Siletz Winter Warmer

Brewed by Siletz Brewing and Public House
Style: Amber Ale
Siletz, Oregon USA

This beer has a deep-copper color. The big aroma and flavor are hop-dominated but not by much. Ends with a fairly dry finish.

Mmmm, nice, thick beer. The beer is not filtered so it has a nice thick look/taste/mouthfeel. The scent and taste is malty, but with enough hops to keep it from tasting too sweet. The bottle states that they use seven different malts and three hop varieties which explains the complexities of the taste. This is a great beer. This is my second bottle from this brewery and it won't be my last. God I love living in the PNW.

Has Dry Stout-like characteristics, but far far more rich and slightly sweet and hearty than other examples of that style I have had (I should mention I’m not a big Dry Stout fan). A deliciously oaky, malty, slightly sweet...ummm...stout. Interacts strangely with various foods. I made the mistake of having my second sample after some Swiss cheese, and I got the funkiest chemical interactions on my tongue I’ve had in a really long time. Bizarre. But my second favorite beer from a great small brewery. ANd I liked calling them on the phone and getting the home number of the brewers. That was cool, and I was nervous!

If this is amber ale, it is the best I have ever had. Aroma is nice, primarily malt with a little caramel. Appearance is a strong point. Beer pour nice amber color with fully retained off white head and lots of lacing. Flavor is where things really start popping. Flavor is initially sweetly malty, the finish is has a light hoppy bitterness to it. Palate is fully perfect. Good stuff.

This poured a murky amber / brown, with a light tan head that diminished quickly. Slight alcohol aroma in the nose, mostly overshadowed by the malt aroma. Malty, sweet, with a slight alcohol flavor....not sure of the ABV, but i would imagine 7%? Actually rather smooth palate, and a nice overall brew. Seems much closer to a English Strong Ale to me, much heavier than a normal amber. Probably hard to find outside Oregon, but worth a try.

22oz bottle. Cloudy dark rusty tea colored body witha very small head. Semi-sweet grassy hop cones, rich marachino cherries and a strong whiff of cedar wood round out the nose on this brew. Moderately thick, and fizzy as well. Some bubble-gun sugars and more cherries and cedar flavors. Palate is significantly dry and rough, and the finish is sour grapefruit and cedar wood. The yeast has a bit of a funk, something I didn’t like in their other beers, especially their imperial porter, but in this beer it’s more interesting and blends better with the barley wine-like flavors.

(22 oz bottle: Obtained in trade with derekarent, thanks Derek!) Pouring the beer, I’m hit with the strong aroma that immediately snaps me to attention and heightens my anticipation. The inviting nose is malty and very earthy, with the wonderfully pungent aroma of dried mushrooms soaked in soy sauce. Everything in the nose also comes out very clearly in the flavor. And this beer has a lot of flavor too. Robust earthy, mushroomy maltiness dominates this beer, and it’s moderately sweet, but that is countered by a fair amount of sourness throughout, which along with a moderate bitterness, becomes quite assertive in the finish. But this is a good sourness, adding complexity to a fine beer, and lending a feel of barrel aging. Full bodied and fairly rich on the palate, but not sticky. Deep brown in color, dark enough that it shows only a bit of translucence when held up to a light, at which time, the cloudiness of the beer becomes apparent. Tan head pours on the small side and fades away to just a thin rim with a few random wisps scattered about. This is great stuff, and I hope to get more of this in future trades.

Bottle. Pours a deep mahogany color and just lightly opaque. Very modest whitish head forms and fades out to a slight broken layer over the center and a fair ring around the edge. Minimal lacing. Aroma is richly malty with a very healthy dose of "C" hop citrus nose. Full bodied, moderately viscous. Flavors of rich malt and a citric/piney hop presence blend nicely with a lingering hop presence at the finish. Quite well done.