Old Mad Joy - Heaven Hill Barrel-Aged
Great Raft Brewing

Appearance: Pours espressso colored with a one finger tan head that eventually becomes a ringlet; shards and dots of lacing linger

Smell: Figgy pudding, spice cake and caramel aromatics with the Bourbon tones complementing

Taste: Date and fig flavors forward with caramel and Christmas spices adding a pudding/spice cake aspect; a dusting of chocolate and vanilla emerges; the Bourbon arrives, mid-palate, to add some ballast; the finish is a complementary blend of all the elements

Mouthfeel: Full bodied with moderate carbonation; slight warming in the gullet

Overall: Man is this an impressive beer and I love the fact that it comes from a lesser known brewery far from the heart of beer country; I also love that this is a BA Baltic Porter that verges on Imperial BA Winter Warmer territory; kudos to the team at Great Raft

Thanks, NolaHopHead, for the opportunity

Pours dark, ruby edging, mild head and lacing. Notes of bourbon and chocolate and molasses. Mild bourbon notes over a sweet chocolatey malty base. Medium bodied, sticky, boozy. Need to let it warm and thicken.

 

Good head production and retention given the ABV and barrel aging. Brew is super dark, with a black body and a dark brown head.

Surprisingly sweet and potent aroma, laced with bourbon notes. Additional notes include molasses, brown sugar, espresso, and red grape.

Similar on the palate, with a huge amount of bourbon influence, along with a very roasty (RIS-like) malt base. Very oaky back half. Thick, full body; a bit hot for 10% ABV, but very drinkable. Minor char, plenty of toast, caramel, burnt coffee, bitter cacao.

I'm not really sure what going with a Baltic Porter adds to this brew, as it's a pretty straightforward take on a BBA imperial stout. If it is indeed brewed with lager yeast, and then lagered, the high ABV and barrel aging negates any "clean" aspect you might expect. That shouldn't be considered a criticism, just a curiosity; this is damn delicious and impressive. They didn't skimp on the barrel aging. If they take a similar approach to the entire Old Mad Joy lineup, then this is a barrel aged "porter" worthy of the kind of attention once given to 50/50's Eclipse lineup.

 

Pours an effervescent Mahogany with fast fading caramel colored head. Some head retention & lacing, plenty viscous. Was a noisy pour, the bubbles raised ruckus before vanishing for the most part

S: Dark fruits, some Bourbon notes that persist through the bottle & vanilla late

T: Vanilla, Bourbon, a little barrel heat & some dark chocolate & dryness up front. Barrel & oaky dryness as this warms along some Bourbon bite & a little caramel & cola flavor. Finishes dry with vanilla, a little oakyness

MF: Medium body, subdued carbonation, warming as can be

Solid BA take on the style, plenty warming not one to rush through

A: Poured into a snifter to a black beer that's topped by a dense and rocky finger of light tan head which fades slowly to a collar around the edge of the glass leaving minimal lacing
S; Smells of roasted malts, sweet chocolate and coffee, with some very strong sweet bourbon notes from the barrel
T: Taste is slightly roasty up front before a huge shot of caramel from the barrels with some vanilla and oak. Nice chocolate and coffee but this one is surprisingly sweet and barrel driven. On the swallow there's more sweet caramel and vanilla with more oak, chocolate, and coffee with some lingering roasted malts.
M: This beer is on the heavier side of medium with a slightly silky body. Carbonation is effervescent but not prickly while the beer has a drying finish.
O: Overall this was a fantastic beer. Really nice barrel notes with some solid flavors from the base beer which led to a great amount of complexity. I honestly enjoyed this one more than the earlier version that spent time in Pappy barrels. This one was a winner and if you're still sitting on one it's drinking great.

 

 

 

 

 

22 oz. bottle poured into a snifter at 50° F. Fantastic label art and gorgeous gold wax that comes off easily. Good start.

Pours a deep dark cola brown with one finger of mocha head. Maintains a solid collar throughout with minimal lacing. Smell is rich dark chocolate, spicy bourbon, vanilla, mild coffee, and some dark fruits. More goodness.

The taste leads off with rich roasted malts that resemble milk chocolate more so than dark. A bit of oak, toffee, and dark espresso bitterness. Bourbon is noticeable throughout, with more of a spicy cinnamon character. Warm on the finish, but not boozy. As it approaches room temp, more fruit comes through, giving the impression of ripe dark cherries. Absolutely nailed the flavor in my book. It trends more sweet than bitter, but that's just fine with me. It's beautifully complex with layers of flavor that meld flawlessly. The mouthfeel is appropriately a velvety medium that coats the palate well.

What a beer. Smooth and [dangerously] drinkable, yet rich, complex and nuanced. Thoroughly enjoyed this to the last drop. Up there with the best BA porters and stouts I've had.

Bottle poured into Teku glass. Pours a very dark brown with 1/2 finger head that dissipates to the edges of the glass. Aroma is a big bourbon character, oak, vanilla. Taste is much of the same. Huge bourbon upfront, caramel and toffee sweetness balance out the bourbon flavor. As it warms, I get some more chocolate and dark fruit notes. Mouthfeel is medium. Overall, a fantastic barrel aged beer. Graft Raft is doing fantastic barrel aged beers. Keep up the good work!

 

 

heard a bit of talk about this one and tracked one down. I just got this one hours ago from tbrian5

bomber into a perfect stout glass

looks great in the glass like cola, small fizzy head and brown edges. I had to note, the label is gorgeous! with gold wax
the nose is very inviting, nice chewy bourbon upfront, definitly a Baltic porter, classic Baltic porter nose, dark fruits, strong malts
the flavor is... wow. I had high expectations and this definitly exceeded them. great bourbon flavor, very tasty base. vanilla and dark fruits, every sip makes you want to take another, no joke!
body is thinner than expected for a 10%er but it still does well to get the flavors, just shy of thick
overall I'm pretty impressed. when you have normal raters rate this one high you know it's gonna be good, and you know it's not local hype ether. this is the real deal. this is a true flavor bomb. hopefully I get to try more from great raft and they keep makin beers at this caliber. best beer out of LA
I need a few more bombers haha

thanks for the chance Travis!

I loved this release of BA OMJ. The Heaven Hill barrel really shines
in this BA Porter. This release easily beats out last years Pappy barrel.
Still have one in the cellar. Cant wait to crack it when the weather gets right.