocolate, and hops. Medium body. Slightly dry, slightly sticky texture. Average carbonation. Smoke, bamburg wood, slight vegetable finish is slightly dry. 7.5%ABV is completely hidden.

Tap at Blind Tiger. Poured copperish with a thin off white head. Big smoked nose followed by a smooth and smokey mouthful that seemed to fill your nose with smoke, In a good way. Some sweetness, but the smoke leads the way.

Tap at BT. Pours a clear medium bright copper with a nice white head and some lace. Aroma is a really nice meaty smokiness- restrained and rounded with nice toffee malty sweetness- just clean nice refined beechwood smoke from bamberg/weyerman. Flavor is very clean and smooth- I have to assume they used their house strain to ferment but it is very clean it seemed like a nice lager yeast- fruits are very mellow- malts are clean and upfront- very straightforward with more nice complimenting sweetness, with light earth and restrained phenols. Smooth and easy drinking, felt like drinking a 5-6% restrained slightly fruity smoked lager/marzen. I really liked this one, but I like most smoked beers. Very well done.

En fût. Verre de 12 oz dégusté chez Great Lost Bear (Portland, ME). Arôme: Légère odeur de fumée et d’houblons. Apparence: La couleur est ambrée. Présence d’un moyen col mousseux et d’une fine dentelle sur le verre. Saveur: Goût de caramel avec une pointe de fumée et d’agrumes. Durée moyenne de l’arrière goût. Palette: Le corps est moyen avec une texture légèrement huileuse. Moyenne effervescence en bouche. Arrière goût légèrement fruité. (Rating #2716)

Sampled on tap at Granville Moore’s in DC. Typically I love Allagash but typically I hate smoked beers. Pours a translucent bronze with a lacing eggshell head. Aroma is only lightly smokey, with a distinct dry maltiness. Flavor is where this train jumps the tracks. All smoke, like drinking a campfire, there is some maltiness but it’s like eating an irish soda bread that had been cold smoked. Once you get beyond the smoke there is an earthiness to it. Finish is dry with a sour, smokey thing happening. Not my thing.

Complex smokey aroma still retains a certain lightness to it (Beechwood maybe?). Lightly bitter finish. Unlike any other smoked beer I have tried: a bit weird, but I really enjoyed it.

On tap at Max’s in Baltimore: Pours a transparent deep golden bronze with a clingy well-lacing frothy off-white head. Aroma of lightly smoky biscuity Belgian malt with some mild grassy hop notes. Starts with pretty good fullness, some fizzy carbonation, and some light doughy pale malty sweetness and earthy smoky character before a drier bittersweet finish. Pretty decent smoke character but could use a little more sweetness.

Taster at Great Lost Bear - Poured a darkish amber in color with a small off-white head. Aroma is malty with peaty smoke. Flavor is malty, but not that sweet. Flavor is *dominated* by the smoke flavor... overpowering and not that pleasant. OK, but not my favorite..