Olde Hickory Seven Devils

Olde Hickory Brewery Seven Devils

Seven Devils weighs in at 8% ABV.  It is a bourbon barrel aged Scottish Ale.  Olde Hickory describes it as a rich, smooth malt blended with the complex flavors of bourbon and as like drinking a candy bar.  It pours a dark caramel color and generates a thick head that unfortunately dissipates quickly.  The predominate smells of this are caramel and bourbon.  It has a strong bourbon taste that masks almost everything else.  It tastes very much like a sweetened glass of a classic American Bourbon.  The candy bar comment is justified as this beer is what a bourbon candy bar must taste like.  It certainly hints at it's roots as a Scottish Ale but those flavors have a lot to fight through to really be appreciated.  This beer tastes like the barrel still had some bourbon left in the bottom when they put the beer in for aging.  This is a seasonal that I assume they release in late January or early February based on the enjoy before date of July '13.  This is a beer I'm not going to recommend to a general crowd, although I think you'll be hard pressed to find a generally accessible bourbon barrel aged beer.  I'm a big fan of bourbon barrel aged beers and this one is a bit over the top for my tastes; still a great beer but they could have dialed the bourbon flavor back just a touch.  If you are a fan of the style this is one you should pick up now while it's still in season.  It would certainly hold it's own against other bourbon aged beers.  If I were splitting the bottle with a friend and I had the choice between this and a more expensive beer like Bourbon County Stout (I know it's not available in Carolina but I'm from Chicago so it's something I'm very familiar with) I would confidently choose the Seven Devils.  It has  a similar sweetness, lower alcohol, and similar bold bourbon flavor.

Olde Hickory Black Raven IPA

This one is listed at 7%ABV and described as an IPA using roasted malts for a dark color and rich flavor.  Read their description here.  It pours a very dark brown.  The head is minimal.  The smell is all IPA.  The malts are only faintly present.  Olde Hickory makes some very hoppy beers so I expect this one to follow suit.  The taste is complex at first and nothng really stands out.  The hops becomes very present finally.  The hops are a touch on the bitter side.  After letting the beer warm I realized that it should be served warmer than a standard IPA.  A thicker head was achieved and it persisted as shown in the picture throughout drinking.  The bitter edge on the hops faded and the toasted malts began to come through.  This isn't the kind of IPA you would want to drink on a hot summer day but in the fall and winter months this would make an excellent IPA to reach for.  The ideal drinking temp for this beer is between 48 and 52.  For a brewery that makes some beers hopped to the extreme this may be one of my favorite offerings by Olde Hickory.  That may change come spring, but for the time I will enjoy some more of these.  I would recommend this beer for anyone that is a fan of the IPA style.  It may be inaccessible to those who don't like heavily hopped beers.  The warm temperature needed to experience the full effect may also turn some away.  I expected this to be a bold beer and it is a pleasant variation of a tried and true style.

Upcomming North Carolina Brews

A recent trip to my local beer store netted me three interesting NC brews that I will be reviewing soon.  The first is the Aviator Frostnipper.  Keeping with the winter ale review streak this beer should fit nicely.  They describe it as a mix of toasted malts, traditional spices, and hops for contrast; intriguing.  The second is the Olde Hickory Black Raven IPA, they describe this as an IPA brewed with roasted malts.  I picked this one up because I described a porter as tasting like a roasted IPA so I want to compare that experience to an actual effort.  Plus the toasted malts should fit in well with the other beers in the batch.  The last beer is French Broad Anvil Porter.  They describe it as English ale loaded with chocolate and caramel.  3 bold beers from 3 bold brewers.  Into the refrigerator they went and soon we will discuss what we liked about each one.  Stay tuned.