Frig
Voodoo Brewing Co.

Bottled in 6/2022; consumed on 1/8/2026

Pours an immense motor-oil black hue of obscene viscosity, leaving little more 4.25

Aroma vivid dark cacao char, subliminal nuttiness into waves of fresh oak, 4.25

Taste dark chocolate silk, charred malt, intense barrel acridity expertly tempered, apple brandy residuals into burnt caramel, distant vanillins 4.25

Mouthfeel dense, full body, minimal carbonation, slick, creamy in spots, bittering back end 4

Intensity, focus, classic inclination 4.25

 

poured from a 12oz bottle into a perennial snifter. pours a sludgy black like straight motor oil with a barely noticeable fuzz of mocha brown bubbles that disappear quickly. stains the glass with light brown legs that run down it. warm fudge with warm apple slices on the nose. it has a warming quality about it from the spirit barrel and really expresses a lot of dark chocolate. even as it warms the apple component is pretty subdued and in the background. there’s even some barrel char to the nose as well. taste is rich milk chocolate, oak, subtle apple, spicy almost rye-like qualities. huge, thick mouthfeel with quite a bit less carbonation to it than the magicks and aphotics i’ve tried. silky though but huge and drinks like a huge imperial stout. again, very warming from the apple brandy barrels which are executed so ridiculously well here. this was a monster of a beer but a pure joy to drink.

 

The absurdly viscous void black pour suppresses any head development for a good clip before a short but beautifully dark brown head develops, settling to a uniformly arched quarter pipe ridge.

The nose is deeply luscious dark chocolate and vanilla swirled cherry cordial, all as if paired with a glass of brandy nearby.

Drawing a distinct dividing line between each layer of the palate, Frig starts as thick as it looks, emulating decadent cacao nibs before transitioning to a mature warmth then shifting to a caramelized mocha chip in the exhale, where a bit of pipe tobacco develops as it warms.

The fully thick round body contains a fine carbonation and comes to a lightly sticky yet paper dry finish.

This seems like a sea change, and not just for Voodoo's BRC--where it's similar to, yet unique from Warlock Flip Flops--but also for me, considering I typically don't enjoy apple brandy barrel aged stouts.

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I sat on my other bottle for longer than I intended, but four years later it's actually more impressive now because it has largely remained unchanged in all this time. Absolutely delicious, whild perhaps only slightly more apparent of that classic Voodoo smoky roast.

I'm not sure the apple brandy makes itself very specifically known anymore, if it ever did, except that the finish is uniquely, finely dry in spite of its viscosity, as if from a light, pleasantly sharp tannin.

I've literally never seen anything remotely like this. Its literally almost jello. I've drank some THICK beers but this doesn't even swish like beer.

Smell is awesome.

Taste is straight apple brandy aphotic - so very meh. I genuinely hate the putrid apple brandy liquor and can hardly even taste what the the underlying beer tastes like.

Feel is something else.

Overall its a novelty. Definitely not one that was worth my $60/2 + another $60 in gas for though. If you trade for this at "cost" you won.