I'm looking to get some opinions on this year's BCS. This is NOT a better than/worse than thread, although opinions (if explained) are welcome. I find this year's BCS to be more roasty than last year's and with less cocoa taste. It's also a bit boozier, though that might just be me tasting BCS '13 in October '13 as opposed to my first sip of BCS '12 being in December '12. Thoughts?
Haven't seen it yet but I always make sure to get some of this every year. Off the top of my head I can't recall if I thought last year's was heavier on the coco or dark fruit flavors. I've always found the changing year-to-year profile of this beer quite interesting.
Can't help much here. Like many people, my memory for beer I drank over a year and a half ago compared to a beer I drank 6 months ago isn't particularly reliable. But it's possible that the differences you report are real ones since all beers are agricultural products and their ingredients are subject to the effects of growing conditions, etc. so even with tweaking, the beer might not be exactly the same from year to year. Especially with a seasonal like BCS where neither chocolate or coccoa are used in brewing the beer.
I agree. It definitely has more of a roast, even burnt flavor than I remember. A bit harsh. Maybe it needs a little time to round out. (I usually go through a case a year or so of the stuff.) I have a few bottles of last year's in the cellar, I'm going to do a side by side soon.
Yeah, I'm going to do a side by side in December. I was especially curious because they're on sale in Austin TX, but I think I'm going to pass on stocking up now.
It would behoove you to read this thread: http://beeradvocate.com/community/threads/brooklyn-bcs-aged-vs-fresh.123254/#post-1804174 Cheers!
