A Deal With The Devil - Apple Brandy Barrel-Aged
Anchorage Brewing Company


- From:
- Anchorage Brewing Company
- Alaska, United States
- Style:
- American Barleywine
- ABV:
- 17%
- Score:
- 92
- Avg:
- 4.28 | pDev: 9.58%
- Ratings:
- | reviews: 6
- Status:
- Retired
- Rated:
- Nov 25, 2022
- Added:
- Oct 15, 2017
- Wants:
- 13
- Gots:
- 1
Aged for 15 months in apple brandy barrels
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Reviewed by WickedBeer from Alabama
4.33/5 rDev +1.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.25
4.33/5 rDev +1.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.25
Lots of apple on the nose. Sweet, medium tannin, lots of raisin. It’s mellowed out nicely, but generally I don’t care for Apple Brandy Barrel beers. That said, probably getting the least noticeable oxidation on this than I have from any others. Balanced.
Nov 25, 2022Reviewed by Jeffo from Netherlands
4.55/5 rDev +6.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5
4.55/5 rDev +6.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5
The big man brought out all the barrel aged versions back in October. Cheers!
From a 37,5cl bottle into a tasting glass.
37 degrees Plato
IBU 60
Galaxy hops
APPEARANCE: Pours a one finger, medium-thicker looking, light tan head with great retention. Dark maroon red or brown body with no carbonation evident. Head slowly fades to a ring leaving some dots of lacing down the glass. Beauty, just like every variant.
SMELL: Apple brandy for sure, caramel and toffee aromas, with some nice oak, vanilla and coconut. Some red fruits as well. Bold for sure, alcoholic and spicy stuff as well. Excellent.
TASTE: Apple brandy, oak, toffee and butterscotch up front. Very sweet and flavorful. Lots of barleywine and alcohol as well. Big finish of toffee, caramel and butterscotch sweetness, vanilla, some brandy and spicy alcohol. Excellent.
PALATE: Medium-full body with medium levels of carbonation. Creamy on the palate, goes down silky smooth and finishes sticky. A good amount of heat lingers. Excellent feel for the style, much like all the variants.
OVERALL: All these variants are great. This was one of the better ones in terms of balanced flavor and barrel character. Thanks again, dude!
Jul 24, 2019From a 37,5cl bottle into a tasting glass.
37 degrees Plato
IBU 60
Galaxy hops
APPEARANCE: Pours a one finger, medium-thicker looking, light tan head with great retention. Dark maroon red or brown body with no carbonation evident. Head slowly fades to a ring leaving some dots of lacing down the glass. Beauty, just like every variant.
SMELL: Apple brandy for sure, caramel and toffee aromas, with some nice oak, vanilla and coconut. Some red fruits as well. Bold for sure, alcoholic and spicy stuff as well. Excellent.
TASTE: Apple brandy, oak, toffee and butterscotch up front. Very sweet and flavorful. Lots of barleywine and alcohol as well. Big finish of toffee, caramel and butterscotch sweetness, vanilla, some brandy and spicy alcohol. Excellent.
PALATE: Medium-full body with medium levels of carbonation. Creamy on the palate, goes down silky smooth and finishes sticky. A good amount of heat lingers. Excellent feel for the style, much like all the variants.
OVERALL: All these variants are great. This was one of the better ones in terms of balanced flavor and barrel character. Thanks again, dude!
Reviewed by yesterdayfaraway from Missouri
4.47/5 rDev +4.4%
look: 5 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
4.47/5 rDev +4.4%
look: 5 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
L: dark murky brown with no head
S: nice green apple aroma, slightly sour, fairly boozy, some caramel sweetness
T: big green apple with plenty of sour apple and sweetness.
F: thick and sticky
Mar 30, 2018S: nice green apple aroma, slightly sour, fairly boozy, some caramel sweetness
T: big green apple with plenty of sour apple and sweetness.
F: thick and sticky
Reviewed by stevoj from Idaho
4.03/5 rDev -5.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4
4.03/5 rDev -5.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4
Christmas tasting at Steve's, the whole boxed set. This one stood out as being boozier than the rest, the Brandy adding heat and smoke. Sweetness dominates.
Mar 01, 2018Reviewed by rodbeermunch from Nevada
3.19/5 rDev -25.5%
look: 2.75 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.25
3.19/5 rDev -25.5%
look: 2.75 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.25
Thanks to paulstoneanchor for bringing this to the Eclipse 2017 party. Bummer about the cognac(?) one, but no need to bring up painful memories.
Pours a dirty, ruddy looking mud pool into the snifter glass. Almost no head. Aroma was heavy on the booze, just like the regular one that I'm not a fan of. Had lots of apple notes to it though, so that was a welcome upgrade from the reg ADWTD.
Taste pumped a massive amount of apple through as well. Another upgrade. The hot booziness was still there, but not quite as oppressive as the original. Nice little things like maris otter, brown malt feels come around, there is still a cognac heat though, but like I said, not as bad. There is an ashy, earthy feel to the oak. Viscosity seemed fine.
So while I will still probably be way behind scoring compared to its average high marks, this one was so much more palatable for me. The apple and the brandy barrel cut down the heat.
Jan 11, 2018Pours a dirty, ruddy looking mud pool into the snifter glass. Almost no head. Aroma was heavy on the booze, just like the regular one that I'm not a fan of. Had lots of apple notes to it though, so that was a welcome upgrade from the reg ADWTD.
Taste pumped a massive amount of apple through as well. Another upgrade. The hot booziness was still there, but not quite as oppressive as the original. Nice little things like maris otter, brown malt feels come around, there is still a cognac heat though, but like I said, not as bad. There is an ashy, earthy feel to the oak. Viscosity seemed fine.
So while I will still probably be way behind scoring compared to its average high marks, this one was so much more palatable for me. The apple and the brandy barrel cut down the heat.
Reviewed by Ristaccia from Nebraska
5/5 rDev +16.8%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5
5/5 rDev +16.8%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5
A: Typical ADWTD. Minimal head, dark brown/copper color. Slight lacing.
S: Green apple, brandy, caramel, brown sugar. Definitely distinct from Cognac/Double-Oaked ADWTD.
T: Follows the nose. Decent green apple, huge brown sugar and caramel. The apple brandy barrel definitely brings out more from the base beer, transforming this from the base in a positive way. Distinctly different as compared to the rum which didn't elevate the base as much beyond the barrel difference.
M: About the same as expected. Fairly thick/syrupy without being overly so.
O: A big wow compared to the 'standard' double-oaked or previous vintages of cognac ADWTD. Worth the travel, hype, and money. Elevates the base to make it very different. Can't wait for next year.
Jan 11, 2018S: Green apple, brandy, caramel, brown sugar. Definitely distinct from Cognac/Double-Oaked ADWTD.
T: Follows the nose. Decent green apple, huge brown sugar and caramel. The apple brandy barrel definitely brings out more from the base beer, transforming this from the base in a positive way. Distinctly different as compared to the rum which didn't elevate the base as much beyond the barrel difference.
M: About the same as expected. Fairly thick/syrupy without being overly so.
O: A big wow compared to the 'standard' double-oaked or previous vintages of cognac ADWTD. Worth the travel, hype, and money. Elevates the base to make it very different. Can't wait for next year.
We love reviews (150 characters or more)! Check out: How to Review a Beer. You don't need to get fancy. Drop some thoughts on the beer's attributes (look, smell, taste, feel) plus your overall impression. Something that backs up your rating and helps others. Thanks!