Clown Shoes - Genghis Pecan

I don't know about you but I had a really rough work week. There's nothing I want more than to forget everything I did work wise this week and just zone out. Of course I'm going to help myself with some good beer and some good tunes. 

So tonight I'm drinking another Clown Shoes beer. I've really enjoyed what I've had so far from them and I'm hoping this one is no different. Tonight we've got Genghis Pecan which is a 7% abv Pecan Pie Porter. And yes, the label on this one is awesome just like all the others. But enough rambling and stalling, let's get this one poured and I'll give you my thoughts on the Genghis Pecan! 

Genghis pours out very dark almost pitch black. Maybe the slightest bit of mahogany/chocolate color around the bottom of the glass. There's about a finger of beige head, very fluffy. The head dissipates pretty quickly and leaves behind a very weak lacing. Almost none to speak of which is a bit surprising. Looks like a pretty standard porter honestly. Nothing new to report here. Let's get the nose.

Big pecan flavor on the nose. That's mixed in nicely with an almost cinnamon like spice note. A bit of brown sugar lingering in the background too.There's a nice graham cracker character here too. This is a pecan pie porter and honestly I think it gets the smell of a pecan pie pretty nicely. There's maybe the slightest hint of alcohol in the background. Honestly, pecan pie with a little bourbon is one of the best things ever so this has me very much intrigued. A really nice smelling porter, one that definitely smells like the style/name it's been given. I'm ready to do some drinking so let's do this! 

Surprisingly at first impression I'm not getting a lot of pecans. It's more of a buttery, pie crust like character. There's a little bit of a caramel sweetness, some brown sugar. None of that cinnamon spice I was getting on the nose. Sides of the mouth you do get the pecans but they are very subdued and muted. I was hoping for a little more in that regard. I'm going to let this warm a little and see how it's developed, if at all.

I've let this warm a bit and I'm still not getting a lot of the pecan, mostly just a buttery crust. This does remind me of a pie but maybe not a pecan pie. There's some boozy stickiness lingering in the back of the palate. Slightly nutty so I guess that's where the pecans went. It's not that they're not here I just think they've taken a back seat to everything else.

So overall, Genghis Pecan is just OK. It's a good porter but for what is dubbed as a pecan pie porter I'm left wanting more, a lot more. If this was just a porter from Clown Shoes I'd be stoked and happy. Unfortunately, I think they've left a lot to be desired which is surprising. I've genuinely liked everything I've had from them, a lot. This just sort of falls short of the mark. It's probably a mark I'e set WAY too high but I'm accepting of that. I'd drink this again but I don't know I'd want to pay the $8 or $9 I did. So, good porter, so-so execution.

Rating: C+

Clown Shoes - Chocolate Sombrero

Hey all! It's Wednesday night and I'm a little bored. So what better way to cure boredom and get a good buzz going, than crack open something new and review it?

Tonight I'm drinking another beer from Clown Shoes out of Ipswich, MA, this is their Chocolate Sombrero which is a 9% stout that they are dubbing a "Mexican Style Chocolate Stout". This sounds good just from the name and being from San Diego, I'm no stranger to Mexican chocolate. I'm a big fan. The kicker on this beer is they brewed it with ancho chile, cinnamon, and some vanilla extract. So on top of all the roasted malts and chocolate malts, we get some ancho and cinnamon with a touch of vanilla. Enough rambling, let's get Chocolate wasted!

Chocolate Sombrero pours out a very dark brown to black color with about a finger of a somewhat creamy head. Admittedly, I didn't pour very vigorously so I only ended up with about a fingers worth. It's pretty damn dark though maybe with the slightest bit of mahogany down around the bottom of the glass. Bad lighting though probably doesn't help much here. Overall, this looks like a standard stout. Let's get the nose.

So first thing I notice is a sweet vanilla smell from that extract. That's followed up immediately by a combination of cinnamon and ancho chile. There's some pepper skin in here too. I've had some chile/cinnamon stouts before and this one definitely smells the best so far. I'm getting some sweeter chocolates in here as well. Definitely reminds me of that mexican chocolate. Rich and a bit spicy. But really the pepper in this is the thing I'm getting more of as I go back for more. This is a very interesting smelling stout. Let's see if the Chocolate Sombrero delivers like it does in the nose.

