Surly Syx

This is the sixth anniversary special release from the Surly Brewing Company of Brooklyn Center, Minnesota. They are trying to finalize plans for a huge new brewery and taproom in Minneapolis near the University of Minnesota campus.

This release is a whopping 15% ABV. It takes its name not only from the anniversary, but from the special honeycomb chambers of six different woods in which it was aged. The beers pours an absolutely glowing orange in color. There is a tall head of just off-white foam that is not especially long lasting. It seems relatively well carbonated. The aroma is fruity, sweet, tangy, toffee, honey, orange, with a light sting of alcohol. The taste is surprisingly tangy and tart, like sour green grapes combined with sweet and tangy oranges, some sweetness, but not as much as the aroma, some toffee, a dry woodiness, quite spicy, with some alcohol heat. Generally such a high alcohol brings a cloying sweetness, but this is extremely dry and very tangy. The wood and hops used really tamed the 15% alcohol and although there are toffee flavors, there is not toffee sweetness. Impressively drinkable beer for its high alcohol.