Cellar Reviews (2021)

Sorry. Ive never had a fresh one.

 

Oldie but goodie.

Oxidized, slight tartness, some soy, boozy. Not much of a roasted malt aspect left but it is very pleasing in its own way.

 

Tonight’s cellar beer is one that just crossed that border into cellar territory after celebrating its first birthday. A 2020 Bourbon County Kentucky Fog, bottled 12AUG2020. I was able to purchase a handful of these at release time and plan to systematically try them over the next several years. Nows as good a time as ever to start.

An aggressive pour yields only a thin sliver of dark tan head. Limited retention and lacing. Jet black and opaque as per usual. Aroma is still bergamot up front but is already starting to fade (in a good way), which allows the other characters to also shine. Roasted malt, charred oak, subtle dark fruits, black tea, fairly subtle cocoa characters. The nose has definitely improved with some tincture of time. Taste is roasty, honey, black coffee bitterness, bergamot and black tea. It’s one of the most bitter of the BCB beers/variants, perhaps remnants from the tea, but the honey does a nice job of balancing out the bitterness. Bourbon barrel characters are present with a fusel ethanol and charred wood. Mouthfeel is full bodied, it’s smooth and quite drinkable. I think the balancing of flavors has helped with the drinkability. Overall it’s an excellent beer, it’s definitely developing and will be interesting to see how it morphs over the next few years.

4.25/4.5/4.25/4.5/4.5
(Original/fresh review: 4.25/4/4.5/4/4.5)

 

I feel like a beer bottled in 1985 is worthy of more of an explanation!

 

It's a Courage Russian Imperial Stout though I have never seen a bottle of it like this before. The only Courage mention is on the top label. Got a 73 and a 75 waiting and they have the more traditional labeling.

 

I so agree. Amazing beer!
A few years ago, I was able to drink one (don't know which year's) on draught at the Tap and Handle in Fort Collins. That was a unique experience.

 

I’ve read about Courage but I’m pretty sure this is the first time I’ve actually seen bottles. Super cool!

 

Here's my review of a 1976 bottle, with a small side note of a 1968:

This is a brewed in 1976 edition bottle, 6oz(170ml)

I've always wanted to try a Courage Imperial Russian Stout ever since I read about it many years ago. Here is my chance.

I remove the cap, which isn't a crown cap...kind of surprised me given the age of the beer, and give it a vigorous pour into my NB Goblet. A few bubbles show up and then a light sheeting of foam appears and then disappears almost immediately. There are still *some* bubbles in the middle and around the edge of the glass. Oh, forgot to mention, there was a decent hiss when I popped the cap.

Zooming my nose over the glass, this smells very strong. Strong as in strong dark fruits, very sherry like notes, some caramel sweetness and good doses of chocolate. And a huge presence of alcohol. Just by the smell alonge I know this one is not for the faint at heart.

First sip and...the sherry like nose is there in the flavour. Wow. What a punch it delivers! The chocolate I mentioned in the nose is here and is rather big and bold bring lots of sweet tones..the dark fruits, not so much.

Seeing as this is a RIS and they are known for roasted malt goodness, I was worried as I didn't sense that in the smell at all. The taste, happily, shatters that worry. Very nicely roasted malt flavours are exploding every which way but loose and the alcohol? Wow. What a difference between smell and taste. It pretty much dominated the smell but the taste doesn't expose the 10%abv at all. Yeah, there's plenty of warming after the swallow, which is where I prefer it, but it sure isn't noticeable in the taste at all.

Cool, I just noticed that after a few sips, the foam makes a comeback of sorts. Big old island off center and now a complete ring around the glass. That surprised the hell out of me.

Big bodied and silky smooth with a surprisingly nice tingle of carbonation periodically during the session. 6oz?? I want more, damn it.

Drinkability? For a ~34 year old brew...absolutely incredible! Hell, if this was still being brewed and a fresh bottle is what I was drinking right now I'd say..absolutely incredible!

Bottom line(I haven't one of these in a while):
What can I say? I'm going to do my best to seek out more as this is one of the finest drinking experiences I've *ever* had. I'd LOVE to see Wells and Young's bring this beer back!

I had a bottle from 1968.
Short and sweet, Really roasty and dry. Leather, tobacco, smokey. An interesting 50 year old beer

 

I’m very intrigued by this Courage RIS and the fact that multiple people in here are drinking 30+ year old vintages of it. When was it retired? How are people finding such old bottles , etc?

 

I'm pretty sure it is still made. It comes from the UK and thus isn't necessarily widely available. I have no idea where people get these decades old bottles

 

It looks like this store in Chicago has 3 in stock:

https://www.wlvliquors.com/product/courage-russian-imperial-stout

As for myself, other than the draught I had in Fort Collins, I believe that I bought all them from a bloke in the UK.

 

Just purchased my first Hair of the Dog vintage box. Not gonna lie, pretty pumped!

 

Tonight’s cellar beer is a 2016 Bourbon County Brand Barleywine. I believe I only secured two that year, back when BCBBW and all variants were extremely scarce in my neck of the woods. Notes from my original tasting in early 2017 are glowing, no surprise as this is (read was, *sad face*) always an elite beer, regardless of the (non-infected) vintage. Let’s see how it’s developed over 5 years.

Pours a dark mahogany, essentially opaque, 1/2 fingers width of dark khaki head. Aroma is huge, just massive as soon as you pop the bottle. Overripe dark fruits and caramel/toffee are the most prominent initial aromas. Barrel notes follow and remarkably remain prominent with huge charred oak and a fairly heavy peat-like character. Moderate fusel ethanol that gives it a bit of bite. Quite a nose. Taste is starting to fade, it’s even a bit oxidized which comes as a bit of a surprise as I’ve had older vintages that held up flawlessly (albeit in the original 12oz format, not sure if packing variations contributed). All is not completely lost, far from it, but the creeping oxidation definitely detracts some. Once you get past that the other characters are big fruit, overripe dark fruits and dates. Caramel and toffee are there, and remain strong. The barrel notes are faded, and there is a pretty big nondescript bitterness. Mouthfeel is fuller side of medium bodied, carbonation low but nothing inappropriate for the style, drinkability is surprisingly good even with the touch of oxidation. Overall this remains very good but has definitely faded. If other bottles are the same as this one I would encourage drinking this soon as the oxidation monster is starting to rear its ugly head.

4.25/4.5/4.25/4.25/4.5
(Original/fresh review: 4.25/4.75/4.75/4.25/4.75)