Short's Woodmaster
• The auspicious blueprint of savory fermented delight extracted by formidable humans of the world
• Beer Type: High Gravity Brown ale fermented with Earthwork maple syrup and toasted pecans
Woodmaster is a high gravity, American Brown Ale fermented with Northern Michigan maple syrup and toasted pecans. This dark brown, full bodied ale is rich with sweet malt and syrup flavors. These flavors are complimented by the presence of hop aromas and a faint nuttiness.
The very first batch of Woodmaster was brewed in Bellaire on March 20, 2007. It was the 289th batch of beer brewed at Shorts, and is one of the original beers from the Short’s Imperial Beer Series (#7 of 13 to be exact).
• Beer Type: High Gravity Brown ale fermented with Earthwork maple syrup and toasted pecans
Woodmaster is a high gravity, American Brown Ale fermented with Northern Michigan maple syrup and toasted pecans. This dark brown, full bodied ale is rich with sweet malt and syrup flavors. These flavors are complimented by the presence of hop aromas and a faint nuttiness.
The very first batch of Woodmaster was brewed in Bellaire on March 20, 2007. It was the 289th batch of beer brewed at Shorts, and is one of the original beers from the Short’s Imperial Beer Series (#7 of 13 to be exact).
3.5
184 reviews
Bellaire, United States
Community reviews
22 0z bottle. Pours a clear thinnish brown color with large bubbled off-white head that left sparse lacing. Aroma is sweet malt, pecans and wood. Flavor leads with sweet maple syrup complexity, roasted pecans, and light hop bitterness. Overall sweet, thin bodied, and low carbonation. From notes 1/23/10 (Geist Dark Lord tasting).
On tap at the brewpub. Brown pour with a thin white head. Sweet malt, syrup and nuttiness in the aroma and taste. Nice, smooth finish.
Bottle from Cotteridge Wines, Birmingham. Hazy, reddy brown. Minimal, tan coloured head. Dried fruit. Syrup. Hint of the pecan nuts. Taste is chewy sweet. Plenty of nutty dryness. Light bitterness. Palate is alcoholic and a bit oily. Stays on the right side of easy to drink, though. Wasn’t getting this, at first, but it’s a grower. Enjoyed it.
Pours a nice dark amber colour with slightly brownish head that hangs around. Aroma is sweeter with a roasted aroma and hints of chocolate. Body is foremostly sweet and slightly alcoholic. Aftertaste is more alcohol with some hints of the roasted pecansncoming through. A very strong beer, for fans of belgians with a roasted twist.
Poured from bottle. Dark brown color with creamy brown head. Aroma of chocolate, prunes, some sulphury notes. Taste of chocolate, cofee, prunes.Full body, warming alcohol, average carbonation.
Bottle. shared by Bobo, many thanks. dark brown color with medium beige head. Aroma of roasted malt, caramel, nuts, maple syrup. Taste, dark malt, caramel, maple, nuts, whiskey, wood. Alcohol is present, but not in disturbing way. Tasty.
Bottle 12 fl.oz from erzbierschof.ch. Brown with average beige head. First nose of maple syrup on roasted malt, then nuts, spices and wood. The taste is soft, syrupy, rich and deep, roasted, maple syrup, mould, wood. Nice combinaison with the roast of nuts which strengthens of bitter, woody and earthy side. Bitter-sweet finale perfumed and greedy.
12oz bottle in a tulip. Pours brown with a lacy, off-white head. Aroma of lots of caramel, chocolate, and light roast from the malts, some light maple, a light nuttiness, and hints of bitterness. Flavor the same with a good blend of everything, but a little too much sweetness and some hints of alcohol. Average texture. A decent beer.
Bottle: Thanks, Matt! Mostly opaque, murky brown, kind of like a quad with less red-ish tones to it... Beige colored head settles quick without leaving much of anything behind. Aroma is full of some damp chocolate notes, toasted malts, faint nuts, and rubbing alcohol... the solvent-y note is quite strong. Taste is very nutty, woodsy, & has a good amount of maple to it. Light earthiness. Still getting a strong solvent & rubbing alcohol note in the finish that’s killing the vibe... Without that, this beer would be very nice. It’s a big hindrance after the first few ounces.
Sampled at GABF 2013. Pours a clear brown with some thin, off white head. Nose is sweet, caramel, brown sugar, maple, nutty. Sweet, boozy flavor, caramel, malty, whiskey, nutty. Boozy, hot finish. Relatively well blended.
from Erzbierschof - light hazy brown beer with a little beige foam left; aroma of hazelnut and maple sirup, light spicy; full-bodied, some sweetness, earthy bitterness, woody tones and a long bitter caramelish aftertaste with more notes of maple sirup
4oz on tap at HopCat East Lansing during the Shorts tap takeover. Mostly hazy dark red / brown color. Thin khaki head. Some dots of lace. Bigger body. Smooth, kind of creamy lighter carbonation, lightly sticky. Pretty sweet taste. Moderate spiciness. Good wood. Tropical fruit, berry. Light spice. Light tannins, caramel malt. Chunks of sediment visible in the body. Solid, woody, big imperial red ale.
