Melnick from Beerateinu: The blueberry super-giant star

Melnick, an Imperial Pastry Stout from
Beerateinu, is 12.5% alcohol by volume
and boasts of Belgian waffle, caramel and
blueberry flavors. 
(Photo: Mike Horton)  

By now you shouldn't be very surprised that the next "Baroque beer" from Beerateinu is named after a super-giant blue star located in the Tarantula Nebula in the Large Magellanic Cloud.  It is much bigger than our sun and 163,000 light years away from us.  

The star is named Melnick 42, and the beer is simply known as Melnick, an Imperial Pastry Stout.  As Melnick 42 the star is blue, Melnick the beer is made with blueberry puree and caramel biscuits.  As Melnick 42 the star is gigantic, Melnick the beer is huge with alcohol (12.5%) and full of strong flavors.  The label says you can expect the tastes of Belgian waffles, caramel and blueberries. 

To make it even more special, Melnick doesn't have a fancy beer label.  Oh no.  Beerateinu partners Leon Shvartz and Shmuel Naky commissioned artist Alex Molly Yampolsky to paint a picture for the beer, which is then wrapped around the bottle and held in place by a string!  You buy the beer, you get the painting.  It shows an androgynous star child brewing beer with hops, blueberries and Belgian waffles, against a starry starry night background.  

Let's leave the decorations behind for a moment and taste the beer.

Wow!  Perhaps the strongest Israeli beer I've ever had.

One of the stars out there is Melnick 42,
a super-giant blue star,
163,000 light years away from earth. 

Melnick is an opaque dark brown to black with no head.  The aromas are varied and powerful: Caramel, berries, hazelnuts, black bread and maple.  Photographer and IBAV Taster Mike Horton called them the aromas of the West Indies and perceived them from seven centimetres away!  The taste is dark roast with flavors of bittersweet chocolate, nuts, alcohol, coffee, maple and caramel.  Mike recorded an initial taste of "burnt stout, but moments later the sweetness of the fruit and waffles permeate the senses."       

The mouthfeel brings a full body, even "chewy," with alcohol warmth and a finish of harsh sweetness.  Mike and I agreed that Melnick is not a beer you drink a lot of.   

To fully enjoy all the flavors in Melnick, you should drink it at around 12°-15°C (53°- 59°F).  So take it out of the refrigerator about 20 minutes before you pour it.  Also, you'll notice how the flavors change and develop as you're drinking it, so there's no need to hurry.  It's a good beer to share with a friend.  I think it would go well with anything you would have with a cup of strong coffee.  

Melnick is not everybody's glass of beer, but it might be the kind of taste experience you would appreciate.  One way to find out.