April 2014 Cellar Reviews

Cracked my 2011 DFH squall at a recent bottle share. I'm ALWAYS against aging IPAs but forgot this one in the back of the cabinet. Extremely surprised at how it came along. Didn't have any of those "stale" hop flavors you find any many old IPAs. The malt came through very well, lots of carmel and a little dark fruits. No alcohol presence. Quite barelywine like. I didn't expect anything from this really but was happily proved wrong. Cheers!

 

2013 HotD Matt
Grabbed this in a recent trade and cracked one of the bottles. Was surprisingly let down by this beer--started out strong but ended on a pronounced medicinal note. Reading other reviews of this beer, I wonder if I got a bunk bottle.

2013 HotD Otto
This one, on the other hand, was amazing. Lots of fruit, coupled with that traditional big HotD old ale profile, really worked well. Happy to have another one of these to sit on for a while.

2013 Cascade Kriek
As expected for this beer, this year's batch is great. The cherry is very pronounced but not overpowering, and the sour profile is spot on. Definitely recommend drinking this one sooner than later, before the fruit falls out.

2013 Cascade Blueberry
Wasn't as impressed by this one. Starts out strong with lots of fruit, but it weirdly transforms into a sort of faux-fruit-flavoring tone on the finish. Not a bad beer by any means, just don't think the blueberry plays that well compared to their other normal fruit offerings.

2013 Dogfish Head World Wide Stout
Loved this beer. My first ever taste of it, I snagged a few bottles on a recent trip to Portland and had to crack one. Big but not boozy for the ABV (~18% I believe), with an awesome roasted character that nicely offset the expected maltiness. Up there with the other huge stouts that are popular (see: BT), and not surprising with how good 120 Minute is.

2014 Filmishmish
First time having this beer as well, and it's awesome. Reminiscent of Cascade's Apricot sour but with the Bruery's bug profile, it's drinking amazing right now. I'll sit on at least one bottle for the long haul, but the apricots are so nice right now that I may be tempted to crack another bottle soon.

2014 Parabola
Just cracked this one last night and it was great. Very little booziness but huge notes of caramel, coffee, and toffee on the palate. So drinkable for the ABV. I think this will definitely do well with age, too, as the aforementioned flavors are quite pronounced and distinct, where some more time in the cellar will likely lend itself to a mellowing/blending of those notes.

Shaping up to be a good April so far.

 

I've been thinking of picking one of these up. I think you might have convinced me.

 

I had '10 Matt, '13 Matt, and Otto on the release day and totally agree. I wasn't impressed by '13 Matt, but loved Otto (which worked for me, as I got to send all my Matt to some great trading partners, who were very appreciative, and hold on to a few bottles of Otto). I also learned that, for me, Matt is a beer that needs a few years of age on it. Living in Portland, I've had the opportunity to have '10 Matt at the tasting room a few times at multiple stages in it's development. While I've always been able to see what others enjoy so much in this beer, it never really clicked for me until I had it at the '13 release. If you've got another bottle of Matt, try holding onto it for a few years. On the other hand, if you like WWS, our palates might just be dramatically different.

 

2011 North Coast Old Rasputin

pours black, thin off-white head. good head retention. no more hops in the aroma, acidic bitter roasty espresso is the dominate flavor in the aroma and taste. medium body, lower carbonation. smooth mouthfeel. lingering finish.

 

Some more reviews; the banner month continues!

2012 Cascade Strawberry
Man this beer is great; at least tied with the Cascade Kriek I had last week. Strawberry notes are perfect, as is the level of sourness. If you have any of these, they're drinking spectacularly at the moment.

2013 Sierra Nevada Ovila Quad w/ Plums
Not bad, though I remember more plum there when I had this last, and it feels slightly thinner than I remember. Not holding up as well as something like Westvelteren 12, but still a solid example of the style.

2014 Commons Urban Farmhouse
Light, drinkable, delicious. A really simple beer relative to some others in the style, but I really enjoyed it.

2013 Commons Fleur de Ferme
Ok, but the lavender and hibiscus notes don't really do it for me. Mixed with the mild farmhouse backend, it's a not bad but not great beer. The current score of 83 seems perhaps slightly low, but fair.

