Shipyard Longfellow Winter Ale

Brewed by Shipyard Brewing Company
Style: American Strong Ale
Portland, Maine USA

Dark burgundy-brown with a rocky tan head and sticky lace. Roasty nose. Body was kind of light, but seemed to thicken a little as it warmed. Active carbonation; occasionally watery. Toasted malts laced with sweetness. Very little bitterness, not nearly enough, IMO. Overall, it had a nice roastiness, but not a lot of depth.

Thanks to matta for this one. Pours deep ruby/burnt sienna with a uniform, creamy tan head. Aroma of malt, big chocolate and toffee, plus brown sugar, cinnamon, raisins, figs, and big butterscotch. One of the densest chocolate and butterscotch aromas I’ve ever experienced. Tastes very malty, with tons of chocoff (more choc than coff), brown sugar, butterscotch, cinnamon, and cognac. Medium, smooth palate. Slightly dry finish, but with a complex mix of fruit, spice, brown sugar, toffee, and butterscotch. A semi rauchy element occured as it warmed. This is magnificent! Henry Wadsworth Longfellow would have been proud to drink this one.

Poured rich dark brown with fluffy head. Aroam of raosted malts and rasins. Hops in there as well. This warms nice and has a pleant finish. Good warmer for winter.

Pours dark brown with a creamy tan head. Hoppy, malty aroma. Flavor is rich and full with roasty malts and caramel, some spiciness. Hoppy character and bitterness come through at the finish. I dont like bitter brews and thankfully this doesnt go overboard with the bitterness, but it has about all I can handle. Some cola sharpness, which nicely matches the malty body. An interesting brew to try, and a worthy effort from Shipyard, but not something I could drink often.

Thanks to matta for this "throw in" it’s one heck of a beer. Pours brown with decent beige head. Aroma is roasted malts, light coffee and hints of almond? Flavor is the same with some burnt butterscotch or toffee. Very complex brew. After nursing this for an hour it feels like alot more than 6%. Leaves a dry nutty aftertaste.

Pours with a rich, billowy head that makes the pint glass look like a root beer float. The color of the beer is a dark caramel and it resembles a porter. The taste is sweet, very malty. Strong caramel and raisin presence. Not over-the-top tasting at all. Subtle. Nor is there the oftentimes overwhelming presence of alcohol!

Slight DMS notes in the nose to start, giving way to a more choco/coffee maltiness in the nose. I might also smell a touch of licorice in this as well. Doughy. Very dark mahogany that is transparent with a nice creamy manilla colored head. Lots of big roasted malts in the middle finishing with a slight sweetness in the end. Start has a funky licorice flavor. This beer doesn’t particularly jive with me. It’s too segmental and not smooth enough. Somewhat dry in the finish.

What’s up with the massive carbonation and neverending head? Appearance of a porter and flavor of a roasted dry coffee stout, with a moderate hop level. The body is a little thin, but the general grain bill makes an interesting combo.