Stock Ale 2017
West Sixth Brewing Company

 

 

When a beer is made for aging, you can simply bottle and stow it away. Or, you can allow it to slumber for a full year in bourbon barrels and pick up all the mystique, charm and savory character of bourbon. And that's what west sixth did with the revelation that their strong American ale would translate nicely to stock ale.

Tawny, rusty and ruddy brown, Stock Ale 2017 settles in the glass with a foggy gaze as it slowly releases a malt filled ecru froth. Bold aromas of toffee, chocolate, dark fruit, wine and oak tease the nose with a balanced scent of savory and tangy character. Bold toffee, spice cake and fruit cake flavors meld on the early palate with hints of brown sugar and molasses looming.

With the rich maltiness firmly in tact, the strong ale begins to release its complex fruit flavor. Plum, date, raisin, fig, blackberry, cherry and red grape all contribute to a taste that swirls around fruitcake and red wine. The light tanginess of oxidized sherry brings a hint of chocolate, Madeira and macerated vinous fruit. Caramel, vanilla and nutty cashew come with a moderate bourbon finish as the ale slowly comes to a close.

Full bodied, toasty and trending honey-like, the beer's early scent and taste carries a sensation of rusty metallics that dissipate early in the session while the ale trends malty, rich but never cloying or difficult. A broad hop finish is dwarfed by the malt sweetness but does carry a hint of curacao liquor and spruce that mingles nicely with an aftertaste of mild bourbon and sherry.