Judge’s Review: 87 Rating – pFriemsters Union Japanese Mizunara Oak Aged Whisky Stout by pFriem Family Brewers

Specialty Wood-Aged Beer | Special Release | USA

By Brian Eichhorn

Judges Rating: 87.00
Aroma: 22.00
Appearance: 5.00
Flavor: 36.00
Mouthfeel: 8.00
Overall Impression: 16.00

pFriemsters Union Japanese Mizunara Oak Aged Whisky Stout from pFriem is being evaluated as a 33A Wood-Aged beer with an underlying style of 20C Imperial Stout.
In the glass, it’s a bit more on the brown side than expected, good clarity with a thin wisp of tan bubbles. The nose, though is distinctly stouty and roasted, with coffee notes, chocolate and malted barley leading the way. Actually very malty, in the malted milkshake kinda way. There’s a caramel sweetness to the nose and very minimal hops. The wood character lends a subtle spicy perfume note and subtle hints of cinnamon. Subtle, for sure. No spirit character either.
On tasting, it seems the oak is more impactful, adding a spicy vanilla quality to the full bodied richness of the stout. It drinks bigger and heavier than it looks! Fairly sweet on the palate but balanced by roast and bitterness, the oak doesn’t really add much tannin, just perfumy subtlety. There’s an elegance here but the sweetness really creeps up on you as you continue. It’s almost as though the wood is a bit too subtle for the underlying beer and is accentuated in the sweetness department by it. Quite roasty but never harsh or ashy.
I dig this, but would like a bit more pop to the wood character to really let the mizunara shine. I like the perfumy notes through the finish. It has an almost Sakura cask vibe to it, with notes of cherry as well. Nice beer, even if it’s quite sweet. Worth noting — this beer actually does have lactose, which I discovered post-review, so that’s likely the culprit of the high sweetness.