Derivation Blend #12
Side Project Brewing

Amazing! The cinnamon subtle hint works wonders actually (even though I tend to think that adjunct tends to be somewhat overwhelming sometimes). Here: Perfection is the word

 

#SPInvitational2022

 

 

 

nothing like randomly showing up to the cellar on release day! none in my crew thought it was random, but honestly it was. they have these releases down to a science too, all on site, easy to share, and with great service even though they really get packed quick. we had no trouble getting to the bar for a bottle and some glasses, and were happy we chose this day to come in, being a maple enthusiast and all i myself was over the moon. this blend is done in maple syrup bourbon barrels and has maple syrup, coconut, and cinnamon in it. its so sexy in the bottle with the dark labels and dark red wax, and its sexy in the glass too, as viscous a beer as you will ever see, long legs and a dense mocha head the texture of creamed butter, just insane looking. the aroma is just wow, tons of maple, sweet toasted coconut, milk and dark chocolate fudge, molasses, brandy, and caramel, its deep as can be, a big coffee roast to the grain, lots of wood and whiskey sweetness too, and a ton of alcohol, its winter in a glass to me. the flavor is also amazing, huge maple character to this, not all fermented out, it is sweet in the best possible way, and the combination of the maple and the coconut is sensational, lots of both, and its a cool marriage. i dont get much cinnamon until the very end of the bottle after it had really warmed up, its subtle and its relaxed and it comes on very late, complimentary but way behind the maple, the bourbon, and the coconut. the maturity on this is insane, a couple of years in the barrels has really mellowed this out, softened it some, and made it impossibly decadent, the whiskey flavor in this is amazing too with the maple, all of it comes through so well. the alcohol is strong, but thats part of its charm, its just big fancy rare beer in all of its glory. easily worth the 50 bucks they fetch for it too, and everyone in the place didnt seem to think that was too expensive either. i was glad to be sharing our bottle four ways, any more than that would have been too much of this, but its a delight to sip on, totally coats the palate, and is enormously complex and well refined. maple for days, real mature, perhaps my favorite of the derivation blends i have been lucky enough to drink.

 

poured from a 750mL bottle into a snifter. pours a shiny pitch black with a few coconut floaties. smells of maple, bourbon and cinnamon. do not detect much coconut on the nose. the additives cover up a lot of the barrel at first but as it warms the barrel notes become more prominent. taste is all chocolate, maple, cinnamon plus the coconut and barrel chiming in on the finish. it’s sweet but not overly so. nothing approaching pastry level sweetness. mouthfeel is full bodied with lower level of carbonation. pretty much on par with D9-11 so not quite up there with the shared non barrel-aged stouts. coconut oil slickness on the finish. it’s way too easy drinking for 15%. overall, fantastic barrel-aged stout. just a touch too sweet for breakfast. perhaps more fit for a brunch dessert.

This enormous stout pours pitch black. Glugs out like oil. There is coconut flakes coating the surface of the liquid. Nose is big bourbon, grain alcohol, wood. I really don’t get much else in the nose. Taste is warming bourbon, followed by sweet coconut, and a backend with a touch of sweet maple. Much less maple than I expected. I get no cinnamon at all. Thick, viscous mouthfeel. Overall, a phenomenal edition to the Derivation series albeit a little unexpected from a flavor profile. Reminds me of a bourbon coconut chocolate milkshake with a splash of maple syrup. Would be very interesting to try this in a year to see how flavors shake out.