Chronology:18
The Bruery

 

Another missed share with rudzud
Pours a light foamy small head with low retention, nice legs again, very dark molasses brown color

Nose brings more of the dark fruits, lots of candied raisin and molasses covered dates, more sweet malts with syrup and molasses, some caramel, lots of toffee, a little butterscotch, not much oxidation on this one a hint of waxy port wine, a bit of buttery oak, vanilla, and just a hint of bourbon

Taste starts with the sweet flavors up front, molasses, brown sugar, candy syrup, some caramel, again a little butterscotch, lots of sticky toffee merging into vanilla nougat candy bar, some sweet vanilla notes and buttery oak, light bourbon again but a bit more barrel juice this time, fruits are there with more candied raisin, molasses dates as well, a touch of bitterness, light perfumey alcohol, again just a hint of oxidation with waxy port wine notes but no paper or cardboard, fair sweet finish with a bit more molasses toffee and sweet candied dark fruits

Mouth is fuller bod, rich almost chewy date like, very light carb, light warming alcohol

Overall this was a big improvement over the 12 (and 6 of course), very little oxidation, barrel is coming through a bit more finally, base beer is tamed down nicely, I can't wait to see how the 24 adds to this, I really hope the barrel finally shines

Look: mostly clear dark bronze. Some bubbly off white head on the pour.
Smell: oh man. Semi sweet rich ass butterscotch.
Taste: more of the same. As my buddy I’m sharing with said, liquid scotch butterscotch. No surprise, very similar to the 6 and 12. Just as rich but mellow as hell for a huge brew.

 

Appearance - The beer poured a caramel brown color with a tan head crowning the glass.

Smell - The nose was more caramel forward than the other beers in the series. At the same time, the nose was not overly sweet.

Taste - The profile was straight caramel; it was ultra sweet. There was almost no burn in profile; it brought to mind caramel coated tobacco. There was a weird corn-like presence that I did not like. I am not certain what might have caused this off-flavor.

Mouthfeel - The style by nature is not particularly thick, but this one has some viscosity.

Overall - Of the Chronology series that was sampled, this was the middle ranked entry. Chronology 6 was the winner, with Chronology 12 being ranked least desirable.

750 ml bottle into snifter, bottled on 11/6/2015. Pours hazy nearly opaque dark brown color with a small fairly dense and fluffy light khaki head with poor retention, that reduces to nothing pretty quickly. No lacing on the glass, with a fair amount of streaming carbonation. Aromas of big caramel, brown sugar, toffee, vanilla, bourbon, toasted oak, nuts, biscuit, brown bread/dough, raisin, plum, prune, cherry, fig, date, apricot, red apple, and red grape; with lighter notes of coconut, molasses, licorice, chocolate, cocoa, coffee, peat smoke, leather, tobacco, herbal, grass, pepper, and yeast/oak/toasted earthiness. Minimal booze in the aromas as it warms. Damn nice aromas with great balance and complexity of dark/bready malts, fruity yeast, and bourbon barrel notes; with big strength. Taste of huge caramel, brown sugar, toffee, vanilla, bourbon, toasted oak, nuts, biscuit, brown bread/dough, raisin, plum, prune, cherry, fig, date, apricot, red apple, and red grape; with lighter notes of coconut, molasses, licorice, chocolate, cocoa, coffee, peat smoke, leather, tobacco, herbal, grass, pepper, and yeast/oak/toasted earthiness. Very mild herbal, grassy, roasted bitterness; and bourbon/oak tannin spiciness on the finish. Lingering notes of caramel, brown sugar, toffee, vanilla, bourbon, toasted oak, nuts, biscuit, brown bread/dough, dark fruit, coconut, molasses, licorice, chocolate, cocoa, coffee, peat smoke, leather, tobacco, herbal, grass, pepper, and yeast/oak/toasted earthiness on the finish for a while. Fantastic complexity, robustness, and balance of dark/bready malts, fruity yeast, and bourbon barrel flavors; with a solid malt/bitterness and bourbon/oak tannin spiciness balance; with no cloying sweetness after the finish. Lightly increasing dryness from lingering bitter/spiciness. Light-medium carbonation and very full body; with a very smooth, creamy/silky/bready, and lightly slick/sticky/tannic mouthfeel that is fantastic. Mild increasing warmth of 16.6%, with minimal lingering barrel booze after the finish. Overall this is a fantastic barrel aged old ale. All around fantastic complexity, robustness, and balance of dark/bready malts, fruity yeast, and bourbon barrel flavors; very smooth and dangerously easy to sip on slowly for the huge ABV, with the mildly bitter/tannic/drying finish. Fantastic soft feel for the ABV. Perfectly balanced between super rich malts, fruity yeast, and bourbon barrel presence/integration. Not overly sweet/heavy from lingering dryness. A highly enjoyable offering, and spot on style example as expected. Liked most of the Anniversary Old Ales a lot more. This was WAY less sweet than the 24 for the series.

A wee heavy Scotch ale that's made in one big batch, and then released at 6 month intervals. The bourbon barrel flavor came through clearly in this ruby colored sipping ale with a whopping 14.2% abv. Would like to try the 24-month release as it may further smooth out the obvious booziness.

 

 

 

Poured from fridge temp to snifter. Pours a VERY murky brown. Very cloudy. Very little carbonation. Nose is molasses, licorice, vanilla, wood chips, bourbon, raisins, hickory, and tobacco. With some swirling, the typical Bruery malts. Taste is sweet, vanilla, smoked malts, bourbon, and traditional Bruery malts. Alcohol burn is present. Overall, I like the nose a bit more than the taste, but this is still amazing. Feel is thick and creamy. Great offering from the Bruery.