Carpe Brewem Barrel Aged Big Old Red Ale
Empyrean Brewing Company

 

 

 

 

Sampled back on 2/4/16. Comes in a 12-ounce bottle. Bottle chilled down to 36 degrees F in my beer cooler and poured in to a "EMPYREAN" pint glass.

Brew pours a hazy mahogany in color with a around a 2-finger creamy/foamy off-white head. Lots of lacing is seen when sipped that stayed in place on the glass. Aroma is of plenty of bourbon since it is aged in oak barrels along with some sweet malts. Much more going on with the taste as it is very complex with lots of different flavors it seems like, the two up front is what was in the aroma with a hint of dark fruits, burnt brown sugar with maybe a hint of orange zest also. Very tasty and finished pretty smooth that is even on the sweet side. Full-bodied with medium carbonation. Overall, it is a great brew if you can find it.

Dark red almost opaque with a satisfying mouth feel and just the right amount of carbonation. the maltiness is spot on for the style as is the hoppiness to sweetness ratio.

I really want to love this beer but I find the oakiness to be a bit too prominent for my taste. It's definitely good but something about the wood smell and taste reminds me of lumber yard. I can't quite put my finger on it. I guess it tastes like green wood as opposed to some of the other oak aged beers I've tried that were aged in old whiskey barrels.

Poured into a Weizen glass, with a hazy sun tea color; popcorn head with 4 fingers and flecks of lace.

Lots of bourbon in the aroma. Cedar chips, honey, burnt sticks, lemon and lime mixed with powdered sugar, popcorn ball. Antiseptic, scotch tape. Kind of a mess.

Flavor comes out strong with a malty sweetness, followed by a sting of old bourbon, then raisin, finishing with doughy pie crust. A malt liquor sweetness lays behind all of this. As it warms it finishes with water. This is also somewhat of a mess.

Feel is substantially creamy, but carbonated appropriately. Parchy finish. Burns furiously in my stomach.

No, I wouldn't have this again. Far too burnt with alcohol and too many messy off flavors. No focus, no obvious direction. Carpe Brewem is generally a decent line from Empyrean, but this one is not among them.

 

Mucho disappointed in my first attempt to sample this beer. I popped the cap and it exploded all over my counter and various important pieces of paperwork. It foamed out of the bottle for a good 10 minutes while I cleaned up the mess. I only got to sample a quarter of it as that was all that was left. Very pleasant and complex scent - I'll give it that. Smells sweet and malty. Little on the sour side in the flavor category but sweet after taste. Foamy head rather than frothy. Might be a good idea to age this and see if the explosion upon opening chills out. Got three left so I hope next time around I have a better experience.

Yeah, screw that. Second try yielded same result. Infected beer. Contacted brewery, received a shirt and a shitty bottle opener for wasting money on a bad batch. Not impressed, they have other good brews but I won't waste money on them.

 

This was an appalling beer – when I popped the cap beer foamed out for 15 minutes and spread across my table cloth. In the glass large chunks floated about like an Arabian sand storm. On the palate the beer tasted infected. The foaming may be attributable to bad malt but the infection is on the brewer’s shoulders. Therefore, I am rating this beer.

 

 

pinnacle beer from empyrean

tart nose, touch sour up front, complex malty backbone, finished with rolling booziness

keep getting better as aged

 

This beer looks and smells like a Flanders Red. Nice foam, lots of floaties. Doesn't have the same sour, pungent taste I was hoping for, though. A decent brew, especially for 4/$9.99.

A big problem with this beer is the explosion that happens after popping off the cap. The Empyrean sales rep warned me about this when I spoke with him about the beer. It's really ridiculous. Foam just explodes out of the bottle for about a minute. This has happened on both of the bottles I've tried. I'm hoping aging my other two bottles will mellow the beer out on that front.

 

 

My man Alcohol Paul, whose nickname has been changed from Small Paul since I met another guy named Paul smaller than him, brought this home as a sample brew from the liquor store. I like Strong Ales, so this should be interesting. I haven't had anything by Empyrean that really blew me away, so I am hesitant.

Appearance – Pours a beautiful deep amber color with a good, one finger head that lasts forever, finally dissipating about two-thirds of the way through. Leaves obnoxious amounts of lacing, probably the most I have ever seen. Its like glue on the side of the glass, really cool looking.

Smell – Complex and big, to say the least. There are so many different scents at work on the nose here. There is a definite alcoholic booze, dark fruits, sweetness, and wood, among other things. A lot to pick and choose from, I didn't list everything.

Taste – Magnificent. Sweet malts come first, followed by an unmistakable booze flavor. Barrel aged booze, smoke, dark fruit, and smoke all play on the palate as the beer is consumed. Gets even stronger and better as it warms, next time I may only chill this beer for an hour or so then drink it. Gets very good close to room temperature.

Mouthfeel – Finishes sweet and smooth, with an absolute alcohol warmth to it. Heavy body, medium carbonation.

Overall – This was an incredible brew, absolutely the best I have ever had from Empyrean. I texted Alcohol Paul to get some more of this, because I am unsure from where it came or how to get more. It was a limited run, so it may not be available. I am thoroughly impressed.