Trent & Mersey
River's Edge Brewing Co

 

Pours a murky brown with no foam. Pours flat like a sweet tea. Aroma is raisins, dark fruits, toffee, molasses and toasty, nutty,. Flavor profile is dark fruits, plum, toffee, molasses and toasty, nutty, caramely malts. There is a little bourbon heat at the back, but nothing extravagant. Mouth feel is medium-thick with a glossy, still texture. Overall, hearty sugary and dark fruit notes with pleasant bourbon heat on the backend.

Served in a 15.5oz Spiegalau tulip from a 500mL bottle.

L - 1/2 finger grayish-white head with huge bubbles, lays atop a cola-brown body.

S - dark fruits, anise, brown sugar, bourbon.

T - tons of barrel. Wow the bourbon is prominent here. Dark fruit, licorice, chocolate, vanilla, wood, hard candies, citrus. Low bitterness. Moderate sweetness. Moderate-high booziness.

F - full, silky-smooth body with low carb.

O - As-is this is a tasty treat, but with another year this would likely be pure magic.

 

 

22 ounce bottle into snifter, bottled on 2/12/2018. Pours hazy very dark brown color with a small foamy off white head with good retention, that reduces to a thin spotty lace cap that lingers. Light spotty lacing clings on the glass. Aromas of raisin, plum, fig, date, peach, pear, apricot, red apple, caramel, brown sugar, toffee, bourbon, vanilla, toasted oak, and brown bread; with light notes of leather, tobacco, peat smoke, herbal, pepper, and yeast/oak/toasted earthiness. Increasingly boozy in the aromas as it warms, but no too overpowering. Nice and pleasant aromas with good balance and complexity of dark/bready malts, fruity yeast, and bourbon barrel notes; with solid strength. Taste of big raisin, plum, fig, date, peach, pear, apricot, red apple, caramel, brown sugar, toffee, bourbon, vanilla, toasted oak, and brown bread; with lighter notes of molasses, coconut, leather, tobacco, peat smoke, herbal, pepper, and yeast/oak/toasted earthiness. Mild herbal/peppery hop bitterness and bourbon/oak spiciness on the finish. Lingering notes of raisin, plum, fig, date, peach, pear, apricot, red apple, caramel, brown sugar, toffee, bourbon, vanilla, toasted oak, brown bread, molasses, coconut, leather, tobacco, peat smoke, herbal, pepper, and yeast/oak/toasted earthiness on the finish for a while. Great complexity, robustness, and balance of dark/bready malts, fruity yeast, and bourbon barrel flavors; with an nice malt/bitterness and bourbon/oak spiciness balance; with zero cloying sweetness after the finish. Slightly increasing dryness from lingering bitter/spiciness. Light carbonation and full body; with a very smooth, creamy/silky/slick, and lightly syrupy/sticky/tannic mouthfeel that is great. Mildly increasing warmth of 13.5%, with a touch of booze lingering after the finish. Overall this is a very nice English barelywine. All around nice complexity, robustness, and balance of dark/bready malts, fruity yeast, and bourbon barrel flavors; very smooth and dangerously easy to sip on for the huge ABV; with the mildly bitter/drying finish. Very rich and complex, with very well balanced fruity yeast and malts; awesome barrel integration, but just a touch too boozy after the year+ aging in the barrels. A very enjoyable offering, and spot on style example.