Old Rasputin, Old Yeti, Victory Storm King

I've had aged versions if Yeti and Storm King and they've been great. I got a 6 pack of Storm King in 2012 and have been drinking it slowly (even though it's readily available to me). Had a Yeti with a couple years on it and it's fantastic.

OH, and I highly suggest aging Stone Imperial Russian Stout. That is just lovely with a couple years.

The beauty of these beers is that it's readily available (okay, maybe not in Canada) but they're cheap and can hold up for like 5 years or so and will change gracefully.

 

I like Old Rasputin with 6 months to a year on it. For me it can be a little too hoppy fresh. The hop flavors calm down and it just gets a little more smooth. I don't think it continues to get better after that. While I haven't had a super old one I do prefer having them aged 1 year over 2 years. This applies to the standard version, not the barrel aged. I've never had the barrel aged after being cellared.

 

I've had Storm King at 5 years old, which is the best buy date at (or at least used to.) It was very good, I liked it a lot more than fresh.

 

I think it is quite good fresh, but if you dont like a hoppy RIS, age it for a while. I had one at two years old and it actually still was somewhat hoppy for what i expected, but other flavors rose to the front and the hops were muted.

 

Of the three, I've had the most success with Yeti, which really opens up between 6 mos. and 1 year. The other two improve, but not to the extent of Yeti. Rasputin has a solid track record, however. I'm a little perplexed about why anyone would want to cellar Storm King. That's not to say it doesn't "improve," but the hops that set it apart from other IS's begin to fall off, making it less distinctive, again IMHO.

 

I left some Storm King in my garage for about 3 years. Temp fluctuations between 45-120 (south Texas). And it was great!

 

Depends on whether you like the hop flavor they have or not. Longer you go, the more that component of the taste drops out.

 

Here are my brief cellaring notes for each of those 3 beers. To suit my personal tastes, I would drink Yeti fresh, Rasputin at 2 years, and Storm King at 1 year.

Great Divide Yeti
6 months - pitch black in color with maybe the darkest tan head I've seen yet. good head retention.
aroma is typical of the style, with notes of bitter chocolate and coffee. taste follows with the same flavors. the beer is thick, coats the mouth, good for sipping. I didn't notice any alcohol burn. good to balance a rich dinner.
1.5 years - same appearance. aroma and taste still dominated by roasty bitter chocolate. body still thick. doesn't seem to have changed much.
2 years - still good head. still very roasty, coats mouth. has very bold flavors yet well blended.
3 years - same appearance, same aroma. dry roasty taste, thick body.

North Coast Old Rasputin
6 months- black, with 1/4" khaki colored head. aroma is roasty, but with strong hops underneath. tastes of toasted marshmallow, roasted malt, with hop finish. medium body, low carbonation. overall, definitely a solid imperial stout, with strong hop presence.
2 years - same appearance. hops are more subdued in the aroma. acidic espresso roastiness is now the dominant smell. same with the taste. dry finish. improved
3 years - good looking, the same. same aroma, still acidic and roasty. but no acidic bite in the taste. medium body, lower carbonation. nice full smooth taste. lingering finish.

Victory Storm King
2 months - blackest opaque color. slightly tan head that starts at 1", settles to a thin covering that stays. a little lacing. as advertised, a very hoppy aroma for a stout. but the roasted flavors of a big stout are in the smell too. taste starts with hops, fades in to a bittersweet espresso flavors. pretty smooth mouthfeel. not too thick, goes down easy. drinks effortlessly
1 year - hops are still present in aroma and taste, but a bit more muted. more balanced and smooth. An improvement over fresh
2 years - hops have now lost the dominance. roasted bittersweet flavors are more prominant. still smooth nice mouthfeel. very nice
3 years- hops have pretty much completely faded. but I didn't enjoy as much.

 

I've got a 5 yr old Yeti I prob need to crack, as I believe its past its prime. Anyone have experience this far out?

 

This was my experience as well. The hops take a long while to fade into the background. However, I did open a 2011 Dark Intrigue, and the hops had indeed faded, so my educated guess is that the hops will be gone from the base beer in around the same time frame, 3-4 years.

I'm sitting on over a case of this left over from my wedding 2 years ago. I don't frequently find myself drinking stouts, so I will be drinking these for many years to come.

 

Just did a 2 yr old Old Rasputin tonight. It was fabulous. Roasty goodness.