Since the close
of the Narragansett Brewing Company in 1981, Rhode Island has had a
brewing history that can certainly be described as sporadic, but not without
its moments of glory. Narragansett, located in Cranston Rhode Island, was a
popular brand across New England. In addition to a standard light American
lager, they brewed flavorful seasonal beers such as porters and bocks. The
old brewery was torn down years ago, an occurrence that brought tears to the
eyes of more than a few of its former customers.
The next big thing in Rhode Island Brewing was Hope Brewing; a
contract brewer that intended to eventually open a brewery in the Ocean
State. Introducing Hope Lager in the late eighties, Hope went on to add some
fantastic seasonal beers to their line: a Christmas Ale, Bock, Oktoberfest,
and the tasty Red Rooster Ale. I still fondly remember them to this day.
Unfortunately, Hope made a severe tactical blunder: they invested in brewing
equipment purchased from Molson in Canada, but then decided not to open
their brewery here in RI. Instead, they focused on expanding the brand
throughout New England, where it got lost on the shelves amidst a slew of
other microbrews.
I am convinced a physical presence in the state, a brewery that could have
been rallied around would have kept hope in business, but sadly the brewery
folded in the mid nineties Towards the end, Hope sold the brand to a local
doctor who, ironically, brewed draft Hope beers but did not bottle them. His
operation was too small, however, and did not long survive the sale.
In 1994, the Emerald Isle Brew Works was founded and eventually built
a brewery in West Warwick, a few miles from my home. Emerald Isle was
located in an old mill complex, and their beers were highly regarded by
noted beer critic Michael Jackson, and more importantly, me. The brewery
specialized in cask-conditioned ales, and never bottled their beer, but did
sell it in kegs across the state and in New York. Though their beers were
among the very best I have ever tasted and I did my best to drink enough of
their beer to keep them in business, they sadly ceased operations a few
years ago.
The Great Providence Brewing Company was another contract brewer that
hoped to build a brewery, but never did. They sold a draft pilsner that was
truly exceptional, hoppy and authentic, but perhaps too much so for the
average consumer. Stocks were sold in the company, but not enough to finance
the brewery. Great Providence folded too.
That brings us to the present, and the first microbrewery in Rhode Island to
brew and bottle their beer. Coastal Extreme Brewing Company opened
here a few summers ago with one beer, their flagship Newport Storm Hurricane
Amber Ale. That beer has become very successful here in little Rhody, the
only state in which it is distributed. It’s hard to walk into a bar,
restaurant, or liquor store without seeing Hurricane Amber for sale.
In the course of writing my column for the Yankee Brew News, in which I
covered the Rhode Island beer scene, I had regular contact with the great
bunch of guys at Coastal Extreme. Thus you can imagine my excitement when
one summer they hinted at the possibility of a really BIG limited release
brew for the holiday season. What would this beer be? A stout? Barleywine?
The answer wasn’t clear.
Eventually, Coastal Extreme decided to follow no specific stylistic pattern.
They brewed a big, beautiful, bold beer with an amazing alcohol content of
11.5% by volume. Now, many beers today achieve that level of potency, but
generally with the use of specialty yeasts. The guys at Coastal Extreme
managed to bring ’00 to this alcohol content with their house yeast, a truly
astonishing feat! The beer was brewed with the following ingredients and to
these specs:
Magnum (Bittering)
Northern Brewer (Flavor)
E. Kent Goldings (Aroma)
American Ale Yeast
Ferment @ 66 for 1 month
Rack Condition for 1.5 months at 42
bottle condition with krauesen from Amber Ale
SRM 38
IBU 30.5
Original Plato 26.4 (105.6 SG)
Final Plato 5.1
ABV 11.5 %
This bottle-conditioned beer is packaged in an attractive cobalt blue 750ML
bottle with red and gold lettering and is corked. It retails for about $10 a
bottle and will improve with age when properly cellared. The brewery
describes it thusly on the back of the bottle:
When we decided to brew up our '00 we wanted to create something unique and
completely different from anything else out on the market. So our brewers
went in search of, and found, the best ingredients in the world to create
what we like to think of as the ultimate beer. Without the shackles of
traditional beer style guidelines, they were able to use the exact types and
amounts of ingredients they wanted to create this brew. When it was
finished, we hand bottled our 20 barrels of '00 in a package as unique and
exquisite as the beer inside. This is the first and last time this recipe
will ever be used. We have designed it to grow better with age so your
patience will be rewarded, but if you can't wait that long to get a taste,
we're sure you'll be counting the days until we unveil the '01. It is
extremely limited, extremely strong, and extremely original, because as we
like to say around here: "It's All About Extremes!"
Newport Storm ’00 pours to a dark brown color with a thick creamy head and a
rich fruity nose. There are a lot of things going on in the nose: the rich
fruity esters, chocolate hints, and a powerful alcohol suggestion that
reminds me of a Belgian-style dubbel. The palate here is smooth and
chocolatey, very chocolatey, incredibly chocolatey! The mouthfeel is very
creamy on this beer, deliciously so, and gives the impression of a rich
chocolate ice cream on into the finish, where the fruit becomes apparent
once again and the alcohol emerges into a high-octane burn. A peppery touch
of hops dances over the tongue but is hard-pressed to balance out the
incredibly rich malt character. A very complex, warming, and wonderful beer
for the cold winter months.
I tried some with a German Christmas Stollen cake, and the rich beer
complemented the rich cake quite nicely. It’s also wonderful by the fire
place, or after a big meal of turkey or ham. Try it in a brandy glass to
arouse the appetite prior to a holiday meal. This is a once in a lifetime
brew. Seek it out and enjoy!
In 2002 I took these notes: Here it is a little over a year after this beer has been released, and
I'm sampling a bottle to see how it has aged. The hops are completely gone
now, leaving a beer of rich malt complexity and smoothness. The palate is
rich and caramelish now, much like a barleywine. The beer is sweet with a
touch of fruity ester, a little plum I find, but mostly a rich caramel
sweetness. Wonderfully warming alcohol finish. The beer has mellowed nicely.
A wonderful nightcap!
Today, you can still enjoy this brew, which is slightly changed from year to
year. The latest release is (you guessed it) '04. There are still bottles of
prior vintages floating around, too. They're worth seeking out.
And remember, try a new beer today, and drink outside the box.
*Pricing data accurate at time of review or latest update. For
reference only, based on actual price paid by reviewer.