Utah Brewery Map

Friday, March 28, 2008

BlackFriar

I'm all about the 'beer love'. If there's a good beer out there, I'm happy to pimp it to anyone who will listen. That being said, I'm a little torn about revealing BlackFriar to everyone. Selfishly, I've been keeping this one to myself. Telling only those whom I feel I can take in a fight(sorry Doug). This Scottish Ale quietly arrived into town a couple months ago and immediately became one of my favorites.

Poured a hazy ruby/orange color with a big rocky head which dissipated quickly. The nose is earthy, with peat-smoked malts and faint, sweet caramel undertones. The first thing I notice is how heavily hopped this Scottish ale is. The taste starts surprising with orange rind, caramel and dark fruit. Next comes some smoky/burnt notes with some toffee undertones. The finish has a lingering tobacco bitterness with an alcohol pepperiness. It's complex without being to scattered and slightly off-balanced. But that's it's appeal for me. This isn't your text book Scottish Ale, but it's well worth seeking out and trying. It dials in at a well-hidden 7.0% abv and is only available at the Bayou.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

Let's go Mikey! The winner gets the loser's beer cellar.

Anonymous said...

Right on Mike. Finally found your blog and your specifics are well noted on the Black Friar, a fav of mine for the times. What a welcome surprise!! It's not often a beer comes around that's truely mind-blowing! Dave

Mikey said...

Davey-Baby! Glad you found your way. Looking forward to hoisting a bottle with you.