12 Days of Christmas – 2019 Style!

I’m getting you a camera for Christmas next year.....

 

Day 8 non stout from @core42 .



A cork awaits me from a meadery I've never heard of, Manic. Pours an intense purple and that carries over to the taste as well. I'm not sure I've ever tasted something so.... purple. Based on a quick perusal of untappd, I'm thinking this is probably Collusion.



And it is! Manic Collusion, mead with black currant, black raspberry, and marion berry with vanilla and maple, rested on american oak. This is possibly some of the best liquid I've put in my mouth! Thanks Jeff!

 

Little behind, but catching up. Day 7.

Nose is a lovely scent of brandy or apple brandy. Taste follows as the same. As this warms I'm starting to get cinnamon. The label on this one slipped as I was moving some bottles in my fridge around a few days ago. Pretty sure I caught a glimpse it was JWB. Unless that was a different bottle. Searching Google and Untappd for this I'm only getting a single hit, which is Brandy Barrel Aged Harbringer which was conditioned on Hazelnut and Coffee. I'm not getting either Hazelnut or Coffee, so I'm stumped.

@valrxman this is my favorite beer of 12 DoX so far. Delicious! Thank you.



Looks like I was dead on with Brandy and cinnamon (cassia bark). Turns out my Google Search was "J. Wakefield Apple Brandy" instead of "J. Wakefield Brandy" so I screwed the pooch or I would have had this one nailed. Still batting 0.000 this year dammit!

 

Day 8 Bissell Bros Seed with Maine Raspberries and Strawberries. I was a Bissell a few months back and that place was great, they didnt have anything like this at that time, so I'm excited to try this! Great beer on a crappy weather day but even a better way to celebrate my grandma's 100th Bday. I made the assumption that we'd have some better glasses be we will do with what we have. Thanks again @smanson56

 

Day 4 from @PA-Michigander: pours motor oil thick. Boozy AF. I’m getting vanilla. Silky smooth mouth feel.

Bourbon Sleeping Forever. Man this is really good. Nice slow sipper. I can’t get over how silky this is.

 

Well were on today #8 from @treznor brings a 16oz can with a unmarked top. I'm assuming it's a stout of some sort.
Okay this beer pours a well to be blunt a muddy brown color. Well known to me as a Barleywine style beer. Nose says this is Bourbon Barrel Aged and a Barleywine for sure.

Great flavors here lots of bourbon and smooth. I'm thinking this might be a Burial beer of some sort. But to be honest I got tired of looking through the 100's of beers they have produced to find this one. Okay so we have BBA Barleywine and it's smooth and enjoyable. I'm thinking Burial but unsure, so on to the reveal.

Okay it is a Burial Beer, The Virtue of Patience, a BBA Barleywine. I guess I get some points here but not a total win. Really nice Barleywine Mike much enjoyed!

 

No worries my man. I’d rather you wait and enjoy them!

 

Day 8 courtesy of @NJB145

Seeing bottle size and smelling the nose, I’m getting pgw for what appears to be a Transient stout.



Getting barrel for sure, and some vanilla. Damn, this is so smooth. I know there has to be some high abv on this but it is ridiculously drinkable. Fabulous stout.



F—- Mother of all Stouts w/ vanilla

F*ck is a pretty good name for this. Matches my vocab as I’m amazed at how smooth this is. Thanks Nate!

 

Day 8 brings two bottles again with no direction as to which to drink first, so once again I choose the Go Green and opened the one with green wrapping first. I’m pretty sure that both of these will be BCBS variants...


The only thing the nose tells me on this is that it was barrel aged. It is pretty smooth but there is a bite of rye at the end. I’m going to guess that this is the 2019 Reserve Rye.


Nailed this one as well. Thanks for getting me reacquainted with BCBS @PassMeAZima ! I’m going to go out on a limb and guess the next one is the 2-year BCBS...

 

Finally got a moment to sit down and post my Day 4 from @Mikexw

The bottle from Mixmaster Mike was a 500 ml. Opened up and smelled stout / chocolate/ a little vanilla. Initially I had no idea what it was.