First thing I get is some chocolate and vanilla. It's incredibly smooth and creamy. As the chocolate fades a bit the vanilla carries on into the middle of the mouth where I'm picking up that cinnamon and some ancho chiles. There's more of that mexican chocolate coming through here too. The spice of this beer is really bringing out the chocolate. Back of the tongue there's a slight bit of heat from the ancho. It's actually very nice. There's quite a bit of roast here too. A bit of roasted dark malts and chocolate really stand out on the back end.

As I let the flavors from Chocolate Sombrero linger in my mouth the chile and cinnamon spice really dance around the tongue. It's almost like I ate a red hot if anyone remembers those little candies. It's very nice. The pepper skin sort of linger along the sides of the mouth as well.

So overall, this beer is really solid. I'm not a big fan of beers that are brewed with Chiles, but this is fantastic. The way the ancho and cinnamon play off the chocolate and vanilla so seamlessly is great and really makes this beer worth it. If you can get this I'd recommend it. It's not mind blowing, but just incredibly good.

Rating: A (and seriously, these labels on the Clown Shoes beers are fucking awesome!)

Clown Shoes - Blaecorn Unidragon

What's up everyone?! Did you miss me? That's ok, I didn't miss you much either. I spent my weekend drinking some good beers and watching quite a bit of hockey.

With that said, I almost forgot I had this incredibly named beer in my fridge. I figured, why not crack it open and get a review up. I don't want anyone to think I'd died or something!

So tonight I'm drinking the wonderfully named Blaecorn Unidragon by Clown Shoes (Mercury Brewing Co) out of Ipswich, MA. I'd heard things about their beers but had never seen one in the store. Much to my delight I came across this rare Unic...Unico... shit, Unidragon, and had to pick it up. I didn't know much about it but with a label that looks like something off a heavy metal album cover I just didn't care. I had to get this and drink it in the name of all things METAAAAAAAAL!!!!

Ok, so the first thing I noticed when actually reading up on this thing is the abv. 12.5%! This tells me a couple of things. One, this is going to be one strong ass beer! Two, I probably should have aged this for a bit. I thought this had a bottle on date but I guess I'm wrong. If it's there I'm looking right at it, but I'm fucking blind soo... pretty sure this is fairly fresh, maybe January.

Anyway, let's pour this beast out and get into it.

Unidragon pours out a pitch black. There's no light shining through this beer at all. It looks evil. Like a black Unidragon should. Honestly, I want to blast some Ronnie James Dio (RIP!) while I'm drinking this. There was about a finger of beige, bordering on mocha. The head didn't stick around very long and receded back into the beer leaving behind a spotted-like lacing. It looks pretty good. Lets get the nose on this one.

First thing I get on the Unidragon is a nice earthy hop note. It's pretty strong too. Nothing like an IPA but you definitely get some hop character. That's followed immediately by a chocolate character. Some roasted malts shining through right now as well. There's a bit of dark chocolate, maybe even some roasted espresso beans here. I'm getting a lot of a raisin character as well. It smells a lot like a bag of Raisinets. There some fig and date characteristics also. A nice sugary note as well. You do get a little bit of alcohol on the nose as well. 12.5% that's pretty much a guarantee though. I'm tired of waiting. Let's drink up!

Right away I get a milk chocolate sweetness. That's immediately followed up by that chocolate covered raisin character I got on the nose. It's nice and sweet and really pleasing. Middle of the tongue there's a nice hop bitterness and some roasted notes. Definitely from the malts that were used. I'm getting quite a bit of an espresso character here as well. There's a bit of alcohol coming through on the middle of the tongue. You definitely know this is a big beer. Back of the mouth you get a subtle tobacco character maybe even the slightest bit of leather. There's more chocolate sweetness and some date/fig action going on as well. This beer tastes really nice.

Overall, I'm really enjoying this beer. Blaecorn Unidragon is a solid Russian Imperial Stout. I'd definitely recommend checking it out if you can get it. I'd also recommend letting this age for a bit. I think with a year of age on this it'd be phenomenal. There's a bit more alcohol than I like on my stouts. It's not barrel aged so it's not a bourbon character unfortunately. The alcohol in no way ruins this beer. It's still really good, bordering on great in all honesty.

Rating: B+

Wife said it tastes like beer. Big fucking surprise.