How much better are they really?

i seriously see little difference in most, although i havent had many rare ones. i was bummed when i only got a couple kbs, so i bought some Ba Boris and everything was all good.

 

Tons of people have done tastings.

Here's my take...

The difference between "the best of the best" and "good" is slightly incremental, at most. For example, Rare was great and all, but no way in hell it's worth 4-5x the price of regular BCBS.

The difference between the "mega hyped/rare" and "common" is negligible. Often times the common beer actually tastes better. For example, I think Parabola is a better beer than just about any BA stout out there. Yet Parabola flows like water in the trading community, whereas you'd have to pay and arm and a leg for many other beers.

Net-net - you're not missing out on much if you never get to tick a whale.

 

Most of them will be pretty much the same, and which one you percieve as the best could come down to something other than the beer itself, like what food you pair it with, the environment, etc.

Be careful chasing whales and harder to get stouts; it's a good way to set yourself up for disappointment. (Especially if you're after Dark Lord, IMO).

Bottom line, enjoy your beer. You don't need to have a bunch for a tasting or have a super rare beer. You really probably aren't missing out at all.

 

It's being able to say you had it, being able to explain how you got to land it, and impressing your friends by bringing it to a tasting. Many of them do taste quite nice, too.

 

I have KBS, BCBS, 50/50 EC12, Parabola, BA BORIS, BA Raspy, I think I might put together a tasting and throw in Expedition an Founders IRS and see if there really is a difference.

 

I haven't had all of the beers mentioned, but for what it's worth, I totally agree with the sentiments expressed above. Many of the ``whales'' are exceptional beers and if you have an opportunity to pick one up or try one, then by all means do so. However, to go to extremes in terms of expense and inconvenience (travel or, God forbid, buying on ebay) is probably not a good idea.

Many of these ``whales'' will actually come to you if you just keep your eyes and ears open. Find out about special tasting events that top brewers host at local bars or bottle shops and try to attend as many as you can. You never know when they'll show up with something really special. In the last year, I've had the opportunity to try KBS, CBS, Blacknote, and Zombie Dust, all extremely rare beers in this area, and I never once had to drive far from home or stand in line at 7 o'clock in the morning.

 

Drink local, stay safe. Unless you are going after Darkness. That stuff is amazing.

I have been to a few tastings with big stouts and whales. I would not say they all taste the same. Some are compairable but most are different. Many stouts that I and others have traded for that people consider whales have not been mind blowing (Bar Fly). Good yes but nothing crazy. Tastings are the best way to try many of the bigger stouts out there. As others have mentioned you can usually find a great stout at your local beer store that will be better than that stout your trading for (CBS was a disappointment).

 

I assume that being in Pittsburgh you can get Weyerbacher Heresy. I'm new to the world of BA stouts, and that and KBS are the only 2 I've tried. KBS is significantly better, but Heresy is still really nice. I think there is a difference for the hyped beer because it's hyped for a reason. That said, going crazy to get them is not something I'd do. While I do find a difference, I don't think that they're some sort of magic potion I'd drive across the country to get or buy for ridiculous prices. I wouldn't go nuts to try them, or maybe just try to get one. I find KBS '12 to be fantastic and I assume it'd be significantly easier to get than some of those others you mentioned.

 

There are a few that are out there that are worth it.

CBS, BT, Rare, ICED Eclipse & the 2011 BASC are very good. Wasnt a fan of Huna actually, DL sucked, Sexual Chocolate sucked too.
Parabola like someone said is a very good stout and for the price and trading its well worth it. Black Betty, New Holland Night Tripper, BORIS Royale and some others are hidden gems.

I think the desire to tick a wale will make people do some crazy things. Its always tough to find that happy medium.

Cheers!

 

So the 3 top reasons you go after rare beers revolve around other people. Odd.

 

Black Note "Really Good"
Rare "I liked regular 09' BCBS a lot better" (and rated it higher obviously... )
BA Huna (had the Bourbon) AMAZING, really lived up to the hype... had it side-by-side with regular, and I didn't enjoy regular, too spicy etc.
DOS I haven't had.
CBS "Another that lived up to the hype"

With that said, I didn't trade for the Rare (someone else brought that) but if I did, would I feel bad about trading what it would take to land it only to find out I prefer regular BCBS over it? I say "No" and it's not because I have some crazy obsession with making notches on the bed-post to signify all of the beers I've been fortunate enough to try, it's because without actually trying it, it would be likened to an itch that never gets scratched. The "unknowing" of what the beer tastes like makes up for the additional costs of trading (shipping, giving up beers I know I like, etc) and that's why some things I will go way over $4$ just so I can try them.

When someone tells me "ehh don't go after Event Horizon because it's really not that good" it doesn't really make me want to try it any less, and sometimes if someone says something is terrible, I have the urge to try it even more!

After you try something is the only time you'll truly know what a certain beer is 'worth' to you.... until then, you're basing what it's worth on what it's worth for you to "Try" the beer.

Good luck.... I'd go right for the jugular and go after that BA Huna!

If you can't tell the difference between a BA stout and a non-BA stout, I'd be surprised (and saddened)

 

I'm poking fun at why BAs go after limited release beers. I don't exclude myself. I know it's really more of a "this would taste good and be fun to open with my tasting group."

 

Gotcha. I missed the sarcasm. Once you pointed it out I did chuckle. Well played.

 

If you've ever tasted any of them, the hype makes perfect sense.

Though Lord knows unless you pay out the ass for a bottle or get lucky at the release, traders are pretty stingy about giving those up

 

I guess what I was getting at was I can walk into a liquor store and buy the RIS almost at will, especially expedition, Does the BA in a blind tasting add that much more to the beer across the board, to justify the added expense and headache. My bet is it does, but if I get 6 people in a room will they all rate the BA above the RIS, and If I had some of the whales where would they rank. My bet is you would not see the stratification. The only "whale" I have ever had 2009-2010 DL was good but I don't know if in a Blind it would top some of the just hard to get BA.

 

The short answer is "how much do you like bourbon flavor in your beer?" DL isn't barrel aged, by the way.

And no, barrel aging a stout does not automatically make it better. For a great example, I think Victory Storm King is a better beer than Dark Intrigue. Ditto Old Rasputin and the crazy overpriced anniversaries. I also like Breakfast Stout better than KBS (though it's not quite the same base beer).

But, sometimes a BA stout is better than the base beer.

 

I think the best thing to do here is try to compile some side by sides of base beers and the BA version. I have done this a few times with stouts and barleywines (Plead - BA plead, Storm King - Dark Intrigue, Old Heathen - Heresy, Blithering Idiot - Insanity). It is an interesting experiment so you can see exactly what the barrel adds to each beer.

 

Totally agree and these are the exact examples I would use. (must have similar palates to some extent)

To the OP's original question. When they are good... they are totally epic and yes worth it. Parabola, BA Boris, BA Plead the Fifth, Standard BCBS, Rare BCBS are simply amazing beers.