Voluntary Exile - Willett Barrel-Aged
Threes Brewing

 

this one is grossly underrated here, i thought it was brilliant, maybe even the best of the beers we had at threes, its really incredible stuff. not enough baltic porter out there in the world anymore for one, but one crafted at this level is rare these days. its near black, silky, but full of complexity, wet pipe tobacco, earthy dark chocolate, unbrewed espresso grounds, trace molasses, raisin, fig, vanilla, and even maple, but its not particularly sugary after about the midway mark, most of the sweetness thats left at the end seems to come from the bourbon. i can always tell when a beer uses a higher end bourbon barrel, and the willett bourbon in this case stands out, its not too much, doesnt overwhelm any nuance of the fantastic base porter at all, but it adds an indelible little richness to this that i would miss if it werent there. the oak is mellow, smoothes it out, helps hide the alcohol, but more whiskey than wood for me here. i like that the base beer still stands, like i dont feel like i need to try the not barrel aged one to get a better understanding of it, its a beautifully complex example of the style, even without the whiskey, impressive in overall quality. tons of depth here, perfect on a chilly winters night. a top dark beer from our trip to new york!