White Winter Premium Oak Brackett

White Winter Winery
Brewed at South Shore Brewery/Wilmarths Deepwater Grille
Style: Mead
Iron River, Wisconsin USA

Bottled. Pour is the color of maple syrup with a slight cherry tinge to it. A small, white, wispy head graces the surface. The initial aroma brings back memories of Korean food, soju, and Hite mixed together after a night of kareoke partying. A little too much booziness for my liking. Initial aroma is of Shikhye rice punch, honey, and northern hardwood bark in the frosty fall. Interesting consitency of lightly carbonated syrup is quite cloying. Smack of peanuts and pecan skins. I can’t get over how much the aroma of this beer reminds me of Korea. Overall, an interesting brew, but the alcohol content is way too hot and leaves my tongue tingling uncomfortably.

Has a tart aroma to it, it’s kind of odd, but not bad. Has a murky, muddy color with no head, has small, but definite sediment in it. Taste is kind of strong in the alcohol department, but is definitely something that I can handle, is also kind of sweet. Decent body and texture and carbonation. Overall, it’s not too shabby.

Bottle. Hazy brown body, minimal head and carbonation. Sweet boozy aroma - Fermented pear and honey with light grahm cracker in the background. Vodka-y but unoffensive alcohol throughout the flavor. Otherwise some cherry-influenced wood, pear, and grassy honey. I like how this isn’t a straight-up White Winter mead which I find to be too weak - the fact that this has some malt it in gives it more of a backbone. The oak quality is nice too.

No real head... just some large bubbles. Dirty amber color. Oaky honey, light muffiny chocolate, vinous bacterial acid. I really like the aroma. Taste is a lot of seeminly chocolatey oak; maybe its vanilla, raisins, other vinous notes... I don’t know. The oak starts really strong, but then when you swish it its all good. I like this... its very smooth... not overwhelming, and has the right amount of complexity for me.

small head, garnet color, definite tart aroma which is not like the taste. Malty, nutty, much stronger than it seems, raiseny, cidery, hint of cherry. Had a bottle tonight aat Bodega.

14oz bottle.
Pours a hazy dark auburn with just enough carbonation to form tiny wisps but no head to speak of. (Unfortunately, the same lack of carbonation -- low even for the style -- greatly contributes to the flat, lifeless palate that knocks the total score down a few tenths.) Aroma is vinous, acetic, and malty sweet. Flavor is primarily acetic with lots of malt and honey sweetness, apples, raisins, vanilla, and dry wood. "It tastes like a barleywine/mead" notes a reviewer; because that’s essentially what a brackett is. Same reviewer notes the high alcohol content is intrusive, whereas I had precisely the opposite expereince; I was quite surprised to learn this concoction was 12% ABV. Which one of us is right? (Probably the other guy, as his sentiment seems to be echoed in other review comments.) Best way to find out for sure is to get your hands on a bottle of this intriguing, tasty stuff and decide for yourself.

The alcohol is far too noticeable. With such a thick, syrupy flavor profile to hide the abv in, the brewer could have made this a lot smoother. Further, it tastes like a barleywine/mead. Weird and disappointing.

Light brown. Sweet honey nose, a bit rubbery. Honey sweetness of the flavor mixes well with some caramel. Dry fruit as well. Very interesting stuff.