Day #365 – Rahr & Sons Bourbon Barrel Aged Winter Warmer

So here we are, at the end of a journey. 365 days ago I embarked on a journey, a journey which I did not expect to be so difficult. It was a challenge, and I succeeded. I learned a lot too, not just about the beer I was featuring or where it came from, but about myself. I set a goal for myself, began a project and saw it through to the end. It will be bittersweet to see this journey end, but I am ready. I will have an additional post after this one detailing some interesting statistics about my blog. Look for it soon!

Today I am finishing things up with one of my all-time favorite Texas beers from who else, but Rahr & Sons Brewery right here in Fort Worth, TX. One of the purposes of this blog was to feature quality craft beer and breweries from Texas, so I felt it was appropriate to end things with a Texan brew. Also, as a special treat today I will be sampling 2 batches of the same beer, one from 2011 and one from 2010! Glad I have some friends to share it with. 🙂

Rahr & Sons Bourbon Barrel Aged Winter Warmer

This is one of the most sought-after beers that Rahr & Sons make. I remember several years ago when I had just heard about it, I tried and tried to find it but I was always out of luck. It seemed like every time I went out to try it, the place that had it had run out of it mere minutes before I got there. This dance happened for 2 years in a row until finally I was able to sample some a few year back. Last year Rahr gained the ability to bottle things in the bomber format which is a larger size bottle than the standard American longneck. I wisely saved a bottle of it from last year with the intent to try it side by side with this year’s batch. I am very excited to try it today! Rahr made a concerted effort to increase production and it can be found at some of the higher end beer stores and bars. I’ll begin with the newer batch, and here are some details. This is an English Strong Ale style that holds 8% ABV. Rahr takes recently emptied whiskey barrels and ages their Winter Warmer in them for a period of time. This will impart some additional flavors and aromas that is not already in the base beer. What results is what sits in front of me now, the Bourbon Barrel Aged Winter Warmer!

2011 Batch

I’ve sampled this particular batch on draught before this season but I have yet to try the bottled version. I will use last year’s glassware for this beer.

This beer pours a very dark brown color that is difficult to see through. A small amount of light comes through but not much. A fizzy beige head is formed on top but does not last very long. There is also a fair amount of lacing on the edge of the glass as well.

The aroma is…WOW! Lots of woody notes, bourbon, chocolate and dark malts. Light bit of roasted notes. Very aromatic indeed.

The flavor is fantastic as well. Dark roasted malts mix well with sweet chocolate flavors. The finish is where the aging process comes in, adding woody notes and touches of bourbon. Man this is good. I highly suggest seeking it out if you can find it!

2010 Batch

This bottle is a year old, as old as my blog. It is fitting that this will be the final beer I feature on this blog. Let’s go out in style. This one will be poured in this year’s glassware as well as the 2009 glassware, bookending this batch.

As it is the same beer only a different batch, the appearances are very similar if not exact. This beer pours a very dark brown color that is difficult to see through. A small amount of light comes through but not much. A fizzy beige head is formed on top but does not last very long. Light amount of lacing.

The aroma however is very different from the fresh batch. There is hardly any bourbon scents on the nose, which was very prominent in the new one. Instead it has a large chocolatey aroma and dark malts. Light roasted notes as well. Lots of wood shines through.

The flavor is also very different from the fresh batch. Dry and woody with some sharp flavors that sit on the back of the throat. Almost a bit tart but not sour by any means. Chocolate and wood notes are on top here with little bourbon. It leaves a large tingle on the palate that warms all the way down. I think I prefer the fresh batch more but this one isn’t too bad either.

Well there you have it folks! This blog is in the books. I’m finishing up my final glass with a small tear in my eye. It’s been fun, challenging, stressful and enlightening. Glad to have done it but it’s time to say goodbye. And for the last time…I bid you Cheers!

Day #357 – Rahr & Sons Texas Red

Merry Christmas eve! Tonight I’ve got another beer from Rahr, but it was after I took a trip to Rahr and brought home an awesome present!! Check it out in the photo later on.

Rahr & Sons Texas Red

I am fairly shocked that I have not yet reviewed this beer as it is one of Rahr’s year-round offerings. I will be wrapping up several Texas beers this week that I have yet to feature on my blog. This is a Vienna Lager at 4.7% ABV.

This beer pours an amber orange color with a white foamy head. Pretty easy so far.

Aroma is biscuit malt, some small scent of nuts and lightly roasted grains.

The flavor seems to match the aroma, with roasted grains, biscuity with a clean finish. Now check out my early present!!!

9 to go…

Day #356 – Rahr & Sons Angry Santa

I’m a little bit late typing this one up because I was a little unsure about what exactly to say here. I mean, there are 10 days left in this project. 10! After these 10 days I will have accomplished my goal that I set out for 356 days ago. What will happen afterwards? Who knows. I’ll probably take a break for awhile and then might toss up a review or 2 every now and again. Or perhaps I’ll dedicate the blog to my homebrewing exploits. I know I certainly won’t commit to ANOTHER year in beer….well, I guess I shouldn’t say never.

