Madagascar Fourth Dementia - Bourbon Barrel-Aged
Kuhnhenn Brewing Company

Bottle. Little head that fades. Dark caramel brown color.

Vanilla as it is colder, more barrel as it is warmer. Definitely prefer it as it warms. Things are rounded and smooth. Oak, bourbon, vanilla, caramel, and toffee. Not too deep in terms of flavor, but very enjoyable. Some molasses and black cherry in the finish.

L - Very dark brown with no head at all. Note: is from 2018 so 2 years old. No head is to be expected.
S - Sweet malt, vanilla, alcohol and dark fruit.
T - Follows the nose with a a lot of alcohol heat.
F - Thick and full bodied, it coats the mouth.
O - Pretty good. Great look, smell and feel, just a little too boozy. The alcohol content throws it off balance.

2018 bottle

Deep ruby brown-black, nice tight, latte-foam head. An assault of smoky oak, sweet tobacco, leather, burnt brown sugar. Smooth vanilla over a rich and chewy base of dark malt, bourbon, caramel and coffee, fig and date. Incredibly silky smooth, full bodied, balanced sweetness, sticky mouth coat, good bitterness they lingers. Truly impressed, a very good BBA beer

This is one pours a very dark brown-ish color, with a small head, and not much lacing.

This smells like earthy and mildly sweet vanilla, spicy oak, coconut, and caramel.

This is definitely good, but the vanilla does seem to somewhat bury some of the more delicious characteristics of the base Fourth Dementia. This has a much more present oak character than the regular BA4D, as well, and that's definitely ok with me. There's a touch of fruitiness, but less than the base, with some caramel, maybe a touch of coconut, and a hint of old chocolate.

This is medium bodied, with a fairly dry finish - the vanilla doesn't add a ton of sweetness, despite the fact it's a strong flavor.

I think without the comparison to regular BA4D - which is an all-time beer for me - I would have liked this a lot more. In a vacuum, this is still a very good beer.

 

12 ounce bottle into snifter, 2018 vintage bottling. Pours nearly opaque dark brown/black color with a 1 finger dense and rocky tan head with fantastic retention, that reduces to a thin cap that lasts. Nice spotty soapy lacing clings on the glass, with a moderate amount of streaming carbonation retaining the cap. Fantastic appearance. Aromas of big caramel, brown sugar, toffee, vanilla, cream, raisin, plum, prune, cherry, fig, date, apricot, red apple, bourbon, coconut, toasted oak, roasted nuts, biscuit, and brown bread/crust; with lighter notes of licorice, molasses, chocolate, cocoa, coffee, smoke, oak char, leather, tobacco, herbal, grass, peppercorn, and yeast/roast/toast/oaky earthiness. Mild increasing booze in the aromas as it warms, but not overwhelming. Damn nice aromas with great balance and complexity of dark/bready/light roasted malts, fruity yeast, vanilla, bourbon barrels, and light earthy hop notes; with big strength. Taste of huge caramel, brown sugar, toffee, vanilla, cream, raisin, plum, prune, cherry, fig, date, apricot, red apple, bourbon, coconut, toasted oak, roasted nuts, biscuit, and brown bread/crust; with lighter notes of licorice, molasses, chocolate, cocoa, coffee, smoke, oak char, leather, tobacco, herbal, grass, peppercorn, and yeast/roast/toast/oaky earthiness. Mild herbal, grassy, roast, charred bitterness; and bourbon/oak tannin spiciness on the finish. Lingering notes of caramel, brown sugar, toffee, vanilla, cream, dark fruit, cherry, apricot, red apple, bourbon, coconut, toasted oak, roasted nuts, biscuit, brown bread/crust, licorice, molasses, chocolate, cocoa, coffee, smoke, oak char, leather, tobacco, herbal, grass, peppercorn, and yeast/roast/toast/oaky earthiness on the finish for a while. Amazing complexity, robustness, and balance of dark/bready/light roasted malts, fruity yeast, vanilla, bourbon barrels, and light earthy hop flavors; with a fantastic malt/roast/hop bitter/sweet, and bourbon/oak spiciness balance; with no cloying/astringent flavors after the finish. Lightly increasing dryness from lingering hop/roast bitterness and bourbon/oak spiciness. Light-medium carbonation and full body; with a very smooth, creamy/silky/velvety/bready, and lightly slick/sticky/chalky/tannic mouthfeel that is fantastic. Mild increasing warmth of 13.5%, with minimal lingering barrel booze after the finish. Overall this is an amazing flavored barrel aged old ale! All around amazing complexity, robustness, and balance of dark/bready/light roasted malts, fruity yeast, vanilla, bourbon barrels, and light earthy hop flavors; very smooth and dangerously easy to sip on for the huge ABV, with the mildly bitter/tannic/drying finish; fantastic soft feel for the style. Perfectly balanced rich malts, vanilla, fruity yeast, and bourbon barrel presence/integration; with solid earthy hops. Not overly sweet/heavy from lingering dryness. A highly enjoyable offering, and top tier quality style example as expected. Not as amazing as the BA base beer, but still pretty mind blowing.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2018 bottle weighing in at 13.5% ABV. Pours with little fanfare, less than a half-finger of head over dark brown molasses. Very little retention, but nice legs when swirled. Brown sugar, vanilla, leather, prune, green tobacco, bitter melon on the nose. Oak, bourbon, light yogurt, malted milk balls, and fudge join in the palate party. The vanilla is very present and really rounds out the flavor profile compared to the draft snifter of the standard BBA 4D I had two nights ago. Less of the bitterness and oxidation associated with many old ales, placing this somewhere in between what I would expect of an old ale and an English barleywine.

I do not give out 4.75 and 5 scores lightly on anything, but this has definitely earned it.