Cellar Reviews (2020)

Also, if anyone knows why my posted photos have suddenly gotten smaller (I use postimages and have not changed anything) please let me know so I can fix it.

 

Cross posted to WBAYDN...
For International Beer Day I went deep into my cellar for a 2011 DFH 120 Minute.
This tends to be really hot fresh - but man, it ages beautifully. Super smooth, obviously not much hops left, but great malt flavor - it's more like a big barleywine at this point. I think I have a few more down there.
I don't have an online photo account to post pics. Just trust me, deep amber, no head to speak of (9 years old...)

 

postimages.org

No account required and works really well on here (usually at least, recent tiny photos above aside)

 

Haha I just gave the exact same advice on the aging dfh 120 thread... Really made posting images a thing I'm up to

 

Last nights beer was a 2018 Bourbon County Prop. This variant is the double chocolate Prop, brewered with cocoa nibs and chocolate, and apparently more cocoa nibs so maybe triple chocolate? Although this is a 2018 vintage, it is a new to me beer, so no fresh review to compare to. Sent over via trade from @beergeekpics , thanks man! Let’s see how this one is drinking.

Pour is black with a thin sliver of mocha colored head which dissipates quickly. The first thing i get from the aroma is a huge peanut butter which I did not expect. Next is some unsweetened dark cocoa, then an almost astringent booziness. Smells nice but far from the best BCB beer I’ve smelled. Taste is definitely richer, fuller, more chocolatey, and overall better than the nose implied. There is a molasses type sweetness up front, and huge dark chocolate characters on the finish that linger for ages. Barrel characters are much more prevalent on the taste compared to the nose as well, with a very nice bourbony charred oak. The chocolate present is large, but I get almost no milk chocolate or fudgey notes, moreso strong high % cocoa dark chocolate. Mouthfeel is smooth and full bodied, drinkability typical of BC. Overall, a very tasty beer but amongst the lower tier of my personal preference of Bourbon County Brand beers.

4/4/4.25/4.25/4.25
Original/Fresh: n/a

 

So Happens It's Tuesday from The Bruery. Canned on 8/29/2019.

Not super into the big beers in cans but it is nice to be able to get beers like this in a smaller format. I really enjoyed this last year and have one left after this. I'm hoping we will see a drop up.my way this year as well.

Right out the gate, the pour is dark dark with a very fizzy (like cola fizzy) brown head that dissipates very quickly.

The first whiff is alllll bakers chocolate. Bitter sweet for days.

The first sip is a little thin with bitter chocolate and something similar to raspberry going on. It definitely needs to warm up.

As it warms the body gets a bit heavier and the flavor starts to tend toward the black cherry/prune spectrum. Bourbon is still there in the background for sure. Some heat creeping in on the back end carrying those barrel.notes, charred wood especially, on the exhale.

Definitely more.complex as it nears room temp, just like fresh. Not sure this has gained anything with a year on it. May have lost a half step but it's still very good. Nose seems less complex than I noted fresh and I think the taste is more tart.

I'll probably hold on to the other one at least until I see if they drop again up here this year. Not sure what I'll do with that in for but I don't need another one of these behemoths in the next few months anyway.

 

Maybe this 2016 bottle would be a better beer for a Cellar Review although when I say I cellared this beer I mean it in the loosest terms. This is a crosspost from WBADYN. It is very smooth, with a good amount of dark fruits. Tiny bitterness. Good beer. I am a newbie at drinking cellared beers but I don't detect any off flavors. I would love some tips on how to detect the various flavors after age.

Anyone got tips of stouts I should try to age? I hard BA Barleywines age well but I've never tried one and don't know if I wanna invest that money I don't know it I like


I also have a 2018 Maple Bacon Coffee Porter, a February 2018 Scofflaw BBA Cuvee De Goat, and a 2018 Kane Sunday Morning Brunch.

 

Thanks for the great info; I will definitely look into some other thread. I will probably be able to get some Succubus soon for the first time, is that something you would let age a bit or drinking fresh? Or maybe but multiple bottles and try it both ways?

