Beer Review – Harviestoun Old Engine Oil Engineer’s Reserve Blackest Ale

Photo Courtesy of http://s94.photobucket.com/profile/SkinsFanLarry

On a trip to the Roger Wilco (formerly the Wine Warehouse), I picked up a bottle of Old Engine Oil Engineer’s Reserve from Harviestoun brewery. I had already had the Old Engine Oil and the Bitter & Twisted, so I was familiar with the brand and I really like the style, English porter (black ale).  Harviestoun is a small, brewer located in Alva, Clackmannanshire, Scotland. The brewery was founded in 1985 and has been bought and sold several times and is once again independent.

From the Harviestoun site:

Beer Review – Harviestoun Bitter & Twisted

photo courtesy of onebeeratatime.wordpress.com

During the summer, I had the good fortune to try the Harviestoun Old Engine Oil, so when I saw the Bitter & Twisted at Roger Wilco, I jumped at the chance to try another Harviestoun product. Here is what Harviestoun has to say about their Bitter & Twisted:

It is a delightfully refreshing blond beer with a finish that is like a twist of lemon. Bitter & Twisted has a very fresh hoppy profile and the judicious use of aromatic Hersbrucker and the spicy Challenger. The distinctive finish comes from late hopping with Stryian

Beer Review – Harviestoun Old Engine Oil

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I had stopped in to Kress Liquors to check out their assortment of canned beer for an upcoming pool party. Always a sucker for proper merchandising, I wandered over to the import wall and immediately was struck by the Old Engine Oil. I put together a couple of chocolate stouts (incl. Rogue Chocolate and  Young’s Double Chocolate) and added a bottle in for tasting. From the Harviestoun site:

“Old Engine Oil is strong and dark but wickedly smooth. Chocolate dominates the palate but is nicely balanced with a hoppy bitterness. Old Engine Oil is a delicious post-prandial beer with a bittersweet aftertaste.

Harviestoun’s founder Ken Brooker spent much of his life crafting wooden design prototypes for Ford. The viscous nature of this