In 1998, Joel and Ethan Coen first released their comedy "The Big Lebowski" at the Sundance Film Festival... Story goes, it received mixed reviews at film festivals and major theatre debuts, but has since evolved into a cult classic!! It has gained such a large following that there is now an annual "Lebowski Fest," which is essentially a viewing and bowling party themed around the characters and situations within the movie... Hosted originally in Louisville, Kentucky in 2002, it has since spread to many metropolitan cities nationwide...The movie's cast is low-key phenomenal, (Jeff Bridges, John Goodman, Steve Buscemi, Philip Seymour Hoffman, John Turturro, Tara Reid, Mark Pellegrino, and even Red Hot Chili Peppers' bassist Flea - to name a few) as each character executed their roles in exquisite fashion... Of equal preeminence was the movie's score, consisting of excellently placed tracks which brilliantly accompany each character or situation... The plot, however, seems to be one of the least celebrated aspects of the film... It's Pulp-Fiction-esque, in regards to it having multiple underlying story lines applicable to each individual character, all adding bits and pieces to the overall plot, which, in the end is ultimately secondary to all the comical anecdotes each character encounters...
Since it's central storyline has never been the most celebrated aspect of the film, I believe it's the love for the characters that has truly been embraced by the "Lebowski communities" everywhere... So much so, that Pipeworks Brewing in Chicago has brewed a Lebowski inspired White Russian Imperial Milk Stout!! Russian stouts aren't typically creamy in nature, but when modeling a beer after a White Russian, it only makes sense... Now join me in indulging in the aptly named "Hey, Careful Man, There's A Beverage Here!!"
Pipeworks Brewing - Hey, Careful Man, There's A Beverage Here! [White Russian Imperial Milk Stout Brewed With Lactose Sugar With Cacao, Coffee And Vanilla Added] (22oz ---> Left Hand Curved Pint Glass : 10.5% ABV)
In a perfect world, I'd be writing this review after a few Miller Lite's at the alley with my bowling buddies, but unfortunately I live in America... (Bad joke, I know...) So with a white v-neck and some lounging shorts, I dive into what I hope to be a most enjoyable brew... After pouring much lighter than I had thought it would, a solid inch and a half head formed, composed of typically larger bubbles than what most stouts I've encountered tend to have... It faded moderately slowly with a healthy little retentive cap left in its' wake, with a respectable amount of lacing along the glass as well... It's golden-orange in color and also slightly hazy, but in contrast to most other "white" brews I've had, it's still relatively clear... I've only recently ever seen a stout that wasn't extremely dark, with Stone's Master Of Disguise being the sole varietal like that that I've had the pleasure of enjoying... The aromatics consist of coffee and chocolatey sweetness on the forefront, with some pretty heavy doses of alcohol in there as well... Usually such a hefty presence of alcohol would be a notch against a brew, but since this is mirroring a White Russian, I feel as if it's almost appropriate... Once I tasted it, I immediately noticed the creamy mouthfeel of this beer, before I had even gotten a chance to depict any individual flavors on my palate... After I got past the pleasing mouthfeel, it was again the sweetness of the chocolate along with a bitter bite of the coffee which I detected first... The second wave of flavors let some subtle traces of spices attend the party, mainly hints of cinnamon and even traces of pepper... It finishes with another round of chocolate and coffee, but as it develops on the palate you detect some hints of soothing vanilla there as well... The mouthfeel on this beer is, as I touched on before, phenomenal... If it were any other beer, I might have said it was a bit too full, but since it's a representation of a White Russian, it seemed to be dead on!! Overall, this beer far exceeded my expectations on basically all fronts... It's creaminess helped subdue the sweetness, and the coffee bitterness balanced out the malty, chocolatey sweetness fantastically... It's got a decent array of developed flavors, but managed to hit their White Russian "target" with deadly accuracy... "The Big Lebowski" is a terrific movie, and this beer is of an equally high caliber!! But that's just, like, my opinion, man... Another great brew - Cheers!!
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