Delaware County is a weird place. I say this as a man born and raised there. Blue collar with lots of Irish Catholics (I wen’t to St. Dot’s and Cardinal O’Hara). I’m surprised there’s not a Delco flag. It’s weird for a place to choose its identity based on its county, but Delco is a way of life. Apparently. Alright, fine, I’m exaggerating for effect here, but there is something a little… off about Delco. The point is, when a brewery opens up there, you can expect them to embrace their roots and take pride in their county. Whatever that may be.
2SP is the recently opened (er, last year) brewery arm of Two Stones Pub, a small chain of solid little beer bars located mostly in Delaware. Head brewer and Delco’s native son Bob Barrar made a name for himself brewing for Iron Hill Brewpub in Media, earning numerous medals at GABF and other big contests. One of his most famous creations is Iron Hill’s Russian Imperial Stout, a beer that he’s adapted for new life at 2SP. As local imperial stouts go, it’s great and I look forward to seeing it around more often. Now they’ve put it in Bourbon Barrels and aged it for 8 months? Sold, even if it is a pricey bottle. I’ve often mentioned the need for a more regularly available local BBA stout; will this beer fill that need? Well, maybe?
2SP Bourbon Barrel Aged The Russian – Pours a deep, dark brown color, almost black, with a solid finger of light brown head that sticks around for a bit. Smells of molasses, caramel, vanilla, with hints of the bourbon and oak pitching in as well. Roast comes out a bit more in the taste, along with similar elements from the nose, light caramel and vanilla, with just a bit of vanilla and oak. Mouthfeel is medium to full bodied, well carbonated (moreso than typical for the style – not inappropriate, but it does lighten this beer up a bit more than it probably should), a nice sipper. Overall, it’s solid, but not a top tier affair. Honestly, I might like the regular The Russian better… B+
Beer Nerd Details: 9.5% ABV bottled (750 ml). Drank out of a snifter on 5/20/16. Batch No. 001. Bottle No. 459.
I’ve generally enjoyed everything I’ve had from 2SP, so I’m looking forward to keeping tabs on them in the coming years. As for a world class local BBA stout? This isn’t quite there yet, but we’ve got another candidate coming soon. Stay tuned.