Juxtaposition 2009
While rummaging through my beer fridge earlier this afternoon I found a few bottles of “Juxtaposition” ; a 2009 Stone Brewing-Brew Dog-Cambridge Brewing collaboration beer. I believe this beer was brewed in the spring of 2009 and released in July. This beer was brewed by James Watt of Brew Dog, Mitch Steele of Stone Brewing and Will Meyers of Cambridge Brewing. With such a talented trio, how could this beer be anything but brilliant?
My first taste of this beer was at the 2nd Saturday Stone Brewing event at Hamilton’s; a craft beer institution in San Diego that is famous for pouring super limited releases. The line was so long when I showed up that I had to call in the Cavalry, errr…. beer superhero Greg K. Minutes later I was escorted down an alley and through the back door to find the glistening Juxtaposition flowing from the tap. Different from any pilsner this beer lover had ever tried; I fell in love at first sip.
February 2011
So here I am in February of 2011 pouring from a bottle that was stored at about 50 degrees for about 19 months. It pours sultry black with a two finger luscious head. The nose is that of roasted malts and an ever so faint touch of hops. It instantly brings a smile to my face as I breath in with closed eyes and an anxious palate. Anticipation is a beautiful thing; especially when we are referring to an impatient girl like me !
The first taste is of the same roasted malts found on the nose with a subtle bitterness and traces of vanilla and maple sugar on the finish. If I didn’t know better, I would swear this beer had been barrel aged. At 10% ABV, the alcohol is surprisingly subtle. There is a silkiness to the mouthfeel that makes me sigh…
Black Gold
Please note that this beer is better served closer to room temperature to appreciate the complex characteristics. I removed the bottle from my beer fridge before going for a 5 mile run. Suffice it to say I had my eye on the prize the entire way. The rain started pouring down on my last mile and all I could think of was pouring this beautiful beer – I broke an 8 minute mile. Now that is motivation 🙂
Cheers & Peace to all…
TheArtofBeer
The Art of Beer 
Ah yeah, I really liked this beer (had it about a year ago). I absolutely LOVE the Stone collaborations series… some of the best beers I have ever had came from these team-ups. Did you ever have the Kona Coffee Macadamia Porter they did? Or the El Camino (Un)Real Black Ale? Just to name a few tremendous beers from the series.
By the way I’m also from SD (now in LA), and I’ve come to realize we’re a bit spoiled by the quality of breweries in our area.