Bourbon County 2018

I'm aware of the pasteurization, what I'm really asking is could it be possible to leave it on the shelf for over a year without loosing the adjunct flavors for future enjoyment (not tying to improve flavors via cellaring like I do with non adjunct stouts).

 

It sucks now, and it’ll suck in 5 years too.

 

It may suck for you and others, that's ok.
It's one of the few that I enjoyed this year, fortunately was able to get multiples.

 

I’ve heard bottle versus draft variation on Vanilla. How about wheatwine? Had it on draft and really liked it. Expect the exact same from the bottle?

 

I think he realizes (or at least I do) that real beans were used, but it just tastes artificial. When I discussed this with someone else though that agreed with me, I realized maybe we’re not that good at differentiating the flavor of real versus artificial vanilla. Perhaps the issue here is that there’s just too much vanilla here, making the beer seem very unbalanced. That’s just my thought, though.

 

Yeah, I think that same description is on the bottle, or I at least read that somewhere- maybe the Untappd entry of it. I'm not saying that it had extract in it, I know it doesn't, but it certainly smells and tastes that way to me. I'm not saying my perception is right, just my experience. And The Spice House reference is not a knock, it's super high quality stuff. It was just too much for me is all. Hence the idea to cut it some.

Nope. I use this gadget. There are several others for sale on there that have better ratings, but this was gifted to me for wine and we rarely used it. Then I had an idea one night. So I got something I wasn't tied to at all out of my cellar. Opened it the next night and it worked perfectly for me. Holds carb beautifully for 24 hours, not bad at 48. It's broken down the, "I have to work tomorrow and/or I have a lot to do/ I just don't want to drink a whole bottle of something in one night barrier" for me.

 

Haven't had this year's Reg so can't comment there, but I agree on Deth's. It's a great beer, but it's slightly hot, and it's one-note in a way BCBS isn't.

I'm okay living in a world where GI and Rev keep doing things their way, though.

 

Guys, this just in. The vanilla variant has vanilla. The Bramble variant is fruity. The Orange one has Orange. And prop is super choclate-y.

If you like that, you'll like that. If you don't, you won't.

If you want a nice balanced bcbs, stick to regular or reserve.

Note: I reject wheatwine and coffee barleywine as being bcbs....because they aren't.

 

so...all [insert adjunct] stouts should taste the same? it's not possible for a stout to be well balanced and not have said adjunct completely overwhelm the beer?

i've tried neither yet, but that's just a ridiculous position to take.

 

This vanilla shake has too much vanilla. Why isn't it more balanced?

This fruit pie is way to fruity.

This Orange truffle is really orange-y.

Etc.

"Balance" is simply in the eye of the beholder.

 

This. I bought a second bottle of Bramble yesterday over several other (non Prop and non Reserve) options since really enjoyed it at a bar on Friday.

 

Exactly! I don’t care if real or fake ingredients were used. The vanilla flavor is too damn high!

 

MY OPINION IS MORE IMPORTANT THAN YOUR OPINION.



YOU ARE BAD AND SHOULD FEEL BAD

 

When people say something is better than another thing, they are saying they like the former more or have a preference for it over the latter. That's how it should be interpreted imo anyway. It's all subjective and everyone has different preferences.

 

I dunno, since palates are such a personal thing, there's no way to be completely objective about a beer. And if you prefer a beer, it makes sense that you'd think it's a "better" beer.

Yeah, basically this. I don't think many people would deny that BCBS is a top-tier beer in terms of how its crafted, but whether or not said crafting does anything for you personally is another matter.

 

I may be a little fuzzy on this, but I'm fairly sure there was a large consensus of beer nerds in Nov '14 claiming that VR was too damn sweet and tasted like straight vanilla extract. We all know what happened with that beer over the next 2-3 years from a hype perspective.

My advice, buy all of the Vanilla you can find, and whether you like them to drink or want some good trade bait, you won't regret your decision.

 

Vanilla extract is made with real extracted vanilla beans put into alcohol and water...it makes a super concentrated form. Real vanilla beans don't have an alcohol like flavor. It is very likely the alcohol from the high abv in BCBS combines with the absurd amount of vanilla beans added to form something that tastes exactly like vanilla extract to most people since vanilla extract is very similar being vanilla + alcohol... I got vanilla extract all day from it.

 

As someone who didn't like VR that much (but bought 2 because I thought I would), and traded 1 away for a variant he preferred, this isn't a terrible idea. On the other hand, if you don't like it, at least leave it on the shelf until I can pick one up.

 

It's super fun/interesting to read the disagreements about nearly every BCS in the lineup this year. There doesn't seem to be a consensus at all as to what is the standout aside from maybe Reserve and that Midnight Orange actually tastes like one of those orange chocolate balls.
Person 1: Regular 18 is that standout
Person 2: Regular 18 is by far the worst since 13 and it's basically water

Person 1: Vanilla is so smooth and has exactly the right balance of vanilla, barrel, and beer
Person 2: Vanilla is terrible. It's like someone is injecting extract right into my taste buds. Might be a drain pour for me.