10th Anniversary Massive! Ben
Gigantic Brewing Company

Cellared 1.5 years. Lighter brown murky body with a mushroom colored ring. Smells of big bourbon barrel with molasses, raisin, peated earth, hint of vanilla, toffee, and barley. Taste starts with oxidized raisin, malt, and minor toffee, then boozy barrel with a rustic wood finish, rounding out the taste is barley, toasty earth, and a vanilla kiss. Feel is boozy and smooth in a deep way, drinks light but still has a heavy center.

500 ml bottle into a snifter. A 2022 release, had 11/22/23.

Pours a medium amber color, cloudy, with a half inch foamy head and some foamy lacing. Aromas of bourbon, caramel, vanilla, oak, malt, some raisins and brown sugar. Pretty similar flavors: bourbon, caramel, oak, vanilla, brown sugar, malt, light cocoa. Light alcohol warming. Smooth, a very good medium body, well carbonated.

A solid effort. The Weller barrels are great and there’s lots of very good aromas and flavors. Slightly lighter for the style, best fully warmed.

OK Ben, you have a (relatively) low bar to clear in order to surpass Van. Split this 500ML bottle with my wife.

The pour is reddish brown with as much life as fall roadkill. Like Van this nose features booze, caramel, bourbon.

10th Anniversary Massive! Ben begs for an exclamation, so I make one. Boooooze! It’s the dominant element. Whether it’s a difference in barrels or something else, this is superior to Van (sorry, v/man). Bourbon has no edges filed off; rough, the way I like it. Medium caramel fills the mid-palate to the brim with wood, umami, & vanilla-tinged honey filling in the cracks. Full. Ridiculously & dangerously drinkable. I could have done this alone. Twice.

A session barleywine that’s very good & nosing the borderline of excellent.

Thanks, Chris.

A dark, mildly murky ruddy brown with a thin beige head with good retention. The nose is rich and warming, a blend of dark fruit, treacle, honey, rum soaked raisins, oak, a perceiveable dark brown sugar sweetness. Definitely warming. The palate opens moderately sweet with a rich, dark brown sugar flavor, dark honey, black raisins and rum notes. Oak follows with a blend of coconut and vanilla. Rich tannins temper the sweetness. Sweet and boozy finish. Less of the burnt sugar and burnt honey depth that the Van had, but this is still fantastic.