Fourth Dementia - Two James Rye Barrel Aged
Kuhnhenn Brewing Company

 

2024 vintage; consumed on 1/7/2026

Pours a deep, maroon-tinted mahogany hue capped with two fingers of rich, dark beige foam; steady head retention leaves a half-finger of cap, large, silky collar, and a dense walling of lacing encircling the walls of the glass. 4.5

Aroma rich toffee, marshmallow backing, dark fruit esters, rye spice trickles in, oaky barrel lingering against a dark cacao contrast 4.25

Taste milder toffee/caramel swirl meets a staunch dark fruit overlay, cocoa dusting over the mid-palate 4

Mouthfeel body on the lighter end of medium, modest fluff of rounded carbonation, dry prickle, mild warmth, a level, almost twangy aspect expressed in contrast to barrel char 3.75

Initial richness countered with darker fruit expansion, a punchy old ale presented in a fine, barrel-aged manner 4

This one pours a dark brown, almost black, with a small head, and not much lacing.

This smells kind of ashy and minty, with that heavy and herbal rye spice coming through strongly.

I absolutely love the regular barrel aged version of this beer, but this rye barrel aged version doesn’t really work. It’s super herbal, woody, and overly spicy, with the rye barrel providing a sharp minty character that I just do not enjoy. It completely dominates and overwhelms the excellent complexities of the base old ale.

This is medium bodied, but not all that drinkable.

This brewery is pretty inconsistent, so sometimes you get misses like this. It’s all part of the game with them.