Recently a guy I see around town mentioned that he had a bunch of beer aging in his basement, that he clearly wasn't going to be drinking it all, and would I like a few bottles? Why, yes. Yes I would. Of the 6 he gave me, the youngest is a 2011 Bigfoot. There is a '97 Old Bawdy, and the subject of this post, HotD Fred, Batch #17, brewed Dec '98, bottled Jan '99. Now, the questions. Anybody had a similar vintage lately? How was it? Drink it now? Age it longer? Comments, suggestions, thoughts?
I had one bottled in '00 not long ago and have another one from '01 in the cellar. It drank great. It was kept in a cool cellar away from any light all this time. Sugars, as expected, had taken center stage and there was this nice honey-like undertone throughout. Quite enjoyable. http://www.beeradvocate.com/communi...u-drinking-now-553.173231/page-3#post-2374705 Cheers!
Bellingham just went up a few points in the "guys you see around town" category. I can't imagine it will get considerably better with more age, but I have been wrong before. I say open it and report back.
Just for the record, the other 3 were a Maritime Pacific Jolly Roger of indeterminate age (no identifiers on the label, but certainly old. Wasn't great, but not terrible either. Gave it a 3.5 on Untappd.), a '97 Bridgeport Old Knucklehead (not bad, but certainly way past prime), and a Pyramid 5,000 Year Ale. Not sure of the age, but certainly late '90s. Very good, a 4.5 on Untappd, which would translate to a 3.75-4.0 if I had rated it here. Not bad for just trying to help a brother out.
I can't recall the number, but I've had Fred that was (I think) 11 or 12 years old. It was incredible. Last time I was at the Tasting Room, they had several different older batches of Fred available (for on site purchase only), but none that old. I think it was several years ago now, but I was fortunate enough to be at a bottle share where someone brought a magnum of Fred 2. Carbonation was surprisingly good in that beer, and my recollection is that it was still quite delicious. Anyway, my limited experience is that well kept bottles of Fred age very, very well, so my guess is your bottle would be outstanding. However, I would probably drink it up as soon as possible; my guess is that it likely won't improve much more at this point, and hell, why run the risk of it going bad (for whatever reason) because you held onto it too long.
OK, just finishing it up. My first beer since Tuesday. Very low carbonation, but not still. Sugary-sweet scent in front, with some light fruit, and noticeable alcohol. The taste, while similar to others I've had, still has a strong alcohol flavor, without being really hot. Not much on the front, fruity-sweet middle, alky finish. Body is smooth, with a surprisingly dry finish, considering the sweetness. Drinkability was excellent, if I had another, I'd crack it right now. Overall, if you see one, feel free to run over a half-dozen nuns to get to it.
Maybe the best review I've read based in this line alone. I've never been fortunate enough to try one this old, but I've had a few vintages at the tasting room. My experience with aging beers is that there are few non-sours that i enjoy after ~3yrs, but this one goes well past that. It's up there with Thomas Hardy's as one of the best aging beers around. Glad you enjoyed yours!
I have nothing to contribute to this thread. I just wanted to day @beertunes, your new avatar is really fucking with me! I keep logging into the NW forum, and I'm like, "I don't remember posting/posting in that thread." Anyway, back to your regularly-scheduled old, awesome Fred thread.
It's only temporary. I forget the thread (probably a "best beer state" thread), but I posted something about Cascadia, and my post got deleted. It's my form of protest. I bet they wouldn't have deleted a post about Jefferson in former Northern California.
I just had Fred Batch 83 (3+ years old) last night and it was very sweet (but good!). What a great find!
Wow, that's an old one. Nice to know it stands up well. I'm not sure if I could age something that long but who knows. Thanks for sharing the experience.
