Ground Wolf - Rye Whiskey Barrel Aged
DC Brau Brewing Co.

 

 

 

 

Served on draft at CK, served in a snifter, reviewed from notes. This beer is odd to put it politely, to be less polite, it spent enough time in the barrel to remove any interesting hop character but not long enough to pick up a lot of barrel character, the resulting beer is a dull bland shadow of an IPA that I completely don't understand as a beer.

Beer is orangish with a mild haze and some wispy head, mostly clear, looks like beer.

Aroma is mildly oaky, some whiskey / booze.

Beer is light in body and finishes a little dry with minimal bitterness and some liquor / alcohol / oakiness up front. There is no tannic character to the beer and the overall is just a disappointment.

Maybe I just don't like barrel aged IPAs but I have yet to have one that I thought, "Yeah, this did improve the beer." IPAs are one of those beers that is close to impossible to improve through the exposure to time, oxygen, and wood. Not saying it cannot be done but this is yet another example in a growing postulate of mine that this is not likely to yield good results. Not a repeat for me.

 

Single finger head on a clear deep golden body. Some lacing. Mild hops, mostly citrus and metallic notes with oak on the nose. The flavor is interesting with the oak mixing with earthy and metallic hops making a very herbal flavor. Sounds confusing but that's how this beer went. Medium body ad moderate carbonation. Never had a sessioned IPA barrel aged. Unique making it a must try. I am guessing te ABV listed for this one was off a bit but it was advertised at 4.5.