#309: Allagash » Curieux (Bourbon Barrel-Aged Tripel)

Allagash » Curieux (Bourbon Barrel-Aged Tripel) | ABV: 11/0% 
I picked a bottle of Curieux up after enjoying a draft glass at Northstar earlier in the winter, its understated and deceptively drinkable character would be enjoyable on a blustery night in.

A blend of Allagash's Tripel Ale aged in Jim Beam barrels and fresh Tripel Ale, Curieux enters with aromas of soft peach & apricot and faint, sweet bourbon.

Lively carbonation and smooth, rummy flavors cross the palate without the expected ethanol, boozy notes. Firm notes of apricot, caramel, coconut and a touch of earthiness follow. Further through, there's a touch more raisin on the palate, but never dipping into the sticky realm. On the final glass, apricot skin aromas are much more defined.

Overall, another subtly potent ale from those fine folks from Maine, prompting enjoyable evenings and good conversation.

#291: Sierra Nevada /Boulevard Brewing Co. » Terra Incognita (Strong Ale)

Sierra Nevada /Boulevard Brewing Co. » Terra Incognita (Strong Ale) | ABV: 9.8%
Beginning life as a hoppy, imperial brown ale, it's a blend of 55% wine-barrel aged, 32% bourbon barrel aged, and 13% fresh ale. Initially collaboratively brewed for a Brewers Association food event, Sierra Nevada has kept it a yearly tradition to release this big brew.

The nose is subtler than anticipated, with expected wine and bourbon notes, but soft, paired with aromas of cocoa and an herbal coolness to it. It pours up a deep, dark, opaque brown with thick head.

On to the palate, it's wonderfully smooth and offers a touch of sweetness. Red wine tannin peak through flavors of butterscotch and vanilla, finishing dry with a mild, mouthcoat. There's a soft bitterness of the bourbon & wine, quietly vying for attention and a boozy heat in the breath and chest of the finish. Far in, there's a dry tartness that develops with wonderful notes of black current.

A great brew that offers unique complexity due to the combination of beer style and blended aging.

#231: Shmaltz Brewing Co. » He'Brew Funky Jewbelation '14 (Strong Ale)

Shmaltz Brewing Company » He'Brew Funky Jewbelation 2014 (Strong Ale)
ABV: 9.4% | Rating: 9/10

This year's Funky Jewbelation blends up...

Jewbelation Fifteen (Aged 18 months)
Messiah (Age 3 months)
Bittersweet Lenny's RIPA (Aged 12 months)
Reunion (Aged 6 months)
Origin (Aged 6 months)
Rejewvenator (Aged 6 months)
Death of a Contract Brewer (Aged 4 months)

...aged 35% in bourbon barrels and 65% inf rye whiskey barrels.

Presented as a dark, murky brown with an ever-staying ring of off-white head; a huge, boozy nose kicks this year's Jewbelation off with a bang, touched with cherry and dates. The flavors follow suit and are surprisingly and deliciously sour.

Big, bold, sour dark-cherry bliss right here. It's chewy, intense, but expertly well-balanced. The best quick comparison I could give on this is an American Strong Ale and Oud Bruin hybrid.  It finishes up dry, with plentiful dark fruits including cherry and pomegranate, with a touch of champagne and a healthy hint of rye and bourbon.

Overall, it's considerably more fruity and sour than 2013 and less of a booze-heavy sipper. A tasty, strong/sour hybrid.

#230: Jack's Abby Brewing » Barrel-Aged Framinghammer (Baltic Porter)

Jack's Abby Brewing » Barrel-Aged Framinghammer (Baltic Porter)
ABV: 10% | IBUs: 55 | Rating: 9.2/10

After a busy day of the day-job and an evening of recording, it was time for a movie night in with my partner. At the moment, we were seemingly on the tail end of this summer congestion, so it was also time to break into a few items from the 'save me' fridge, including this gem from the Massachusetts lager crew, Jack's Abby.

