Southern Tier Cuvée Series 2

Brewed by Southern Tier Brewing Company
Style: American Strong Ale
Lakewood, New York USA

courtesy of BA trader. pours amber with beige head. Aroma and taste. Rich caramel malts profile with some wood notes. The oak was there but not overpowering the beer with some light vanilla notes. Some brown sugar, dark fruits, and overall the beer just wasn’t really what I expected. So far, the Cuvee series have been disappointing, this one is better than what Cuvee 1 was.

The first of several beers I enjoyed on tap at my last trip to Max’s On Broadway in Baltimore. The beer had a dark amber-copper color with a big creamy, thick off-white head that had good cling and retention. The beer had pine and citrus hops in the aroma, with a sugary, roasty malt and caramel mix too with a touch of raisin and fruits. The taste was sweet, malty and a bit fruity with some raisin and a touch of bitterness too. The body was very full and creamy, with a medium-wet mouthfeel and moderate carbonation; served slightly chilled. A very good, flavorful beer.

In short: A very sweet and very woody big brew of some kind. Good in small quantities
How: Bottle 22oz. Consumed soon after purchase. Tasting session with Montreal crew.
The look: Partly cloudy dark red body topped by a beige ring of foam.
In long: Sweet nose. Taste of brown sugar, wood, caramel, sweetened berries, vanilla. The woody flavours here didn’t feel like usual oak barrels, more like no-real-character construction wood. Too sweet to be very enjoyable. An improvement over Cuvée Series 1. At this rate Cuvée Series 8 looks promising.

Bouteille de 22 oz partagée lors d’une dégustation Ratebeer Montréal chez MartinT. Arôme: Odeur de caramel avec une pointe vanillée. Apparence: La couleur est ambrée. Présence d’une fine dentelle sur le verre. Saveur: Goût de caramel avec une pointe de vanille et de miel. Durée moyenne de l’arrière goût. Palette: Le corps est moyen avec une texture huileuse. Moyenne effervescence en bouche. Légère présence d’alcool en arrière goût. (Rating #2425)

Pours bronze with a patchy tan head. The aroma has lots of oakiness, biscuit / sourdough, light honeysuckle, caramel, cream, rich clean sweetness and malted milk - nice. Medium / thick body that’s quite smooth and has very light carbonation. The taste begins with dark malt flavors, but they are not as bold as on the aroma. There is thick dry caramel, some alcohol, coffee-esque bitterness and raw dough. The finish has more oak and harsh bitterness that seems to be from roastiness. This one was quite enjoyable.

My Bottom Line:
Oaken vanilla flavors blend into caramel malts and clove-like spiciness just before earthy hops and their bitterness seal this warming sipper.

Further Personal Perceptions:
-A ring of foam crowns the misty purplish brown.
-This is still quite sweet (which is to be expected of Southern Tier’s big brews, it seems), but the complexity of this one makes it a bit better than the Cuvée 1 imho.
-Oak was more apparent in this one than their Cuvée 1.
-The mouthfeel was suave and conducive to serious sipping.

Bottle.

On tap at stumbling monk. Poured a dark red copper color. Slight notes of caramel malt sweetness tempered by oaking. Creamy palate and sweet taste.

Pours out a mostly clear ruby red color with a small white slightly lacing head. Interesting aroma of vanilla, caramel, earthy wood notes and sweet candy, slight yeast and even some alcohol. Taste is sweet, caramel, vanilla, oak, syrup, some yeast and a decent touch of alcohol. Very interesting beer.