Dating Angel's Share

Discussion in 'Cellaring / Aging Beer' started by london1o1, Nov 26, 2012.

Thread Status:
Not open for further replies.
  1. london1o1

    london1o1 Pundit (930) Feb 14, 2003 Pennsylvania
    Trader

    Does anyone know of ways to tell what year Angel's Share a given bottle is (or for that matter, whether it is bourbon or brandy)? Mine don't seem to have a date printed on them.
     
    #1 london1o1, Nov 26, 2012
  2. yamar68

    yamar68 Initiate (0) Apr 1, 2011 Minnesota

    Lost Abbey uses ink jet bottle dates somewhere on the lower half of the bottle. If it doesn't specify on the label if it's bourbon or brandy it must be pretty old - they clearly include that information on the front label nowadays.
     
    #2 yamar68, Nov 26, 2012
  3. youradhere

    youradhere Initiate (0) Feb 29, 2008 Washington

    I would guess it is 07 or older; I believe (and I could be wrong) that the brandy versions specified, but then again it's been so long since I've been into Lost Abbey brews. That reminds me- I should open that 08 I have and see how it is doing...
     
    #3 youradhere, Nov 26, 2012
  4. london1o1

    london1o1 Pundit (930) Feb 14, 2003 Pennsylvania
    Trader

    It just says "Angel's Share Ale", and "Malt beverage aged in oak barrels" on the front label.

    It's one of the bottles with a longer neck and shorter body, is 12.5% abv, and says on the back label, "Our Angel's Share is a barrel aged burgundy colored ale infused with copious amounts of dark caramel malt to emphasize the vanilla and oak flavors found in freshly emptied oak barrels. Each batch spends no less than 6 months aging in the oak."

    I have another bottle that I know is Brandy, that says "freshly emptied Brandy barrels" where this one says "oak barrels", and "9 months aging" rather than the 6 months mentioned on this bottle. Not sure if any of this is helpful to any possible Lost Abbey date sleuths out there...

    No dates on the labels, and if there were any printed on the bottle, they've since rubbed off.
     
    #4 london1o1, Nov 26, 2012
  5. youradhere

    youradhere Initiate (0) Feb 29, 2008 Washington

    Email Lost Abbey? They were very communicative to me while I was a Sinners Club member. Just shoot the customer service people an email- and include pictures, they will help- and they should get back to you within a business week. Please post back here when you hear from them!
     
    #5 youradhere, Nov 26, 2012
  6. claaark13

    claaark13 Maven (1,412) Nov 29, 2007 Indiana
    Trader

    There was a comprehensive list describing the label differences (as well as carbonation notes) on the old forums. I'll see if I can find some cached pages and link them.
     
    #6 claaark13, Nov 26, 2012
  7. claaark13

    claaark13 Maven (1,412) Nov 29, 2007 Indiana
    Trader

    #7 claaark13, Nov 26, 2012
  8. RDMII

    RDMII Initiate (0) Apr 11, 2010 Georgia

    The label colors are different per bourbon or brandy on newer vintages. The brandy is an orange background and darker lettering, the bourbon is the opposite (or vice versa, I need to look at mine to verify). It's also in the description on the back, I forget which again but one is clearly described as the barrel type it's aged in.
     
    #8 RDMII, Nov 26, 2012
  9. jedwards

    jedwards Initiate (0) Feb 3, 2009 California

    Yup, that is correct. I stopped paying attention after 2010 so I don't know the variations on the new bottles, though I believe they're pretty much the same as the Bourbon 2010 (yellow ink stamp for year). The "new style" bottles are the ones from the mold that LA, Russian River, and North Coast went in on (looks like a small version of the 750ml bottles LA uses). The prior 375ml bottles are the old-style ones with the straight sides and narrowing top, e.g. on the left side of this photo: http://www.flickr.com/photos/jedwards/4561538861/in/set-72157623829111129/
     
    #9 jedwards, Nov 26, 2012
  10. london1o1

    london1o1 Pundit (930) Feb 14, 2003 Pennsylvania
    Trader

    Mine is in a bottle in the shape of the ones on the left, but doesn't have the date on the label like those. Does that mean it's pre-'08? Also, it has the orange border at the top of the label like the one you have labeled as Brandy '08 in your picture, but it makes no mention of Brandy on the back label (unlike my '10 Brandy Angel's Share bottle).

    From the compiled list on ratebeer, it looks like maybe it's an '08 Bourbon (since it's 275mL but has no indication of date or barrel type on either label)?
     
    #10 london1o1, Nov 26, 2012
  11. jedwards

    jedwards Initiate (0) Feb 3, 2009 California

    Sounds like the '08 Bourbon to me. Delicious!
     
    #11 jedwards, Nov 26, 2012
  12. sil1

    sil1 Initiate (0) May 19, 2012 California

    Agree sounds like 08
     
    #12 sil1, Nov 27, 2012
  13. london1o1

    london1o1 Pundit (930) Feb 14, 2003 Pennsylvania
    Trader

    Cool. Thanks, guys. Cheers!
     
    #13 london1o1, Nov 27, 2012
Thread Status:
Not open for further replies.