Cellar Reviews (2021)

Tonight’s beer is a 2016 Central Waters Cassian Sunset. A bourbon barrel aged imperial stout with vanilla beans, coffee and cinnamon. Probably not advisable to age a BA adjunct laden stout this long, but here we are.

Pours thin appearing, cola colored during the pour but opaque black in the glass. 1 fingers width of light khaki colored head builds then dissipates fairly quickly. Aroma is surprisingly still strong with huge cinnamon, notable vanilla bean, and surprisingly a lot of chocolate even though that was not one of the adjuncts. Bourbon notes also remain remarkably prominent with very nice charred oak and a scotch like peat character. Really a wonderful nose here. The adjuncts hve faded quite a bit in the taste. Now it’s mostly roasted malt, somewhat bitter black coffee (so I guess that adjunct held up), and semi sweet cocoa. The barrel notes have held up surprisingly well though, with charred oak, and some nice whiskey smokiness. Mouthfeel is full bodied, no issues with carbonation after all these years, ABV completely unnoticeable and drinkability good for the style. Overall, this remains a great beer. It has certainly evolved over time, as should be expected, with some fading of the adjuncts and development into more of a “regular” BBA stout. If I had to pick one I’d go with the fresh version but it’s certainly closer than I would have guessed.

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

 

cracking open a 2012 BCBS!
bottled 8/23/12 batch# 1313

Beer opened and poured at cellar temp.

Appearance: dark black bodied stout that pours a full 1 finger of dark brown head. Head drops to thin ring around the glass. Body looks thicker than I remember.

Smell: chocolate, oak, bourbon, and barrel char.

Taste: Bourbon and chocolate sweetness upfront with hints of vanilla. Lots of leather and dry ashen oak notes. Molasses and dark fruits in the middle of each sip. Getting a hint of soy sauce and black olive notes in the middle. Finishes with a building spice from the bourbon, umami richness, hint of chocolate & dark fruit sweetness, and a light lingering roasty bitterness.

Mouthfeel: thicker than I remember this vintage of bourbon county to be in the past. Warming without being harsh or boozy. Time has really mellowed and refined the texture of this stout.

Overall: It's been a while since I have checked in on this beer. If you have bottles of 2012 BCBS...Drink it now! The hints of soy sauce tells me that bottles will start to go downhill soon. Cardboard notes are not long to follow. Oxidation is starting to become apparent; it is still in the earlier stages of oxidation, but its definitely there. Which is still an impressive feat for this barrel aged stout at almost 9 years old in the bottle. 2009 and 2012 were two of my favorite years of bourbon county for the same reason. You could taste so much vanilla in those vintages when they were fresh. I still favor the 2009 as the best year of BCBS without any adjuncts or special barrels.

 

Love it! I have two more left. Not sure what I’m waiting on. Maybe the 10 year mark. Sounds like there’s no ill effects so no rush to drink them. But would also hate to over wait and miss the mark. Regardless glad you enjoyed! Bourbon Counties as a whole age remarkably well. Even many of the adjunct laden ones.

 

Welcome to another episode of “What’s This in My Fridge?” As it turns out, this was in the door so I saw it nearly every time I opened the refrigerator looking for something else. Months and months later it became a decoration. I just knew it would not be as good as I had it fresh so I never chose it for drinking. Until now. Let’s get into it.

I couldn’t find a day on the bottle until after I poured it and boy, was I surprised at what I found. Did not expect it to be this old!

This beer is over 5 years old! 100% expecting awfulness.
Crystal clear pour, golden amber, fluffy bone white head of 1.5 finger. Clinging lace. Floaties upon more inspection.
Nose of blood oranges, citrus, grapefruit flesh.
Tastes like citrus, grapefruit, citrus peel, pretty much a citrus bomb. Lingering bitterness, whether it’s from actual citrus or hops I cannot tell Building peppery spice in the finish. Zero booze.

Thinner body than I remember but snappy and clean.

Overall, what can I say but wow! Was not expecting this to be this good. Call this a happy accident.

 

2018 Founders Curmudgeon Better Half



Cellaring this was one of the better decisions I've made and I still have one left. The color just keeps getting darker and richer. Smell and taste are still very sweet from the maple aging but some of the molasses and other initially hidden smells and tastes are now coming forward into greater prominence. Plus still has a bitter maple aftertaste which sets it apart from fake flavorings. I don't know how long I'll cellar the survivor (last year a friend shared one with me but I don't think it had been stored as well as this) but I'm thinking 2023 at the earliest.

