Many moons ago I had my first affair in the craft beer world with Rogue's "Hazelnut Brown Nectar…" I credit that brew alone with being the one that got me interested in the craft beer world and everything that it has to offer… Needless to say, I now have an affinity for nut brown ales, as they are extremely nostalgic to me… So much so, I made sure my first home-brewed beer was a honey-nut brown ale!! I had other experimental trials in my home-brews, but the one I was most excited about was the one I screwed up during the bottling stage… It was supposed to be my "Peanut Butter Chocolate Milk Porter," but after reading that I could use maple syrup as my conditioning agent, I chose to take that option over the tried and true priming sugar… It turned out to be a complete failure as my brew was severely under-carbonated and tasted like weird chocolate milk… That was the last time I had thought about peanut butter in a beer… Then I came across "Stick To The Nuts!!"
When my eyes first grazed the bottle, I was immediately drawn to it's graphic due to the hockey influence of their brewery's name - "SlapShot…" As one of my previous articles states, hockey and beer is the perfect marriage!! The graphic has a little peanut hockey player as well, further intriguing me to the quality of its' contents… The only downfall I could find upon my initial inspection of the bottle was it's from Chicago, and not that Chicago is a bad place, but I'd assume the brewery is full of Blackhawks fans… But with this being All-Star weekend, I figured I could put my distaste for the 'Hawks aside and enjoy a hockey influenced brew in the spirit of the best sport in the world!! Also, as much as I'm NOT a 'Hawks fan, I respect the players of the game, and the fact that they have five individuals from their roster in the All-Star competition is no small feat…
So with a small, weird sense of disloyalty, I chose to enjoy this brew as I watched the final day of the All-Star weekend… Hopefully I'll be able to find out what a beer brewed with peanut butter is TRULY supposed to taste like… And for the record, I'm only hoping "Team Toews" wins due to them having Minnesota's Ryan Suter on their roster!!
SlapShot Brewery - Stick To The Nuts! [Brown Ale Brewed With Peanut Butter] (22oz ---> Left Hand Curved Pint Glass : 7.5% ABV : 25 IBU)
A moderately aggressive pour of the seemingly fair bodied ale produced a two inch, khaki colored head which was composed of the extremely tiny bubbles… It faded at a decent pace leaving behind no lacing on the walls, but a glass wide retentive cap stayed far after the head had fully receded… It is extremely opaque in all of its' dark brown glory, letting only the smallest quantities of light shine through the thinner parts of the glass… After giving my Mississippi River water a firm stir, I got myself a nice whiff of sweet chocolate and dark berries… After the mental build up and anticipation, the nutty elements were underwhelming on the nasal palate, almost entirely non-existent… Hopefully that won't be the case throughout the entire drinking experience… The first taste was again maltier and sweeter than I would have supposed, with the presence of chocolate notes immediately on the palate… Mid-palate, a slight roasted presence begins to develop, along with some more traces of faint dark berry elements… The finish let's the earthy, almost herbal hops show face before their brighter presence is taken over by the "heavier" elements again… Only during the finish does the peanut butter truly develop and show itself as a staple of this brew… The mouthfeel on this beer is quite fitting, as it's full enough to host the bolder flavor elements on a sturdy base, but light enough to let the delicate nuances display themselves in fashion that allows them to mingle amongst the more pronounced flavors… Overall, the flavors were presented in excellent fashion, I just wish they had been proportioned differently and had allowed for the peanut butter to have taken the reins in full force!! At days end though, not much beats a well crafted nut brown ale, and I'd gladly take another Stick To The Nuts!! Another great brew - Cheers!!
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