January 2017 Cellar Reviews

2009 Bourbon County Brand Stout; bottled on 10/02/2009.

poured into Spiegelau Bourbon County snifter.

Appearance: Black body with thick medium brown head that quickly drops to a thick ring around the glass. Booze legs coat the glass after each sip.

Smell: charred oak barrel, smoke, and spicy bourbon. Moderate oxidation that is starting to push the limits of being being a pleasant aroma. Dark fruits, black licorice, and chocolates with a hint of vanilla extract and marshmallow fluff.

Taste: This still tastes rich and it has a massive barrel presence now. Char, smoke, and a bone dry oaky barrel presence. I would say almost a moderate bitterness that is replacing the rich vanilla sweetness that I really enjoyed from this beer many times in the past. Dark fruits, black licorice, and baker cocoa. Finishes with so much dry oak barrel with a spicy bourbon and moderate booze note.

Mouthfeel: medium bodied with low carbonation. Oily body with a dry and lingering finish.

Overall: Sadly I feel that this Bourbon County is on the way down and has lost its luster. Still truly delicious, but starting to become a shadow of its former self. Still enjoyed the experience though.

 

I bought this guy when it was freshly released 6 years ago when I visited Ithaca for one of their other releases like Brute or Le Bleu - cant remember which.

Anyway, I have no idea why I only bought one and never drank it until now. Had I tried it sooner, I probably would have went back and bought a case. This might be the best example of an american made quad ive ever had. It has all the dark fruit and caramelized sugary flavors you want in a quad but without actually being sweet. It is also bready and rich with proper carbonation and the slightest touch of oxidation. 10% abv but zero heat. The yeast's phenolic contribution has completely dissolved and integrated into the fruitiness of this brew. Wow.

 

I just opened a vertical tasting of Great Divide Hibernation including the following years: 2010, 2011, 2012, 2014, 2015, 2016 and one bottle of Barrel Aged 2011.

The barrel aged bottle was obviously infected and unpleasantly sour. Nobody wanted more than a sip.

2010: Overly oxidized. At least in the 12oz format, almost 7 years is too long.

2011: The second favorite of the bunch. This bottle has a nice floral aspect and it appeared to have been hoppier when fresh. Much less of the negative aspects of oxidation.

2012: Oxidized and not tasty. Worse than 2010.

2014: Dull tasting, not as bad as 2012.

2015: Not bad, but still sort of dull. I expected this to be better as i typically love 1 year old Hibernation.

2016: Totally different in taste, with a coffee and nutty roast which was not present in any form in the others.

These were all stored in the dark at 51-53 degrees F. I now wonder if Great Divide tweaks the recipe each year because these were so different. I have never tasted a vertical which was so "all over the map."

 

It dawned on me this evening that its been 5 years since I last drank one of these. The cherry has faded leaving room for more alcohol to be showcased as well as a little barrel presence. Earthen, slight raisony instead of cherry, chocolate and roasty/smokey. There is a faint kiss of oxidation creeping in which im really digging. I have 1 remaining bottle...will probably pop it in another 3 years when it turns 10.

 

Weyerbacher Insanity - BBA barleywine with 14 months of age. Whereas my experience drinking these fresh is that they have an outsized alocohol presence (hot) this mellowed bottle still has some heat but it's closer to warm and very manageable. Oak and vanilla are big on the backend. The barleywine's core characteristics are still pronounced - roasted malt, brown sugar, burnt toast, dark fruit. Really nice cascade of flavors that is no longer inhibited by the booze. I can say comfortably that I enjoy this beer better with age than fresh.

 

There were 8 people tasting the whole lot, and I believe that half like 2016 and half liked 2011 the most. It seemed that the people more familiar with aged beer likedthe 2011 because it was remarkable that it stood up and new flavors had developed. However, those with little to no experience with cellaring beer preferred the "fresh" bottle.

 

I believe this bottle is at least 10 years old. When I bought it circa '08 it was already dusty sitting on a shelf with other mixed vintage beer in a bottle shop that has long since gone to hell/closed.

Anyhoo... caramel malt, fruity raisons, cardboard oxidative notes, yet still herbal with pine resine and solvent alcohol. so sweet yet so oily with bitterness too. id throw this into the bigfoot realm of cellar capabilities - meaning this is a brew that likely will suffer from package failure before the beer ever hits its stride/max aging potential


I think this one is circa '09. fruity raisons and mild oxidation with lingering anise after each sip. light cocoa evolves as it warms up. overall this brew has really mellowed out and become mild. probably aged her too long

not pictured: 2010 struise tsjesses reserva

sugary smelling with a neutral/nondescript fruity aspect. toasted malt, faint oak and moderate oxidation. taste has all the same with an increasing herbal component as it warms. i believe this beer is best enjoyed fresh. last time i had it was 3 years ago and back then i felt it was slipping.

 

Bit of a cross post here, but I will go into taste detail here.



The label for this 2012 BCBS is missing, but you can still make out that date I believe of 11/7/2012.

