Stout

Dragon’s Milk

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It’s not exactly a secret that I love me some bourbon barrel aged beers, so it will come as no surprise that I really enjoyed this offering from Michigan’s New Holland Brewery. Maybe I’ve got a problem, but there’s just something magical that happens when you put beer into a bourbon barrel for aging. I just love the added richness of flavor, complexity, and thick, chewy mouthfeel that comes with the territory.

Dragon’s Milk is aged in old Heaven Hill Bourbon Barrels for at least 90 days. As previously discussed, this is partially due to the fact that the legal definition of Bourbon says that the whiskey must be aged on new oak, leading to a big secondary market of used oak barrels that brewers can latch onto. But apparently New Holland can only use those secondary Bourbon barrels once to age beer. “Second-use barrels don’t give the beer the same character,” says New Holland’s Brett VanderKamp.

But this is where things get really intriguing. New Holland also runs a small, artisanal spirits business, and they’ve started to use their old Dragon’s Milk barrels to age their whiskey… Consider my mind blown. What a great idea. When I was in line for Dark Wednesday, some beer nerds and I discussed the possibilities of this very thing (aging whiskey in beer barrels). I didn’t think it would happen so soon, but it’s a welcome development. This is apparently still in the prototyping phase, though both Jim and Don from the Beer and Whisky Brothers managed to get a hold of some of the stuff. The verdict: everyone seems to love it. It seems something magical happens when you put whiskey in a beer barrel for aging. I absolutely need to get my hands on some of this stuff.

In the meantime, I’ll have to make do with some regular old Bourbon barrel aged beer:

New Holland Dragons Milk

New Holland Dragon’s Milk – Pours a very dark brown color, almost black, with a small amount of tan head. Smells fantastic. Lots of roasted malt, caramel, milk chocolate, vanilla, bourbon, and oak in the nose. Taste starts off very sweet, rich flavors of caramel, milk chocolate, vanilla, light bourbon and oak. Just a hint of roasted malts. Mouthfeel is full bodied and chewy, perfectly balanced richness and carbonation. Goes down surprisingly easy, maybe a bit of alcohol warming when you drink quickly, but it still doesn’t feel as strong as it is… Overall, fantastic beer! A-

Beer Nerd Details: 10% ABV bottled (12 oz). Drank out of a snifter on 6/1/12.

I have no idea if and when this beer barrel bourbon will be available, but if I get a chance to try some, I’ll be sure to let you know. In any case, my consumption of barrel aged beers will probably continue to be unhealthily high. Summer seems a little less barrel-agey, but don’t worry, I’m sure I’ll be hitting up plenty of interesting stuff in the coming weeks.

Rye Rebellion

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Full Pint brewing, out of Pittsburgh, PA (or close enough), is only a couple years old at this point, but they seem to be making a name for themselves, at least here in the semi-local market. I’m sure starting a brewery incurs a massive cost at the start, but it looks like these fellas scavenged one John Harvard’s abandoned brewpubs for their brewing system. Harvard’s is apparently still around, but they appear to have retreated from the PA market. I’ve had many a Harvard’s beer back in my fledgling beer nerd days (back towards the hazy college years), and have never been particularly impressed, so I’m guessing Full Pint is putting this equipment to much better use these days than it ever got when it was new… There should be a name for this type of brewery that’s resurrected old brewing equipment. Zombie brewery, perhaps? (Apparently Full Pint is working on a new year-round dark beer called Night of the Living Stout, which is quite appropriate!)

Alright, let’s see here, ah, Rye Rebellion is an “imperial stout brewed with four different types of rye and aged in rye whiskey barrels”. You had me at “imperial” (then you really had me at “whisky”):

Full Pint Rye Rebellion

Full Pint Rye Rebellion – Pours a deep black color with minimal head and no real lacing. Smells strongly of roasted malts, with some of that sweet rye/bourbon character tickling at my nose… Starts off with a rich caramel chocolate malt character, followed by a bit of that roasted malt (maybe a little coffee) and finally, the rye/bourbon comes out to play towards the finish. The roasted coffee flavor seems to linger a bit in the aftertaste. But it’s all pretty well balanced, actually, and there’s a difference between this and a lot of other bourbon barrel stouts (perhaps because of the rye). Mouthfeel is full bodied, chewy and heavy, but still very smooth, with relatively low carbonation (but enough to make it drinkable). Very little booze character here, I’d have a hard time placing the ABV as high as it is… Overall, it’s quite a nice beer, distinct from a lot of its competition and really hitting the spot right now. A-

Beer Nerd Details: It turns out, they did this part for me. From the bottle:

Full Pint Rye Rebellion Beer Nerd Details

Drank out of a snifter on 5/18/12.

