Mirror Mirror ’09
Friday after work we headed down to Deschutes Brewery because I was intensely curious about the new Mirror Mirror. Yes, I have a bottle from the Brewery but I’ve decided to cellar it for (at least) a year before drinking it (as they recommend).
So the next best thing is to buy a glass. It’s available in 10-ounce snifters only, as it’s 11% alcohol by volume.
I took some basic notes, but I’ll forgo the usual transcribing of those directly. The beer is excellent. It has a nice deep red color when held up to the light, otherwise looks chestnut brown with a skiff of tan-ish foam on top. When you smell it, it’s rich and sweet and syrupy, full of malts and toffee-like sugars, with a hint of hops in the background.
For such a young beer with such a high alcohol content, I didn’t find it overly “hot” at all—on the contrary, it’s very smooth and almost creamy. There are plenty more of those toffee-caramel notes on the tongue, and there’s a bourbon thing going on (about a third was aged in bourbon barrels, after all), along with vanilla and lots of nuance.
In short, I loved it; it’s full-bodied, super drinkable, and excellent. Get thee to the Brewery and drink some (before it’s gone).
Hey Jon, not a fan of sweetish beers, myself, though I am a fan of Deschutes’ brews. I heard tell from someone who works at Newport Market that Deschutes will be working up a Belgian-style sour beer and am looking forward to it.