American Barleywine - Cedar-Aged
Cigar City Brewing

on tap at RnH in nyc. served in a snifter glass.

Pours a fairly clear dark golden color with a thin crop of head. Film fades out with some spots of lacing on the glass.

Strong scents of tropical fruit with hoppy bitterness. Softer sweetness with caramel and some alcohol fueled heat.

A quick hit of hoppiness followed by an overwhelming wave of fruit. Pineapple, pear, and apricot juice explode on the palate with plenty of sweetness. Some lighter layers of caramel and bread with faint earthy wood. Light booze warmth followed by more fruit sweetness in the finish.

Fuller medium body, decent carbonation, sticky and chewy on the palate. I like Cigar City but this was entirely too sweet and hot, and the pineapple juiciness seemed to wreck the rest of the flavor profile. Definitely a miss for me.

Aromas of light citrus and sticky pine. Quite bright but not overwelming hoppy because it is balanced by sweet caramel maltiness.
The taste begins with sweet toffee, butterscotch and apple cider flavors. Switches to balanced bitterness and flavors from the hops. Hops add flavors of orange, marmalade, pine, earthy/woodiness.
Mouthfeel finishes sweet again; stickiness from the hopping, below average carbonation, but that is okay for the style.
Overall this is a really good beer but I really can't detect the humidor effect on this beer. I've had others from the Humidor Series and they are quite prevalent in wood flavors/aromas but this is totally undetectable at least in flavors/aromas. Maybe it is mellowing the alcohol/hop characteristics, which some wood aging can do, but I can't say for sure.