Hakusekikan Brown Ale

Brewed by Hakusekikan Beer/Stone Iwamoto Co.
Style: Brown Ale
Ena-gun, Gifu, Japan

sampled this from aceofhearts, i think, may have been Tim? anyway its here in black in white with my handwriting. At the world famous Popeye’s in tokyo. this was a big beer and a good one. sooty brown color with a small non descrimative head. large nose of bourbon and earthen oak. dark fruits on the palate of fig and alcohol embers to follow. some toffee/caramel malt flavoring balances the beer quite well.

Tap. Opaque dark brown, thin head with big bubbles. Rich, "awee alcohol" aroma. Strongly malt-forward. Like a barleywine remix on a brown ale. Powerful alcohol, brandylike. Lasting mouthfeel, thick, nice. Some apples, strong dark malts, chocolate, caramel. Complex.

Despite being somewhat stylistically challenged, it is an incredible beer. The nose is pungent and gives off a winey chocolatiness that reminds me much more of a dopplebock, than a brown ale. This is reassured by plums and raisins dancing in the background. The mouth is lightly fruity with dark fruit, plums, chocolate and good esters. The finish is strong with plums and brown sugar and tinge of alcohol (after all this is an 8% beer!). This beer has great depth and should be recognized for that.