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Wednesday, 10 January 2007 |
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There are beers in the world that are such treasures that it makes me catch my breath. These are beers to savor, with the complexity to enjoy with a great dessert. (For me, that's Chocolate Velvet Pie from Fat Apple's in Berkeley.) Drake's Imperial Stout () from Drake's Brewing in San Leandro is one of these; one sip takes my palate on a wild trip, and it's our Beer of the Week.
This is a 7.5 percent alcohol by volume: dark beer, the color of chocolate, with a bit of brown foam that leaves lacework trailing down the glass. The nose is winelike and powerful. The taste is intricate: First a bit of heat from the alcohol, then a rush of malt sweetness fading into dryness, with strong hints of vanilla, oak and tannin. There's a definite hop bitterness in the follow, well-balanced by the sweet malt and again, that vanilla-oak/roast grain taste. Whew. This beer's a trip.
Source: Contra Costa Times
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