Schell's Snowstorm 2015: Wallonian Brown Ale

And now, another case of tardiness on my part. Snowstorm 2015 has been out for quite some time, and I went through a half-barrel keg of it at Acadia well over a month ago, and I never took notes. So, I bought a 12-pack, went through 11 bottles and kept the last one for this occasion. Our first really big  snowfall of the season. Winter Storm Kayla, they call her, and she dumped nearly a foot of snow on us. Blustery winds, too. It wouldn't have felt right to drink it the other day when it was in the 40's, or when it was sub-zero, but without much snow on the ground. Now we have snow, and it's time to break out the 'storm. This one is called a Wallonian Brown Ale, whatever the heck that is.

6.2% ABV.

Clear, reddish brown coloring, small dark head, soon disappearing.

Sweet, fruity aroma, laden with Belgian yeast character. Malt-forward, traces of bubblegum and banana, plus cocoa and caramel.

In the mouth, sweet malty flavor is on top, some hop bitterness, but it's low and aids the balance. Cocoa and caramel meet Belgian yeast yumminess. More of that banana and bubblegum mixing with the toffee and molasses. Medium-bodied, easy-drinking. I like it.

Now, this Wallonian Brown Ale thing. I know that Wallonia is a region of Belgium, but I didn't not know that was a stylistic designation. So, I googled it. The first thing that comes up is this beer. Next, we get a reference to Rochefort 8. The, Caracole Nostradamus. These are significantly stronger "brown ales" that I would actually call a quad, or at least a Belgian strong dark ale, though not quite a dubbel. And this version is significantly weaker than those. I wouldn't mind seeing Schell's go the distance on something like that, but that's not what the Snowstorm series is for. It seems as if they made and intentionally weaker version of what is supposed to be a deep, rich, complex and strong brown ale. Just for fun, do a Google image search on "Wallonian brown ale", and you'll see that it's mostly about this beer, with some McChouffe and Nostradamus tossed in, along with other non-Wallonian "brown ales."

Here's what Schell's says on their website: The Snowstorm of 2015 draws inspiration from the artisinal and experimental traditions of the Wallonian brewers to create a malt-focused brown ale with hints of nut, biscuit and stone fruit.

That sounds about right. In any case, it's a good beer and I could drink it. I'm glad Schell's made it.