Thanks again for all your great insight man

 

I find that big stouts, free of flavoring age the best (more accurately that the various flavors added tend to fade, but you pay more for them, so you might as well drink them when they're most prominent). BA stuff tends to age worse, IMO, than non BA (again, partly because the barrel character you are paying a premium for fades and partly because the beer comes to you aged). There are also some notable exceptions.to.that rule like BA beers from.Firestone Walker, The Bruery, and regular BCBS.

Like @Beersnake1 said, finding what YOU enjoy aged is definitely a journey. I think that un-BAed imperial stouts are a good place to start. I'm currently experenting with narwhal cause I know I like it fresh and it's pairly cheap. If I don't like the 2018 bottle I open soon to see at 2 years if I think it's worth it then I'll know to but what I'm gonna drink every year and move on. I should start a old Rasputin experiment next. Start experimenting with your locals, exploring things that aren't so expensive/rare is a good way to explore, in my opinion.

Some things you might look for in aging candidates are; big stouts that have too much "heat", where one intense flavor (cacao, bourbon, prunes, etc) dominates, orwhere the various flavors clash/compete. If a beer hits any of those marks for you it's possible some age will serve it well. After that, check in every 6 months and you'll find your sweet spots

 

I mainly age shelfie bois, as others have noted... not only because I’m ‘cheap’, but mostly because those elements you pay a premium for typically diminish (stolen from @unlikelyspiderperson who so concisely summed up the feelings I knew I had but didn’t quite have the words for RE: Aging BA Almost Anything)

Stuff like Expedition, Narwhal, Old Rasputin all see noticeable differences/improvements as they age. The great part of these is you pay say like $60 for 24, rather than 3 of them like a bomber of any BA’d beer, if you’re lucky.

Do experiment though.. aaaand always report back

 

2017 Bourbon County Brand Barleywine - also known as BCBBW



This bottle was taken from a fridge (kept somewhere between 34 and 40 degrees F, although I'm not sure where (still haven't set up the thermometer since moving). This particular bottle has been refrigerated for probably 9 months, although it may have been refrigerated longer before that (I moved, don't know if this bottle of the BCBBWs that I have was refrigerated).

The bottle was popped and poured into a wine-style Hill Farmstead Glass (made me feel classy tonight). It poured a deep mahogany, cloudy, with low carbonation.

Appearance: Score: 4.25

First impressions: This beer hasn't changed a bit in 3 years. Perhaps it is less alcohol forward (i.e. not as 'hot' as fresh), but it's a subtle difference if the difference exists. After having slowly sipped on this for hours, I think it's unfair to say that it hasn't changed. The flavors mesh better together than what I recall when fresh. I certainly find this more enjoyable 3 years old than fresh.

Smell: A mixture of bourbon, dark fruits, perhaps a hint of chocolate, and an almost wave of berries, as well as fusel alcohol. To get the berries I really have to tilt the glass back, inhale slowly through my nose and allow the alcohol to pass through, opening my sinuses in the same way that horseradish might. It's almost a mix of blueberries, raspberries, and perhaps another red berry (but certainly not blackberries). The fusel alcohol note isn't inherently off putting. With enough alcohol presence, if you put your nose deep enough, you get this. In this case, I'm getting a whiff of that just on the back end. I've never gotten it from 2013/2014 BCBBW, but I have from 2016/2017 BCBBW. Score: 4.0

Taste: Classic barleywine, with some bourbon (and barrel) on both the front and the back end. Classic notes of Leather and tobacco. I also get a hint of dark fruit, which when combined with tobacco and leather work, but are some of my least favorite flavors in a stout. You can tell that it's sweet on your palate, and will leave you sticky, but it doesn't come off sweet. After most tastes have left your mouth, you can still feel/taste this at the very back of your mouth, right at the point on your tongue where if a doctor depressed a tongue depressor, it'd make you gag. What remains there is the heavy leather and tobacco. Score: 4.35

Mouthfeel: Thick and viscous, almost like I (imagine) simple syrup would be. It has a "weight" to it, that you can feel on your palate, that you won't get from an IPA, a lager, or water. Score: 4.75

