You know when you feel déjà vu: Tailwagger Amber Ale by New Glarus Brewing

When I first heard that New Glarus had a new beer out called Tailwagger, I felt a strong sense of déjà vu. Wasn't that the name given to their barleywine back in 2006 or thereabouts? Indeed it was. In fact, the puppy that appeared on the label nearly 20 years ago has returned seemingly having not aged a day to grace the one for the Tailwagger nouveau. Like Dorian Gray, but different.

When I learned that the 21st century Tailwagger was an amber ale, I got another flash of déjà vu. It felt like I had been transported back to the mid-1990's when Fat Tire was still in its infancy but steadily gaining in popularity and Pete's Wicked Ale was everywhere good (American) beer was sold as was Sierra Nevada Pale Ale. Here in Madison, Capital's Special Pilsner, Sprecher Amber, and New Glarus Edel Pils represented the home team. (I don't recall much Lakefront around at that time though I am sure Riverwest Stein was to be had.) It's a shame that New Glarus didn't release Fat Squirrel contemporaneously with Tailwagger for a real 90s throwback extravaganza.

Unlike in the mid-90s, I don't drink much amber ale these days but I am always up for tasting what Dan Carey and the rest of the brewing crew at New Glarus have come up with. Well, almost always. I have yet to take the plunge into their Splash malt beverages, for instance.

It's nice to be have more daylight these days as I really enjoy taking a brew outside. They look better in sunlight too. As you can more or less see above, Tailwagger is - quelle surprise - amber. And clear as can be. A smattering of bubbles made their way up to a lovely light tan head. As I was outside in close proximity to lilac bushes and freshly laid cedar mulch, I tried my best to separate the smells of the yard from the smells of the beer. To wit: the aroma was caramel, grass, and a hint of biscuit. Things were off to a fine start.

My first sip revealed a smooth, medium-light body accompanied by some very nice fizz. While I tasted caramel, it wasn't particularly sweet. There was also a slight roastiness and bit of stone fruit. The hops tasted grassy-herbal to me. Not a lot but rather just enough. When I swallowed, there were some lingering caramel and biscuit flavors that were quickly joined by grassy hops. Bitterness and dryness were both on the mild side.

I thoroughly enjoyed Tailwagger: The Next Generation. My notes say "Excellent!", in fact. Aristotle would have appreciated this brew as there just seemed to be the right amounts of everything with nothing in excess except general tastiness. It simply has that amber ale arete. I greatly appreciated the restraint in sweetness and how the caramel taste was complemented by biscuity malt. The light body made it go down easy.

Junk food pairing: Pair the new Tailwagger with a bag of Guinness Rich Chili crisps.

Drinkin' Ryewine, Spo-Dee-O-Dee: Ryme & Punishment by Parched Eagle Brew Pub

Last year, when it was much warmer than it is now, I saw that the Parched Eagle here in Madison had a ryewine, a cousin of the English barleywine, on offer. I love rye so of course I headed over there and bought some. But, if brewmaster/ proprietor Jim Goronson thinks I am going to drink a big (10%), treacly, maltfest of a brew in the baking heat of a Wisconsin summer, he is out of his mind. The brave(/crazy) English explorers saved the big brews like Allsopp's Arctic Ale for when they were up in the godforsaken wastes of northern Canada. At home they surely drank the milds, bitters, or whatever brews of lesser potency as they argued in drawing rooms about the location of the Northwest Passage, shot random footmen for sport, and other such activities favored by the English aristocracy at the time. So I cellared a bomber of the stuff to be retrieved when the Fimbulwinter had settled upon us. On a recent winter's day, the high never reached double digits and so it was the perfect weather for the heady, rye-laced elixir.

In addition to ryewines, there is the aforementioned barleywine, but I have also seen wheatwines.

 

"So," you're thinking, "how can a beer be a wine?"

I recall being similarly perplexed back in c. 1992 when I encountered my first barleywine, Old Nick. But I was intrigued as well. And how can you go wrong with a picture of the Devil (or was it Machiavelli?) himself on the label? The explanation I was offered then and continue to labor under now is that these grain-wines are simply very strong ales that have alcohol levels approaching that of wine. Now, exactly how much wheat or rye is required to be branded a wheat- or ryewine is unknown to me. I suppose as much as the brewer wants.

To the best of my knowledge, the barleywine is English in origin but it's more of a marketing term and not a distinct style per se like the double dry hopped barrel aged milkshake IPA with vanilla and cocoa nibs is. I suppose there's a whole taxonomic rabbit hole to go down regarding what exactly constitutes a "strong ale". English beer historians such as Martyn Cornell will no doubt offer a definition that differs from that given by ignorant bloggers like me. I generally think of these grain-wines as being 10%+ A.B.V. and brownish in color. Yeah, not exactly a model of precision here, I know. Oh, and American versions - quelle surprise! - are usually hoppier than English ones.

