FOBAB 2015

good meeting you yesterday raj!

 

Same! Also a thanks to @uiucphoenix for the introduction

 

Don't fall for it man! That's exactly what the humanoids want you to think...

 

Rare was by far the best from this year's BCS lineup and it wasn't even close... yet still not worth $60 IMO.

 

It was alright, there beers are getting better.

The Crooked Stave L'Brett d'Cherry was hands down my favorite non-stout there. So much cherry. Probably the best american kriek i have ever had.

From my chicken scratch in my booklet, my favorites were, in no order:

Rare
Vanilla Rye
Trickery
Malevolence caliente
Darkstar Coffee
BCBS Coffee '15
Kookie Monster
Vultures from the past
No Rules
Veritas
Starkeller Peach

Outstanding event this year. Very happy i went to both Friday and Saturday night sessions. Only had a handful of things runout before i could get to them and luckily got them on Saturday evening.

 

I drank a bunch of it.

 

Barrel Aged Coffee Dark Secret and Coffee + Raspberry were huge winners in my book. The BCS and variants of coursed rocked.

I wasnt huge on the Desthil Beer that won.

Also disappointed in Black Gold and Cookie Monster.

Veritas was also fantastic.

 

I had a blast. Tried 44 beers. And I didn't even go down some of the aisles and completely forgot about the bottle/cider/whatever room. Another amazing FoBAB. Favorites were Rare, Vanilla Rye, Perennial Blue Label, Moody Tongue Chocolate Barleywine, Pipeworks The Jones Dog, Firestone Walker Sucaba, Off Color/Jester King Gin Finished Radiolaria, Firestone Walker Sour Opal, and Almanac Farmer's Reserve Blueberry.

 

I was so happy to see Onsieme Huere. Finally another red wine barrel BCBS.

Other highlights were Crooked Stave L'Brett D'Cherry, Lost Abbey Veritas 15, Spiteful Chocolate Caliente, Lost Abbey Angel's Share Grand Cru, Off Color Whiskers, Off Color Gin Barrel Yuzu Fierce, Gigantic Pipewrench, everything AC Golden (Coors), Brickstone Dark Secret and variants, Goose Island Rare, Goose Island BCBCS, Goose Island Regal Rye, Perennial Blue Label, everything Schell's, Fremont Coffee Dark Star, Haymarket Clare's Thirsty, Central Waters Black Gold, Central Waters Peruvian Morning, and Transient Pentameter.

Disappointments were few, but Goose Island Prop '15 is far too sweet, all Against the Grain, Off Color Gin Radiolaria, all Almanac was so samey, Destihl Lambic had awful buttery notes, Sierra Nevada Dubbel, 4 Hands Madagascar tasted artificial and too much vanilla, Brooklyn Cognac Hand and Seal was too sweet, 18th Street Flanders with Cherries was very metallic, and Ballast Point Rum Victory at Sea was hot like most rum beers I have had.

Organization could've been clearer, and I got way too drunk Friday, but all-in-all it was a fantastic first FoBaB for me. Is it time for FoBaB '16 yet?

 

Thanks for putting my thoughts down, so I wouldn't have to!

Seriously, Rare is fantastic, but I don't know that I've found a beer that deserves $60 at 16.9 oz. Either way, GI has shown two things:

1) They can be counted on to deliver something innovative every year.

2) We should really be paying more attention to all the other breweries that are quietly killing it.

 

Just got off the plane from my rookie expedition to FoBAB. So. Much. Fun. I'm such a newbie and just trying to learn but the one thing I do know - what I like: barrel aged stouts. So I came at it from a completely different perspective. Yes - go get some Goose Island first - just one pour of the coffee, please...yum....then move on to trying new things (although I did try the BCBS Prop which was conveniently also being poured in the 200 aisle (217) and that was Amazing). Living in California that meant a ton of great beer that we don't get here. And I did do Imbibe which helped my cause of walking up and down aisles to talk with the volunteers (some who knew their stuff, some who didn't...that's okay...just pour, please).

In the end probably did 35 pours - and asked for 1/2 the limit - so 1 oz pours. Damn. Still had to ditch taking the bus home - Uber me please. And I lost my hat somewhere. And made new friends. Anyway - newfound loves: Perrin Brewing No Rules Vietnamese Porter (actual notes: "frickin delicious." Yeah - true connoisseur here); Brickstone Barrel Aged Dark Secret with Raspberries; Fremont Brewing Bourbon Dark Star Coffee Edition; Nevin's Brewing Kookie Monster; Fremont Brewing Bourbon Abominable; and the Destihl Dosvidanya which I tried before it was awarded and I did note "excellent!" Hey maybe I'm learning something!

 

Does anyone know if BA Jones Dog was a new batch?

 

I drank it. I was pretty surprised it medaled at all, let alone winning best in show. Maybe my palate was crushed from too many big beers, but it just sort of blended in among the various BA stouts there and didn't strike me as super remarkable.

 

My thouhgts exactly. Also the Rye version was horrible.

 

I skipped the Dosvidanya line because there are still bottles (and lots of them) of what I assume are from the 2014 batch sitting on shelves here in BloNo. No way in hell I'm waiting in that line for something I can readily buy.

Congrats to those guys though. Have a couple friends who work and/or have worked there.

 

14 Prop was incredible, 15 was delicious but needed a couple of years. Rare was terrific, but holy cow am I glad I tasted it at FOBAB. would never spend 60 on a bottle of it, better yet chase it down with other trade bait. don't believe the hype

III Dolia was amazing, You dont win friends with sours #5 was great too, was very shocked to see Avery Rasp Sour take home a medal

 

Was I ever glad to see Clare's Thirsty make an appearance again this year. Those raspberries!!! Dare I say just as good as any BC fruit variant?

 

I think the hype for Rare is valid in the sense that you can taste that it's a more complex version of regular BCBS. I agree that it might not be "worth" $60, but it's gotta be much more expensive to make than standard BCBS, so I don't feel like they're price-gouging.

Someone else mentioned that Prop '14 was still a cinnamon bomb; was that your finding, too? The first couple bottles I had tasted very strongly of coconut (more so than Prop '13, even), and then the 3rd I had was straight cinnamon, which really let me down (so I didn't bother trying it at FoBAB). I totally agree that 15 is good, and would greatly benefit from some time in the cellar; I don't think it's as much of a letdown as everyone else, but it's definitely too overpoweringly sweet right now.

I'm really excited so many people (including FoBAB judges) like BA Malevolence Chocolate Caliente; I've asked the Spiteful guys if they plan on bottling ever since I had it at Stout Fest, so hopefully this is the kick in the pants they need to actually follow through with it.

 

I'll wait to have it at Haymarket before I make that proclamation, but it's pretty damn good. I'm not a huge BA berry stout fan, but Clare's was damn good! I'd heard great things, and it delivered.

 

It's great stuff, discovered it at FOBAB 2013, said then it was better than backyard rye. My favorite bourbon stout w/ berries.