In this fall beer blog, we are going to sample out Samuel Adams Fall Sampler pack.  The first beer up to sample is their Samuel Adams Hazel Brown.  If you read my earlier blog on Samuel Adams brews, you know about this brewery.  If not, please, go back and read the first part of it.  Samuel Adams is pretty well-known so you might know about them before these blogs.  Let us get into the beer.

Hazel Brown is part of their Fall Sampler Pack. It has a brown color without a head on the beer.  The smell is between a hazelnut and brown sugar.  It has a medium body with a caramel to sweet hazelnut taste.  The aftertaste is of slight bitter to dry to this american brown ale. It is not really a drinkable beer but I could see some beer drinkers trying to do that with this beer.

Here is a description from the beer bottle:

This flavorful dark brown ale has a distinct hazelnut aroma and taste.  Slightly sweet caramel and toffee malt notes accentuate the pleasant roasted hazelnut character.  This medium-bodied brew finishes smooth with an underlying spiciness from the hops.  Cheers!  Jim Koch

Here is a description from their website (www.samueladams.com):

In honor of the fall hazelnut harvest, we brewed this flavorful nut brown ale.  Its distinct hazelnut aroma and taste are accentuated by slightly sweet caramel and toffee malt notes.  Medium in body, it finishes smooth with an underlying spiciness from the hops making it a great choice for fall.

While nut brown ales do not have a particularly long history, brown ales have been around in England since the late 17th century.  This style became rare at the start of the 19th century as brewers began using pale malts as the base for their beers in place of more expensive brown malts.  The resurgence of this style began at the end of that century and by the 1920s, brown ales were fairly common again.

For the base of Samuel Adams® Hazel Brown, we decided to brew in the Northern English Brown Ale style, which is slightly more robust than Mild and Southern English Brown Ales (higher ABV and bitterness level).

For this beer, we wanted to brew something that would be appealing and satisfying during the fall when the days become crisp and cooler.  Brown ale, while a good beer any time of year, seemed like a great fit for this.  We used malts that would contribute a rich, dark brown color, roasted notes, and a slightly sweet flavor profile, including caramel and toffee notes.

While the brown ale was tasty by itself, but we wanted to do more with it so decided to add a nut character.  Hazelnut was the nut of choice due to its distinct, pleasant flavor and aroma.  After adjusting the base beer slightly, we were able to create the best balance of malt and hazelnut characters.

Flavor: Caramel and toffee notes with a slightly sweet maltiness & roasted hazelnut flavor

Color: Rich brown, 28 SRM

Original Gravity: 13° Plato

Alcohol: 5.2%ABV – 4.0%ABW

Calories 12/ oz.: 174

IBUs: 20

Malt Varieties: Samuel Adams two-row pale malt blend, Caramel 60, Dingeman’s biscuit, Paul’s roasted barley

Hop Varieties: Hallertau Mittelfrueh Noble hops, East Kent Goldings

Yeast Strain: Samuel Adams ale yeast

First Brewed: 2012

Availability: Limited Release in the Harvest Collection Variety Pack