2010-2012 KBS vertical tasting.

Discussion in 'Cellaring / Aging Beer' started by jar72404, Jun 2, 2012.

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  1. jar72404

    jar72404 Initiate (0) May 31, 2009 Florida

    I know this has been discussed before, but I'm doing a KBS vertical with the 2010-2012 batches. All batches were poured at cellar temp. Here are my thoughts.

    2010: Strong barrel presence in the aroma. Strongest oak and bourbon of the three. The most roastiness and bitterness, too. Big bourbon presence in the flavor, providing needed sweetness; much more barrel presence than the other years.

    2011: Aroma is surprisingly dull for a BA stout. Not much of anything. Flavor is hot, with only a little chocolate, coffee, and oak. Disappointing.

    2012: Chocolate dominates the nose. Barrel is present in the flavor and aroma--more so than 2011 but less than 2010. Flavor is sweet, more from the chocolate than from the bourbon.

    Overall: in my opinion, 2010 was the clear winner, followed by 2012, with 2011 finishing a distant third. Regarding barrel presence, this is consistent with my memory of 2010 and 2011, so either my memory is accurate or it biased my tasting.
     
    #1 jar72404, Jun 2, 2012
    davey101 and LynnHomeBrewer like this.
  2. FunkyMacGroovin

    FunkyMacGroovin Initiate (0) Sep 22, 2009 California

    Your opinion almost exactly matches what penniwisdom and I thought about the vertical we had a few weeks ago. We also decided a blend of all 3 was better than any single year.
     
    #2 FunkyMacGroovin, Jun 2, 2012
  3. LynnHomeBrewer

    LynnHomeBrewer Crusader (449) Aug 3, 2010 Massachusetts

    I'm going to do a 3 year vertical for 2011-2013. Gonna play devil's Advocate here and say 2010 barrel presence may be due to chocolate and coffee fading (as those usually fade w/ age). Its also tough to tell when each barrel has been used and for how many times each. I think the usual use per Bourbon barrel is 3 years each (could be wrong though). I did notice that a 2011 fresh had more heat then a 2011 with a year age on it. My 2011 bottles seem to differ yours, but verticals can have different results due to batch sizes, barrel use and quality of each batch brewed.

    Definitely like this thread. Ill post one next year after 2013 batch is released.

    Cheers!
     
    #3 LynnHomeBrewer, Jun 2, 2012
  4. divineaudio

    divineaudio Savant (1,163) Dec 7, 2009 Michigan

    I did the same thing a few weeks ago for my birthday. Our tasting notes match almost exactly, though I think I prefer the 2012 over the 2010.
     
    #4 divineaudio, Jun 4, 2012
  5. JohnnyTightLips

    JohnnyTightLips Initiate (0) May 30, 2009 Illinois

    Couldn't believe how much bourbon faded on the 11. Still good and really smooth, remember tasting dark chocolate and coffee notes.
     
    #5 JohnnyTightLips, Jun 4, 2012
  6. davey101

    davey101 Pooh-Bah (2,360) Apr 14, 2009 Connecticut
    Pooh-Bah

    Did the same experiment around the 2012 release date. These were my thoughts:
    2010 was my favorite.
     
    #6 davey101, Jun 4, 2012
  7. TK5150

    TK5150 Initiate (0) Mar 17, 2008 Maine

    I agree with your placement of these three vintages as well. The 2010 is the clear winner, 2012 is quite nice, and the 2011, well, is my least favorite of all of the vintages I've had...it was always disappointing IMO.
     
    #7 TK5150, Jun 5, 2012
  8. DLDlulz

    DLDlulz Zealot (614) Feb 15, 2012 Illinois
    Trader

    Did a 5 year two months ago. 2010 was the clear winner followed by 08
     
    #8 DLDlulz, Jun 6, 2012
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