Damon (Double Barrel Aged)
Hill Farmstead Brewery

Damon (Double Barrel Aged)Damon (Double Barrel Aged)
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From:
Hill Farmstead Brewery
 
Vermont, United States
Style:
Russian Imperial Stout
ABV:
Not listed
Score:
100
Avg:
4.58 | pDev: 8.08%
Reviews:
28
Ratings:
149
Status:
Retired
Rated:
Jul 07, 2023
Added:
Apr 25, 2013
Wants:
  340
Gots:
  21
1 year in Port, 1 year in Van Winkle Bourbon.
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Photo of npolachek
Rated by npolachek from New York

4.75/5  rDev +3.7%
look: 4.75 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.75
Best stout form Hill Farmstead IMHO
Jul 07, 2023
 
Rated: 4.77 by KC_beerman from Missouri

Jan 11, 2023
Photo of edthehead
Reviewed by edthehead from Maryland

5/5  rDev +9.2%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5
Batch 1 2013 vintage.
Black oily appearance with a sparse moist tight tan head that recedes quickly to a surface film, little to no lacing. Balanced and present notes of both the bourbon and the port somewhat separate from each other, with mild hints of fudge and vanilla. Thick silky body, mild carbonation. Delicious!
Apr 30, 2022
 
Rated: 4.75 by Gkruszewski from New York

Nov 17, 2019
Photo of Stevedore
Reviewed by Stevedore from Oregon

4.47/5  rDev -2.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
2016 vintage, 375ml bottle poured at Hill Farmstead Brewery for their anniversary week. Served in a stemmed glass.

Dark black body, oily, one finger offwhite head, good retention, minimal lacing, fair bit of head.

Smell is a fairly strong port and fortified wine; not oxidized, not much dark fruit at all. A relatively mild bourbon sweetness and char accompanies a fairly solid milk chocolate fudge, minimal roasty espresso, oak vanillin.

Palate follows the nose. The port is ever-present but not overwhelming. The bourbon and base imperial stout are on the other corner of the playpen, giving me a big chocolate fudge, thick brownie presence- but it is the sort of low-sugar brownie chocolate presence. Not too sweet. Minimal dark fruit, a fair bit of roast coffee, oaky vanillin. Nice complexity to it.

Full bodied, good carbonation, smooth and slightly sticky but without astringency or dryness to it. No chalkiness at all. Mild roasty and earthy bitterness. Complex and substantial stout.

Overall- perhaps not as mindblowing as one would expect for 2016 DB Damon supposedly being head and shoulders above the 2013 vintage which I've not had. But it was an excellent stout that remains outstanding and holds its own versus other hyped up barrel-aged stouts. I don't need to specify non-pastry because well... that's just kind of pointless when it comes to Hill Farmstead.
May 24, 2019
 
Rated: 5 by duceswild from Heard & McDonald Islands

Jun 03, 2018
 
Rated: 4.98 by Samact from Vermont

Mar 16, 2018
 
Rated: 4.75 by t2grogan from Arizona

Apr 23, 2017
 
Rated: 4.37 by bootdown21 from Connecticut

Apr 10, 2017
 
Rated: 4.67 by Petegrieco from Massachusetts

Mar 06, 2017
 
Rated: 4.75 by Narthax from Texas

Feb 14, 2017
Photo of Lochnessmonster
Reviewed by Lochnessmonster from Florida

4.21/5  rDev -8.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
A very interesting and complex DBA stout - but I overall felt a little let down. It's delicious, and I would take this over a lot of other BA beers; but it's Hill Farmstead, so unfortunately I hold them to a higher standard. Good stuff for sure, but I've enjoyed many of their other stouts more than this one.
Jan 30, 2017
 
Rated: 4.4 by petermethot from New Jersey

Jan 30, 2017
Photo of Fireman_RK
Reviewed by Fireman_RK from North Carolina

4.75/5  rDev +3.7%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.75
2013 Batch
L: Pours a thick opaque mocha and onyx stream with very minimal head
S: Cacao nibs, dark fruits, and a bit of bourbon
T: Milk chocolate, maple syrup, dates, and a touch of bourbon, which is all underpinned by a deep and rich port barrel on the finish
F: Exceedingly smooth, but minimal carb
O: This batch has held up incredibly well in my opinion. DB Damon is easily the best stout I've had from HF and their barrel aging program is second to none. Simply a well executed and unique stout in a very crowded field.
Jan 30, 2017
 
Rated: 4.63 by Phurley2 from Massachusetts

Jan 29, 2017
Photo of Shogun250
Reviewed by Shogun250 from Vermont

4.55/5  rDev -0.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5
Just had a 2018 recently. Updating review. I have had 16 again and it was drinking way better In 2019 then 2017. The 2018 was fudge upon fudge with rich sweetness with port integrating nicely to add sweetness but did not have the tannic peppery bit I remember when I originally had 16. This was near perfection and an unbelievably awesome sipper. If you don’t like one beer from him try it again or a different batch cause time and time again it will be world class




This is for 2016. Want to give an honest review on this beer. No secret I am a huge Hill farmstead supporter. Probably my favorite brewery and I don't even know what #2 is. That being said, this beer has little carb on purpose because it's so intense, takes away from the look. The smell is intense but muddled. You get sweetness and a lot of heat and some choclate underneath but my opinion port kills everything and dominates the nose. Taste right now is kind of a disaster. It had a very rough after taste that made me not want to go back for another sip. Have had regular 2013 ba damon and 2014 DB damon and I think time might be the huge difference. This beer is super complex, to me I think as of right now this was the worst of hill's ba creations. It is thicker and better mouthful the ba everett. But that is so much more inviting and you don't get any off flavors. I have had port damon twice and it's not my bag and as with the 14 db damon the port was tame and integrated well. As of right now this did not and overwhelmed this beer in a bad way for me. Biggest disappointment of the year for me with HF, but he has had so many amazing brews I can't like every single one. Can I?
Jan 29, 2017
 
Rated: 4.67 by Masters from Massachusetts

Jan 12, 2017
 
Rated: 5 by Philcassella from North Carolina

Jan 11, 2017
Photo of Shaun_S
Reviewed by Shaun_S from Maine

5/5  rDev +9.2%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5
Almost unbelievable. 2016 batch consumed January 7th on site shared amongst a lovely group of gentleman, aged for 2 years in port and then 2 years in bourbon and listed as "14+%" ABV. You could smell the aroma from a few feet away just incredibly sweet molasses with a touch of chocolate. Poured utterly pitch black with a very small head of a mocha almost orange color. This was by far and away the sweetest beer I have ever tasted that did not make use of some form of disgusting artificial flavoring. Chocolate and what I can only assume are cherries hit you right away with pleasant incredibly mild coffee bitterness coming in on the end. I do not know if some of the others drank the same beer I did but the bottle my group shared was unbelievably thick just sloshing in our glasses sticking instantly to anything that came in touch with it. The beer went down unbelievably smooth with almost 0 carbonation and to the joy of us all that sticky sweetness clung to our mouths for many minutes upon finishing. The only comparison I can make to this beer is a 20 year Old Tawny Port wine.

Even if you must skip work if you have the drive and desire you must make the long trip to Hill Farmstead to this beer if not you will regret it. Be warned though the remaining bottle are for onsite consumption only.
Jan 09, 2017
 
Rated: 4.5 by tblack4d from Georgia

Jan 07, 2017
Damon (Double Barrel Aged) from Hill Farmstead Brewery
Beer rating: 100 out of 100 with 149 ratings