Anyways, for these last 10 days I think it will be appropriate to feature only Texas breweries as one of the main reasons I had for starting this blog was to show consumers how many other options there are for us beer lovers in North Texas. (well, 1 beer won’t be from Texas but it’s a very special beer.) It’s been fun. On to today’s beer.

Rahr & Sons Angry Santa

Forgive my obviously ripped photo taken on my iPhone….

Is this a new beer or isn’t it? That is the question. It starts as the Winter Warmer base but then almost every spice known to man is added to this beer. These spices change the character of the beer completely so we will call this one a new beer. A specialty one though. Check out the label!! How cool is that!! Unfortunately this beer is draught only at the moment and I will be enjoying a firkin of this beer at the FW Saucer. A firkin if you recall is basically like a giant bottle conditioned homebrew. Firkins are small kegs that have a pinch of yeast added at the end to carbonate and continue to alter the character of the beer.

It appears I got the very bottom of the firkin as this beer looks pretty disgusting. It pours a muddy, and yes I mean muddy brown color with a small white type head. I can see large chunks of something floating in this beer. I’m a big fan of Rahr but I’ll be honest and say this beer looks awful. Yes I understand that I got the bottom portion of the firkin and that it’s probably not exactly fair to judge this beer by this particular sample, but this was the sample that was placed in front of me so this is what I have to go off of.

The aroma is actually quite pleasant. Lots of spice; TONS of spice in this! Cinnamon is prevalent, with all-spice and ginger also. Some citrus on the finish of the aroma. Nice.

The flavor is a tad bit harsh. There is a burn from what I can assume is the spice which doesn’t make for an easy drinker. It’s certainly flavorful, just unappealing to look at. I bet the top part of the firkin looked nothing like this. Check out the photo:

10 to go…

EDIT: I had another glass of this beer from a firkin last night and it was COMPLETELY different! You can see the immense difference in the picture below. The appearance was attractive, the spices in both the aroma and flavor were a lot mellower. Now that I’ve tried it the way it was meant to be tried I like it a lot more.

Day #302 – Rahr & Sons Angry Goat

Today was an awesome day. I was able to participate in a home brewing competition. It was really cool; it was similar to the Iron Chef competition in which they gave us ingredients and we had to make something out of it. The group I was with was WAY more knowledgeable than me about brewing and beer. I feel like I learned a ton and even more importantly, I’ve got the brewing bug again!

Rahr & Sons Angry Goat

The competition was held at the Rahr & Sons brewery. Those folks were so gracious to let us use their facilities. One of the employees brought out Rahr’s newest beer which I have yet to try! Very glad to see it. This is a Weizen Doppelbock at 8%.

This beer pours a murky brown color with a touch of orange near the edge. Tan colored head.

Aroma is pretty nice. Lots of chocolate malt, banana, clove, some spice and citrus. Bit of everything in this!

The flavor is about the same as the nose, with the chocolate notes coming through big time. Banana and clove as well, however the mouthfeel is a little thin. Not bad.

Cheers!

Day #300 – Rahr & Sons Winter Warmer

Day #300!!! Holy crap I never thought I would make it this far but I’m glad I did. It’s been difficult and becoming more and more so as I near the end. Only 65 more days to go…I can do this!

Rahr & Sons Winter Warmer

This is absolutely one of my favorite beers from Rahr. It was one I had early on and loved it from the moment I had it. It is an English Strong Ale at 8%. Look for a very nice review in December when I get my hands on the barrel aged version of this guy!

This beer pours a dark brown color that reveals reddish highlights when held to the light. The head is colored an off-white hue to stand out next to the brown.

The aroma is fantastic! It’s a lovely mix of dark malts, roasted notes, chocolate, coffee, winter spices such as ginger and cinnamon with a light touch of alcohol. Such a lovely smell, almost a bit of nuts in this as well.

The flavor relays several of these scents as well. Dark malts and spice are the main flavors, with caramel notes as well as a slight roast. Some chocolate near the finish. This is definitely one of my favs from Rahr.

Here’s to the last remaining 65 days left of this project!

Day #276 – Rahr & Sons Visionary Brew

Got a new Rahr beer for today!!!

Rahr & Sons Visionary Brew

This beer came out very recently and honestly I had resigned myself to missing out on it. This was a very small batch and a limited release in celebration of a local Fort Worth artist. I wad unable to make it to the release party, and the only time I saw it on tap was at the Saucer as they were removing the tap handle. Luckily my good buddy ran across a bottle and saved it to drink with me. What a pal!

Very glad to see this. Pours a murky orangish brown color with a brown type head.