First taste - whoa! Chocolate bomb! My fav kind of stout. Very sweet / thic / hint of vanilla and maybe some saltiness?


Reveal
“Gentlemen and Will” from Other Half. Pretty stoked as this was my 1st OH stout. Didn’t disappoint. Thank Mikey Mike!

 

Day 7 since I switched with day 8.



Unmistakably a BA barleywine that is smooth AF. guessing BA Vermillion



Actually got one right! Thanks @sj3324

 

Day 5 from @PA-Michigander is funky. Funky and beautiful. It has stone fruit for days.

WOW! Nick is absolutely killing these 6 days. SP Smooth. Another long time want and an absolutely beautiful beer. Thanks so much!

 

Day 8.....Liver is still intact (for now). Time to crack open this bomber. The label cap has a DM with a bearded dude. A quick google search tells me this is Dangerous Man. I’ve never had anything from here so looking forward to this. As soon as I pop the top it’s obvious. This is a big beer....a beer for a Dangerous Man. Obviously a BA Stout. Barrel on the nose with a load of chocolate. Almost no head retention on the pour.

Loads of Chocolate and Bourbon come through on the nose and the taste follows. Not even attempting to guess outside of the Brewery guess and Chocolate.


Dangerous Man Imperial Chocolate Milk Stout. Bottle# 778. This brew is awesome. Wife typically doesn’t like BA stuff and I’m fighting her over the glass. Killing it as usual @mnbearsfan!

 

Day 5 from @JasonR1975


My clue for today is a 6% Fruited American Lambic. This morning, was looking through Transient offerings due to the cork, to see what it may be before I got around to drinking it this evening. Couldn't really determine which I thought it could be. This is nice, with good fruit, not overly acidic, drinks very easy. Finished the first pour and revealed for the 2nd (and 3rd will pour later!)



2016 Blueberry Anachronism! Yet another beer that knocks it out of the park. Already getting sad that there's only one more wrapped day to go, and that it's 3 days away. But the beers thus far have been great, the extra I've enjoyed so far have been great, and I'm eagerly anticipating the final day to ring in the new year (though I'm probably going to have it in the afternoon).

Thanks Jason!

 

Apparently in my fevered stupor the other night, I forgot to post day 6B from @Nichols33:

Since 6A was Suarez, I was confident I had the right glass for 6B. This one was great. Nice hop profile, but still light and refreshing. Without doing any research my best guess was a Suarez pale ale.

My first 2 Suarez beers were definitely hits, thanks Jeff!

 

Since I am still not feeling great, not sure if I am ready for a beer, but a pick me up arrived from @Nichols33 in the form of box #3. Now Jeff already sent plenty of beer, but he sent this one along to replace day 9, which was done in by the USPS.

Not only did Jeff replace day 9, he also sent a sick glass and 2 new Trillium ticks. Thanks for everything @Nichols33, it was unnecessary but greatly appreciated!

 

Day 8(a) from @Dave_Treat .500ml bottle, black cap. Pours jet black, very little carb. First thing that comes to mind is something from Wakefield. I’ve been absolutely horrible at picking out flavors or beer for that matter when trying blind. But to hell with it, I’m going in blind again! First taste I’m getting barrel, cinnamon and maybe some vanilla? Reveal to come shortly. It’s probably a damn Golden Blend!

 

Day 5 brings what seems like another example of my favorite style: bourbon barrel aged barleywine!


It pours a hazy mahogany with barrel, dark fruit, and rich malt in the aroma. The flavor follows suit with just a hint of alcohol heat. I'm horrible at the guessing game, but possibly something else from Barreled Souls?


Nope, it's Jack's Abby BBA Eis Maker! Very interesting as this comes off like a barleywine but is actually an eisbock. I really like this; another great beer from @TheOneTC!

 

The second bottle of Day 8 brings me what I believe to be another BCBS


The aroma has a distinct barrel nose to it. It’s fairly smooth but still has a lot of barrel characteristics to it. I’m going to stick with my inkling that this is the 2 year Reserve.



