November Cellar Review

N'ice Chouffe, Mad Elf, Bell's Black Note Stout, Third Coast Old Ale, and Jackie O's Brick Kiln Barleywine. All of these are 2014's... so either they'll sit for quite a while before enjoying, or impatience will get the best of me and I'll end up trying them over Thanksgiving/Christmas.

 

Rochefort 8 best by 2013.
Drinking great. Maybe a touch of oxidation bu holding up great.

 

Just drank a 3-4 y/o Petrus Oud Bruin. I found this being sold for $6 per 4 pack back in 2011 and bought up a bunch simply because it was so cheap and decided to cellar a few to see what would happen after drinking my fill of the fresh ones ("fresh" is still 20 months old before it is even released). The fresh beer is decent but not amazing in my opinion, doesn't really have many qualities that I would expect to improve with age, but I am always interesting in learning what will happen with time. The flavor developed a touch of brett character and became rather one dimensional. No off flavors, which made it enjoyable. Very drinkable but not very inspiring. No obvious oxidation noted, which was the only surprise. The nice malty flavors of the "fresh" were long gone, which was a loss.

 

Popped a Trader Joe's Vintage 2006. Really surprised how well these are holding up. Cola, a hint of mint and a soft cocoa finish.

 

Founders CBS (2010) - Held up quite well. All of the notable characteristics - coffee, chocolate, bourbon and maple syrup - were each distinguishable. A little bit of licorice flavor coming through as well. Unexpected, but great.

 

'09 Founders Breakfast Stout -
Still pours and looks good. A coffee aroma that is thinner than when fresh. Also an array of different aroma, in which I think I got a little vinegar and pickle juice, and seems to be some soy sauce showing up. Mostly coffee flavor adn seems a bit thinner in feel.
Past it's prime. Still holding some interesting flavors.

 

2003 XXX Warlock Double Imperial Stout opened after Thanksgiving dinner. The first stout that I have tried that survived with any positive flavors past 10 years of age. Perhaps the 18% ABV or the 80 IBUs did the trick. Really very enjoyable with primary flavors of maple, chocolate, instant coffee, and sherry. Only very minimal soy sauce/teriyaki. The aftertaste lasted forever, the body was till thick (more like an aged spirit than a beer in feel), and the massive alcohol was well hidden. Very unique experience, and most likely the only one of these I will every try.

 

2013 Against the Grain Bo and Luke - mellowed out, smokey and chocolatey, great beer still but I think I actually enjoyed it better fresh.

 

Year old bottle of Alesmith Speedway Stout. The coffee is definitely more subdued. Very smooth blended flavors. Still a pleasantly boozy aroma.

 

Orval
Bottled 1 year ago
Brett beginning to take over compared the the more zesty fresh bottle I recently had, with a pronounced grassy and musky flavour. I'll be opening a bottle a year over the next few years.

 

2008 DFH WWS: drinking great. Lot going on in that years version. Still boozy, but good. Not sure I'd age longer than that.
2011 Westy 12: this one was best by beginning of 2015, so it was ready to be drank. Smelled boozy, but that belied he smoothness, fruitiness of the beer. Excellent.
2013 Dieu de Ciel Solstice D'Hiver: Didnt love it, seemed a little off.

 

New Glarus R&D Sour Ale-

500ml bottle with pressure cap; aggressive hiss as the pressure cap is removed.

A- yellow body with short lived thick cap drops to ring around the glass.

S-surprisingly funky; light sourness; oak, leather, fruity esters. First smell made me think this is like a more nuanced and funky RR Beat.

T- Oak and funk; also nice tannic notes. slightly leathery and fruity esters and earthy brett are pretty noticeable. Nice level of sourness. Layered flavors and complex. Hint of green apple and sweeter than sour lemon like a meyer lemon.

M- light body with medium carbonation. semi dry finish with slightly creamy bubbles. Crisp and clean.

O-This has sour really surprised me. This beer is tasting the best it has ever tasted. Huge difference from the last time that I tasted this beer a year ago. Time in the bottle has done this brew really really well. Its smells similar to Beat and taste and mouthfeel make you thing of this as a well aged gueuze. The sourness has really mellowed with age. If you are a proud owner of this beer in your personal cellar, it is time to crack open a bottle during the holidays and share with friends. It will surely be a treat!

 

2012 Bourbon County Stout, the last of the 9/26/12 batch; still have one bottle from the 9/6 or 9/4 batch (don't remember the exact date). Snifter. Much more fudge than the last 2012 I had. Vanilla, molasses, chocolate, bit of char. A touch hotter than I would like. Yummy. Will repeat.

2012 Boulevard Saison Brett, also snifter. Funkier and more tangy than either fresh or year old, hops have finally bit the dust. Delightfully dry. Still not my favorite saison (they really need to tone down the hops) but worth the investment in time and money. Will repeat the 2-year aging with my next bottle.

2012 Dogfish Head Olde School, snifter. Nothing like the last time I had a two-year bottle of this. Thin and oxidized. The cap must have gone bad. I and the friend I split it with actually preferred this year's fresh batch. May repeat, I've had a great experience with this in the past.

2010 Samichlaus Classic (brown label), snifter. Rum candy, butterrum candy, caramel candy, brandy, apples, bit of alcohol warmth. None of the penny, metal, nail polish remover or gasoline flavors of a fresh bottle. Sweet as expected, an 11.2oz bottle can easily serve two people, but a huge improvement over fresh. Still not sure which I prefer, this aged or Samichlaus Helles aged. Will repeat.

2012 Backwoods Bastard, snifter. Not horrible but a waste of a good beer nonetheless. No burnt sugar, minimal caramel. Oxidation has set in. Will not repeat.

2013 Boulevard Imperial Stout, snifter. Still good but no longer great. This was an unintended cellar I just never got around to drinking. No reason to repeat this again, it's amazing as it is when fresh.

 

For the next one, let it go even longer! I bought a whole case in 2009 and have been drinking a couple each year.

 

2010 50/50 Eclipse RittHouse Rye
Very nice stout but I really prefer theses at 18-24 months
Felt almost to smooth and weaker in the nose, my friends disagreed and thought the smoothness was fantastic.