Aging Central Waters Bourbon Barrel Barleywine

Oh, yeah. I regularly leave the beer alone for a year before we start breaking into them, & have had bottles up to four years old without any oxidation. Always possible for something to go wrong with a couple seals though, especially after shipping. I know I've had some poor experiences with oxidized barleywines through trades that no one else seems to have had any issues with.

 

This is absolutely one of my favorites to age. With 1-2 years on it, this is world class in every way.​

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I'm also sipping on a fresh bottle right now, it's awesome too.​

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How the effing christ is this only like $13 per 4-pack?! I was amazed when a trading partner said that...I was expecting him to say it was like $20. What an insane value. This is a great, great beer...severely underrated.​

 

This beer was a revelation to me. Picked up a single last year on a whim seeing it on the shelf. I drank it fresh and found it to be slightly hot, but still an unbelievably good beer. I can definitely see this one benefitting greatly from a year or even 2, can't wait to crack one of this year's in 2014 because I think it will rival my current fave, year old Sucaba.

 

You might like the non bourbon aged version. I personally like the regular barleywine (charlie's y2k catastrophe ale). I love bourbon stouts and barleywines but this one I like the base the best. At least this year I do.

 

I'm not the biggest fan of fresh CW BBBW but I had a bottle of 2008 BBBW this winter and is was friggin' amazing. One of the best barleywines I've ever had, and I've had quite a few of the "big boys" (King Henry, Arctic Devil, Bligh's, MOAS, BA Behemoth, Sucaba, Hi-Fi Rye, BB Monster 29, etc.)

 

I still have a couple of cases of BBBW on hand if any of you out of town folks are looking for a trade. Have PM, BB Stout and Illumination DIPA as well. Send me a BM if interested.

 

^shagens is a great guy to trade with...

 

Thanks bud likewise, I would trade with you again anytime.

 

Dont age this years CW BBBW!!!! Its already perfect fresh. Enjoy it now. Letting it age will not improve that beer. Its was so dang smooth and delicous fresh. I really really really have a hard time believing this beer will get any better over time. When CW made the decision to age all the BA brews for a full year the quality of the beer went up exponentally significant. Central Waters that was a very smart move!!!!

 

Madison WI- 12.99 a 4pk.

Monroe WI-13.99 a 4pk.

And its easy to get off the shelf if you get it within the first week of it hitting the shelf. After that, good luck. Might find some at an off the path bottle shops in a little po dunk Wisconsin town...

 

It's still sitting on alot of shelves in SE-WI. I know a few places it hasn't been touched.... It lingers here for more than people realize.

 

I have to somewhat disagree here. While yes, this year's is an excellent BBBW fresh, it is a touch bourbon-forward (which I like, but it does hide the base beer), and still has a slight hot ethanol note on the back-end that was more pronounced in previous versions. I think in 6 months these issues will be aged out, but do not think this will need more than a year to hit its peak.

Either way, it's a great beer.

 

In MN? I haven't seen it for less than $15.

 

Duude, that post is almost a year old! Price did indeed go up in a lot of stores this year.

 

Don't age it long. Recently had a 4 year vertical, and the old ones had gone down hill (oxidized - lots of bland wet cardboard flavor).