Balcones Edition 2024

19.09.24

Milk stouts. An enemy of anyone lactose intolerant. Even with the help of Lactaid, it’ll be hard to digest. Fortunately, I am not there yet, and can enjoy this without having to worry, well one worry. If you’re drinking this with fruit flies around, you’re going to have a bad time. The second I poured this beer they were there asking to join me in this tasting. Right away you could smell the lactose sugars on the nose, and it was attracting a crowd. Fortunately, I like the same things the fruit flies do, so I went ahead and got drinking before they could ruin it.

 

It feels effervescent, without being bubbly at all. More like a slight evaporation of the sourness on the back of the tongue.  The vanilla and burnt caramel come out right in the front, and linger nicely throughout each sip.  The chocolate and slight sourness from the lactose come in after finishing the sip leaving a very pleasant, chocolatey after taste that sticks around for a few minutes.  Very easy to drink, very smooth mouth feel. Honestly, when I was first drinking this I forgot to take notes and just enjoyed the beer.  I had to wait for my palette to reset before trying again, as I just wanted to drink and enjoy the flavor combinations swirling around in my mouth and daydream about whatever came to mind. And that’s what I did, after finishing up this review. It’s remarkably easy to just get into an almost meditative state while sipping on the Balcones, right out of the fridge, on a warm day after work. 

 

26.03.24

Ieder jaar legt De Molen weer een bier op Balcones Whisky-vaten en ook in het feestjaar 2024 laten ze het zeker niet na. Gelukkig maar!

Het bier, met als basis een zogenaamde Milkshake Stout, lijkt pikzwart met een fijn randje mokka-kleurig schuim. In feite is het diep donkerrood.

 

De geur is die van roodfruit en lactose. Ik denk direct aan marshmallows en ook in de smaak laat deze associatie mij niet los. De genoemde aroma's komen schitterend terug: kers gaat voorop in de fruitigheid, gevolgd door iets aardbei.

 
Een vluchtige roast en een fris zuurtje begeleiden de Balcones Whisky die niet overheerst, maar wel een gave duw meegeeft aan het bier. 

Ik heb ervan genoten. Het weinige geroosterd, veel fruitigheid en de roodbruine kleur maken het bier voor mij haast meer een Barleywine dan een (Imperial Milk) Stout. Het is een wonderlijke gewaarwording.

 

Cheerz!

 

 

26.03.24

Need something to warm your bones? The second BA beer may be exactly what you need. This 11.7% imperial stout on Balcones bourbon barrels promises to be a light treat, not that I am recommending in any way that you may need an afternoon pick-me-up filled with coffee and other delightful flavours…oh wait!

 

Initially I found the beer to be mild with a coffee kick and a significantly lighter body than I had anticipated. It has an almost earthy and biscuity flavour and the whiskey whispers as opposed to kicking the door down- this is one to savour and allow to develop in your mouth instead of knocking it back. When it does develop, it becomes something creamier with significantly dark chocolate and vanilla notes and the body becomes fuller, though it still remains quite light in terms of the stouts De Molen normally do, so it’s nice to see some variety (not that we ever doubted they could do it!): with the strong whiskey and coffee flavours, something richer and sweeter would have been too much. The slight bitterness also allows some red berry notes to emerge, along with a twist of swee orange, and somehow the aftertaste reads a little liquorice-like to me, which is interesting!

 

I can recommended this for someone who is new to barrel-aged beers and who may become overwhelmed by something like Kers & Taart, but also for us old-hands who want some depth without the bulk that comes from drinking too many in one afternoon. As for that afternoon treat- this is the beer for it. I like to think of it as an Irish Coffee in a bottle, and can attest that it definitely gave me that kick to get through a hard afternoon of…err…reading in an armchair. A word of warning though: in spite of its resemblance to everyone’s favourite alcoholic coffee, please don’t try to heat this up!

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