Brewery: Omnipollo / Buxton
Country: England
Size: 33cl
ABV: 11%
Price: 100kr
Systembolaget: 11687
This beer was first produced in 2014 after Omnipollo and Buxton were randomly paired together in The Rainbow Project, an event which paired seven different breweries with seven others from around the world. Every pair was designated a colour of the rainbow and this pair received yellow. As cowardice is linked strongly with being yellow, the two breweries decided to lampoon the cowardly way the Ku Klux Klan hide behind their masks whilst spewing their hate speech to the world. After five years of brewing though, a small brewery called Batemans realise the name was too close to one of their beers and decided to enforce this by threatening to set trademark lawyers onto Omnipollo and Buxton. With one final brew, the last batch of Yellow Belly was released to the world and I was lucky enough to grab some for the tasting. When I say grab I literally mean it though as the bottles were flying off the shelf as people clamoured to get to them as the doors to Systembolaget opened. I hoped it would be worth the effort and thankfully it was.
It was pitch black in colour a with creamy cappuccino coloured head that formed nicely. It was hard to judge carbonation by appearance of course but later during the tasting it seemed rather low. The aromas of this beer were truly amazing. The smell was a heady mixture of vanilla ice cream, pecan, maple syrup and toffee sauce. I could have smelt it for hours, it was delicious. The mouthfeel was rich and creamy, with big hits of milk chocolate, pecan, peanuts and maple syrup. The aftertaste continued with the sweetness, then faded into quite a drying aftertaste. Although this was 11%, the alcohol was disguised so well. You could feel it but the sting just added to the all round delightful texture of the beer.
This was an amazing beer and it is right up there when it comes to the best stouts I’ve ever tried. The one small problem some people could have though is the cost. Is it really worth the 100kr price tag? I would say that it is up to the individual to decide. Some would disagree and say this is overpriced, but I would easily buy a couple more bottles given the chance. The fact that they have to stop making this beer is ludicrous, especially as it was brewed to highlight racism in today’s society. I feel that Batemans went about this the wrong way and rightfully deserve all the bad press this has given them. I hope to see Omnipollo and Buxton continue to go from strength to strength and release excellent beers in the years to come.