Ölbeat 335 (BC17 #22): Põhjala Odravein 2016

Brewery: Pôhjala
Country: Estonia
Style: Barley Wine
Abv: 12 %
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What about the beer?

Colour is dark brown with a small natural white head. Aroma has chocolate, peanut butter and caramel. Taste starts with sweet fruity and malty alcohol. Bittersweet raisin and malty caramel take over with boozy coffee and chocolate. Towards the end fruity and malty bitter alcohol gets in front. Aftertaste has strongly bitter raisin-boozy bite followed by malty and fruity dryness.

Sweet and strong Barley Wine. The power of alcohol is pretty much unleashed, but it's fruity and malty with caramel, coffee and chocolate at the same time. Like barrel-aged brew but without aging in the barrel, Põhjala hits the right spot once again.

Ölbeat

Power and aggression but in the same time beauty and sensibility. So it's time for neoclassical metal by the master of the style.

Yngwie Malmsteen: Rising Force (YouTube)

From the 1988 album Odyssey, the song was written by Yngwie Malmsteen and Joe Lynn Turner.

Ölbeat 112: BrewDog Monk Hammer

Brewery: BrewDog
Country: Scotland
Style: India Pale Ale
Abv: 7,2 %
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What about the beer?

Colour is cloudy golden yellow with a small white head. Aroma has mostly lemon and grapefruit with some sweet fruits and yeast. Taste starts with sharp heavily dry bitterness with a yeasty twist. Yeasty and bitter grapefruit dominates with some piny dry. Grapefruit bitterness comes out strongest near the finish. Aftertaste is piny dry and grapefruit bitter.

Elements of the brewery's basic Jack Hammer are clearly present. They are coated with yeasty, Belgian aleish flavours. The result is still clearly a strong IPA or even Double IPA. Strong, heavy and tasty brew for the first Ölbeat from the Punks. ("What took you so long?")

Ölbeat

Since I'll reserve the punk rock song for another BrewDog brew - just wait - I chose a joyful soft guitar metal ballad to accompany this one. Somehow the brews that have some relation in their name or style get connected with song themes at least with a thin thread connected to faith and religion. Time for a head check, perhaps? 

Yngwie Malmsteen: Heaven Tonight (YouTube)

From the 1988 album Odyssey, the song was written by Joe Lynn Turner and Yngwie Malmsteen.