I have enjoyed Springhouse Brewing Company’s beers for a long time.  My pseudo-love affair with their offerings began not long after they opened their taproom on King Street in Lancaster, PA.   The atmosphere was a little quirky, a little edgy, and a little fun.  The unique, imperial pint serving size, and option for half-pint, has always been appealing.

The beers though, are what drew me to Springhouse.  Big Gruesome, the chocolate peanut butter stout, Planet Bean, the imperial coffee stout, The Astounding She Monster, the mango IPA, Satan’s Bake Sale, the chocolate mint imperial stout, and many others have long been favorites to my palate.  I even remember a particularly unique beer called Wet Paint, a pink-hued pulpy, guava ale, (please bring this back Springhouse) that was particularly tasty.

It wasn’t long ago, that Springhouse launched a membership program, oriented around barrel-aged, exclusive, limited-bottling beers, called S.K.U.L.L. (I don’t know if I’m breaking the first rule of S.K.U.L.L but talking about it…..) I didn’t join the first year that the membership club was available, but have been a member for year two, and now, year three.  There were a few mishaps in my first membership year, but the quality of the offerings, namely Morning Ritual, a russian imperial stout aged on coffee, maple, and smoked bacon, and aged in Pappy Van Winkle barrels, and Premature Burial, a russian imperial stout aged on cinnamon, coffee, and pecans, and aged in Heaven Hill barrels, encouraged my renewal in the S.K.U.L.L club.

When the first bottle release of the third year, Ultraviolence, an imperial milk stout aged in Buffalo Trace barrels, was announced, Springhouse timed the release with that of two, special, can releases, to commemorate their tenth anniversary.

These two anniversary cans were available for members to reserve.  Sight unseen, or perhaps taste untasted(?), and being a fan of both announced styles, a bourbon barrel-aged imperial stout, and a unique ipa made with vic secret hops and wheat, oat, and pilsner malts, I enthusiastically placed my reserve order.

I now have the opportunity to review these two, tenth anniversary brews from Springhouse.  I’ve always enjoyed the two-beer combination of a rich, robust, dark stout, followed by a clean, crisp ipa.  It seems that Springhouse catered directly to my preferences in releasing these to anniversary beers.

Tenth Anniversary Barrel-Aged Imperial Stout – Springhouse Brewing Company – The body of this beer is rich, thick, dense, dark, and opaque.  Upon pouring, the beer is topped by a reasonable head that fades gradually.  The smell is complex, and incredibly appealing.  There are roasty malt notes, blended with vanilla, and tobacco.  There are elements of chocolate, wrapped around bourbon, with hints of campfire, and leather.  There are subtle notes of dark fruit and wood, that round out the delicious bouquet of this beer.  The taste brings the whole experience together.  The bourbon is prominent, without being hot.  The taste is roasty, with dark cocoa, slight sweetness, and a hint of vanilla.  I can only imagine what this would taste like with vanilla beans, and perhaps coffee, added to the barrel during the aging process.  A terrific experience.  9/10

And to follow this,

Tenth Anniversary Epic-10 IPA – Springhouse Brewing Company – Adhering to current trends in the ipa world, this beer is a slightly hazy, thin, peach nectar colored brew.  The fluffy, cloud-white head, sticks around for a good while, then fades, center-out.  The smell is, stimulating. There are elements of crisp pine, honey suckle, peaches and apricots, fresh-cut grass, and hints of fruity and herbal teas.  The taste creates a slight counterpoint to the pleasantness of the smells.  The initial impressions are fruity, and sweet, with slight earthy tones.  This gives way to a dynamic shift toward piney, dank, hop bitterness, that doesn’t overpower,  but rather tingles the drinkers taste buds. The lightness of the body, and the lower abv lend to it’s particular crushableness. (Yes, I know this is not a word, but it’s quite appropriate.)  This is an incredibly good ipa, and unique enough in the deluge of bizarrely named, can art obsessed, overflooded, can marketplace to leave a memorable impression.  8.5/10

I hope that the title of the this article was not too misleading.  Despite not being tens, the ratings given to these two beers are by no means poor.  In fact, for a simultaneous release, of two different styles of beer, I consider their ratings exemplary.  I am quite encouraged by the direction that Springhouse has taken in recent years.  I am incredibly happy with the offerings for their tenth anniversary.  Here’s hoping that their quality of craftsmanship, creativity, and expression, will continue for another ten.

Humbly yours,

J