Terrapin Return of the Oaky Monk

Cask: Pours a hazy golden color with a thick fluffy head. Aroma is honey, vanilla, oak, spicy, and peppery hop finish. Flavor is honey, vanilla, some oak, and a bitter peppery spicy finish.

Appearance: Highly hazed, dull, dark yellow body with a thinnish, wispy, off-white head. Smell: Sweet-scented, honeyish nose with plenty of tropical fruit notes and layered with fragrant toasted oak overtones. Taste: The initial maltiness is notably sweet, with a toothsome taste of honey candy. In come the rich tropical fruits flavors -- pineapple, grapefruit, and mango alongside a moderate amount of hop bitterness. Also, it’s at this time the toasted oak hits, yielding a spicy wood flavor. Finishes dry and bittersweet, with the residual sweetness and lingering bitterness fighting it out in the aftertaste. Mouthfeel: Medium-full body. Medium-plus carbonation. Drinkability: There’s a rather pleasant showing of toasted oak in this beer, but it seems to have been gained at the loss of some of the original beer’s characteristics, particularly, the yeast phenolics.

Firkin at brewery party. Aroma was very heavily dry hopped and oaky, with simcoe and citrus hops coming through heavily. Taste was also very hoppy, with plenty of oak coming through. Most of the belgian characteristics of the Monks Revenge were lost in the oak and dry-hop. This was a very nice version of the brew and my favorite of the anniversary. Body was smooth and finish was bitter. Very nice.

Date: April 11, 2009
Mode: Firkin
Source: Brewery
Words: dry hopped with amerilo
Words: simcoe and cascade
Words: toasted oak chips
Appearance: cloudy light orange, frothy off white head
Aroma: huge fresh hop aroma, touch of spicy phoenolics
Flavor: sweet malt flavor, touch of candy sweetness, light phoenolics meld well with a big fresh hop character, oak comes in strong on the second wave to add depth and balance the sweetness
Aroma: 7/10; Appearance: 7/10; Flavor: 8/10; Palate: 6/10; Overall: 16/20
Rating: 3.8/5.0
Drinkability: 7/10
Score: **4