Quite a first impression! I’ll now have to seek out some of their other brews (Chinookie IPA seems to be a popular one, and I will of course be on the look out for that Night of the Living Stout)…

Insidious Bourbon Barrel Imperial Stout

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It’s pretty common for a brewery to have a series of sinister beer names, and Fegley’s Brew Works have a few in their lineup, including this one, called Insidious. Apparently, this bourbon barrel aged version was inspired by Silence of the Lambs‘ Buffalo Bill, quoted as saying “It puts the potion in the barrel” (with the unspoken implication that if it doesn’t, it’ll get the hose again). Was it worth kidnapping the regular old Insidious and holding it hostage in bourbon barrels for a year or so? Let’s find out, shall we:

Fegleys Brew Works Bourbon Barrel Insidious

Fegley’s Brew Works Insidious Bourbon Barrel Imperial Stout – Pours a very dark brown color, almost black, with a finger of tan head. Smells of roasted malt, with a hint of sweetness, presumably from the bourbon. The taste starts roasty, followed by some nice caramel and vanilla oak notes in the middle, finishing with a small but distinct kick of sweet bourbon, leaving an aftertaste of bourbon mixed with roasted malt. Mouthfeel is rich, thick, and chewy. Plenty of carbonation, but well matched and smooth. Goes down surprisingly easy. Overall, this is a fantastic beer. Not a huge amount of bourbon, but enough to know it’s there, very well balanced. A-

Beer Nerd Details: 9% ABV bottled (12 oz.) Drank out of a snifter on 5/5/12.

I’m trying to think if I’ve ever had a bad beer from these guys… and I don’t think I have. Indeed, they even have a few monsters in their lineup, like Hop’solutely (which I would love to try fresh) and the regular Insidious.

Founders Imperial Stout

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So this isn’t going to make sense to most of you, but today is Founder’s Day! My place of employment is 26 years old today, so to celebrate, I’ll write about a different kind of Founders… Ok, so I drank it about a month ago, but it still works, right?

Founders Imperial Stout

Founders Imperial Stout – Pours a deep black color with a finger of quite darkish brown color head. Smells strongly of roasted malts and dark crystal malts, some coffee with perhaps a hint of dark chocolate peeking through. Taste starts very sweet, with a bit of chocolate followed by those roasted malts emerging quickly into the middle, flavors of roast coffee asserting strongly in the middle and finish. The rich chocolate falvor becomes more prominent as the beer warms, which was much appreciated. Mouthfeel is full bodied, thick, and chewy, but still a joy to drink. Overall, a very nice imperial stout that emphasizes some flavors that are not quite my preference, but it’s still impeccable and extremely well crafted. B+

Beer Nerd Details: 10.5% ABV bottled (12 oz). Drank out of a snifter on 5/11/12.

Founders is one of the best breweries in the country, so I will continue to explore their catalog whenever possible. I think I even have a few more reviews in the pipeline…

Founders Kentucky Breakfast Stout

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Call me Mark. Some years ago – never mind how long precisely – having little or no money in my purse, and nothing particular to interest me at my local bar, I thought I would sail about a little and see the beer-soaked part of the world. So begins Moby Dick (uh, I may have paraphrased a bit). You see, us beer dorks have our own white whales. The rare, the fabled, the mythical beers we seem to constantly hear about on the internets, but which are mysteriously absent from all but the luckiest of bottle shops. I’ve actually had a pretty great run of whales this year, and my latest victory is the vaunted Kentucky Breakfast Stout (KBS for shorts, it currently resides at #10 on Beer Advocate’s top beers list).

As with a few other whales, it’s something I just assumed I’d never get my hands on… Not just because it’s rare, but because I was actually a bit disappointed by Founders’ standard Breakfast Stout. This isn’t really surprising, as I’m not much of a coffee guy and that particular beer is dominated by roasted coffee flavors (Perhaps espresso? I’m pretty clueless about the flavor distinctions of the coffee world…) It’s not that I hate coffee or anything, I just don’t like when it overpowers a beer. But a Kentucky Bourbon Barrel Aged Breakfast Stout? Now you’re speaking my language. I’m still expecting coffee, but also a heaping helping of bourbon, vanilla, and chocolate, a flavor combination I’m more in tune with.

