Intrepid Observation
Bottle Logic Brewing

Bought at San Diego Wine and Beer. Batch 001 2023 bottling date consumed 02/07/25. ~26$ for 500 mL bottle. Side by side with Fundamental Observation (2022)

A&S: Medium black beer. The head dies quickly, but while it is around it's creamy light brown. No real lacing. Worse head retention compared to fundamental observation even with 1 year less in the cellar. The aroma is sweet, caramel, malty, but still very chocolatey. Bourbon also plays a huge role.

T&M Less chocolate, more vanilla compared to FO. Sweeter but at the same time more boozy (bourbon and rum). Especially as it warms I get more toffee. Dark fruits (figs) linger for a long time after tasting. Mouthfeel was not as thick as FO, but still pretty sticky. A little smoother and a nice tingle of carbonation.

Overall: I like Fundamental Obervation more, but this was still very nice in its own way.

 

 

Cellared almost a year. Brown tints in a thick black body, light brown short lived cap. Big vanilla and bourbon nose with caramel, brownie batter, sweeter dried dark fruit and dark chocolate. Taste is much the same, but the barrel character takes a big step forward as it warms, molasses and oak added as a result. Very smooth, full, pretty sticky and heavy, but refined, booze warmth is nuanced.

112423: Bottle, 2023 Vintage. Thanks, George!

Thick and viscous, but the label only rates the "viscometer" at 6.5 out of 10. I hate to see a 10 from them, as this is just about perfectly what you'd want from a smooth dessert sipper. Very heavy vanilla tones on the nose and palate both, as expected, with rich brownie batter and maybe a hint of banana near the finish. Some roasted grain bitterness at the end which is actually welcome, cutting through some of the otherwise nearly-overwhelming sweetness.

OK Bottle Logic, let’s bring the better side of your house. 500ML bottle marked as Batch #1, 2023.

The pour I’d have to call black, though I’m searching for brown or red or something to indicate this isn’t a purebred stout. Un-not-found. Nose is crushing vanilla backed by bourbon.

Intrepid Observation is a smooth vanilla dress for your palate. Vanilla sonic boom up front is followed closely by a wave of bourbon & booze. Caramel & oak follow, but the taste profile is clipped short. Sharp. Taking this 500ML might have been a mistake. Or maybe not.

A very good beer. With the description of how it was made I expected more depth and/or complexity, & it just didn’t show up.

 

Very good - feels like they have more of the barleywine than the stout

500 ml bottle into a snifter. A 2023 release, had 11/18/23.

Pours an opaque dark brown, with a short head and some foamy lacing. Aromas of vanilla, malt, bourbon, some caramel and raisins, some oak. Flavors of vanilla, bourbon, chocolate, malt, oak, some caramel- more as it warms, raisins, light figs. Smooth, a very good fuller body, well carbonated.

This is best fully warmed. It’s more stout- like when colder, edges to a barleywine when warmed. The overall feel is more stout than barleywine. Vanilla is quite prominent and the barrels show well. Really enjoyable, although I expected maybe a little better.

 

Very sweet, very strong. Heavy on the vanilla and barrel. A bit thick, lightly syrupy, big bold body with a strong booziness. Enjoyable, but not as great as I hoped for.

 

 

Partner and I both agreed that there really isn't too much barleywine coming through here -- it's mostly just fundamental observation with a little more sweetness and a little less velvety viscosity. Nice nougat-like vanilla character

82/100

On tap. Tan head that fades. Black caramel brown hued color.

Vanilla, sweet, cocoa, fudge, cake, whiskey, oak, bourbon. Some char. Caramel, toffee, figs. Very nice blend. Lots going on here.

 

On tap at O’Shea Brewing Co. in San Juan Capistrano, CA.

This one isn’t bright like the bat signal. Nope. If I needed someone to save me, I wouldn’t call Intrepid Observation. Now, Raul doesn’t wanna play it like that because it still has some shine. Maybe not like Beyonce’s diamond, but more so like an emerald that you found in your grandma’s top drawer.

Savor those memories, my children.

 

poured from a 500mL bottle into a TG DBA tumbler. pours dark brown but gathers in the glass a shiny black with a thin foam cap. huge floral vanilla on the nose as well as whiskey, oak, toffee, almond and some light chocolate. taste leans more towards nougat, toffee, bourbon and sweet vanilla. thick, full mouthfeel. honestly almost feels like FO except without the prickly carbonation. assuming this is due to the barleywine component which gives it a more fuller and stickier mouthfeel. overall, nice imperial stout / barleywine blend. the vanilla is intense and flavorful but also helps to push this new trend in beer in a new direction. delicious.