Thanks go out to Vancer for the opportunity to try this as part of CEO/Old Farts BIF. Schlafly is a brewer that is hit and miss with me; sometimes decent, often average and from time to time even below average. I was delighted to find that this was one of their better efforts in my book.
12oz single bottle, bottled (apparently WITH LOVE) on Aug 17 2007.
Dark, butterscotch colored pour with some good carbonation. Nice, pillow-like, dense head with some nice rings of lace. Yeast dregs fall out of the botle when fully inverted to leave a toffee like small, sticky mass on top of the huge head. Looks super!
Good funk in the nose with a touch of sweetened apple cider. Highly drinkable becasue of the smooth mouthfeel and the very, very light citrus notes in the taste. Mild tartness, plenty of hard winter fruits (quince, a little cooking apples) and some Belgian yeast character.
Very well put together, I paired this with some aged cheddar (at least what passes for aged cheddar in the USA!) and a few wheat based crackers. Worked incredibly well together, and excellent combo.
One of the best offerings from this brewer, I really enjoyed this beer.