February 2018 Cellar Reviews

St. Louis - Gueuze Fond Tradition 20140522

Starts with about two fingers of fluffy white head which quickly reduces to a small cap and collar. Body is transparent amber with tons of visible carbonation.

Nose is a touch vinegary with floral undertones and notes of orange zest. Light on the funk and oakiness.

Taste follows the nose, but citrus (both lemon and orange) dominates. A touch vinegary in the middle of the mouth with subtle floral notes. Finishes slightly tart with a touch of oaky vanilla. Very little barnyard funk.

Mouth feel is light and pricky, especially in the middle of the mouth. Finishes is tart and clean.

I don't have a ton of experience with Gueuze, but this is tasty beer though it isn't as complex as some other open fermentation wilds that I'm consumed (both American and Belgian). I prefer a little more funk, but I enjoyed orange and floral notes. This aged incredibly well (unsurprisingly) and would've benefited more time in the cellar.

 

Founders Brewing - Frootwood (BO 12/21/16)
Poured at cellar temp. White head fades to ring with slight cap. Smells of faint bourbon, vanilla, oak, & cherry. Taste follows the smell. Pie cherries dominate, with vanilla & oak not to far behind. Really well integrated after a little over a year. I feel the cherry comes through even more now than it did when fresh. Other than that not much change.

Cheers!

 

2011 Voodoo BBVD

Jet black, with dark tan colored head that quickly fades. Aroma of dark chocolate, and a touch of smoke. Taste is fairly dry, a bit roasty. Also a little dark fruit and some oxidation. Thick, slick mouthfeel. It definitely going downhill, so this is one to drink fresher.

 

2010 Bell's Expedition Stout - Batch #10105

Pours black like ink, with dark brown head that fades fast. Aroma of bakers chocolate, red wine, and smoke. Similar flavors - in addition to your typical imperial stout flavors there is a dark fruit component. thick, full bodied.

 

2010 Full Sail Old Boardhead Barleywine. 22oz bottle into snifter glass.

Murky dark copper color, thin head that fades. Aroma is spicy, herbal, fruity, earthy. Taste starts sweet, caramel, raisin, then finishes dry, some sherry oxidation flavor. Low carbonation, the beer coats the tongue.

 

Yesterday a friend who is moving away gave me a bunch of beer out of her fridge, including some which will be reviewed here subsequently, but among them was the recent Great Lakes Christmas Ale, bottled on 2/17/2017, and the 2016 version bottled on 3/5/2016. I've been told that the brewery doesn't adhere to a strict formula from year but you'd be hard pressed from the smell and the taste, in both cases tasting of honey and cinnamon. The older one had a slightly more mediciny taste that wasn't unpleasant; in fact it added an edge that I found lacking from the current. I know that might seem counterintuitive but it's how it tasted. Both were poured into Lost Abbey long stemmed tulips and the older version was darker with more persistent carbonation.

I don't know how appropriate it is to age winter warmers, which is how BA categorizes this, but Vintage Beer looked at Anchor Brewing Christmas Ale and recommended a maximum age of three years. I have two more 2017s and might do this subsequently.

 

Founders Curmudgeon bottled 12/30/2016

Poured into a long stemmed Lost Abbey tulip I think the color has darkened some. Still a strong oak smell and taste. The taste has a slight bitterness at the end that I'm not sure I noticed a year ago; this was a gift from a friend moving and cleaning out her fridge so I'm not sure what the storage circumstances were, so I still have three more to further age and hopefully the bitterness doesn't get to the point that it's undrinkable. Maybe in another year there will be a fresh batch with which I can compare.

 

Night Shift Sommerweisse - bottled August 2014

About two fingers of light, fluffy white head. Quickly dissipates to nothing - no cap, no collar, no lacing. Golden body, the color of apple juice. Some slow moving, visible carbonation.

Nose is a combination of apple cider vinegar, sparkling apples cider, a bit of lemon grass, and artificial lemon cleaner scent.

Taste begins with apple juice and lemon grass. Middle of the mouth is sweet, with continued but subdued notes of pear shifting to ripe lemon flesh. Finish is dominated by tart lemon flesh and lemon grass. Extremely tart and acidic.

Medium bodied with high carbonation. Sugary and acidic finish. Stick to my teeth like sour candy.

I was kind of dreading pulling this from the cellar. I bought this bottle before trying the beer fresh and when I did I found it to be unbalanced, extremely tart, and artificial tasting. Age has done this well. It's not a great beer, but it's drinkable now, the artificial taste has nearly dissipated, and there's some complexity to the flavor. If you're into tooth enamel stripping, acid reflux inducing sours, this beer is for you.

I'm glad NS retired it.

 

Backwoods Bastard 10/5/16

Poured into a Lost Abbey tulip. Age has not removed the barrel taste or the carbonation, still has a nice head, but maybe it's slightly more balanced and the mouthfeel is still outstanding. If nothing else, this makes me even more happy that it will soon be available year round.

 

2014 Deschutes Abyss RIS, 22oz waxed bottle, 11.1%

Pours dense black with a thick brown cap of expanding foam that falls to leave thick and chunky lacing. Smells of sweet bourbon, molasses, chocolate and faint coffee roast. Taste is full and rich- bitter chocolate with a toasty char greet, followed by deep molasses and chocolate mocha. Mouthfeel is thick and smooth, medium carbonation. Overall what I expected of such a rich and sweet beer at 3 years. The char and sweetness can seem like a chore after a while, but when it’s cold like this, this helps to warm you.

 

A beer I hold dear- la fin du monde. Aged in the fridge for a long while. Best by date was 8-7-18. Got it two summers ago.

The beer had fully settled. It was clear as anything. Still a solid head, deep golden.

It smelled like brown sugar nail polish remover.

Tasted better than that. But totally offputting. Completely sweetened. No belgian quality. No slight hint if tart. No nuance of banana. Just sweet weird messy shit. And an aftertaste to strip the tastebuds off your tongue.

Never again my bro'd.

 

2013 Weyerbacher Blasphemy,
Drink by 2018 date. Poured into a snifter. Mahogany color with an off-white head that dissipates quickly. Dry fruit aroma with notes of vanilla. Taste is dominated by dried fruits, little alcohol. Held up pretty good. I've got one more in the cellar of the same vintage.

 

2012 Victory Oak Horizontal
Poured into a snifter. Dark mahogany appearance. No head retention. No carbonation. Bourbon aroma. Huge bourbon barrel flavor from the oak barrels dominates the flavor. Sweet notes with a little vanilla. A bourbon lover's beer.

 

Hopefylly a maudite or grand reserve; something meant to be sweeting.