Black Tuesday | The Bruery

4.14/5  rDev -8.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4

Poured 750ml bottle into snifter. Vintage 2015. Very dark brown with a 1 finger thin tan head that fades into thin ring. Active micro bubbles keep the beer swirling and dancing on the surface. Aroma is sweeter malts, chocolate covered caramel with vanilla and bourbon soaked raisins. The taste is dessert like, with caramel covered in milk chocolate. Mocha late with some raisin, vanilla and bourbon notes. Medium feel with soft carbonation and some booziness from the high ABV. Enjoyed this as an all day sipper.

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4/5  rDev -11.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

3.98/5  rDev -12.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4

4.3/5  rDev -5.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

4.96/5  rDev +9.3%
look: 4.75 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 5

2015 vintage. Drunk Feb2017.
Look was very dark, practically no head. Wonderful aroma of dark fruit, chocolate, and barrel characteristics. Was expecting some alcohol heat to be evident on the nose but it was surprisingly masked well. Can say the same thing about the taste. Expected this to be hot as hell on the alcohol heat due to the high abv (even with 2 yrs on it), but it was a sweet dark fruit-covered chocolates and bourbon flavor. Impressed! Mouthfeel was a bit thin, a little oily, but still had some minor thickness. Overall, I was very impressed and full enjoyed the taste and aroma on this. I wonder what even more aging would do to this. Worth my time!

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4.66/5  rDev +2.6%
look: 5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.75

4.45/5  rDev -2%
look: 4.75 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5

5/5  rDev +10.1%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

If you can find this beer, get it.

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4.49/5  rDev -1.1%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

4.41/5  rDev -2.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

5/5  rDev +10.1%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

4.73/5  rDev +4.2%
look: 4.75 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.75

4.49/5  rDev -1.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5

4.74/5  rDev +4.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.75

Big, bold and beautiful!

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3.73/5  rDev -17.8%
look: 2.75 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

I'm a bit disappointed in the merely dark brown body and dinky head (hey, it's 20%). I'm not disappointed in the port-like aroma. Subtle undertones of nuanced bourbon (think vanilla, banana, marshmallow, and even coconut) coexist with intense dark fruit qualities. It's a great nose, though it doesn't quite floor me the way I expected. The flavor profile indeed reveals many similarities to port. It opens with incredible tones of fig, raisin, currant, apricot, cherry, plum, and peach. Around the middle is where the bourbon flavors appear. It ends with a powerful (but complex) malt sweetness, some umami, and an also significant alcohol presence. Though the booze is somewhat harsh, it also creates layers of nuance that help compensate for the insane sweetness. Somewhat. The palate is coated with a ton of residual sugar, and that makes it a SLOOOW sipper. Even a tiring one. I have even more qualms about the somewhat thin and firm feel - it's not well suited to the flavor profile. Still, the zesty carbonation IS suited to the aforementioned thin, firm texture, helping to cleanse the palate ever-so-slightly. I really dig many aspects of this, and it's one of the most complex brews I've ever sampled...but I doubt I could even drink half a bottle. It's just way too sweet, boozy, and over the top at the end of the day. I doubt I'd trade for this again, but I'm happy to have finally tried it.

3.73/5: Insert diabeetus reference here

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3.27/5  rDev -28%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Pours really thin with almost no head to speak of. The barrel definitely comes through in the nose but not much else except roast. The taste is one hot boozy mess. Super sweet, barrel, anise and booze. No balance at all. Feel is very thin, especially for the abv. Overall this beer is not good and I do not understand what the hype is. Just a hot boozy mess with no balance and flavor clashes.

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4.4/5  rDev -3.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25

4.53/5  rDev -0.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.5

5/5  rDev +10.1%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

4.45/5  rDev -2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

2016 bottle, poured 2-7-17

Inky black, little to no head

Smells a bit of candied fruit....prune/plum, some licorice, vanilla

A little more presence of bourbon in the taste...vanilla cream. Excellent

Surprisingly light given the ABV...a little oily, but not too sweet

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4.23/5  rDev -6.8%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25

4.52/5  rDev -0.4%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5

5/5  rDev +10.1%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

4.63/5  rDev +2%
look: 4.75 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.75

4/5  rDev -11.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4