I'll admit it. I totally fell for the marketing on this one. Can you really blame me though? That big, weird shaped, corked and caged bottle really jumped off the shelves. But when I got closer and saw that what drew me in was a barrel aged stout brewed with Belgian yeast I knew I was taking this one home. Now a stout is not a traditional Belgian style, far from it. But what's to stop an enterprising brewer from smashing a big dark roasty beer together with a funky fruity Belgian style ale. Color me intrigued! To the beer!
Thirteenth hour pours a deep dark brown. It's not quite black, at least to my eyes. Faint ruby red highlights accent the brew which is capped off by a hearty layer of densely packed sturdy tan head.
This is definitely an atypical set of aromas for a stout. The Belgian yeast comes out swinging first with lots of fruity, spicy, estery notes. There are also some tart fruity aromas going on as well. The traditional stout roastiness takes the backseat here with faint hints of coffee and chocolate. Fascinating nose for a stout.
The flavor here is also very unconventional for a stout. A spicy, peppery Belgian yeast character becomes evident first. Lots of tart, rich, complex dark fruit flavors join the party as well. Again the traditional roasty notes are on the back burner. At this point what I'm drinking tastes more like a slightly roasty Belgian strong dark ale than a stout. That's not at all a bad thing, just not quite what I was expecting.
On my second glass the beer has had time to warm and open up a bit and the very smooth, very rich roastiness has finally come out to play. Flavors of dark chocolate and bitter coffee mingle with a spicy herbal hop character and some faint hints of vanilla imparted by the oak barrel aging. Thirteenth Hour was bottle conditioned with champagne yeast. It's very evident. The generous carbonation imparts an almost spritzy character that is absolutely unique (as far as my experience is concerned) for a stout. The rather robust 9% ABV manifests itself as a very enjoyable alcohol warming sensation. Also, for as rich and malty as this beer is it finishes very dry.
This is one unique beer. Not your traditional stout and not your traditional Belgian ale by any stretch. But damned tasty to be sure. Thirteenth Hour is a beer that blew away any preconceived notions about what was inside that bottle when I bought it. Once again, Sam Adams continues to impress with their Limited Releases. This beer is definitely a bit more challenging than your run of the mill ale but it's one work seeking out. A special beer, and best of all quite affordable!
HD
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