Put “Limited Release” on a bottle and 9 times out of 10 I’ll buy it. Throw on top of that the fact it’s an Imperial Brown Ale and it’s out of Red Hook Brewery (definitely a soft spot there); I’m spending $14 on a beer. I guess the story behind the numbers is that they had 8 brewers working in 4 teams to create 1 beer. I’m all for collaborations, but that sounds like too many cooks in the kitchen or brewers in the brewery…either way it worked out for them.
There’s little to no head and it’s got a hazy brown coloring. Honey and malt make up the aroma, which is the first thing that hits your taste-buds but then there is a smokey kick that compliments the nutty flavor typical of brown ale’s. As it warms up the honey aroma really starts to overpower the smokiness but the two compliment each other perfectly throughout the beer. I didn’t really notice the 9.5% alcohol because of how well it’s blended. They used cherry wood smoked malts, brown sugar, honey, and aged it in oak barrels (these guys are definitely from the Pacific Northwest).
I hate to write about a beer that you can’t find in stores anymore but it’s definitely worth checking out something of this nature. I’m “hooked” on the smokey honey mix, and I think any more experiments that come out of Red Hook are worth giving a taste.
I want some! Is there really none left? Will they brew more? This would make a great Father’s day gift, don’t you think. You make this beer sound so good.
Glad to see you typing the keys again.