Whoah, Black Betty: Ale Aged in Whiskey Barrels

You know what's a great drinking game? Listen to the song Black Betty by Ram Jam and every time they say "bam a lam" take a sip of whatever drink you're holding. Except that's a really bad idea with anything higher than 5%, and unless you're still in college, it's no longer appropriate. In public at least.

What is appropriate is Nebraska Brewing's Black Betty Ale, which is aged in whiskey barrels and brewed with chocolate and coffee beans. [EDIT: This beer isn't actually made with actual chocolate and actual coffee beans--it tastes like chocolate/coffee due to the malts that were used.] It has an ABV of 9% and 83 IBUs (International Bitterness Units) so you really don't want to play any sort of drinking game with this brew, mostly because it tastes damn good and you're not allowed to waste good beer that way.

If you really want to, you can put Ram Jam on, but that's your choice.

Color: Pours a thick, dark brown with a large, persistent, mocha colored head. The head is very bubbly and foamy--it actually looks really cool. The beer itself looks malty, it looks thick, and it looks strong. It lives up to its name and looks almost black once it's in the glass.

Aroma: Smells a bit like whiskey, and a little sweet. Also seems like there's hints of chocolate and some coffee. It's a little toasty, but mostly it smells like the inside of a whiskey barrel. This is no bad thing, and it interacts well with the other aromas sifting around behind it.

First Sip: A definite, definite sipping beer. This is dark and malty, with hints of coffee and chocolate. There's some sweetness present as well, but not too much. There is no whiskey taste--the damn beer fooled me, as I was totally expecting something that tasted a bit like whiskey. At least for me, the whiskey nature of this beer only comes through in the aroma. Again, you want to sip this beer, because 1) the flavors are somewhat intense, and 2) you want to enjoy those flavors.

Mouthfeel: A little sharp, has some carbonation going. There's more coffee and chocolate taste present. There's also a bitterness, but the hops are somewhat restrained, or balanced, if you prefer that term. The bitterness just makes the coffee / chocolate taste more pronounced, I think. It does have a rating of 83 IBU, so of course it's bitter (and that's actually quite up there when you consider Dogfish Head's 60 minute IPA has 60 IBUs and the 90 minute has 90 IBUs), but the coffee taste comes through more. Since it's a high ABV, an alcohol-like taste comes through as well, but it's not overpowering. Very tasty.

Aftertaste: The coffee and the chocolate stick around, while the sweetness and bitterness slowly fade.

So take my advice here: pour the beer, sit down, and enjoy it slowly. Savor it. It may not taste like a whiskey, but you should appreciate it like one.