BWXXV
Horus Aged Ales

Poured into a Fremont small snifter. Pours a very dark mahogany brown, appearing opaque in the glass with no head, just a light ring of bubbles around the glass with slight lacing. Aroma of dry caramel malt, a little oxidation, whiskey, dates, well dried plums, old toffee and some woody oak. Flavor is sweet, dry caramel malt, fresh plums, whisky, raisins, toffee and woody oak; sweet plum finish. Medium bodied with light to moderate creaminess and satisfactory, but modest carbonation. I've been hearing good things about Horus, but they seemed a bit out of my price range. Good old Bottleworks collaborated on this one and it was pricey, but tempted me to spring for it to try the brewery. It's kind of a barleywine, but since it's blended, it's more a barleywine based American strong ale. The extended barreling made it dense and rich, although rather sweet. Lots of English barleywine character of dark fruit, but some wheatwine-like notes too. The carbonation is a bit on the light side, although present, which I guess in inevitable for an ale barreled for years. Although a fairly fresh bottle there were suggestions of oxidation, also expected due to extended barreling and at a pleasant depth. Sweet, plummy and with good barrel character. The 12 oz. bottle was the perfect size for this because of the sugar level. Interesting example of extreme barreling and a fine dessert strong ale.

Rich,sweet, & sticky, with a dangerous approachability. Notes of boozy bread pudding, chocolate-coated raisins, and toffee. Toasty malt on the nose adds some nice complexity. A touch of oaky dryness accompanies a warm, balanced finish.