I was hoping someone could help me distinguish the difference between two different years of KBS I got this weekend. I did some checking and there is supposed to be a date stamp hidden on the bottle that can be seen in just the right light, but I'm not able to find it. I noticed the print on the top of the neck is different and I'm sure someone can easily tell me what the difference is in each one. I did some checking, but didn't see a thread? These should be the last two years of KBS I was told.
I'll have to keep looking. The only print I could find was a set of numbers on the base of the bottle that wasn't a date stamp. My eyes aren't the greatest either! Haha.
correction: it's SUPPOSED to be on the neck/shoulder area. sometimes yes, sometimes no, sometimes smudged beyond being even remotely legible.
on '13 and '14 would be in yellow ink AFAIK...so you either see it or you don't. On older bottles, they were using dark ink which was a damn joke.. I have some suspicion although I've never done tons of research that they only stamp one bottle in each 4 pk. If I'm right and you got stuck buying singles you might not have any date.
I took a flashlight to it and still don't see anything right under the neck that I didn't see before. Only clue was the different ink variation and I think I got my question answered with that. Thanks for the help.
So are you going to age KBS? I put a few bottles away in the past and after a year I actually think they didn't taste as good as the original. I would have though a Rich stout like KBS would be ideal for aging. Unless mine were flukes. I just enjoy them now when I get them. Educate me or add thoughts.
I've found (at least for the '13) that around 9 months aging is optimal. Still have one left from that batch which would make it over a year old which I'm about to try and compare.
I think it ages fine, I'm out of 12's, have 2-3 13's and maybe 7 14's. have to say I do prefer KBS hot and fresh though, age calms down the coffee/ barrel a bit, but it's much smoother and still a great brew. I probably wouldn't hold them 3-4 years though like BCBS.
Alright, so I opened a Devil Dancer last night I picked up this past weekend... All 4 bottles had a yellow date stamp just below the neck in the 4 pack. I rubbed on the one bottle I drank with just my thumb and the date stamp was coming off. Food for thought I guess.
