Saxy Machismo (draft)-Haw River Farmhouse Ales
After the 2 prior reviews here by fuse and Tripping William that were quite opposing views, I decided to taste a 2 ounce sample tonight after a half pint of the next review and cast the tie-breaking vote. Here's how Bottle Revolution has been marketing this for the last week or two (it apparently ain't flying out of the tap handle
):
"Put on your fireproof pants, folks—this one’s got muscle. A smoky, raisin-sweet Belgian-style Quad infused with locally-grown smoked tobago chili peppers, then aged in Four Roses bourbon whiskey barrels for 3 months. Warning: Allowing Saxy Machismo within proximity of your beard during imbibing could result in spontaneous awesomeness."
What'd I think? It was a medium to dark brown with a small, tan head. Typical Belgian quad style nose of dried fruits with initial tastes of the same followed by some dark caramel sauce, moderate booziness and a mild amount of heat which likely would have intensified if I had a half pint ($4.50) or a full pint ($9) and allowed it to warm up during 30 minutes of sipping. I'll guess IBUs about 30 and the ABV was 12.2%.
Final vote? Happy to have had two ounces to try, wouldn't have been upset to have sipped 8 ounces and probably would have tolerated it, wouldn't consider buying the full pint unless it was for sharing and I'm sure as hell not spending $15 for one of the 500 ml bottles they had on the shelf.
How's that for a bob and weave/shuck and jive answer?