Fourth Dementia - Qu'ils Mangent de la Brioche (Let Them Eat Cake)
Kuhnhenn Brewing Company

 

This one pours a fairly dark black, with some brownish tints, with a small head, and a little bit of lacing.

This smells fairly marshmallow-y, with a little bit of vanilla cake frosting type feel. I don’t think this has any adjunct work done to it, I think this just came out particularly marshmallow-forward in the barrel profile.

Barrel Aged Fourth Dementia usually has a nice little vanilla and marshmallow vibe, and I’m not sure how they managed it, but this variant dials up that vibe. There’s less overt bourbon barrel character here, and sort of sweet and creamy malty vibe is the dominant thing here.

This is medium bodied, not very boozy at all, and pretty drinkable.

I think the regular version of BA4D is more interesting than this, but I still definitely enjoyed this.

 

 

 

 

Been a while since I gambled (& that is precisely the right word) on a bottle of Kuhnhenn, but the winners have outnumbered the disasters to date. 12 oz. bottle dated 2022 with white foil on the cap.

The pour is darker than I recall 4D, with only a bit of reddish mud around the edges. The 4D booze is cut by a latent sweetness. The cake, peut-être?

Fourth Dementia – Let Them Eat Cake is roughly as bland as your (non-John Wick) Keanu Reeves acting job. And not coincidentally, the original 4D. There’s a vanilla-style sweetness but it’s littered with must, & the barrel is standing about 100 yards in the background. The caramel finish is weirdly flat & uninspiring. Just nothing to lend itself to my fetishes.

Evidently 4D is just not a beer that speaks to me. This is the second baseman with a 94 OPS+. Almost league average.

This one is very dark brown and murky while pouring. In the glass, it is black, with a brief, thin head of almond froth. The head becomes a ring around thin surface fog. A dense film collects on the Swiftwater snifter, producing no legs while displacing spotty lace.

The aroma is complex, with plum pudding, figs, and toasted marshmallow up front. Strong roasted malt and roasted coffee give way to vanilla, while warmth brings out bourbon and light oak.

The flavor opens with bourbon, charred malt, and plum pudding. These all vie for prominence against sweet coffee. Bitter dark chocolate adds highlights. Vanilla and toffee are late additions. Oak and booziness come through in a long finish.

A dense body with a smooth, oily texture. Alcohol is pleasantly strong and bright with warmth. Fine tingly carbonation punctuates throughout the session.

This is another superb candidate for relaxing on a cool afternoon. I can easily imagine sitting in a leather chair surrounded by bulky furniture and old leather-bound books. This beer brings back memories of my grandfather.

2023 vintage

It seems to me like Kuhnhenn is becoming more popular these days. I’m seeing so many of their highly regarded beers ending up on Tavour and I’m all for it. I loved the regular bourbon barrel 4D, and this sounds like a fun little spin on it. Let’s pop it open and find out what it’s all about

Pours a very dark brown with a finger of creamy light tan head that quickly fades to a ring and leaves minimal lacing

The nose is super sweet, but it’s a balanced and delicate sweetness. I’m picking up on aromas of vanilla bean, marshmallow, burnt caramel, red grape, cherry skin, molasses, maple syrup, brown sugar, and sweet cognac

It’s similarly sweet in taste; but I dig it. On the front end of the sip I’m tasting marshmallow, brown sugar, raisin, cherry skin, molasses, dark bread, smooth oak, chocolate cake, and vanilla bean. The swallow brings notes of molasses, chocolate cake, pecan, brown sugar, charred oak, baked apple, red grape, burnt caramel, vanilla bean, and tobacco

A medium full body pairs with gentle carbonation, resulting in a rich beer. Finishes mostly dry despite the sweetness

While this isn’t as good as the OG, it’s still damn tasty and a fun variant

12oz. foiled and capped bottle into a Lost Abbey teku.

Pours a muddy, opaque, dark brown. A thin cream-colored head with little retention. Lace is layered and stringy. Nose is brown sugar, pancake syrup, molasses, and sweet custard. Beer opens brown sugar, sweet cream, molasses, and custard. Burnt caramel, pancake syrup, and oak in the middle and end. Syrup with a smoky bitterness at the finish. Body is medium to full with low carbonation. Slick and smooth on the palate and goes down a touch rough. Roasty, lingering aftertaste.

This one's a bit lacking. Thinner than needed and the weird bitterness doesn't work.

I had this prior to the “regular” version, and I must say that this one comes out a bit ahead. While it retains the majority of characteristics of the base ale, it seemingly has a more cake-like quality to it. I don’t know any actual brewing differences, so it might just be mental, but it finished with more of a French vanilla cake type profile than the stone fruit theme. Both are very good. It’d be interesting to try their base barleywine.

 

Chocolatey tones with roasted malt, vanilla, and toasted oak. Finishing a sweet baked white cake. Feel is oily and slick with a soft finish. Overall, excellent.