North Coast Brother Thelonious

Brewed by North Coast Brewing Company
Style: Belgian Strong Ale
Fort Bragg, California USA

On tap at North Coast brewpub on 6/28/09. Pours hazy brown with hints of burgundy, tan head. Fruit bread aroma with hints of spice (nutmeg?). Very smooth, and is incredibly balanced. The belgian yeast is a great component of this beer and the smooth body hides the alcohol well. Very nice toffee finish.

750ml bottle. Pours a slightly hazed, ruby brown body with a thin, fizzy, darker tan head that dissipates very quickly and leaves just a few bubbles. Aroma is grape and somewhat vinous with a sharper, sweet malt backing that has just a bit of a bubbly feel in the nose. Chocolates and caramels, oranges and berries, a light raisin, and just a light metallic bitterness. Flavor is a little jumbled with a light cloying sweetness. Sweet malts with a light toffee up front before some estery berry-figs, chocolate, light roasts, and a bit of grape comes in during the middle. Finishes with a light metallic bitterness, a bit of chocolate covered orange, and a dry, somewhat sour and spicy bitterness. Lingers with some brown sugar, oranges and berries, chocolate, just a touch of sweeter booze, and some toffee for a moderate duration. Palate is medium bodied and pretty slick on the tongue. Overall, not bad. A little sweet at times and a little tart/metallic at times as well, but all-in-all decently balanced and tasty.

Pours dark amber-ruby. Tan head subsides quickly. Aroma of raisins, bread. Typical Belgian fruity esters, not overpowering, but present. Full body feel, very chewy. Very sweet and fruity. Slightly sour finish with a hop buzz. Definitely not something to be drinking in the heat of Summer. Thank jebus of A/C. I will enjoy this more on a cool Fall or Winter evening I suspect.

35.5 cl bottle from Systembolaget Kiruna. ABV is 9,4%. Pours deep rubin red with a medium brown head that dissapears qiuckly. Very light aroma of alcohol and not much of other things. Flavor is smooth and a bit sweet with a stronger aftertaste of alcohol. A long lasting bitter finish.

Drank it at the Roxy in Sacramento. Pours dark amber with tan head. Medium bodied, smooth, fruity sweet, nice hoppy finish.

355ml bottle from Systembolaget. Dark brown color with white head. Smells fruits. Thick very sweet taste, some alcohol. Would suite much better those chilly autumn nights than this summer night I enjoyed this one. I like it!

Poured deep ruby red, with a nice off white head. Aroma is of many dark fruits: cherries and figs mostly, with a strong alcohol smell as well. Extremely thick/chewy on the palate, but the taste wasn’t as rich as one would expect. Deep cherry and sugary notes with lots of warming alcohol to bitter it. Solid Belgian ale.

Four pack purchased at Rozi’s in Lakewood. Pour is a nice deep dark ready with a good sized foam head aloft. The aroma is rich with cherries, tart yet soft at the same time since there is a nice musty smell as well. Flavor is quite relaxing, smooth, sweet, fruity. A real pleasing sipping beer. The ending of this has a particularly nice hopping grassy/hay-y cherry finish.