This Bourbon-Barrel aged version of Framinghammer pours up jet black with a silky mocha head. Lush aromas of chocolate, cocoa nibs, vanilla and bourbon calm and entice.

It's incredibly silky, with a plethora of creamy dark chocolate notes wrapped in soft bourbon flavors. Satisfyingly smooth esters follow with notes of oat, faint brown sugar, and vanilla with a lingering sting of booze and soft hop bitterness.

Overall, a wonderful take on the Baltic Porter tradition - silky, chocolaty, and easily drinkable with a well-hidden ABV.

#217: Anderson Valley Brewing Co. » Gatlin Damnosus (Sour Barrel-Aged Barleywine)

An unforgiving brew of devilish tartness and bourbon decadence...

(I should wake up more before determining that pictures are in focus)

The Brewery: Anderson Valley Brewing Company (Boonville, CA)
The Brew: Gatlin Damnosus (Sour, Bourbon Barrel-Aged Barleywine)
Availability: Draft Only (Limited)
ABV: 8.8%%
Rating: 9.4/10
Location: Owl House (Rochester)

Over the weekend, I played in Hiroshima Vacation at Bug Jar as part of our final run shows. Rochester usually means Tap & Mallet or Owl House, and since this time brunch was in order after a lovely night over, the latter was up.

We arrived with a half hour before they could serve, so I was happy to have some extra time to peruse their always impressive draft line. However, this time around, an 8.8% sour, Bourbon-barrel aged barleywine was a no-brainer, even for first thing in the morning.

This beer was every bit as insane as I was hoping. Served up in an 8 oz. glass, Gatlin Damnosus is a hazy, grayish dark brown with a thick, creamy off-white head. Notes of sour grapes, sweet booze, and oak emanate from the glass.

Unabashed, irreverent flavors burst across my palate inducing a spine-tingling double-take. This is complexity and atradition at it's best. Exotic blends of sour cherry, ripe pear, toffee, butterscotch - all rich and decadent with woody, earthy undertones and a mild dryness. Further through there's apple skin, vanilla, and an ever-more pronounced rich bourbon flavors. It's honestly like 4 beers in one ally vying for attention.

Overall, for the adventurous enthusiast only.  An mildly astringent, booze fueled experience that I'd love to see in bottle form.

#214: Founders Brewing » KBS (Kentucky Breakfast Stout)

The legend...

The Brewery: Founders Brewing Co. (Grand Rapids, MI)
The Brew: KBS (Kentucky Breakfast Stout)
Availability: Draft and bottles (Seasonal, Limited)
ABV: 11.2% | 70 IBUs
Rating: 9.5/10
Location: Home
Found: Fingerlakes Beverage Center

Founder's KBS has become legend to say the least, even garnering RateBeer's "Best Beer in America", It's brewed with a massive amount of coffee and chocolates, then cave-aged in oak bourbon barrels for an entire year. As with many sought-after, highly limited brews, living in a small city sometimes means missing out, which so far has been the case for me with KBS. That said, FLBC delivered once again.

KBS pours up with a voluminous mocha head that's bubbly and a bit fizzy, but with plenty of lace atop an opaque brown-black body. A strikingly bitter nose of coffee, cocoa powder, and oak gets things rolling.

Fantastic, flavors careen through mildly bitter, dry, to a sweet easing finish. Big bold flavors of roasted coffee, baking chocolate, along with charred notes blur into dark chocolate, chili and booze spice, and all wrap up with a smooth, sweet chocolate finale.

Incredibly and original with an insanely deft balance of bold flavors and augmentations - the chocolate, oak, coffee, nor bourbon ever get too powerful on their own. Highly recommended, obviously.

#203: Firestone Walker Brewing Co. » Parabola (Russian Imperial Stout) & §ucaba (Barleywine)

Two barrel aged brews, cellar aged for an additional year...

