Old Fashioned
Alesong Brewing & Blending

this is wonderful, so lucky to have been involved in opening this bottle, these guys kill it, and while its their fermentation forward stuff that gets me the most stoked, their strong barrel stuff has been fire too, and this is great. a real blonde strong ale, cant believe the golden pour, it doesnt look malty enough to be barleywine or american strong ale or whatever, its not much darker than blonde honestly, clearish too. kentucky bourbon barrels, orange peel, not loaded with cherries or bitters or anything, not really cocktail-esque to me despite the name, but a wicked beer anyway, with strong almost essential oily orange in the nose, some subtle grain sweetness, honey and whiskey together, sturdy oak, vanilla, and a warm alcohol presence, lighter than expected though, mature but also fresh, distinctive and very orange forward. the orange is there all though the flavor, supported by almost neutral sweetness, this isnt malty, a honey thing for sure, some fresh oak as well as the charred bourbon element, vanilla there, white wine even with the whiskey, its corn sweetness as it warms, orange the while way, zesty and zippy and real, terpene-like, concentrated maybe, but not cooked to me, upbeat alcohol adds something, great carbonation, maybe bottle conditioned, little bubbles like that, flattering, and this is best at almost room temperature, as the carbonation holds, the orange expands, and the barrel influence is enormous. really good stuff, lighter bodied and honestly a little simpler overall than expected, but masterfully crafted and refined, forget the cocktail, this is better, even if only an okay approximation without the other elements. loved it!