Bottleworks 22 Year Anniversary (Port Barrel)
Urban Family Brewing Co.

My partner and I both remarked upon pouring just how rich and oily and viscous it appeared. Lovely little espresso satin head with decent lacing.

Nose offers a lot of barrel... initially vanilla and oak and spice, and there's some definite stone fruit and molasses in there as well. Rich and roasty dark.

A lot more chocolate, but like low roast/green dark chocolate from a really fancy chocolatier. A lot of dried fig/prune/plum in there. A lot of barrel as well. The oak plays into the chocolate and the plum. Some molasses still. Finish is rich full medium roast coffee.

Thick. Like someone put thickit in there. Finish is high notes that derive from the barrel and the stone fruit. It'll never be mistaken for anything less than a dozen ABV or so, but it comes out feeling appropriate at its size, and that's not always as easy as it sounds.

This is a great rich decadent BA stout. Kind of hope I wished I had grabbed a second one to let it sit for a couple of years and see how it grows.

Cheers!!

 

Poured into a Fremont small snifter. Pours a very dark mahogany brown, appearing opaque black in the glass with a thin khaki head that dissipates to sparse patches with slight lacing. Aroma of dark toasted malt, cocoa, dry caramel, oak and fortified wine. Flavor follows, with dark toasted malt, bakers chocolate, mild dry caramel, woody and vanilla oak and Port. Woody oak, bitter chocolate and Port finish. Medium bodied with moderate to viscous creaminess. The near still pour was not promising, but the aroma and flavor are great. Fine chocolate, oak barrel and Port character and well balanced. I'm not a big fan of vinous flavors in stout, with Port at the edges of what I enjoy. This stout integrated the Port into the malt flavors in a way I found quite enjoyable. Very oaky, which is not a barrel character that I see much any more but is a welcome one. Since Urban Family makes a lot of wild and sour beers, I was hoping this would not lean in that direction, and I was well rewarded. Malt density and balance indicate that this will stand up to a few years of aging. Not much to look at, but great aroma and taste. Nicely done and appropriate stout for an anniversary of the venerable Bottleworks.