Can’t say much about this beer because Hale’s has an old and terrible website. This bottle was given to me from my friend Maggs, thanks Maggs! This is an 07 vintage, so it will be interesting to see how well it’s held up.
Stats:
English Barleywine. 10.0% ABV. Washington. Limited Release.
It’s got a very “coke” like appearance with no head and a raisin color. There was a ton of sediment in large chunks.
The nose is very dark and sweet. There’s molasses, raisins, plums, whiskey, prunes, and a bit of booze.
Mouthfeel is medium with a little bit of carbonation. I’m surprised the carbonation is still fairly present.
Raisins, plums, whiskey, vanilla, molasses all come through. There’s a wonderful hint of coffee and vanilla on the finish. Surprisingly bitter. The length features a beautiful espresso flavor.
Wow. This is really damn good. It has held up very well, and doesn’t taste oxidized at all. I wouldn’t expect this to be a beer from 2007. 93 points.
Hales is in desperate need to update it’s website, as I’m sure I’ve said before. They don’t list this beer at all. I believe they refer to it as a Belgian Golden Ale. It says it’s a Belgian Yeast Blend on the bottle, but I have no idea what malts or hops are used in this.
Stats:
Belgian Golden Ale. 9.2% ABV. Washington.
Golden in color. No head.
The nose is definitely Belgian, with that yeast character coming through strong. There’s also just a ton of booze on the nose. You do get some honey, and light fruits.
Mouthfeel is medium, and high carbonation.
First things first. Alcohol. It’s in here. Some yeast, some light/tropical fruits, and honey. And booze.
This is pretty off-balanced. It’s boozy, and it dominates everything. 79 points.
Named after the Fremont Troll, this porter features Pale, Carastan, Caramel, Chocolate, Black and roasted malts with Nugget and Mt. Hood hops.
Stats:
American Porter. 7.0% ABV. Washington.
Dark chocolate brown color, not a whole lot of head.
The nose has lots of chocolate and some coffee. It’s Starbucks-y, and I’m actually getting a little bit of a cola thing.
Body is good, but the carbonation is a tiny bit high.
Lots of roast barley, vanilla, coffee, honey, chocolate, and anise. Lots of flavor here, it also has a maple thing going on as well. Imagine a maple mocha, mmm.
Pretty decent porter, but the roasted barley is a little too strong making this beer slightly off-balanced and bitter, but this is worth a try! 88 points.
This amber from Hale’s features Pale, Caramel, Carastan, and Black malts with Centennial hops. As you know, amber’s aren’t my favorite style, but let’s see how this guy is.
Stats:
American Amber Ale. 4.6% ABV. Washington.
Appearance is clowdy and burnt orange in color with a decent off white head.
Not too much going on with the nose. It’s tart with cherries, vanilla, and caramel.
Mouthfeel is decent, good medium body.
Initially tart which brings sour cherries and sour apples, with caramel and vanilla following, with a hint of mandarin orange and green apples on the finish. Slight bitterness, but good balance on this one.
Not sure if this is supposed to be tart, but it is. Otherwise it’s a decent beer, but nothing to go out of your way for. 86 points.
This is Hale’s hefe. It took me a while to “get” the name. Jefe weizen, get it? I have nothing else to say about this beer. You can blame Hale’s terrible website for that.
Stats:
Hefeweizen. 4.5% ABV. Washington.
Orange honey colored with lots of sediment. The bottom sludge is almost black and falls to the bottom of the glass.
Great nose. Lots of wheat, honey, yeast, and just a ton of light fruit. It also has this floral fragrance type of thing going on. I could smell this all day, just fantastic.
Mouthfeel is highly carbonated, and a little bit too light for me.
Honey hits the palate first with lots of wheat and yeast. Tons of apples, brown sugar, apricots, peaches, pineapple, and just lots of other fruits, and a hint of tobacco on the finish.
This is worth a taste if you can get it. Nice flavor, nicer nose. Nice sessioner if you are looking for a wheat. It’s not German, but it’s tasty. 88 points.
