Beer-a-Day #224

An unfiltered, unfettered, unprecedented brown ale aged in handmade wooden brewing vessels. The caramel and vanilla complexity unique to this beer comes from the exotic Paraguayan Palo Santo wood from which these tanks were crafted. Palo Santo means “holy tree” and it’s wood has been used in South American wine-making communities.

I got to sample a bit of this at a F.O.A.M. meeting several months ago and have been looking to buy a bottle ever since. I finally scored some the other day. I’ve put one away to age for a bit, but cracked open the other bottle as a reward for a hard day’s work.

It’s a deep, deep chocolate brown, thick and opaque. It smells “rich”, with caramel and vanilla and a bit of heat from the alcohol. More caramel and heat in the taste, with something that reminds me of brandy. Very complex. I couldn’t take a steady diet of these, but it sure is a nice treat.

Dogfish Head Palo Santo Marron