I'm going to review one of my impulse buys from yesterday, the Allagash Musette, from Maine. This is advertised as a Scotch ale aged in oak. I've really enjoyed the Scotch ales I've tried. They're typically unhopped darker beers without much head and are slightly sweet. This beer weighs in at a hefty 10% ABV. Here's a picture of the bottle:
I paid a whopping $13 for a 750 mL. That's a pretty high standard for beer to live up to.
Here's a picture of it poured into my goblet.
It wasn't quite as dark as I was expecting. It didn't smell as strongly as some of the other beers I've been trying lately, but with the IPA's and barley wines, their smells are much stronger than most beer with the hops. Taking a sip, it's quite sweet and bubbly. The oak doesn't come through all that strongly. There are hints of apple and plum behind the malt. It has a long finish, no doubt aided by the sugar. It's somewhat reminiscent of the Ommegang 3 Philosophers, but a little less fruit and a little more beer. I'm going to give this beer [img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img] [img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img] [img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img] [img]/images/graemlins/heart.gif[/img]. It's very good, but I think it's too expensive for what you get. So far, my impression with oaked beer is that it's overrated. The aging just doesn't seem to do as much for beer as it does for wine, whiskey, or port, presumably because it's not aged for nearly as long. I'd probably pick up the 3 Philosophers instead of this if I'm looking for something sweet, a little friuty, strong, and blubbly, but still beer.