The Brewery: Firestone Walker Brewing Co. (Paso Robles, CA)
The Brew: Parabola (Barrel Aged Russian Imperial Stout)
Availability: 22 oz bottle/very limited draft (Proprietor's Vintage Series)
ABV: 13%% | 82 IBUs
Rating: 9.8/10
Location: Home
Found: Fingerlakes Beverage Center

The Beer? 
Unboxed, unfoiled, and uncapped, Parabola serves up deep dark brow with almost no head.

The nose? Holy hell... you'll get drunk off the fumes on this one. Bold aromas of bourbon, vanilla, lots of milk, dark fruit and faint molasses set up an alluring beertopia.

On to the palate, it's heaven - dark, sweet, with a ton of booze heat, like some whiskey-malt nectar. The mouthfeel is silky, sticky with a substantial mouthcoat. Flavors of bourbon, coconut, raisin, and cane sugar swirl around throughout, with notes of toffee, coffee, and dark caramel rising.

An incredible, artful brew, and true "reserve" warranted territory.

_______________________________________________________________________

The Brewery: Firestone Walker Brewing Co. (Paso Robles, CA)
The Brew: §ucaba (Barrel Aged English-style Barleywine)
Availability: 22 oz bottle/very limited draft (Proprietor's Vintage Series)
ABV: 13%% | 42 IBUs
Rating: 9.9/10
Location: Home
Found: Fingerlakes Beverage Center

The Beer? 
I wanted to have these brews back to back nights, but work travel and a bit of a cold going around town, put this one off a few extra days of high anticipation.

Formerly known as Abacus, the oddly-monikered §ucaba pours out a murky, brown-ruby with a fast fading head. A huge, drunken nose, full of booze, raisin, vanilla, and candy sugar follows up.

The flavor is incredible - I'm marrying this beer. Dark and semi-sweet with a dry finish. Even being cellared for a year, there's still a touch of hops peaking through the hot alcohol punch. Faint citrus and tropical fruits are threaded through more prominent notes of plum, red apple & skin, and sarsaparilla. It's delightfully creamy and never silky or oily.

Another slam-dunk from FW's Proprietor's Vintage Series and a must try for Barleywine lovers.

#159: Founders Brewing Co. Sweet Repute (Barrel-Aged Wheatwine)

Sweet bliss...

The Brewery: Founders Brewing Co.(Grand Rapids, MI)
The Brew: Sweet Repute (Barrel-Aged Wheatwine)
Availability: Draft and bottles (limited)
ABV: 12.6%
Rating: 9.5/10
Location: Tug Hill (Cabin)
Found: Fingerlakes Beverage Center

The Story? I stopped down to Fingerlakes Beverage Center to pick up something special for our anniversary trek up to the Tug Hill Plateau. I didn't have anything particular in mind, but figured this time of year there's always something limited, outrageous, and boozy to be found. And boy, did I find it.

I always try to grab a bottle of Founders Backstage series whenever it arrives. I missed the Mango Magnifico release, so when I saw their latest, Sweet Repute, staring back, their was no hesitation. This sweet beast is one-hundred percent barrel aged in maple syrup bourbon barrels and bourbon barrels over the course of sixteen months, then blended using carefully calculated ratios for the delivered brew. Wowzah.

The Beer? Sweet Repute opens with a big nose of honey and bourbon. Subtler notes of maple and oak are present as well after a more focus whiff. There's a touch of white head atop it's hazy gold body. Enough talk... time to drink.

This is booze-candy. Straight up. This isn't even beer - angel-tears nectar maybe? Strong flavors of caramel, candy sugar, vanilla, cream soda, toffee and a hefty dose of butterscotch make for a delicious start right out of the gate. It's boozy, as the 12.6% would infer, but with a medium body and gradual mouthcoat. Excellent.