Plus, as it turns out, the base beer of KBS isn’t actually the regular Breakfast Stout. According to an email from Founders (big ups to Scott of Beerbecue for doing the legwork here, and sharing it): “KBS is its own entity. It is like Breakfast Stout’s big brother. Kinda like an Imperial BS.” So apparently they brew a special imperial stout specifically made to age well in the bourbon barrels they sourced. In the words of Melville: “Such a portentous and mysterious monster roused all my curiosity.”

Founders KBS

Founders Kentucky Breakfast Stout – Pours a very dark, very thick, oily brown color with a surprising finger of light brown head (I’ve heard this has very little, but I got plenty!) Smells strongly of roast coffee and malt, along with something a little sweeter that I can’t quite place (perhaps that bourbon peeking through). At this point, I was a little worried that this would be another coffee bomb, but fortunately, that didn’t happen, and as it warmed, the nose opened up a little, evincing more balance. The taste actually ends up being quite distinct from the nose, though that coffee and roast malt character is certainly there. I’m getting a lot of caramel and chocolate out of the taste, especially at the start and the middle, and a very light bourbon kick also comes out to play, tempering the coffee and roast character, which doesn’t show up until the finish and aftertaste. At first this seemed a bit unbalanced, but as it warmed, the flavors coalesced into something deserving of all the hype this beer gets. The mouthfeel is superb. Perfectly carbonated, full bodied and a bit chewy, this nonetheless doesn’t feel like an 11.2% ABV beer – the alcohol is well hidden, except for a bit of that alcohol warming effect when you drink too quickly (which you will, because this stuff is excellent). Overall, it’s a wonderful, unique, and complex beer, quite deserving of the hype. And like everything Founders makes, it’s masterfully crafted stuff. Is it my favorite beer evar? Not really, but I can see what the fuss is about here. A-

Beer Nerd Details: 11.2% ABV bottled (12 oz.) Drank out of a snifter on 4/15/12. Bottled on 2/17/12. 70 IBUs.

The bottle also sez: Does not give relief from: rheumatism, neuralgia, sciatica, lame back, lumbago, contracted muscles, toothache, sprains, swellings, and all manner of distress. Is good for everything a stout ought to be good for.

I’m quite glad I managed to stumble on two bottles of the stuff during a routine stop at a local beer joint. Knowing that the beer was just making its way to our area, I asked the beer monger if he had any. Limit of two per customer, and you’ve got to buy a case of Founders too. I’m not entirely sure if that’s legal, but hell, it’s Founders beer. It’s not like it’s gonna go to waste!

Someday I hope to get my hands on Founders’ even more rare Canadian Breakfast Stout. As I mentioned yesterday, there’s a big secondary market for used Bourbon Barrels, and apparently some folks (let’s call them Canadians) use these barrels to age Maple Syrup (actually, where can I get some of that goodness?). Founders then takes these bourbon/syrup barrels and ages their standard Breakfast Stout (brewed with extra coffee and chocolate) in them. Sounds like amazing stuff. Alas, I think I missed my chance for these suckersthis year, as they were amongst the most sought after beers in the country (seriously, the mania surrounding CBS looked even more insane than the craziness surrounding Pliny the Younger). Perhaps I’ll get some next year, or the year after, once the hype has subsided minutely enough for me to find a bottle (yeah, I might be waiting longer than that…)

Finally, I almost forgot, I have the last bottle from the 4 pack of Breakfast Stout that I bought last year. It’s been in my fridge for that whole time, but we’re heading into the summer months now, so perhaps I’ll wait til fall to crack that open. Perhaps the age will mellow that excessive coffee, and I’ll love it…

Schlafly Reserve Imperial Stout 2008

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Wonky barrel-aged blogging continues, and today’s nerdery centers around the concept of bourbon barrel aging. It seems that every brewery has a barrel-aged program of sorts, and the most commonly used barrels appear to be bourbon barrels. Why is that?

If you’ve ever done any reading about the history of brewing*, you’ll notice that many of the distinctive characteristics of beer are not solely the result of genius brewers. Indeed, it seems like the history of every style of beer comes attached with a million caveats about how brewers had to account for new government regulations, laws, and taxes. And bourbon barrels are no exception.