 

2018 Backwoods Bastard



Since the beginning of the year this has either fallen off or this wasn't as good a bottle as the previous ones; I'm leaning toward the former. Still a very good barrel aged wee heavy but it's become clear, at least to me, that fresh to two years is best for this.

 

Tonight’s beer is a 2016 COAST Barrel Aged Blackbeerd. I love this series of beers, although there is admittedly variability based the year and type of battle used. All are good, some are out of this world. The 2012 Blantons variant is one of my all time favorite beers and is actually the beer that got me into bourbon. This is the 2016 variant, aged in Heaven Hill Rye Whiskey barrels. I’ve been drinking these progressively over the years and I bought a ton of this years batch when it first came out. Last time with this beer was about 6-8 months ago I guess. Probably not a ton of development over that time but we’ll see.

Pours opaque black with greater than 1 fingers width of dense dark tan colored head that has great retention. Aromas of rich chocolate, huge toasted marshmallow, surprisingly amount of cinnamon. A campfire toasted s’more if you will. But it subtle, exceptionally well done and natural way, as opposed to an artificial adjunct laden way. Whiskey notes come out next and are prominent with oak and a smoky peat like character as well as some leathery notes. Roasted malt and some char characters round it out. Phenomenal nose. Taste is very good but it’s different than the nose. Not as luscious, more roasty, less complex. It’s roasted malt up front, nice semi-sweet chocolate on the finish, charred oak, somewhat bitter black coffee, pretty big tobacco and leather. Barrel notes are there but are mild. Mouthfeel is full bodied with a good drinkability. No signs of oxidation. Overall, still an excellent beer, the nose is phenomenal but the taste may be fading a bit on this vintage.

4.75/4.75/4.25/4.5/4.25

(Original/fresh review: 4.5/4.25/4.75/4.5/4.5; of note this score is specific to the 2016 variant as the variants are listed separately on BA)

 

Returning a second Friday with another cellar beer. I'm using random number generator to clear my current beer stock, and this beer, one of my favorite stouts of all time, from one of my favorite local breweries (#2 on my list).

Spiteful Brewery Hostile Harry Black & Blue


Original Review: https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/30454/389925/

I liked this so much, I bought another four pack after trying my first one. This was canned 12/14/18, has been refrigerated since purchase in the Winter of 2019. Reviewing my review:

• The appearance is consistent.
• The aroma held up, both blackberry and blueberry aroma prevalent and excellent. Thought there may be a drop off there.
• Taste consistent with my review as well, berries are excellent, rich creamy chocolate malt, these sweet flavors balanced by a nice hop presence to keep everything balanced, really enjoyable.
• One of the fullest, richest, creamiest stouts I've had, no drop off here.
• Overall, I'd give this similar or same scores for each of the five categories.

I didn't necessarily keep for 1 1/2 years to improve, but rather because I have too many beers. However, I'm glad this beer is as solid as it was when I first tried it, and I'm glad I have two more in my refrigerator.

Cheers!

 

I like that idea using a. random. umber generate to clear the cellar!

 

Tonight’s beer is a 2015 Lagunitas Brown Shugga. No original bottle date (remains) so you will just have to trust my “official” wine bottle marker labeled date.

Pours a hazy dark cooper with a nice dense light khaki colored head. A small number of floaties can be seen suspended in the glass. Good head retention but no real lacing. Aromas of caramel, big toffee, fruity eaters and prominent apple. Belgium candied sugar and some residual tropical fruits. It’s quite floral and has a touch of almost nobel hop like spice although I doubt those were used. Wonderfully complex nose. Taste is caramel up front, some piney bitterness, light fruity esters. Unfortunately signs of oxidation are showing, with a metallic characters that’s rather unpleasant and detracts from the other notes in the flavor profile. This is a huge bummer as I had one of these about a year ago, it had no signs of oxidation and was just divine. It’s not a drain pour but man it’s a disappointment. I have two left from 2015, hope this was just an off bottle. Will try another one in six months or so and if it’s like this I will safely be able to chalk up that Brown Shugga has a 5 year shelf life. Will report back then!

4/4.5/3.75/3.5/3.75
(Original/fresh review: 4.5/4.5/4/3.5/4; original review done before BA 0.25 intervals)



*official bottling date (the wine marker never lies!)*

 

That last one left a bad taste in my mouth, literally and figuratively. So trying a second cellar dive tonight; 2016 Backwoods Bastard. Bought an extra 4 pack of these when they came out that year, this is the first one I’m drinking. Man 5 years goes by fast.

