abyss kinda sucks

Yeah, what he said!

Plus he gets an extra internet just for this line: "They impress in their midwest 2 oz doses." Well done Sir, well done.

 

Kumaraja wins the internet.

/thread

 

Not to derail the thread, but speaking of potentially polarizing beers of Deschutes, how is Conflux No. 1 drinking nowadays? I'm sitting on two bottles and pondering one for tonight.

 

I had it a couple months ago and I feel like this beer is getting sweeter (as opposed to sourer) by the day. Delicious but yeah malt is winning over brett.

 

I'll just say this, I don't like Abyss. Personally, I feel that it is priced out of it's own good. If it was 12 bucks then I would say whatever. But it's basically priced in the BA stout realm. I've had multiple years and while I thought the 2010 nitro was the best of the last several years I still think the beer needs to change a bit. This year was a mess!!

I understand that the brewers don't want to over barrel their stuff, and that's fine. The problem is they are trying to do too much with Abyss. If they would do a seperate barrel for each abyss then maybe it would be better. As it stands right now I get so little oak and bourbon. Maybe if they upped the barrel % at the very least. I feel that the Abyss is just a little step above obsidean stout with some wine-ness to it. Abyss is like pliny the elder for me, just needs to be tweaked.

 

Preach it, brother!

Okay, but Dissident really does kinda suck, amirite? Just had a glass at the pub today and couldn't believe that back in 2008 I thought it was one of the best beers out there.

 

Interesting. I haven't had it yet, and I really wasn't going out of my way to get some. But I've heard many people express the same feelings. Guess I won't waste my time, though if it pops up I'll give it a go.

 

Yeah, I was there and figured I should at least try a glass (although I sort of regret that I didn't get the Nitro Abyss that's on instead). I know Flanders aren't as sexy as lots of the other wild/sour styles, but even so it just really didn't do anything for me.

 

I wish there were more local beers in the NW that "suck" as much as the Abyss. Especially one's that you can go to the brewery and get free 4 oz pours of. This thread makes me sad and I'm no Deschutes homer.

 

I agree that the price has gotten a little crazy, but I don't think it "kinda sucks." I've got 2010-2012 waiting for the right time to do a vertical, but when deciding to buy an Abyss or one of the iterations of KDS, I'm going in Fremont's direction at this point.

 

I am in the camp that it's still a very good to outstanding beer. I used to buy 6 per year. I now am happy with 2. There are so many great options these days. I drink a lot less of the style and divert more beer budget towards sours and funky stuff. I am still a big fan of the anniversary black butte. My favorite annual release.

I think I will crack a '12 abyss tomorrow.

 

Since dissident was mentioned, had it at the pdx Deschutes let month and loved it. Anyone know if it's currently in any stores (bottles)?

 

It's at the mountain park new seasons as of yesterday. My guess is they had 6 bottles @ $17 or so.

 

I also still love Abyss (especially on nitro) and don't mind the fluctuation to more wine barrel this year. However, I'm in the same boat as a lot of others in this thread regarding so many more options (of all varieties) on which to spend my money. I've basically gone from buying a case to cellar every year in the 2007-2010 timeframe to only keeping 2-3 bottles now. After some friends and I do the full 10-year vertical next year, I doubt I'll hold on to bottles for much more than a few years (although the last time I had the 2006 about 1.5 years ago, it was still drinking quite well).

 

The 2010 I drank last week was pretty damn nice.

 

Abyss is MASSIVELY overrated. I bought two bottles last year. Drank one, and gave the other to my neighbor. I've had base style RIS's that put Abyss to shame (Stone IRS).

 

This years is, what, a whopping 27% barrel-aged? At the very least, it's overpriced. Props where they're due, but they've been lapped, in execution and value.

 

I had a 2011 Abyss in December of 2013 and thought it was sublime (the complexity of the flavor was staggering). As of this posting, it's still my 10th-highest rated beer. I don't judge it against (other) bourbon-barrel-aged beers as this one is only partially BBA and draws flavor from several different sources. I just bought 2 bottles of 2014 at $16 per bottle and hope to duplicate my earlier experience in the near future. If after 2 years these taste anything like the 2011 bottle I had, then I certainly do not think that they were overpriced.

 

Abyss was one of the first really special beers I ever tried way back in like 2008. It certainly doesn't suck now, but I'd agree that it used to better. Had my first bottle of 2014 to myself last week and enjoyed it quite a bit. Agree that it seems a bit thinner this year but that's not necessarily bad.