Virtually no head to speak of, regardless of a ferocious pour. As a result, no real lacing either. Best way to explain the nose is German chocolate cake. No other explanation needed I believe. Taste is a big blast of chocolate liqueur before a wave of molasses rolls in and settles quite well with the alcohol taste. As it lingers around a bit longer the alcohol becomes more apparent in both the obvious taste as well as a little circus peanut sweetness. mouth feel is still fairly medium bodied with a dry and slightly bitter finish.

 

Bells Saturn bottle date 4/3/15

Pours a moderate dark amber, no head what so ever. Some suspended particles. Smell of sweet toffee and caramel and bourbon..
Mouthfeel very thick, despite no head at all. Sticky almost.

Taste. I liked it. Booziness is very tolerable and warming. Not over the top as I remember. Sweet but not cloying. Raisins and figs and dried fruit there. Still some bitterness at the back from the hops. Little to no oxidation.

The particle floating were a little off putting, but taste wise it made up. I think I aged well, and to me improved as the beer rounded together taste wise.

 

Fun, quick trip down memory lane. I recall reading your post mostly because I also read the unreasonably long post the weirdo made after you.

 

Southampton Grand Cru -- vintage 2008

Cellared 750 ml brown bottle poured into a Chimay goblet. Purchased in 2008, best by 2012 smudged date on back label.

A: Murky amber with tons of floaters despite a careful pour. Fleeting white foamy head weigh no lacing.

S: Mostly sweet pilsner malt and bubble gum with a light pear yeast ester and dash of coriander

T: Seems like it's probably a shadow of its former self with a washed out pilsner malt sweetness, some oxidation paper, bubblegum and light medicinal note with low bitterness and light orange and coriander notes in the finish.

M: Also thin and a bit lifeless with moderate carbonation and light, light body

O: Would love to find this again and try fresher.

 

Saint Arnold Divine Reserve 15, bottled 01/13/15.

I feel that the roasted notes are more upfront at this point. The chocolate flavors when fresh seem to have faded. This is still drinkable as ever. I look forward to more years with this one.

 

I'm sure this is well covered, but nonetheless...

11/6/13 vs 9/26/16 Ten Fidy from Oskar Blues.

I've tried Ten Fidy with some age in the past and recall thinking it better fresh. This comparison completely reinforced my memory as indisputable fact (read as: opinion).

The freshy needs little introduction, with it's dryish, smoky, roasty, cocoa, and a bit hoppy goodness.

The '13 really seemed to be less of all those flavors and some cardboard instead (the point of purchase claimed dark and 45° storage continuously, just lost in the back). The alcohol is certainly better integrated, but the that's about all that could be claimed as positive for me.

Recently had a '13 BCBS, which was incredible and developing just as I would hope and with much less perceived oxidation. Not so with the Ten Fidy. I'll drink this one fresh from here on out.

 

Brought up 2 cases of last year's brews to see how they held up. Sorry if these are all old news for most of you, but this idea of packing things away with a specific opening date is new and exciting for me! Gonna post these up fast and loose. So far:

Founder's Breakfast Stout: Coffee has faded away leaving a nice chocolatey vibe. When I first poured it I was picking up something metallic in the taste that seemed to fade as it warmed up. Very tasty and glad I have a couple more left over from the 9/2015 date.

BCBS 2015: My first bad bottle The normally fudgy elements are overshadowed by some kind of armpit sweat/rotten berry thing. Poured out a bunch of it. Also poured out a BW that I held onto just for 'what if it's good?' types of shits and giggles. Thought my regular BCBS 'safe dates' were okay, but guess not...

2015 North Coast Old Stock Ale: Pours the predictable caramel color with a little head that lingers surprisingly long. Taste is dark fruits all day - figs, prunes, and above all raisins! Very smooth and the hefty booze is not even perceptible. Is it an old ale? Is it a vintage barleywine? Whatever it is it is delicious! The other 3 in this 4 pack went into next year's "Do Not Open Until 2018" box. I imagine they will get even better.

2016 KBS: Coffee has obviously faded and taken on some kind of strange vegetable elements that are different but not bad. It tastes like some of the 'green' low roast coffee I get at a local coffee shop vs the java-esque darkness of how it is fresh. The chocolate elements come to the forefront and the remnants of the coffee keep the sweetness tempered. Very different from when it was fresh - not in a bad way for me - but I can see how old KBS is not everyone's jam.

Central Waters 18th Anniversary BA Imperial Stout: The brownie elements have surprisingly faded, but so has the bourbony booziness leaving me with an enticingly smooth, well-melded bottle to work my way through. This is damn good and held up very well. Could probably hold on for another year easily and get even smoother. The barrel rules the taste with elements of chocolate and roasty vanilla. Absolutely delicious, but maybe a bit better fresh? May have to open my last one soon...

2015 Central Waters Brewer's Reserve BA Stout: That distinctive CW barrel flavor has faded and melded into the base to create an easily drinkable chocolate/bourbon stout. The body is still as light as ever, but the flavor has smoothed out from the initial bourbony chocolate milk that this beer is fresh. Cracking this made me very happy that I stocked up this year.

Looking forward to going through these boxes of beers! Upcoming highlights for me include my first time drinking Bell's Expedition and Ol' Raspy with a year on it plus a WI IPA that is supposedly "designed for cellaring." We shall see how it all shakes out!