Why don't I like Bourbon County Brand Stout?

OP said basement gets extremely hot. beer = toast

 

That is silly. So is $25 for a 4 pack, 'ticking', and posting on the interwebs....

 

Embarrassed poster says what?

 

It'd be an interesting comparison to try this beer next to a properly stored 07 BCBS. I know I don't have a very good grasp on the effects of cellar temperature on the taste of a beer.

 

I had a 08 BCBS and it was a think syrupy mess, but I have no idea how it was stored.

 

Idiot. If a great beer was subjected to bad storage condition, you trade that away for whales to some dude trying to complete a vertical, and laugh diabolically.

That is the BA way.

 

Did you ask yourself why you don't like it, before asking strangers on the internet?

 

Muahhahaahahahaha!

 

Sounds like you just aren't familiar with the style.

The first time I had it I already knew I liked bourbon aged stouts, but BCBS is extremely bourbon-heavy and also (can be, at least fresh) quite hot/boozy. I wasn't a big fan until I got more under my belt and revisited it.

But... an '07 ought to be pretty damn refined right now. The last time I had a BCBS that old it was sublime. And a basement ought to have been the best place other than the fridge for your parents to store that beer, so I doubt that the storage caused any problems.

Go to the bar and get a glass of mid-high range bourbon and see if the aroma/flavor of it is the same thing you disliked about the BCBS. If so you just don't like the beer.

If on the other hand you were tasting things like cardboard, metal, vinegar, or something else that seems "wrong" with the beer itself (as in how you just know when food is spoiled) then maybe the beer was exposed to too much heat or light or something else.

Like suggested maybe trade them away, but I'd say hold onto them for a while, try some similar beers and revisit the BCBS a year or so from now.

 

BCBS is flat and has very strong bourbon burn in the aroma and taste. Other bourbon barrel-aged stouts are smoother with heads, so you can't even necessarily say that you don't like bourbon barrel-aged stouts.

 

Nihilist?

 

Huh?

 

Without knowing a description of what you tasted, there's no way to tell whether you didn't like it as it was meant to be (not used to huge stouts) or if those bottles really were affected by the conditions.

Basically, either provide some tasting notes you had or accept that this thread is a question without an answer.

 

I agree with this advice, get some more experience under your belt with bourbon barrel aged beers then revisit it. That being said, I don't like drinking bourbon, so your bar test here would have reflected I shouldn't like BBA'd beers, which I really do. I had an '09 BCBS and it was fantastic, but it was right at my limit for bourbon taste, I can imagine an '07 would be even more subtle.

 

I've never had a cellar that was anything but reasonably stable when it came to temperature, so I doubt the cellar ruined anything. If BCS is your 1st BA brew that's a monster step. The 1st BCBC I had I kind did a double take too, I wasn't expecting something quite that sweet, that flat, and no bitterness. It was a bourbon bomb, but it took 3-4 bottles before I got "it". IMO it's similar to Parabola in style, but a bit more boozy which I don't mind at all. I can see how someone who's never had a BA brew before could spit this one out.

 

07's are twist off caps, so are a bit more oxidized than more recent years, its not overwhelming, but certainly a prominent taste and could vary bottle to bottle. 5 Years in a basement with big temp swings could also ruin anything, so keep that in mind. OP you should either go out and find some fresh to compare, or put a bottle up for trade and get yourself a fresh one that way, just tell the trader about the basement so everyone is happy (unless you really dont like BA stouts, then your screwed)

 

I picked up a single of this BCBS from a very generous BA and cracked it open last night. You know what I HATED about it? That I don't have more of it.

 

I don't care what you do with it, but if you do trade the remaining ones away, PLEASE let them know of the storage issue before you complete the trade. I would be pissed if I traded for 07 BCBS only to find out later that there was a thread about whether they were bad or not.