May 10, 2007 -- “A few times a year, we will cut Dan loose to brew whatever he chooses, uncensored, uncut, unplugged.”
So reads the label of the beer called Enigma, from the New Glarus Brewing Company of New Glarus, Wisconsin. The “Dan” of which that text speaks is Daniel Carey, an innovative and exciting brewer if ever there was one, and also the owner, with his wife Deborah, of the brewery.
So what is Enigma? Simply, a lot. In the nose, the oak in which it was aged is immediately apparent, with woody, vanilla and toasty notes apparent. Then there’s the fruit – whole cherries, the label goes on to say – which lurks in the background at first, but emerges slowly and steadily as the ale warms.
In the body, there’s even more going on, in the form of a near-seamless interaction between tart fruit – made tarter by the judicious use of Brettanomyces, I would guess – caramelly malt, vanilla, funky spice and, finally near the end, a slight jolt of alcohol. The impact of the barrel could be a little more reserved, but to make such a quibble seems petty in the face of such deliciously integrated complexity.
And so, with one success enjoyed, I turn to ‘Unplugged’ number two: Belgian Quadruple.
Medium copper in colour, one sniff of this presumably abbey-style ale informs me that the only Trappist it may have anything in common with is Orval. The nose has a soft whiff of tartness – the Orval connection – alongside deep fruity notes, vanilla and toasted oak. (At this point, I start thinking that I’ve been sampling too many bourbons lately, but no, the label speaks of both oak aging and bourbon barrels.) The body offers just enough Brettanomyces tang to balance the potentially overwhelming fruitiness of the malt without resorting to hop bitterness, and the vanilla and intense notes of black plum, raisin, bing cherry and red wine grapes meet harmoniously in the oh-so-rich, gently roasty body. The finish is warming, but despite this beer’s 11% alcohol content, hardly overwhelming.
Ever since the whole musical ‘unplugged’ phenomenon began, I have regrettably born witness to artist after artist who should be plugged right back in, and quickly. Dan Carey is most definitely not one of those. More, please.