Further through, roasted toffee notes emerge in the finish and the maple and bourbon flavors build, giving it more of a bite. This is no shy beer and more full bodied than more wheatwines I've encountered. There's even a bit of spruce and herbal notes on the front end of the second glass.

Overall, a truly expert crafted beer. It won't be for everyone, but for those it's for, it's luscious euphoria. A sweet/strong benchmark.

Birthday Beers!

Birthday's call for good beer...

(from left to right...)
1809 Berliner Wisse
Bandwaggon Hidden Rabbit Hefeweizen
The Bruery Tradewinds Tripel (brewed with rice & basil)
Stone Farking Wheaton w00tstout Imperial Stout with pecans, wheat, and rye with one quater bourbon barrel ages.
Sierra Nevada Bigfoot Barleywine aged in whiskey barrels
Unity Vibration Ginger Kombucha Beer

Lots more posts coming soon!

#039: Ithaca Beer Co. - Cascazilla (Red Ale aged on bourbon soaked oak)

Cask night at Ithaca Beer Taproom!

The Brewery: Ithaca Beer Company (Ithaca, NY)
The Brew: Cascazilla (Red Ale aged on bourbon soaked oak)
Availability: Cask only (limited)
ABV: 7.3%
Rating: 8.5/10
Location: Ithaca Beer Taproom

The Story? On Monday, I received a note that a friend I hadn't seen in two years was going to be celebrating her birthday with a small crew at Ithaca Beer Taproom on Wednesday. Short notice... but, to hit IB on cask night? Twist my arm.

As with any short-run series and experimentation, Ithaca Beer's cask & 5-barrel series have had some real winners (see Black Mamba) and some less-memorable attempts, but they're always worth keeping up on. This weeks' phrase "Cascazilla aged on bourbon soaked oak" immediately caught my attention.

The Beer? For starters, we've got a fresh hop nose. It's dialed back from Cascazilla's usual ferocity, but as is to be expected from the cask and the oak. Now for the taste - nice smooth hops and very drinkable. Bourbon and oak we're an excellent experiment for one of my staple Ithaca brews.

A bit sweet at first, but then Cascazilla's dryness kicks in with noticeably (in perspective) more carbonation than in some of the other cask offerings, though nowhere near usual draft levels. The bourbon is mellow and eludes to vanilla extract, dancing around in the background.

This one really retains the hop beauty of Cascazilla in a subtler frame with mellowing of oak and semi-sweetening effects of the bourbon complexity.

#027: He'Brew Funky Jewbelation #8 2013 (American Strong Ale)

One of the most complex aged blends I've ever encountered...

The Brewery: Shmaltz Brewing Company (Brooklyn, NY)
The Brew: He'Brew Funky Jewbelation #8 2013 (American Strong Ale)
Availability: Bottles
ABV:  9.4% | IBUs: ?
Rating: 10/10
Location: Home

The Story? BeerStreetJournal put this one on my radar and it immediate went to the top 5 on my "Must Have" list for 2013. Why you ask? This beer is a blend of...

Jewbelation 15 (aged 7 and 10 months)
Origin Pomegranate Strong Ale (aged 11 months)
Bittersweet Lenny’s R.I.P.A. (aged 12 months)
Messiah Nut Brown Ale (aged 6 months)
Coney Island Lager (aged 12 months)
Albino Python (aged 3 months)

After blending, 55% of the batch is aged in Bourbon Barrels and the remaining 45% is aged in Rye Whiskey Barrels. Obviously, this beer will be intense... but will it work?

The Beer? Wow, I can smell this beer from the table! Booze and huge malts on the nose. Fruity too - bright with a hint of citrus.

This one is a sipper. Earthy, delicious sourness with raisin and sour apple notes. Very sweet. The Origin Pomegranate is very present, giving the beer a juicy mouthfeel. The Albino Python heaves the finish with a touch of dry spice.

