Surprising failures

Central Waters Bourbon Barrel Stout and Peruvian Morning. Fresh, I found them balanced and delicious. But, even with just a few months on the dial, I could see that they were declining rapidly.

 

Really? That is not good. I have some I am aging. Might have to drink them now instead... Hoping the 16 I have from them does better though...

 

Boon Mariage Parfait 2007. Fresh it was a funky monster; the most recent bottle I had was sweeter, less tart, and less complex. A very big letdown for an aged gueuze.

 

I had a vertical of BWB awhile back at Holy Grale in Louisville, KY. I actually preferred it with age on it. They were aged kegs instead of bottles, no idea if that makes a difference...

 

JW Lees Lagavulin cask 2006. purchased around 2009. i know how i stored it & it was bought from a reputable shop, but something went wrong, it had definitely turned. drained it.

 

Imo, I think the CW bbs ages well. Just did a three year vert. of them, with a fellow BA, and my favorite was the 2011...his was the 2012. The fresh was also great, but just our two cents...

 

I'll reword my statement. Peruvian Morning rapidly lost its most redeeming qualities. Regular BBS simply didn't improve for me. I bought a ton of bbs last year and I bought some this year. Its not a particularly boozy/over-the-top stout to begin with, so there's nothing to really "smooth" out. Its also the thinnest barrel-aged stout I've tried. So, I'm done aging this particular beer.

The 16 is phenomenal right now and its completely different from bbs. I don't necessarily see it getting "better" with age, but it should be fine.

 

I thought KBS would hold up better than it did. 2012 was extremely meh IMO especially side-by-side with a 2013

 

O'so brewings BB Night train, loved it fresh but kept one bottle for a year. Cracked it last week and it dropped off big time in flavor.

 

Agreed. Fresh KBS is amazing compared to aged KBS.

Dope

 

Buddy of mine opened up a year old Prairie Bomb! the other day and while it still tasted good, it was no where close to a fresh one.

 

Most barrel aged beers. Learned my lesson a long time ago.

 

mother of all storms. i had a 2009 perfect storm aged like 3-4 years and it suuuuucked.

 

Speedway stout wasn't nearly as good when aged about 2 years. As with most coffee stouts, the fresher the more accentuated the coffee flavors.

 

I agree with PM not aging well at all. Gotta drink that one fresh.

Bourbon barrel stout on the other hand is impressive with age! I prefer aged CW BBS over having it fresh. A few weekend ago, I open a 3 year vert for some friends new to craft beers and everyone like the 2013 the least. 2012 was 2nd best and 2011 was the winner. Age seems to mellow and integrate flavors very nicely and the mouthfeel thickens up a little bit more. If you want a few more details check out my post in the Feburary 2014 cellar thread.

 

I had the exact same expierence 2 weekends ago with 2011, 2012, and 2013 CW BBS vert!

 

MoaS has a window of 2 - 3 years in the bottle until it tastes right to me. I dont like MoaS fresh that beer needs time to hit its prime!

 

I couldn't agree with this more. BBS has an aging window of a year to a year and a half max IMO, then it's all down hill from there. Fresh Peruvian Morning is a world class beer, but I've never experienced a beer that loses all of its amazing qualities so damn fast like it does if any of you plan on aging PM, you're doing yourself, (taste buds) and the beer an injustice.

 

My latest cellared beer disappointment happened to be at a group tasting where one of our group members opened a cellared bottle of CCB Imperial Sweet Stout. I almost cried ( tears of sadness) when I tasted it. That was a beer near and dear to me, and I was completely blown away by when I shared a fresh bottle w/ the group about a year and half ago. Now, it's lost the nice cognac notes in the taste, and the nose isn't even half of what it used to be... Oxidization has made a home in this one as well. It was a tragic experience