Two for two today! Thanks again @PassMeAZima

 

Day 4 from @PA-Michigander is some kind of sexy Belgian / Biere De Garde hybrid. Big body, oaky and a good level of complexity.



Ended up being Four Legs Good from one of my favorite breweries (Sante Adarius) - this was an awesome afternoon sipper today. Thanks Nick!!

 

Time for day 8a and 8b.

Enjoyed 8a during the first half the LSU game. Nose says stout. Pours with a significant amount of head like some RiS do. Taste has me guessing BBA of some sort.

Next up for the start of the OSU game, is 8b. I opened this and immediately got cherry. Wife took a sip, and exclaimed cherry as well. If I hadn't moved into the basement, she might have drank it all and not left me with any! Turns out we were both wrong, this one's raspberry, not cherry.

BBA Towpath and BBA Raspberry Truffle Towpath from Big Ditch Brewing. First time having anything by these guys!

Thank you @timmy2b

 

@blassor keeping the Kane train rolling!



2922 Anniversary Stout. And yet another amazing beer. What an amazing journey so far Brandon. Thanks for all the effort you've put into this

 

I wasn’t too far off in my blind guess. It is from Wakefield it’s from a barrel and it kinda has cinnamon (cassia). @Dave_Treat hooked it up on a Desperado from JWB. But I think this is the variant (Maple Bliss Bourbon Barrels). This one is really good.

 

Today’s beer from @edhizdeid is De Garde and it poured heavy. Beautiful flavors that I thought was Chardonnay. Other than no fruit I was at a loss.


I wasn’t aware of this beer, though I’m a big fan of De Garde. Eddy keeps bringing the heat and I can’t thank him enough!

 

Day 5 from @Yourahoser is a light colored sour.



Thought I tasted some sort of apricot/peach.



Green Bench Alice which was a cool beer since my five month old daughter is named Alice after my late mom. Solid beer on top of that!

 

Day 8 from @dannyfayy poured a beautiful golden orange color from a brown 750ml bottle with no markings on the cap.


My first couple sips I noticed some stone fruit and wine notes. This was definitely a sour in my wheelhouse. Jan took a sip of mine and requested a small pour of her own. Together we came up with a wine barrel aged golden sour with apricots and maybe peaches too. I didn't have a specific guess though.


Casa Agria Huerta! I was familiar with Stone Fruit In Harmony from them but not this one. Lots of juicy apricot and subtle wine notes. I missed the Pinot Noir aspect of the beer altogether...Jan did too. And, we love our Pinot.

We also decided to crack an extra after this Casa while watching the Fiesta Bowl... A sweet traditional cider from Arsenal Cider House...



Cheers @dannyfayy!!!

 

Day 8(b) from @Dave_Treat . Larger format bottle. Changed up the glass for this one. Pours jet black. Get slight barrel notes and roast/chocolate by the nose. Taste is pastry stout, barrel aged slightly and some chocolate notes. Reveal to come.

 

Not the camera's fault I'm a dumb dumb

 

Day 8(b) Reveal. I was close in guessing this one too. @Dave_Treat sent me a Barrel Aged Boutit. Right up my alley and also a new tick.

 

Poured blind lots of Maple syrup and since I see the size of the bottle I'm jumping right to reaction state from BL



Nom nom

 

I opened day 7 after getting back from a late dinner in DC. The fist can was definitely a ba stout, I thought I might be getting coffee or dark chocolate.

Turns out it was Half Acre Benthic. I didn’t really get coconut, but I thought it was a great beer.

The second can definitely had some vanilla in it.

My guess was Vanilla Benthic and it was. I really enjoyed this one too, both beers were great!

I finished the night with a Michter’s Rye. Another winner from @Swcreed013 !

 

I opened my day 8 bottle while watching the PSU game this afternoon. The light blue wax had me thinking this was a wishlist bottle.

Turns out I was correct. Another wishlist bottle from @Swcreed013 . I enjoyed this one quite a bit. Just the right amount of barrel.

I also got caught up with my bourbon pours today. Day 6 was Willet Pot Still, and day 8 was Blanton Single Barrel. I enjoyed the Blanton a bit more, but both were smooth.

