Stone Brewing Company/21st Amendment Brewery/Firestone Walker Brewery- El Camino (Un)Real Black Ale: Expectations Exceeded
Sunday, April 18, 2010 at 1:44PM | by Jason 
This is round two of my collaborative brew reviews. Finnegan’s was pimpin’ the triple threat from Stone Brewing, 21st Amendement & Firestone Walker and I was all in. I have been reading a lot about this brew as it has amassed a ton of buzz within the Craft Brew scene. I am ready for this just recently released (March 22nd 2010) collaboration known as El Camino (Un)Real Black Ale.
I was unable to find any information on this collaborative concoction on either the 21st Amendment Brewery or Firestone Walker Brewery website but was able to find some info on the Stone Brewing Company’s website but it is limited. This brew was the brainchild of brewers Matt Brynildson (Firestone Walker, Paso Robles CA), Shaun O'Sullivan (21st Amendment, San Francisco CA) and Mitch Steele ( Stone Brewing Co., San Diego). Well, by the time I went to do the final edit on the review and post it I happened on this from the Stone Brewing Co blog, “On Friday, we had an all-star cast of brewers in the house working on our first collaboration beer of 2010. Shaun O’Sullivan of 21st Amendment and Matt Brynildson of Firestone Walker joined our very own Head Brewer Mitch Steele for one of our coolest collaborations yet. Since this was an all-California brewing team, they decided to expand upon that theme by using indigenous California ingredients in the beer, including chia seeds, pink peppercorns, fennel seeds, and 35 lbs. of Mission figs Shaun brought from a friends’ farm.
The result of this momentous collaboration will be a strong black ale of distinctly Californian pedigree. Named El Camino (Un)Real Black Ale in honor of the historic Spanish mission trail connecting Northern and Southern California, this beer is going to be pitch-black monster loaded with roasty, spicy flavors.”
From the tap El Camino pours a dark coffee color with a ½” light brown head with a plethora of different aromas that range from roasted & chocolate malts, fresh cracked black pepper with a little bit of vanilla bean mixed in and an ever so faint black licorice background and comes in at 9.5% ABV.
I love black ales. This is no exception. It is deep in flavor and rich in texture. I am so blown away that I am almost at a loss for words. It started with an alcohol induced chocolate splash that peppers the palate with a hail storm of caramel goodness and finishes crisp and dry. Of the three I have only ever had the opportunity to try some brews from Stone Brewing Company but after El Camino I am dying to try a brew from both 21st Amendment Brewery and Firestone Walker Brewery. This is one brew not to be passed up if ever given the chance to try. As the old saying goes, “two heads are better than one,” in this case three heads are even better.
ABV: 9.5%
Consumed: 10 oz Stemmed Pokal
Verdict: Buy A Case
