Why we picked it: A local brewery with a winter themed brew. The ESB category made it a nice addition to the mix.
What Heavy Seas has to say: Winter Storm may be Hugh's [Hugh Sisson, Founder & Managing Partner] favorite beer in the Heavy Seas catalog. Our winter ale draws on hops from the West Coast and the UK for its pronounced bitterness. A mix of pale and darker malts give it its tawny color and its bigger body. True to the style, Winter Storm's aroma is nutty malts and earthy hops. This is a perfect fall beer, especially because of its warming qualities.
ABV: 7.5%
IBU: 50
Fun Fact: Heavy Seas recently named Dan Kopman, co-founder of St. Louis’ Schlafly Beer, as its new CEO. It also announced that the brewery will add 20,000 square feet via an adjacent building to its current 40,000-square-foot facility, which will allow a reorganization of its operations. This includes a completely renovated taproom, approximately 10 times the size of the current space.
First had this beer last year and didn't like it. Not sure why. We picked it since it's a winter beer from a Maryland brewery. Each time I have had this, I have liked it more. Tasted fabulous today. I have a love/hate relationship with ESBs in general. Sometimes I really like the maltiness and other times it's just way too sweet. But I mean, I did bring BethESBa to the world so usually I like them. For this beer, the slight hoppiness and imperial booziness balance out the sweetness nicely. 4 out of 5 Edgar Allen Poes. This would be good beer to have if I was cooping.
ReplyDeleteI also liked this beer. I feel like I want to say “I give this beer an ‘Arrrhh’ rating” but I guess that joke only works with movies.
ReplyDeleteSo I give it 4 out of 5 sea shanties.
I’m a huge fan of Heavy Seas - Loose Cannon is maybe one of my favorites. BUT, I really do not care for this one. It’s like drinking something that’s been dug up from the yard. There is a weird combination of earthiness and mealtimes and, I dunno, just bleh. And I feel like a guy who is cool with new things. I mean, I even really liked the new Star Wars movie that I just saw tonight. But as for this, bleh bleh bleh. Actually that’s too much - I give this only 1 bleh.
ReplyDeleteI disagree with Dan on this one. This beer was good. 4.5 blinking yard deer.
ReplyDeleteI'm not a fan. I usually like Heavy Seas, but this one fell flat for me. I love British bitters - the ones from a cask, that are around 4% and perfectly balanced. ESB's are out of balance enough, and throw in an 'imperial' label, and there's nothing resembling one of my favorite beer styles (and one that is very hard to get right, but when you do - it's amazing). This one just didn't have enough flavor, malt or hops, for me to really like.
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