Harviestoun Ola Dubh 30 Year

Harviestoun is a craft brewer in Scotland, founded by Ken Brooker.  Before entering the business of craft beer, Brooker built wood design prototypes for Ford Motor Company.  That work had a profound impact upon Brooker, which carried over to the beer.  Harviestoun Brewery is best known for its Old Engine Oil beer.  This beer is brewed strong and dark with the use of a lot of roasted barley.  The beer is also well-hopped, with the use of Galena hops from Washington State.  As good as this beer is, it is only the start of an even greater beer.

Harviestoun takes the Old Engine Oil and, in a collaboration with Highland Park, a distinguished distiller who has been producing single malt Scotch whiskey in the Orkney Islands since 1798.  Harviestoun ages its Old Engine Oil in Highland Park's 30 Year Old Single Malt Scotch Whiskey casks.  The end result is the exceptional beer known as Ola Dubh 30 Year. 

The Ola Dubh or "Black Oil" is true to its name.  The beer pours a pitch black, like used engine oil.  A thin light foam develops as the beer is poured into the glass.  The aging of this beer in the 30 Year Old scotch whiskey casks has definitely left its mark, with the aroma of whiskey gently greeting the nose.  The whiskey is accompanied by aromas of smoke, peat, and a little cocoa.  The brewer also observes that there may be notes of truffle oil, vanilla and heathery peat.   

Although the scotch contributes to the taste of this beer, the flavors are far more complex than any porter-aged-in-whiskey-barrels. Chocolate, cocoa and smoked oak flavors work well with the whiskey to provide a truly exceptional beer that is best enjoyed sip by sip.  Clare even thought she could taste cola in this beer, which I could also get a faint hint from in the beer, along with notes of espresso and vanilla. 

The Ola Dubh is not just any beer.  It has its own provenance.  Each bottle bears the signature of the master brewer and the master of wood.  Each bottle has its own number and date of bottling.  The bottle I enjoyed was numbered 21640 and was bottled in September 2007.

This beer has an ABV of 8% and comes with a high price tag at about $20.00 for a twelve ounce bottle.  It is available at stores with a very large beer selection, such as State Line Liquors in Elkton, Maryland.

ENJOY!

Ridgeway Brewing Querkus Smoked Oaked Porter

From 1779 to 2002, the Brakspear brewery made what many consider to be the best English bitter ale.  The brewery closed in 2002, leaving all of its employees -- including the master brewer, Peter Scholey -- on the street.  The master brewer decided that it was time to step out on their own, buying some of Brakspear's equipment and opening Ridgeway Brewing.  

The name "Ridgeway" comes from the name of the oldest road in England.  Built thousands of years before the Romans set foot on the island, the stone road runs about one hundred miles past such sites as Stonehenge and, coincidentally, the master brewer's home.

The Querkus is a smoked, oaked porter.  The brewers at Ridgeway brew the Querkus using Scottish peated whiskey malt, along with English and pale malts.  During the brewing process, the brewers add whole leaf golding hops.  Once the process is completed, the Querkus is cold matured over pieces of old French oak barrels, allowing the toasty flavors of the barrels to slowly infuse the beer. 

The Querkus pours nearly pitch black, with a thick, off-white foam.   The aromatic elements of the beer feature the malts, as well as a good dose of the smoke from the peated whiskey malts.  The body of the beer is rather light, which is a little unexpected given that most porters that I have tried usually have a fuller body.  The smoke of the beer is not only prominent in the aroma, but the taste.  The smoke somewhat over powers the toasty flavors from the oak.  However, the beer is a great example of how a smoked porter should taste. 

The distributor, Shelton Brothers, suggests that this beer can be paired best with smoked meats and cheeses.  I think that this pairing could work, because the smoked flavors of the beer are not so overwhelming that they would be too much when paired with the smoked flavors of the meats or cheese.  This beer could also be paired well with non-smoked meats and cheeses, imparting a little smoked flavor that will complement those foods. 

The beer is available from stores that obtain their beers from Shelton Brothers.  And a special thank you from both Clare and myself to the good friend who was kind enough to buy us a bottle of this beer.

ENJOY!

For more information about Ridgeway brewing, check out the website of Shelton Brothers.