Cereal Killer - Bourbon Barrel-Aged
Arcadia Brewing Company

 

Thanks to superspak for this gem.
Pour brings a roil to this dark gem. Slight khaki head forms and quickly dissipates. No lacing.
Nose is a sweet, mildly boozy temptation. Quite the melange of caramel, toffee, dates, bourbon, cinnamon, baked apples, and a pop of sweet lon-soaking grains.
Flavor carries on with toffee, dates, bourbon, and dark fruit notes. Finish tingles with a bit of bourbon, a hint of char, and some deep wood.
Mouthfeel is a tad chewy, warm, and between slick and slightly oily.
Overall, so glad to finally get one of these killers.

Pours a turbid-murky muddy brown with a half finger of khaki foam that fizzles away quickly. Aroma is cinnamon, toffee, molasses, spices and bourbon with toasty, nutty and caramely malts beyond. Barrel character is pretty substantial, adding a twang of char and a stab of oak. Flavor profile is toffee, molasses, caramel, coffee and chocolate with a smoldering heat just beyond. Heat is courtesy of rich bourbon with a little char oak. Toasty, nutty and caramely malts add the base. Mouth feel is medium-thick with a squishy, silty texture. Overall, rich and full with hearty bourbon behind. Sweetness is mild.

Served in a 15.5oz Speigalau tulip from a 12oz bottle.

Pours a murky, muddy brown color with a finger's worth of coarse, tan froth. Gorgeous aroma smells of raisins, prunes, dates, bourbon, cherries, and toffee with hints of brown sugar, tobacco, and vanilla. This is what a barleywine is supposed to smell like.

The taste features a sturdy backbone of boozey bourbon heat dressed with prunes, toffee, butterscotch, raisins, and herbal hops. Even the 70 IBU is not enough to keep this from coming off as a malt bomb. Warming reveals notes of molasses, currants, and soy sauce. Medium-heavy body and modest carbonation make for a mellow, slightly oily mouthfeel that mostly stays out of the way and lets the flavors do their thing.

Overall, this is a bold barleywine that pulls no punches. It's impressively complex with flavor that goes for miles, even if it is heavy-handed, bordering on unwieldy, and the bouquet is an experience in and of itself.

A 12oz. undated bottle I'm guessing is 3-4 years old poured in a 13oz. snulip.

Look- Pours a flat ruby/brown leaving a minuscule ring of light tan foam.

Smell- Bourbon, molasses, brown sugar and cherry.

Taste- Bourbon, slightly sweet caramel/toffee, oak, char and a hint of tart cherry in the finish.

Feel- Relatively flat and oily with considerable alcohol heat.

Overall- A robust barrel aged European barleywine that seems to be a bit past prime given the slight tart cherry taste. While still very enjoyable I'm left wondering what it was like fresh?

I paid $8 for this ad it drinks better than 75% of the barrel aged barley wines I've traded for. My only complaint is that it's a little thin on the mouthful but my mind is blown that this isn't higher rated. Fair enough. I guess I'm going back to stock up.

 

 

 

 

 

Like the original it is heavy on the grains that taste like cereal. Bourbon is hot, but brings a little brown sugar flavoring to the base beer, so that is appreciated. Smell is cereal but instead of putting it in milk it is in bourbon, potent. Still a little excessive for me in the body as well with the grains

 

 

 

 

Toffee, berries, vanilla and light brown sugar on the nose. Not incredibly deep or intense.

Tastes much brighter than I expected, almost tangy. Lots of sweet, jammy macerated fruit. Some oaky dryness on the finish, but not much bourbon character at all. Vanilla and berries linger for a lasting impression of creme brûlée.

Pours a little thin but the sweetness fills out the feel on the palate. Still not quite cloying, thankfully.

Overall, a tasty offering but not quite on par with competitors like BCBW. Definitely worth a try.

 

Gold wax. Bottled on 7/6/17. 12oz bottle poured into a tulip. Pours a murky dark auburn; nice small light khaki head that falls leaving nice retention and lacing. The aromas have lots of sweet bourbon along with lots of caramel. Dark fruits are there, especially raisins. Some cherries lots of malts. Vanilla and oak is there. The flavors follow the nose. The flavors are on the sweeter side, but it's not cloying. Bourbon leads the way along with caramel. Some toffee in the mix. More cherries and raisins. Vanilla is there along with some oak and rye in the finish. Mild warmth in the finish, but the alcohol is ultimately well hidden. Mouthfeel is nice. It's full-bodied with moderate carbonation. It's pretty smooth. This one is dangerously drinkable.

This is a nice barrel-aged barleywine. The barrel characteristics really come through. The craftsmanship is on point. Well done.

Port wine appearance with flavors of cherry, whisky, toffee, and maple with sour finish that is on thin side. But @ 12% it gets the job Done