ABV: 7.25%

IBU: Unavailable

I have been on a serious Belgian kick recently. Perhaps it is the winter months drawing me away from the ultra-hoppy double and imperial IPAs I usually drink, or maybe it’s my palate craving something a bit different. Incidentally, Belgians were what drew me into craft beer in the first place. Something about their very approachable yet very different flavor is what reigned me in, and well, now I’m here at PorchDrinking. 

As someone who tries to drink local (well, I suppose local-ish is more like it), when searching for a new Belgian to try, I immediately gravitated toward The Brewer’s Art’s Ozzy Belgian Strong Pale Ale. As they say, it is their answer to the many “devil” beers out there, such as the old standard, Duvel. A Belgian Strong Pale Ale, to me, is the best beer for those final days in which you are crawling out of winter and grasping for warmer days. You need that lighter palate, as the weather isn’t quite so frigid to make you crave the deep, dark, oaky notes of a stout or porter, but also require that robust bit of alcohol to keep warm. But devilish it is aptly dubbed, as Ozzy, unlike a Black Sabbath album, goes down very easily. Almost too easily.

I drank this one out a bat bedecked can. The first sip brings bountiful notes of apricot, perhaps a bit of pear, along with a slight bit of citrus zest toward the end. The finish is nice and dry, yielding some yeasty notes and just a tinge of hoppy bitterness. The mild yet consistently interesting combination of flavor notes make this a very easy beer to drink. Perhaps it isn’t so much named Ozzy for the macabre theme, but how you will sound after diving into a handful of these.