Pours mahogany in the pour, black when wholly resting in the glass. Light tan head builds nicely but dissipates away fairly quickly. Fantastic aromas that are more English barleywine than they are Scotch ale at this point. Huge rich dark fruits, port wine, brandy. Definitely smells of a fine after dinner spirit. Bourbon notes are present but are subtle. Taste follows somewhat but is a bit more boozy, more cocoa, subtle black coffee. Dark fruits definitely remain but are not as prominent as the nose. There is certainly a fusel alcohol bite to it. Barrel notes are stronger than I would have guessed from the nose, with charred oak and bourbony smoke. Mouthfeel is full bodied with an appropriate carbonation yet quite smooth. ABV is noticeable yet it is still dangerously drinkable. Overall this is excellent. It’s completely changed with time, I get essentially none of the typical Scotch Ale big peat characters that are usually present in Backwoods Bastard, instead it’s mellowed out and developed its dark fruit and caramel characters. Both fresh and aged are great but this aged one fits more to my personal palette preferences.

4.5/4.5/4.25/4.5/4.5
(Original/fresh review: 4/4.5/4.5/4/4.5; original review prior to BAs 0.25 intervals)



A real bottle date on the label this time

 

I've been sitting on this, the last of a four pack which I found already aged a few years ago, for a while and intended to go further than this. But today I had some tests run for an aortic valve replacement and was assured that I was an ideal candidate for the near future and it should energize me far beyond the tired codger feeling I've had for a while. So that by itself energized me and when I thought "what would be the perfect celebratory nightcap" this was a no brainer.

Aging improves everything on this: appearance gets darker, smell and flavor get richer and more complex, and mouthfeel gets fuller. Even though these aren't part of, for lack of a better term, my regular beer rotation, every year I buy a new four pack and cellar it like clockwork. And it's for times like this.

 

Great news on your health and a great beer to celebrate!

 

Yes, once I took inventory in January, and discovered I had over 450 beers, I've been using this method for over a month, working through drink fresh beers and interspersing cellar beers. It feels like a treat / present / surprise each time.

This is my first cellar review of a beer which I do not have a base review to compare. The full review of the beer can be found in this week's New Beer Weekend thread.

Half Acre Bethnic (2019 - Canned 10/18/19)



Eighteen months out, cellared until the past few weeks when it was refrigerated, this held up incredibly well. It's an outstanding beer. I've had variants before, and thought I rated this base beer, but I did not.

The primary loss is strength of coffee, still present though not as assertive as fresher variant versions. What held on wonderfully is the coconut, both the aroma and taste excellent. Going off of memory, I believe this is my favorite coconut stout, and I've had several great coconut stouts previous. I believe age enhanced the bourbon, incredibly smooth and wonderful. Many other flavors are present, almonds, walnut, dark chocolate, some fudge brownie action. All well balanced.

I will still be working through my current inventory this Fall, but plan on getting the base beer this Fall and doing a weekend review of fresh 2021 and my second (and sadly final) 2019 can to compare and contrast.

Bottom line is this is an incredible stout, I believe aging has improved the bourbon character the most, the coconut has not faded in any shape or form, or if it did, it only improved. The loss of strength of coffee is the only possible drawback, based on my recollection of other variants of this base beer I've had, but overall I am so glad I cracked this open today, and can't wait until the Fall for a weekend of Bethnic!!!

 

Operation Cellar Cleanout Continues.
This BA Saison maintains excellent carbonation, texture, aromatics.
Think, along the lines of Cote, du Rhône.
So glad to have had this now.
Cheers

 

2012 Goose Island Bourbon County Brand Stout. Heavily oxidized, little carbonation, and thin tasting. Aroma still has the classic Bourbon County smell, with a whiff of metallic. First taste is smooth, thin, and a bit of baking cocoa. It then tumbles into wet cardboard the more it stays in the mouth. Could not stomach more than 3 sips. My wife spit out her first sip. Drain pour.

Highly disappointing, as this was purchased at GI Clybourne this winter.

 

First cellar dip for me in a while. 2019 Parabola from Firestone Walker.

Nose has an intense spiced dried fruit character. Bit of ashy tobacco.
Taste is wonderfully bitter with a strong cacao note and a surprising amount of citrus bitterness as well.

I was kind of iffy on the first.few sips because it was just so bitter, but as it warms and the richer undertones come out in the flavor its quite pleasant. I feel like this vintage was more bitter from the get go but somehow I missed out on grabbing any 20 so I'm just going off vague memory of earlier batches

 

Hugely disappointing report as 2012 has always been my favorite vintage, though I haven't had it in a couple years now. I might have to break out one of my last & give it a go.

 

I'm surprised they sold it if it was that bad, given the infection fiasco years ago and how eager they were to refund anyone who wanted it and prevent bad product from ever getting out again.