Barrel Project : Corolla
Aslin Beer Company

Bottle at share. Near black pour, ring of beige head. Aroma and taste mimic an Almond Joy candy bar, all chocolate and coconut. The Bourbon barrel adds a nice finishing touch in the taste and the finish.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Appearance - Head peaks at about 1/8th of an inch, then fizzes away to mostly barren surface, leaving a thin ring of suds around the edge of the glass.

Smell - Prominent chocolate and coconut aroma. Hints of caramel and bourbon.

Taste - Follows the nose. Fudgy chocolate and fresh, shredded coconut upfront. Deep caramel base rises mid-taste. Bourbon comes through in the end with hints of vanilla, leather, that distinct bourbony sweetness. Aftertaste lingers with chocolate, fading coconut, vanilla and bourbon.

Mouthfeel - Full-bodied with low-to-moderate carbonation. Creamy, smooth drinker before a somewhat dry and boozy finish.

Overall - Barleywine? You wouldn't know it based on the flavor profile. Drinks much more like a stout. Kinda defeats the purpose of making a barelywine if you make it taste like a stout. Really good though, regardless.

L - Deep brown - almost black with mahogany highlights around the edges along with a small tan head that dissipates quickly leaving behind a small ring.
S - Tons of rich bourbon, chocolate, and toasted oats/coconut
T - Largely follows the nose with huge notes of rich dark chocolate up front followed by rich bourbon and toasted coconut as well as oats - slight warming alcohol on the backend. Some caramel in there as well.
F - Full bodied with a light amount of carbonation. Smooth, rich, creamy, but somewhat sticky.
O - A solid barrel aged barelywine with nice flavors but overall I was hoping for more from Aslin.