Bottle
Appétence: cloudy brown, low carbonation
Aroma: light alcohol, caramel malt aroma, nutty,
Flavor: sweet caramel malt, vanilla, nutts, mapple syrup
Bottle through trade, dark brown/tea like pour with a thin head. Aroma is boozy, dark fruit and some nuttiness. Taste is sweet malt, caramel, nuttiness with a relatively thin body.
12 oz bottle shared with ebone1988. This is the finish of Dumpster Box No. 1. The pour is a darker ruby with not a lot happening. There is a thin collar of khaki colored head and no lace. The aroma is not good. There is a booze and a strange sweetness that doesn’t belong. I can’t give it to maple, but it’s like a malt sweetness. Damnit Shorts. The flavor is more of a wet wood thing. There is a sweetness. It’s weird. There is a maltiness and a woodiness. It’s really strange. The mouth feel is a little syrupy with minimal carbonation and a lingeringly sweet finish. This is not good. It’s drinkable, but definitely not good.
Bottled 355ml. -from Za Popen’t Pivoteka, Ljubljana. Hazy dark amber/brown coloured, small beige head, roasty alcoholic nose. Light roasted malt, nutty, overripe fruits with noticable but well balanced alcohol. Hint of spices in rather alcoholic finish. Quite nice brew.
Bottle. Pours a dark amber color with a small off-white head. Has a fruity malty nutty spicy caramel aroma. Sweetish malty spicy caramel flavor. Has a sweetish malty spicy caramel finish.
bottle. Brown with small head. Boozy brown ale with light pecan nuttiness. Slightly medicinal, but more pleasant as it warms a bit.
Bottle from Cotteridge Wines; reddy brown pour with tan head, nut and sweet alcohol aroma, brown sugar sweetness alcohol lets you it’s there, can taste the nuttiness and a bit of syrup.
Bottle.Brown with a small head and medium body. Nutty and unusual combination of flavours. There was no details of how strong it is on the label so its strength came as a shock. Complex and very drinkable.
Bottle sampled in Exira, IA. Thanks to douglas88 for sending. Pours a cloudy brown color with white head. Tangy, plum, slight nutty flavors. Not too fond of this.
Bottle @ Exira Beer Summit IV. Thanks Justin! Pours a murky, orangish brown appearance with a thin tan head. Plum, dark fruity, toffee, caramel, a bit nutty aroma. Quite strong. Tart dark fruity, date, plum, leather, toffee, boozy flavor. A little too much for me.
30-APR-2013, bottle @home, from Ølbutikken.
Hazy brown with lacing grey head.
Bread, caramel, earthy, hoppy, nutty, alcohol.
Creamy, medium carbonation.
Fine brown ale on dope.
Pours a very murky/viscous brown with almost no head. Looks like trub....some dark fruit and raisins in the nose with a touch of toasted nuts. Rich malty notes with a touch of nutty maple syrup. Almost homebrewish. Medium-full bodied with a light carbonation.
12oz bottle from Timbo
Appearnce: Pours clear dark brown with a small beige head, some lacing
Aroma: Toasted malts, brown sugar, maple, nutty and hot alcohols
Taste: Toasted malts, caramel, maple syrup and hot alcohols
OK, the hot alcohols took away from a good beer.
Draft. Large tan head with dark brown body. Aroma is moderately sweet, maple, some pecan, light milk chocolate, alcohol. Taste is moderately sweet, pecan, maple, caramel, light alcohol. Medium-full body, some stickiness. I wanted a smoky bacon beer to pair with it.
Pour is a copper color. A thin head. Aroma is a little boozy to me but still sweet and can note the maple. Tastes better than it smells to me. The sweetness from the maple and other ingredients seems to cut the abv slightly. Very very little note of pecan. Overall pretty good beer though.
Caramel and sugary aroma. Thin light brown head with a fruity molasses flavor
Tap at Churchkey during Craft Brewers Conference. Poured a clear copper color with a small white head. Aroma is boozy, sweet malt. Flavor is sickly sweet maple syrup notes. Pecans weren’t really all that noticeable unfortunately. This would probably be a lot better if the alcohol content was lower - way too hot, way too boozy.
Appearance: A super dark brown color with a finger of head... lacing is minimal at best... nitro beer? The bubbles are almost microscopic, the beer’s creaminess is unbelievable, and it just looks really, really nice.
Smell: Obviously, tons of malts ... but the maple syrup and nuttiness are also pretty prominent. Not a strong aroma by any means, but a pleasant one.
Taste: Most important part as always, and I’m not completely impressed. The beginning of each sip is a wallop of sweetness from the maple syrup and malts, and a good bit of nuttiness comes through in the middle. On the finish though, I get a super sweet alcohol taste ... the sweetness likely because of the syrup, and the 9.5% just isn’t very well hidden here. The first few sips were especially alcohol-y, but it got better as the beer went on. The after taste and film on the roof of my mouth tastes like toasted pecans, which is what the beer’s supposedly brewed with.
Woodmaster’s not BAD. Not bad at all. I just find it to be a bit too sweet (wanted more of a maple FLAVOR and a little less of the maple SWEETNESS), and the alcohol comes through a bit too much for my liking.