The Java Man Cometh with Peanut Butter - Aged in Ardbeg Barrels
The Dayton Beer Company

 

Had on tap. This one different, that is for sure. Smell is smoky peanut butter cup, with big peat, wood and scotch finish. Taste is meaty and smoky malt with some dark chocolate flavored with robust wood, then a big strand of peanut butter arrives with more scotch peat with it. Robust and heavily textured in body. If you like peanut butter and scotch together, this beer is for you!

On tap at Dayton Beer Company in Downtown Dayton. Served in a small (8 oz) nonic pint glass.

Appearance: Black with no light coming through. Thin ring of tan foam, with some occasional strands of persistent lacing.

Smell: A little bit of peat smoke, some coffee, and some chocolate notes.

Taste: Typical stout coffee, chocolate, and roasted malt bitterness accented with a chocolate peanut butter flavor. All of this is blended from start to finish with a smoky scotch whiskey flavor. I've had Ardbeg, and this has some of that distinctive smoky / peat scotch flavor and all its phenolic overtones.

Mouthfeel: Good thickness, light carbonation, definite stickiness on the teeth. Very light "bite" from the scotch.

Overall / Drinkability: A very unusual beer - it's like having a smoky peanut butter cup candy that has been dunked in scotch. I'm not sure I would have bothered with the peanut butter in the original stout before aging in the barrel, but it sort of works. And I'm not sure I've seen many beers aged in smoky scotch barrels to date, so quite unique. I would not have minded another glass, but alas I had to work later that evening and knew having more was a bad idea. I also wonder about the ABV - I suspect it's higher than 7%. 7% was written on the board, but normally the ABV goes up after barrel aging in a whiskey barrel. Regardless - a good beer and worth a try before it's gone as this looks to be a definite one-off for the brewery.