 

Day 8

3 is the roll!


This was a cinnamon bomb. I also got a bit of spice leading me to believe it was leche barracho... reveal

Wrong but obviously nailed the cinnamon!

Day 8 <3B>

Definitely chilis in this one and more subtle cinn. Maybe this one is the leche barracho!


Leche reserve fantastic beer thanks @campa86 !

 

Day 4 (sorry for the late post @Lazhal) Childhood friend is in town this weekend and we went out Friday afternoon and ended up getting drank... I was going to open Day 4 but then saw purple wax. Figured it was in my best interest to hold off until today,.. so here we go



Thick purple wax that my fine deschutes brewery opener was finally able to open. Pours dark brown/black with almost no head. smells and tastes of a bourbon stout but nothing as far as adjuncts. Bottle was similar to Jackie-O/Crooked Stave format, but ive never seen any of them waxed... i was at a loss. No clue what it could be.



Fast forward a few more hours I cracked into Day 5. and once again knew that i would be drinking it properly...



This tastes familiar... Based on my Christmas Eve bottle... im going to guess this is either 2018 or 2019 Reserve.


Nailed it! Hot out of the gate, this one will age well. Cheers @Lazhal. Looking forward to my final day!

 

@Corriecrafts just drinking Day 6 beers on Day 4..... lol

 

6 DoX day 5 from @Corriecrafts. Pours dark brown with minimal head. Nose is all magical barleywine. Taste follows, holy shit this is amazing.



Reveal:



Holy wow. Excellent BA barleywine and a huge want. So excited to drink this, thank you Corrie!

 

Sorry I’ve been late posting on here...decided to take a last minute long weekend with the family. I took down two days yesterday. First opened this bad boy, Day 7, at the hotel pool at 10am. This was all baking spices, bananas, Barrel and battle star galactica. This had to be that Flambé I’ve seen a few others open up during 12 days.

the reveal

man this beer was s so thick. It’s like eating dessert at 10am. I consider myself a pastry boy, so of course I loved it! my wife has been a little under the weather, so she fell behind a bit on her mead days. She threatened to castrate me if I drank them without her...so you must be doing something right @Dan_K
here is Day 6. This beauty was packed with Jammy dark fruits. Liz shared it with some friends and they were all raving fans.

the reveal

loving these! Thanks so much @vitaminvert

 

Day 8 was in the hotel Lobby after a long ass day at Busch Gardens...the last 3 hours I spent carrying my 4 year old nearly killed me. I powered through after slamming a few late night quarter pounders. This beer was even thicker than flambé. More cinnamon and tons of fudgy chocolate. Like drinking boozy brownie batter. God it was so good.
Again, I don’t know any of the Weldwerks beers. So I have no clue what it is.

the reveal

Exactly what I want in a beer. This was awesome! Thanks @vitaminvert

 

2/3 of the way done! Sorry for not posting it yesterday. Was drinking with my girlfriends friends and got way too drunk playing drinking games with BA Bottle Logic stuff.

Day 8! Another BL cap and a delicious barleywine. I’m too hungover to describe this right now. But it was delicious. It went down way too easy. I only know one BL barleywine so that was my guess.

And I was right. This is worth the hype it gets. And winning fobab. Can’t say I can pick out each barrel but there was so much delicious sweetness and complexity. Thank you so much @Sassyshe888 - you are killing it!

 

Shared day 5 with @dannyfayy and some friends. Based on the note from @swenny916, I was anticipating this being a big stout. Forgot to take a pic of the blind pour, but this was not a stout. Some funk, some kind of fruit. Raspberries? Currants? I’m terrible at identifying fruit in beer, but I do know it’s damn good.

Danny guessed it was a Side Project bottle, based only on the plain silver cap. After tasting he was guessing a pulling nails, but I had no clue.



Side Project / de Garde Coexpressionalism. Cherry was the fruit I couldn’t ID. Didn’t even know this beer existed, but glad I got to try it. Thanks Jay!

This was also a nice alternative to the 4 straight Voodoo BA Stouts opened afterwards.