Overall, I love this beer. I don't love it as much as I love the 13 and 14 vintages, and to some degree I don't even love it as much as I do Rev's Straight Jacket, because that beer as a certain amount of "drink ability" that this one doesn't have by toning back the leather and tobacco. That said, I've not been a fan of every iteration of straight jacket, and if given the choice between the two (knowing nothing about that version of SJ), I'd probably choice BCBBW. This beer is good, and should be compared to other similarly produced BWs that aren't of an extraordinarily limited nature. For example, I'd argue that Circle of Wolves (from The Veil) is better, but the availability (at release or now, for either) isn't even close to being the same. In my opinion, this beer is also a good value at $10-14/bottle. Score: 4.25

Review Score: 4.28

 

Figgin' @ManBearPat for the win. This seems to be the secret to enjoying the act of aging beer. On that note...

2018 SN Narwhal, bottled 8/30/19, so exactly (?) two weeks. This has been an on going experiment, and we are at the 2 year mark.

First thing I notice is that the solid finger of coffee colored foam sticks around. Very persistent and very beautiful. Did I give this thing a 5 on appearance? Its deserving.

The nose starts off with dark chocolate and quickly gains pruney/figgy notes. First sip hits a little hard on the cola honestly, but that passes quickly, and prunes, raisins and their dark puddings/breads take over.

As it opens up a bit the bitter chocolate comes into the flavor and the charred wood/malt note show up in the nose. Definitely benefits from a moment in the glass to breathe. The taste gets richer with almost spiced notes, wisps of anise/licorice, glimpses of cardamom. I think this is what hit me as "cola" at first sip. Now it has opened up into a vast field of charry roasted malt.

The nose is hitting that deep fig aroma now as the tongue carries the bitterness. This is coming together really nicely. I understand the appreciation of aging this one and I'll keep the last two 2018 I have and definitely stock up a little more this fall

I feel like this is back at the same level as fresh but at a different place. Its smoother than fresh and more coherent than it was around one year. I probably don't have the discipline to take the 2018 out to 5 years but I have enough 2019 to aim that way

 

Funny enough I opened the same bottle last night after reading on this thread how well it was drinking.



The nose was my favorite part- tons of butter and caramel, very rich and intense. Taste was berries, orange, vanilla, caramel, bourbon, and a little grape. I would venture to say this beer is damn near perfect. It was one of those bottles that I wish would last forever. Thank you to those in this thread that put the time and stock into doing the research so we know when things are drinking so well. Cheers!

 

Cross-posted with NBW.

Copper Kettle Brewing Company - Well Bread (Bourbon BA English Style Barleywine) - 2019



I was given this beer by a good, close friend of mine. He was out in CO with his family, and asked again what beer I liked. I told him. He told me he'd pick up a few beers. Sure enough, within the next couple weeks I got beer mail. Inside were 5 or 6 beers, and to my surprise, this was one of them. How the hell did he actually find a BA BW? I don't know, but I was pretty excited. If memory serves, I received this in....September (of last year)?

Anyway, on to the review. I actually tried (oh no, foreshadowing) first. Review is from notes I took on my phone, since I wasn't in a place to review at a computer at the time of consumption.

Appearance: Poured a light red/orange, very opaque in the same way that a carbonated cola is poured brown-clear out of a machine as the carbonation is mixed with water and the powder. Thin looking (wuh-oh). Score: 3.75

First impressions: Low if any carbonation (which is fine for BWs). As the liquid settled, the color so too settled, resting on the color seen in the photo above - much of an opaque mix of red and browns, with some orange notes mixed in. Not as dark (and not cloudy) like you might find with other BWs, such as BCBBW (2016, 2017).