About 30 seconds of internet searching revealed that the wheatwine is supposedly an invention of the late 1980s and hails from California. I find the idea that British brewers never made a strong ale with wheat unlikely but, then again, I am no Martyn Cornell. I found nothing on the question of the genesis of the ryewine. With rye being much more prevalent and desirable in northern and eastern Europe, I am doubtful that the ryewine originated in Ol' Blighty and find it likely to be another American invention. But stranger things have happened.

 

It was a chilly afternoon indeed when I poured the first glass of Ryme & Punishment. There was no head to speak of which I suppose wasn't surprising considering this was an English-style brew or English-style-adjacent, at least. But my glass was filled with an absolutely gorgeous elixir that was a deep amber and clear. Watching the beer flow, it just looked thick and viscous and by its appearance alone one could tell it was a heady brew. Taking a whiff, I caught a prominent raisin smell along with big malty sweetness and slightly less of a generic grainy scent.

Remember how I said above that this stuff looked thick as it flowed into my snifter? Well, it tasted that way. This beer had a heavy body - just as expected - almost syrupy. Despite the paucity of bubbles, I still tasted a light fizziness but it was unable to hold its own against the rich, grainy sugariness that had a plum-like flavor to it. There was also that spicy rye to be had. Mmmm...great stuff. I was unsurprised when that sweetness lingered after I swallowed but a measure of herbal/spicy hops added welcome dryness. It was this point that some boozy heat kicked in and wrapped my tongue in its burning folds for a bracing conclusion.

What a fantastic winter warmer/strong ale/whatever you call these kinds of beers! It was thick and sweet yet the hops and booze (10% A.B.V.) kept it from being cloying. I should add that this was a pleasantly smooth beer. However, I didn't taste Ryme & Punishment fresh so I am unsure how much of this was inherent in the brew and how much, if any, can be attributed to my mad cellaring skillz.

Sadly, we will likely have to wait until the coming warmer months for another batch of this stuff. But, when it's on offer, do avail yourself of the opportunity to get some to stow away until next winter.

Junk food pairing: I am a believer in pairing locally so grab some jalapeno cheddar potato chips from Madison's finest chip purveyor, Slide.

To Keep Jack Frost at Bay: Big Eddy Ryewine Ale by Jacob Leinenkugel Brewing Company

Leinenkugel's Big Eddy series began in 2007 with a draft-only double IPA that was available here in Madison and in Milwaukee. Big Eddy beers are big, bold brews full of flavor and alcohol too. Most are also chances for the brewery to experiment with styles that are otherwise not represented in its portfolio. Such is the case with Ryewine Ale, a barleywine with a healthy dose of rye.

I will confess that I do not drink barleywines very often. But it's not that I have a distaste for the style. Far from it. I have wonderful memories of drinking my first back in 1991 or 1992 when a bottle of Old Nick touched my lips. A few years later I sampled the Great Dane's first barleywine with a friend whom I hadn't seen for some time. And so I have fond memories associated with the style but it just rarely seems to find its way into my glass these days. On cursory introspection I will attribute this to the fact that I like to sit back and sip on barleywine while in no hurry whatsoever. Small doses to be savored over time, a spirit which is lost to me these days as my attention seems to jump from one thing to another.

/omphaloskepsis

Originally released in the spring/summer(?!) of 2013, I picked up a four-pack in the fall of 2014 and it has been aging in my cellar ever since. I recently brought one up from hibernation and decided to see how well it could chase away the winter chill.

Ryewine Ale pours a deep mahogany that is opaque unless you cant your head so that you're not looking at the glass perpendicularly. It looked clear but I was unable to be certain. My pour produced a very small tan head that was off like a prom dress. I could not see any bubbles inside the beer at no matter which angle I peered into the beer's depths.

Sadly I did not drink any Ryewine Ale when it was fresh and so I'm not able to tell you how this two and a half year-old version tastes in comparison to its youthful self. Having said this, I can say that sticking my nose into my snifter revealed a wonderfully sweet aroma overflowing with notes of vanilla, caramel, and a plum-y fruitiness.

I was surprised upon taking my first sip that the beer's body was lighter than I had expected. It was fairly heavy but not syrupy and viscous as my nose led me to believe and tasted much like the aroma. The vanilla which had been quite prominent to the nose was here but reduced. It blended well with a big fruity sweetness. Balancing the sweetness was, quelle surprise, alcohol. Ryewine Ale is 10% A.B.V. and suffered no shortage of boozy burn. As someone who loves rye in beer, I was happy to taste some of that earthy spiciness but it didn't stand out as I'd hoped.

On the finish the vanilla/sweetness combination faded as a boozy warmth settled in. Before long some grassy hop flavor and bitterness appeared and gave the finish some unanticipated dryness which was quite pleasant after all of the preceding sweetness.

As you probably surmised, Ryewine Ale did a fine job of chasing off Jack Frost. By definition the barleywine is a sweet beer but Leinenkugel did well by it in keeping this one from being treacly. The alcohol, a little carbonation, some rye, and those hops on the finish keep the sugary flavors from overpowering the palate.

Junk food pairing: Help keep Ryewine's delicate balance and pair it with some dark chocolate covered pretzels or mellower cheeses such as Colby or Provolone Cheez-Its.