Wednesday, December 10, 2014

White Oak Review

The Bruery White Oak
Placentia, California, USA


1pt 9.4oz bottle
$15.99 a bottle
11.5% abv
Oak aged wheat ale
2013 Edition
50% Ale; 50% Aled Aged in Bourbon Barrels

Appearance: golden caramel body with a nice one finger white head that leaves very little if any lacing behind. Solid two finger heads on the second glass and third.

golden caramel pastry
Aroma: sea salt caramel; wheat; touch of oak spice; vanilla honey sweetness; a whiff of coconut comes and goes

Flavors: pretty much follows the nose; just that the order is different and the degrees; sweet vanilla honey upfront and this swirls to the cheeks and gums; touch of oak spice on the mid with a firm caramel note coating the tongue; sweet golden wheat swirls around the palate and brings the flavors together in a tea bag like style; a hint of coconut – and here is how I pick up the coconut: I take a sip and I think, “I don’t notice any coconut.” Then I sniff and maybe coconut; then I sip and I go, “yes, coconut,” and then I sniff again and I say, “Yep, that is coconut.”  Then, in a few minutes I take another sip – and no coconut.  This reminds me of Glenmorangie 18 – I always get a whiff of coconut with that Single Malt Scotch in the same way; (back to the ale) the flavors on the back are pretty interesting: a little ‘sweet-tart’ candy like; I think the sweetness comes from the lingering notes upfront; then there is a dash of white pepper for a little musty feel then there is a light oak mash tart note 
Looks like that pastry color
Mouthfeel: super fine fizzy feel; sweet upfront and the sweetness lingers; fancy tea bag of flavors on the mid; lightly tart on the back; little alcohol feel coming across as white pepper; the sweetness dominates at times – not quit cloying – reminds me of a demi-sec champagne; aroma and flavors open up as the ale warms up; medium body; 

To the Point: I really like this ale; a tad sweet at times but, a fine cigar helps to battle that; because of the sweetness it is a sipper for me; flavors and mouthfeel are complex but, easy to overlook if you drink it too cold and not wanting to pay attention to the details; take it out of the fridge and let it sit for 20 minutes before drinking; this really reminds me of a demi sec bubbly but with better flavors


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