This is the amped up version of Hale’s Mongoose IPA. I’m not sure on what’s in this beer, but I’d be willing to bet that Amarillo hops make an appearance.
Stats:
American India Pale Ale. 7.5% ABV. Washington.
Nice caramel color, with not a lot of head, but some nice lacing.
This is a citrus heavy hop nose. There might as well be an orange in this beer. There’s a bit of pine and tobacco that also comes through.
Mouthfeel is a bit too light and frothy.
A little citrus, tobacco, and vanilla. It gets earthier as it transitions across the palate. Heavy dose of bitterness that doesn’t leave the palate. The beer is also slightly sweet, giving it an almost sticky feel.
This is an aggressive, Northwest, big IPA for all you fans out here. 89 points.
Here’s an IPA that is easy to find in Washington. Hale’s Mongoose features Pale and Crystal malts with Centennial, Nugget, and Amarillo hops.
Stats:
American India Pale Ale. 6.0% ABV. Washington.
Light orange and hazy with sediment.
The nose is hoppy, but not crazy hops. It’s also slightly tart, which is interesting. Sour fruits dominate the nose.
Mouthfeel is good, medium to full bodied.
This bottle is a bit sour. Floral hops on the front, but not overpowering. The sourness really permeates all over the palate. Sour fruits and floral hops, here. The finish has a good dose of bitterness.
I’m not sure if this beer should be this sour. A few others on BA noted a sourness as well. 78 points.
Great name for a beer, especially if you understand the reference. This RIS has six different malts, but they don’t list what they are. Let’s see how it tastes.
Stats:
Russian Imperial Stout. 8.0% ABV. Washington.
Nice dark color with a dark tan head.
The nose here concerns me, as it smells like vinegar. It’s also got a ton of coffee, which I like. A little hint of vanilla and apple, as well.
Mouthfeel isn’t too bad, a bit over-carbonated for me.
That vinegar is up front, but transitions to dark chocolate covered apples, and then to a mocha finish, which is actually quite nice.
Interesting beer, but that vinegar thing is no good. 80 points.
This is apparently a Winter seasonal from Hale’s Ales. Havn’t tried this one before, and I’ve had most of the Hale’s beers so I had to pick this one up when I saw it. It’s an Imperial IPA brewed with Columbus, Cascade, and Centennial hops, so fairly typical hops. Let’s see how it is.
Stats:
Imperial India Pale Ale. 8.4% ABV. Washington. Winter Release.
Light amber color and hazy, with an amazing head and lacing.
Chock full ‘o hops and aggressive. Pine resin with citrus coming through. It also is a bit earthy and vegetal. Even though it’s really hoppy, it does seem like there is some balance there.
Nice medium bodied mouthfeel. Carbonation might be a tad high, but I’m not complaining.
Yep, hops, and lots of them. Good pine and earth flavors with lemon and lime coming through. It really just keeps getting more vegetal, but I actually like it here. Definitely some bitterness on the back, but nothing out of the ordinary.
Probably one of the better IPA’s that I’ve had from this state. Aggressive, but fairly balanced. I’m applauding Hale for this (*clapping*) beer. Good job, guys. 90 points.
What is it with breweries only giving you a description of a beer and not any information about it. Anyways, this winter seasonal is a wee heavy. Not one of my favorite styles. In fact, I really don’t like the style, but what the hell.
Stats:
Wee Heavy. 6.0% ABV. Washington. Winter Seasonal.
Dark mahogany in color, and no lasting head.
The nose has lots of dark malts bringing a ton of chocolate, caramel, brown sugar, and lots of dark fruits. There is also a nice hop component bringing some pine and grapefruit.
Mouthfeel is good. Fairly thick and decent carbonation.
Nice, bold dark malts with lots of chocolate, caramel, and dark fruits, again. Nice hops to balance the malts out and gives it some great flavor. Really fills your palate and has a gorgeous backend. Vanilla stays on the palate forever.
I liked this beer more than any review on BA, which is interesting. Again, this isn’t a favorite style of mine, but I really dig this beer. It just has a great flavor with nice balance. I’d recommend this one. 91 points.