2013 St. Arnold's Bishop's Barrel #4
Weird beer! Not bad, but weird. Like a hybrid of a Belgian dark, a dark wheat beer, and something that's seen a lot of barrel time. Some definite heat in there, which is unexpected given the wheat backdrop. Would drink again, but definitely an odd one.

2012 Sierra Nevada/Russian River Brux
Man this beer has aged well, and I may well pick up another bottle or two as I'm pretty sure they're still hanging around the local shops. Perfect Brett profile, with just the right amount of funk and malt. Based on the bottle I had the other night, this beer is definitely underrated; I think age has done it well.

2013 Epic Brewing Elder Brett
Really tasty! Slightly more funk/farmhouse than the Brux, and still great (and I had this one before the Brux, if I recall correctly). Another probably underrated Brett beer, I've enjoyed this immensely every time I've had it.

2014 Stone Imperial Russian Stout
Not bad, though it's honestly feeling a bit young. I just had a 2012 bottle of this not too long ago and remember liking it more. Some maybe anise on the nose, but thankfully none of that on the palate (I'm not a licorice fan). Lots of roasted notes, some malt, little heat. Looking forward to how this is drinking a year from now.

2012 Stone Collab. Mint Chocolate Imperial Stout
So glad I picked up extra bottles of this when they popped up at the local bottle shop! Drinking like a subtle peppermint patty right now. Smells mostly like a (solid) stout, drinks like one, and then bam, the light peppermint hits you on the finish and it's blissful. I was so skeptical of this beer back before I tries it a year or two ago, but it won me over immediately, and it's still doing great.

 

2010 Duck-Rabbit Barleywine

looks hazy and rust colored, but not much head. not a boozy smell anymore, as it was fresh. taste and aroma is a bit fruity, but also malty and sweet. taste is maybe a bit oxidized. earthy aftertaste. body is slick and oily, very mild carbonation. nice, better than fresh.

 

Weyerbacher Sixteen (Spring 2011)

pours opaque chocolate brown in color, with just a thin head that fades. aroma has lost the booziness noted in my fresh tasting, now it's just sweet and honey, maybe a touch of caramel. taste definitely now has a nice wildflower honey flavor, but without too much sweetness. medium to thick mouthfeel. very nice, definitely improved and very tasty.

 

Westbrook Bearded Farmer 2 "McCollugh" Saison

Bottle 2/27/13 that has been cellared at 50 degrees since I bought it at the brewery. I feared a gusher but the liquid stayed in place. A gentle pour into an angled glass still only accommodates about 2 ounces of liquid that helplessly sits underneath five fingers of pillowy, rocky foam. Funky Brett aroma is noticeable half a foot away. Horse blanket, yogurt, along with fleshy stone fruit make up the nose. The taste is a band aid and yeast fruitiness with a touch of funk on the end. It’s not as dry as I had expected and is actually a little slippery in the mouth. Balanced and flavorful. I suspected this would drink well now and that suspicion was confirmed. I don’t think additional age will hurt this. It’s got good bones. My only fear would be exploding bottles if any more carbonation forms inside this beauty.

 

We're down to our last few bottles of Sixteen & really enjoying them. There have been a few Weyerbacher Anniversary series beers that have aged amazingly. If you have/can get properly stored Fourteen, it's wickedly good even four plus years old.

 

agreed

 

So in your opinion, was it better fresh or with three years on it?

 

Unfortunately I do not. Thirteen held up good too, I have an older bottle of Tiny I'm hoping aged just as well.

 

Better. Not much difference than at 2 years.

But if you like a strong underlying hop flavor in your imperial stouts, then drink it fresh.

 

2013 Founders Doom- Was experimenting with this one but the outcome wasn't bad at all. The distinct "Double Trouble" hop profile is pretty much gone but with more caramel malt on the nose and palate. Still good barrel character, I think the bourbon flavors are masking the oxidation. I assumed this was going to be not great/drain pour but it's pretty good. Definitely enjoyed it more fresh though so anyone who was weird like myself and aged one, drink up now.

 

Firestone Walker XV

The best Anniversary beer since XI?

Certainly has handled age better than any of them since that illustrious beverage.

No sign of oxidation, this is big, bold, burly barleywine territory with some rich, deep tobacco notes, hints of chocolate and caramelized honey.

This is delicious.