Half Acre — Benthic 2025 Triple Barrel

Technical Details

Tasting Profile

The nose opens with profound dark chocolate and espresso intensity, layered with bourbon-soaked vanilla, toasted oak, and whispers of dark fruit compote. On the palate, viscous waves of bittersweet coffee meld with caramelized brown sugar, charred molasses, and warming ethanol heat balanced by barrel tannins. Notes of leather, tobacco, and dried figs emerge mid-palate. The finish extends luxuriously with lingering dark cocoa, espresso crema, oak char, and gentle bourbon sweetness that persists through remarkable warmth and complexity.

Food Pairing

Pair with a dense chocolate torte finished with fleur de sel, where the beer’s coffee notes amplify cocoa intensity while barrel character complements dark chocolate’s bitterness. Alternatively, serve alongside aged Manchego or smoked Gouda—the beer’s robust body and oak tannins cut through rich cheese while coffee and caramel notes enhance nutty, crystallized flavors in aged varieties.

About Half Acre Beer Company

Half Acre Beer Company was founded by Gabriel Magliaro in 2006 in Chicago, Illinois, establishing itself as a pioneering force in the city’s craft beer movement. After initially brewing their recipes at an out-of-state facility, the company opened its own brewery on Lincoln Avenue in Chicago’s North Center neighborhood in March 2009, marking a significant milestone in its evolution. The brewery’s commitment to both quality and community quickly garnered recognition, with its tap room being named Chicago’s eighth best bar by Chicago magazine in 2013. Half Acre’s approach extends beyond brewing, demonstrating environmental responsibility by partnering with Northwestern University engineering students to minimize waste and find innovative ways to reduce or reuse brewing byproducts. The company’s growth trajectory led to opening a second, larger brewhouse and pub on Balmoral Avenue in the Bowmanville neighborhood in 2015, eventually consolidating all operations there in 2021. Today, Half Acre produces six year-round beers, three seasonal offerings, and regular special releases, while maintaining strong ties to the local community through sponsorship of Half Acre Cycling since 2007.