Very Old Rye
Voodoo Brewing Co.

Pitch black pour, with just the smallest amount of agitated beige head that is slow to rise and settles intermittently around the inside of the glass.

The nose is a layered bouquet of dark chocolate, smoked malt, and firewood. There’s whiskey-soaked astringency and a touch of nuttiness to round out the profile.

The palate is a masterclass in Rye barrel-aged balance. There’s a distinct chocolate-y sweetness that opens up the profile. Quick to follow are notes of woody spice, smoke, toasted caramel, and a touch of roasty acidity.

The mouthfeel is also beautiful here. Slick but not too heavy, with a level of heat perfectly balanced by a low-but-present carbonation. The rye spice leaves you with a touch of bitterness, and there’s a comfortable ethanol warmth that lingers well into the next sip.

 

Pour a de garde 10th Anniversary. Dark brown pour with a thin layer of tan head. Aroma is rasoty malts with notes of chocoolate and whiskey. taste is dark roast, cocoa and the rye bareel bringing light spicy notes along with a healkthy doe of warmth.

This one pours a very dark black color, with a small head, and not much lacing.

This smells like tobacco, charred oak, vanilla, heavy rye spice, leather, dark chocolate, and coffee.

As expected from this heavyweight barrel aged behemoth brewery, this is excellent. The rye barrel just shines all over this beer, with an earthy vanilla, lots of herbal spice, tobacco, caramel, and lots of other things I can’t put my finger on. There’s a super chocolatey and roasty base here, beefy enough to stand up strong against the heavy and long-rendered barrel character.

This is medium bodied, thick but not ridiculously so, with a nice boozy warmth that never gets overwhelming.

This is exceptional and easily one of the best Voodoo stouts that I’ve had, which is saying something. They release amazing barrel aged stouts quite often.

 

poured from a beautifully labeled and waxed 12oz bottle into a SP BBT21 light bulb snifter. pours a dense, oily black with a thin, quickly dispersing dark brown foam to reassure you that this beer is in fact carbonated. beautiful pour though - sleek black with a few carbonation bubbles and a mocha brown ring around the rim of the glass. aromas of chocolate, whiskey and oak as well as some caramel and dark fruits. i must admit, i poured this a little colder than i typically would for the style but the aromas and flavors came out much better when closer to room temperature. plenty of oak and whiskey in the taste but i’m surprised at how much chocolate i’m getting out of this as voodoo’s barrel-aged imperial stouts tend to lean more towards earthy tobacco and leather as well as dark fruits. this one, however, is less ashy and earthy with the rye, chocolate and subtle dark fruits playing off one another in beautiful harmony. thick mouthfeel but not sludgy or goopy. has enough carbonation to lend it some drinkability rather than tiring out the palate or being too rich and filling. overall, an excellent rye barrel-aged imperial stout and another banger from the voodoo brc.

With the caveat that this was an outdoor draft pour into a plastic Voodoo cup at The Compound's BA Day, appearance is stark black but with thin brown edges and a minimal dark tan head that settles to a thin chain.

Holy shit it actually does exude Sazerac vibes, and as someone who has drunk their weight in that beauty, I should know. There's a sassafras and aromatic herb presence within its uniquely clean, bold but refined stout backing. This is unlike anything Voodoo has ever done.

While the nose is more woody, the swallow is more boozy, and the exhale is more chocolatey, all accented by a uniquely lifting yet not detracting dark cola note.

A crisp carbonation runs through the fairly round body that comes to a dry finish before exhaling a warming vapor.

I was already hyped as hell to score this bottle, but now I really can't wait to dig into it at home!

First off i have to commend voodoo on the simplicity and aesthetic of these labels. The raised lettering on top of the astroparch paper looks like a beer Benjamin Franklin brewed and hand wrote the "Very Old" with a feather quill before fucking around with lightening.

The beer pours as motor oil that hasn't been changed in years. Oily sludge. A black hole of dark liquid dense enough to devour any light iIattempt to see through my tulip. Frothy, and quickly dissipating head develops and vanishes on top. A quick swirl unveils corn syrup lacing.

The smell is rich. It triggers thoughts of aphotic. A mildly sweeter and dare I say richer aphotic.

Taste/feel. One of the more complex beers I've ever had. It again reminds me initially of an aphotic. Deep roast and char off the bat. Layers of lightly sweetened coffee and chocolate. There is no missing the rye in a malt bill. Its super zingy and savory. Finish is very, very dry with massive, massive oakiness. All throughout theres a razor sharp bite of zest/spice. I've never had sazerac 18yr old rye whiskey so I dont know if such an old rye carries the same almost "harshness" of a young rye like willet 4yr or rare breed rye but that BOLD, aggressive, in your face whiskey note is absolutely pervasive throughout the tasting experience. The density of the mouthfeel astounding. Probably the second thickest beer I've ever had. Inky, oily, gelatinous and RICH. An extremely filling and satisfying beer.

Overall this is not a beer you break out on a Tuesday night. Well. Maybe it is. Its one you break out when you have time to yourself. No distractions. Its the kind of beer you want to drink somewhere quiet, and serene. Somewhere your mind opens up and you can exhale the stresses of your day to day life and trade them for revitalizing sights, sounds, feels, smells and tastes. Its one of the beers you want to bring a long hike atop a view and just decompress with as you take in the view and breeze. I have more and will surely be doing just this down the road.