As it turns out, the legal definition of bourbon states that it must be aged “in charred new oak containers” (amongst other requirements). The operative word there is “new”. This means that bourbon producers can only use their expensive barrels once before having to discard them. As such, a secondary market for used bourbon barrels is thriving due to their wide availability and flavor contributions.

While it has been well established that using new oak barrels is a best practice, I found it odd that such a thing would be codified in law, so I dug deeper and it turns out that this is all an artifact of prohibition and the great depression. As the U.S. was emerging from the long national nightmare of prohibition, the government did its best to ruin things through excessive regulation (stupid three-tiered system!). Enter Wilbur Mills**, a representative of the great state of Arkansas, who lent his support to the bill defining bourbon, but only if he could add a requirement for new oak barrels as a benefit for Arkansas’ lumber industry. It was a win win. Arkansas lumber magnates were delighted at the increase in business (don’t forget that this is all happening during the depression), and the Kentucky Bourbon barons also loved the law because it legally protected their preferred spirit.

In essence, they did the right thing for the wrong reasons, and us beer dorks are still reaping the benefits to this day. Speaking of which:

Schlafly Reserve Imperial Stout 2008

Schlafly Reserve Imperial Stout 2008 – Pours a very dark brown color with very nice amber highlights (not as dark as I was expecting) and no real head to speak of… Smell is filled with bourbon, caramel, chocolate, oak and vanilla, maybe a tiny bit of dark fruit too. Taste is very sweet, tons of that rich caramel flavor, dark malts, and a nice, boozy bourbon punch in the middle. There’s very little stout-like roastiness here, though some of it does peek out in the finish. Very complex stuff, and it continues to evolve as it warms up, with the various flavor components jockying for position… without ever seeming to overwhelm the palate. Mouthfeel is nearly perfect. Well balanced carbonation, very smooth, full bodied, rich, and chewy. It’s not something you gulp down or anything, but it’s well balanced and goes down dangerously easy. Overall, this is a wonderful beer. I suspect there are some who would want more typical stoutlike flavors of roast and coffee, but those are not my sweet spots – this beer hits my palate very well. A

Beer Nerd Details: 10.5% ABV bottled (750 ml capped). Drank out of a snifter on 4/12/12. 2008 vintage.

Between this beer and their oak aged barleywine, I’d say Schlafly has made quite a nice impression. I’d love to try a newer vintage of their barleywine, and they seem to have quite a selection of good beer available. But tomorrow, we’re going to look at yet another bourbon barrel aged white whale beer. Stay tuned. Same bat time, same bat place.

* Or, I suppose, alcohol in general, as you’re about to find out when it comes to bourbon. And I suppose it’s not limited to alcohol either – ever wonder why the US government defines a tomato as a vegetable (and not a fruit)?

** Incidentally, Mills is apparently more famous for a whiskey-soaked and scandalous liaison with a stripper named Fanne Foxe, aka “The Argentine Firecracker”. Heh.

Victory Donnybrook Stout

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Another day, another Victory. This low gravity Dry Irish Stout is only really available on tap (and I’m pretty sure it’s only locally available too), so it’s not one that I’ve had often, but it’s a solid beer (and though I didn’t drink this on St. Patrick’s Day, it makes a nice local alternative to the ever present Guinness, especially when it’s on nitro tap).

In other news, I’m pretty sure this is the lowest alcohol beer I’ve ever reviewed (unless you count that non-alcoholic swill we had that one time at Beer Club). Let’s do this:

Victory Donnybrook Stout

Victory Donnybrook Stout – Pours a very dark brown with a tiny amount of highlights and a finger of thick, light brown head. Smells strongly of roasted malts and a little coffee… Taste features that same roast and coffee character. Mouthfeel is smooth and creamy, very lightly carbonated with a nice light body. Almost quaffable. I’m pretty sure this one was on regular tap, but when it’s on nitro, it’s much smoother, though still light bodied. Overall, it’s a nice stout that’s as good as any I’ve had in the style and as previously mentioned, it makes a nice local alternative to the ever-present Guinness. B

Beer Nerd Details: 3.7% ABV on tap. Drank out of Victory’s 0.3L glass on 3/24/12.

I’d like to say that this will probably be my last Victory review for a while, but I think we all know that’s not going to happen.