Aroma is sweet chocolate, nuts and roasty notes. Nice and well aligned with the style.

Has the typical Rahr flavor, possibly from the house yeast. Chocolaty flavor with some roasted notes. Yeasty finish.

Cheers!

Day #266 – Rahr & Sons Oak Aged Oktoberfest

Today was an awesome day! It started off with a brisk 5K run sponsored by Fort Worth’s own local brewery, Rahr & Sons. Money that was raised for this run was donated to Habitat for Humanity. After the run we were treated to German style food, a live polka band and of course beer! The previous mayor of Fort Worth came by for the official tapping of the keg, an old German tradition used to signify the start of Oktoberfest. Rahr had on hand a large oak barrel filled with Rahr’s Oktoberfest beer. This is the first time I know of they have barrel aged their Oktoberfest, so I was very anxious to try it.

Rahr & Sons Oak Aged Oktoberfest

Unfortunately I was so excited to try this beer that I forgot to take a picture of it! However I did get a nice picture of the keg itself:

This beer pours a slightly hazy dark brown color with a maroonish hue. The head was very bubbly, almost like freshly brewed tea. Brown head.

The aroma is very woody, which I didn’t expect to be this strong as they only aged this beer in the barrel for 10 days. The wood characteristics are pretty strong but there is a fair bit of malty notes as well.

Flavor is again very woody. Lots of oak flavors that have a slight vanilla edge as well. Bit of bourbon flavor with some malty notes as well.

Very glad to have tried this, and shared it with good friends!

Cheers!

Day #262 – Rahr & Sons Oktoberfest

At the Ginger Man tonight for a super glass night!!

Rahr & Sons Oktoberfest

My Oktoberfesting continues with this one from Rahr & Sons. This is their version of the Oktoberfest which rings in this year at 5.5%. They made an Imperial version of this last year which topped 8%, but it appears they have scaled things back again for this year.

I certainly like my brand new Rahr mug. I have an Oktoberfest mug from them already but it was a different style and still from the old label.

This beer pours a dark reddish brown color with a nice creamy beige head. The head dissipates after just a bit.

The nose here was pretty nice, and about what I expected for an Oktoberfest. It is heavily malted with some chocolate notes and a bit of roastyness. It almost has a bit of a nutty quality to it as well.

The flavors seem to match the aroma. Very malty indeed with a slight bitterness near the finish. Sweeter notes of chocolate and gentle roast meet in the middle. I enjoyed this no doubt. I’ll try and find a pic of my older glass too.

Cheers!

Day #218 – Rahr & Sons Lã Grange

Driving back from my vacation, I happened to stop in Waco, TX at a little pub called Dancing Bear. I arrived just in time for them to open, which was nice because I had come here for one beer and one beer alone, the La Grange! Rahr had posted on their Facebook that for some reason or another, this pub received the first shipments of Rahr’s brand new beer.

Rahr & Sons Lã Grange

This is the next beer in Rahr’s TO THEE series; a series of interesting styles they don’t normally do packaged in 22 oz bombers only. This particular beer is a farmhouse ale, or saison. It is listed at 7.25%.

This beer pours a very hazy orange color with a foamy white color. Unfiltered for sure as it’s hazy.

Aroma is pretty much what you’d expect of a saison; dry, hay, some funk, yeast and a tight spice. Smells pretty spot on.

Flavor is yeasty, slight tartness, very dry and earthy tones. The dryness lingers for quite awhile and this might be the only thing I can find that I don’t necessarily like. A saison needs to be refreshing above all else and this one is just a touch dry. That being said, this beer is solid.

Cheers!

Day #192 – Rahr & Sons Gravel Road

Alright well I feel that I have some making up to do after the past 2 days of crappy submissions. Like I mentioned yesterday, sometimes life happens and you just have to make due with what you are given, and I was given a Victoria. 🙂 Who would I be to turn down a free beer?!?! Oh well, today is a day I have been looking forward to for some time now. Rahr & Sons released a new beer this weekend, but I held off on trying it until today because today is….you guessed it….glass night at the Ginger Man! The glass for this beer is freaken BADASS and I am super excited to get it!

Rahr & Sons Gravel Road

Gravel Road is described as a German-Style Sticke Altbier (for the purposes of this blog we’ll call it an Altbier). Sometimes you will see this word “Sticke” tacked on before some beers. Sticke is what I believe to be a German word that translates to “secret”. So in other words, you will not be finding the recipe to this beer on google anytime soon! 🙂 It has an ABV of 7.25%. Here comes the glass….

Poured into my badass Rahr mason jar. Pours a dark reddish to orange color with a light ring of white head.

Aroma is fairly hoppy with a caramel sweetness. Very smooth smelling. Sweet candied sugar also.

Flavor is a good mix of sweet malts and floral hops. Light bitter finish with a lingering sweetness. This is well done.

Cheers!