Halfway through it starts to pick up strong notes akin to a winter/holiday warmer. Carrying on, bold tartness of cherry, molassas and bourbon continue to swell - even going so far as to pick up nose characteristics of Bourbon County. The final dredge brings peaks of the Rye Whiskey with sweet Bourbon finish.

Overall, a strikingly bold, adventurous beer. A rewarding experience for the price. Recommended.

#017: Founders Brewing Co. - Doom (Oak Aged Imperial IPA)

Our first visit with this oak-aged version of their delicious Double Trouble IPA...

The Brewery: Founders Brewing Co.(Grand Rapids, MI)
The Brew: Doom 2013 (Oak-Aged Imperial IPA)
Availability: Draft and bottles (limited)
ABV: 10%
Rating: 10/10
Location: The Westy

The Story? Any of Founders' "Backstage Series" is always a quick hit to the wishlist, followed by some sort of seance or offering in hope that we can actually score a bottle before they sell out. Luckily enough, my partner and I hit such a score with a beautiful bottle of Doom. Shortly thereafter, we learned the owner of The Westy (our favorite draft beer stop in Ithaca) had hoped to obtain this wondrous brew for their taps, but alas, missed out. Since he provides us with such wonderful libations on a regular basis, we saw it fitting to track down another bottle to share. A few weeks of searching later, bottle #2 was procured.

For those new to this impending Doom, the brew is the result of Founders' award-winning specialty Imperial IPA, "Double Trouble", being aged in bourbon barrels - a method more commonly reserved for maltier beers such as stouts and barleywines in the past, but now being applied to hefty IPAs as well.

The Beer? Wonderful caramel color with almost no head. Big, smooth taste up front. An equally big, hoppy breath in with a nice whiskey burn on the way down. Boozy, with hints of coconut. Very smooth and perfectly balanced. With the second glass, we see increased hop presence as the beer takes on drier notes with an even boozier breath.

Overall a well-balanced, drinkable, intense, but mature beer. Looking forward to how it ages a bit. Plenty of hops and bourbon present, but neither overpowers as they compliment one another. Hoppy, with sweet notes and plenty of alcohol presence. A very complex, rich take on a high-gravity IPA.

#005: Heavy Seas 'Uncharted Waters': Siren Noire (Imperial Chocolate Stout)

My first taste at Heavy Seas revamped 'Uncharted Waters' series.

The Brewery: Heavy Seas (Halethorpe, MD)
The Brew: Siren Noire (Imperial Chocolate Stout)
Availability: Bottles (Bomber)
ABV: 9.5% // IBU: 18.5
Rating: 8.5
Location: Home

The Story? For 2013, Heavy Seas rebooted their 'Mutiny Fleet' series to the 'Uncharted Waters' series. Vastly improved artwork (I've always been a fan of their 12 oz. branding) over 'Mutiny', plus upgrades with the brews themselves. This first release in the series sees their Imperial Chocolate Stout tossed into bourbon barrels (which always draws me in...) and tripled the amount of chocolate nibs and added vanilla bean.

The Beer? At first pour I know I'm going to like this one - dark black and about a millimeter of head with chocolate and raisin on the nose. Open the hatch... not as thick as I was expecting, but it hangs on the front of the tongue (moreso than on the back).

Creamy, nice dark chocolate flavor with the bourbon well balanced and not boozy. Beautiful malts (2-Row, Crystal, Chocolate, plus Roasted Barley) dance around my mouth as a dryness begins to build - a pleasant, dry bitterness begins to build, like eating a whole dark chocolate bar. Oddly enough, the mouthfeel lingers more than the taste.

Overall, a solid stab at the bourbon barrel imperial stout. If you've never had one, this is a great place to start. I give respect to house well balanced the bourbon is with this. It's obviously affected the stout in all the ways it should, but it doesn't come off as a sipping, potent concoction (not that those who do don't have a place in my top ranks). A wonderful beer for the price. Not much from Heavy Seas has ever disappointing.


Nickname: The Apprentice