The Malice
Iron Springs Pub & Brewery

Had this for the first time at the Bistro's West Coast Barrel Aged Beer Festival held on November 12, 2011. It was the 11th beer of the day for me. Holy shit I love largadeer's review, funny as shit, good dude too.

Anyways, poured out as a murk brown with almost no head. Roasted smoke and leather nose, like those leather bound book beers, but with rauch meets harshness. It wasn't for the feint of heart.

Taste, eh, its not as bad as the nose. For being a Heaven Hill bourbon barrel, it sure doesn't taste like bourbon influence, more like a port factor. Its boozy and hot. They say its smooth in the commercial tug job, but it isn't. There's lots of dark fruit bitterness. I guess this is a barleywine, but it might as well be a Belgian Strong Darkish Ale at the same time. Its like a harsher Pannepot without the goodness.

The reviews here are funny because they basically say this beer sucks, but for different reasons. Except for the one that is likely the brewer (Christian AK is the BA profile, Christian Kazakoff is the brewer. . . hmmmm). Its ok, I like other Iron Springs brews.

 

 

As usual, no picture. No idea how expensive, but it's about $8/bomber (only to be had as part of their holiday 4-pak at $35). Pours a thick, syrupy and cloudy brown. No carbonation really to speak of. No head forms at all, and therefore no lacing. Poor so far...Rich, leathery aromas abound. Loaded with sour cherry, and mayhaps some cinnamon or clove way in the back. Nice. Flavor is REALLY sweet, and that's not necessarily a good thing. It's almost cloyingly thick also. There's some obvious barrel aging notes in here, but they mostly give off a charred flavor. It's really bitter, and not hoppy bitter. More like burned toast bitter. Also, the alcohol is very evident. 11% ABV. I think maybe this beer didn't turn out like they had hoped. I don't enjoy it and it's seriously close to a drainpour. Sorry guys.

What I like most: The wonderful aromas.

What I like least: Pretty much everything else.

Verdict: Painfully expensive and not at all worth the hefty price tag.

Had this on cask at the 2010 Firkin Festival.

French Oak aged Menace Barleywine.

This poured a dark, cloudy redwood. It smelled oaky with some currants and red wine notes. But it basically smelled like sweet oak.

It tasted of, you guessed it, freaking OAK! Then bitter grapefruit.

Wow, it had WAY WAY too much oak going on there. It was borderline Pinesol aged in a freaking oak tree. Super dry and super astringent. I couldn't even drink it. Worst of the day. HANDS DOWN!

Out of a Cask at the 7th Annual Firkin Fest. @ Triple Rock Brewery & Alehouse.

Beer poured perfectly conditioned from the firkin, with a nice lacing to follow.

Color was a reddish brown.

Aroma had an overpowering vanilla from the oak, then a hoppy (Columbus?) spice.

Beer can use more age, as it obviously tasted it was made within six months. Very full bodied.

Good flavor of hot spicy candy caramel, followed by more wood. Finish was hops. One dimensional as the layers of flavor didn't meld into each other.

Hope to try this again in the late winter.

This is apparently The Menace aged on French oak. Sampled at the 2010 Triple Rock firkin fest.

Murky dark-reddish brown in the glass, capped by a thin layer of foam that recedes to a ring in moments.

Huge burnt rubber aroma, like walking by a horrific car wreck. If you close your eyes and inhale, you can almost picture the plumes of black smoke.

The taste is unadulterated burnt rubber. It's like they actually aged the beer with burnt tires. A little caramel flavor comes out mid-palate before the burnt rubber returns tenfold to molest the palate, and it brought an abusive amount of bittering hops with it. They couldn't have named this better, this is the most malicious thing I've ever tasted. I couldn't even choke down a 3 oz glass. Absolutely vile.