Beer Review: He'Brew Jewbelation Fifteen

Thanks to 2beerguys beer blog for the pic.

Happy Chanukah...Hannukah...Channuh ah forget it.  Happy Holidays!  After a delicious sushi dinner (a gift from my parents) I decided to open up a bottle of Jewbelation Fifteen to celebrate the season and the fact that my vacation started today.  For the uninitiated, He'Brew (Shmaltz Brewing Co) has put out an anniversary beer each year to celebrate their existence.  I ran into this series last year when they put out a holiday gift pack including Anniversary Ales 8-14 and a barrel-aged "Vertical" beer.  Each year, they add one more type of malt and hops and raise the ABV one percent.  So this year the beer is 15% ABV with 15 malts and 15 hops.

Appearance:  Pours a deep, dark brown with a thin tan head that dissipates quickly.  Looks a lot like Coke.

Aroma: This beer has a complex array of aromas that I need some help identifying.  I can get some brown sugar/molasses flavors, plus vanilla, raisins and a ton of malty character.

Taste:  Malt and brown sugar jump out at first with caramel notes and a bit of alcohol at the end.  There's also a bready character that must come from one of the fifteen malts. 

Mouthfeel:  Kind of heavy and syrupy with light carbonation.  The sweetness lingers and nicely balances out the small alcohol burn.

Overall:  Pretty solid beer considering the amount of ingredients at play.  The 15% ABV is hidden nicely and the sweetness doesn't become too cloying even after sitting out for a while.  I bet this beer would be great in two years when the sugar dies down a bit and some of the other qualities shine through.  B+



Beer Advocate has 19 reviews that average to an 89.  That's pretty good, right?  2beerguys.com enjoyed this one during their holiday beer extravaganza.  Better Beer Blog agrees with my assessment.  Seems like a solid beer to warm you up on these cold (60 degree) Washington DC evenings.