Smell: Not much. Basically nothing from feet away, all the way up to and when my nose is in the snifter. I get a faint alcohol aroma when my nose is completely inside the snifter. The more I focus, I seem to get a pretty strong orange scent. Not orange zest - that would be too vibrant. Almost the somewhat dull but distinctive orange flavor associated with the orange gummies (covered in chocolate) you see at the holidays. Finally, a hint of cola. This took me awhile to nail down - but once identified, it's definitely cola. It's sort of that effervescent cola smell associated with carbonation. Score: 3.9

Taste: Surprisingly not bitter, which is unusual for a BW for me. Even if they are sticky sweet, I normally get a type of bitterness associated with the leather and tobacco flavors, which although normally present in a BW, is lacking here almost completely. Maybe a faded p[assing presence. There is a sweetness to the taste that is best described as a bleached white sugar simple syrup (not to be confused with a simple syrup made from turbinado sugar). Definitely similar orange flavor as was noted on the nose - perhaps a bit of earhty dark berries as well on the back end. Only the faintest hints of cola came through on the palate. Score: 3.65

Mouthfeel: Nothing special, but the viscosity is mostly right. Perhaps a little thin. No carbonation, which is certainly appropriate for this style. Score: 4.0

Overall: This has very little going for it. It just doens't have much flavor. If it is going for least offensive, it wins. if this was from a brand new opened brewery, I might say, "Man, they could really ahve promise.' Absent of knowing that, all Ia m left with is wanting. Wanting for more traditional English BW flavors, wanting for more sweetness, but without the taste of sugar, and wanting for flavor in general. There is also no barrel presence (ok, very minor on the palate, but not on the nose), which is hugely disappointing.. Score: 3.5

Review Score: 3.72

Review added to BA.

 

Tonight’s (belated birthday) beer is a 2015 Bourbon County Brand Stout. Perhaps my favorite “series” of beers if you include all the variants throughout the years, and the original stout never disappoints. BCBS and it’s variants are probably my most cellared beer, I have vintages of the OG as far as ‘13, but that being said I don’t think I’ve ever drank one with 5 years or more on it. So let’s see how this one is drinking.

Pours an opaque black, not even a full sliver of fizzy mocha colored head. Aroma is dark fruits, roasted malt, leather, faint dark cocoa, subtle but very nice charred oaky vanilla. Aromas are nice but perhaps faded a bit. Taste on the other hand, wow, this is fantastic. Super smooth, super rich. Tons of chocolate, fudgy and rich cocoa. Barrel notes remain prominent with silky smooth bourbony oak. Flavors are huge and linger forever, especially chocolate and much more subtle than fresh (not in a bad way) roasty notes. There are also pretty prominent nice dark fruit characters that’s I don’t usually get from fresh (or 1-2 year aged BCBS). Mouthfeel and drinkability wise, this has just mellowed out so much and is so damn smooth. May have lost a touch of the carbonation otherwise mouthfeel would be perfect. Overall, this is fantastic. It’s notably different from fresh, and even from 1-3 years cellared which is where I usually drink BCBS. I love BCBS fresh and also love how this one has developed with time.

4/4.25/4.75/4.75/4.5
(Original/fresh: 4/4.5/4.5/3.5/4.5; of note this original review was before BA had the .25 intervals)

 

I’ll echo what most others have said above about aging beers. Although most of the cellared beers I drink are either BA or have adjuncts, simply because those are the beers I was amassing back when I bought way more more than I drank, I would say the best beers to age in terms of consistent improvements in its time are non-BA stouts and non-BA barleywines.

In addition to some of the others listed above (several great rec, I think Bigfoot is maybe the ideal aging beer for someone new to the process since it changes so much, relatively quickly and is delicious both fresh and aged) I would also add Lagunitas Brown Shugga to the list. It’s widely available, relatively low cost, and ages divinely.

 

Tonight’s vintage beer is a 2016 DFH 120min. I love this beer, both fresh and aged. Let’s see how this one is drinking around 4 years old.


Pours a very murky brownish amber with bubbly light tan head. Aroma is huge fruity phenols, candied sugar, caramel/toffee, lots of apple. Taste is rather subdued, well subdued it not the correct word but and it has mellowed substantially. Pretty significant quad-like spice, bitterness on the finish. Fruity phenols are present in the taste as well, as is burnt sugar. Not crazy complex but oh so delicious. The mouth feel and drinkability on this beer always impressive me, it’s very smooth and the drinkability is insane for an 18% ABV’er. Overall, a hit as always. I really need to invest in many more of these, both for short and long term cellaring.



3.5/4.5/4.25/4.75/4.5
(Original/Fresh: 4/4/4/5/4.5, of note original review was before BA had the 0.25 interval)