Update: Nope, this is only the second lowest ABV beer I’ve reviewed. The lowest was Tetley’s English Ale, clocking in at 3.6% ABV. However, this beer was a heck of a lot better, so foo on you.

Big Black Voodoo Daddy

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Alright, let me just check out Voodoo Brewing’s homepage first and… holy shit, what the hell? Did I accidentally time travel back to the early 1990s? Even by those standards, this isn’t a website that really gets the job done. But then, right there on the main page, it says “By the way I brew beer not websites, nor can I spell or type, so be critical of the beer not the website.” Well, at least they know what they’re doing. And they’re right, it’s the beer that counts, so let’s get us some oak aged imperial stout:

Voodoo Big Black Voodoo Daddy

Voodoo Big Black Voodoo Daddy – Pours a thick, very dark brown color with almost no head (though what’s there is brownish). Smell is filled with rich aromas of caramel, vanilla, and oak with just a little in the way of roastiness. The taste is along similar lines, but with the roastiness taking on a much more prominent position. Chocolate makes an appearance too. Mouthfeel is thick and chewy with minimal carbonation, though it’s strangely not the heaviest thing I’ve drank lately. For a beer this big, the alcohol is hidden pretty darn well. Overall, it’s a very good stout. It’s not the best thing I’ve ever had or anything, but it’s my kinda stout. B+

Beer Nerd Details: 12.5% ABV bottled (22 oz bomber). Drank out of a snifter on 3/17/12.

Now apparently the Voodoo folks make a bourbon barrel aged stout that clocks in at 15% ABV and is only available in limited quantities (apparently there will be some small release party in Philly this summer, though details have not been announced). I’d love to try it though. This Voodoo Daddy beer took on some nice oak flavors without the bourbon character, but I’d like to try the bourbon barrel aged one too!

Beer Club: The End is Beer

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Tonight was beer club, a meeting of beer minded individuals from my work who get together for a meal and lots-o-beer once a month. We had a good turnout this month, with quite a few interesting beers to try. As usual, we hit up a local BYOB, this time a Thai place. Good times were had by all.

Beer Club March 2012

(Click for bigger image)

For the sake of posterity, some thoughts on each beer we tried are below. As usual, conditions were not ideal, so the below probably isn’t completely representative of reality. In order of drinking (not in order of the picture above):

  • Elysian NIBIRU Yerba Mate Tripel – I arrived a bit late to the gathering, so I didn’t get to have a lot of this, but it was a nice Tripel style beer with a twist. Apparently part of a twelve beer series celebrating the Mayan apocalypse of 2012… (also the source of the “End is Beer” pun). I wouldn’t call it a top tier beer, but it was nice. B
  • Lakefront New Grist Sorghum Beer – Wow, is this a light colored beer. Incredibly light beer in every way. Not bad, per say, but there’s not a ton of flavor here either. It reminded me a lot of a less tasty but better balanced Coors Light, if that makes any sense (which it probably doesn’t). Certainly not a great beer, but it has it’s place. C+
  • Tröegs Nugget Nectar – I’ve actually reviewed this before, but I’ve revisited it a couple times since then and I have to admit that it gets better every time I try it. Nice hoppy citrus and pine resin character, with some earthy/herbal notes as well. An excellent beer, I’d upgrade this to a B+, maybe even higher (this was generally considered the best beer of the night by beer club homies)
  • My Homebrewed Simcoe IPA – Seemed to go over very well with the beer club folks, even the people who don’t normally love IPAs. Not to toot my own horn, but this did turn out really well. Tons of citrus and a little pine from the hops in both the nose and taste. The bitterness is well matched and pleasant. Really solid beer. B+
  • Atwater Dirty Blonde Ale – A very nice, sessionable wheat ale that sorta suffered from being tasted after a few stronger, fuller flavored brews. A very nice beer, to be sure, but it was hard to really pronounce it a great beer compared to other beers in the tasting. B-
  • Stillwater Of Love & Regret – Another of my contributions to the night, I bought this last week without realizing that I’d actually had it before, so I figured I’d share the wealth. The bottle did sorta explode when I popped the cap, instantly foaming over. Luckily, we did not lose much of it, and the beer still tasted wonderful. It’s got a saison style feel to it, but a little fruitiness and lots of spice too. Very nice beer and one of my favorites of the night, though some others didn’t care as much for this one… B+
  • Great Lakes Conway’s Irish Ale – This Irish Red Ale seems to share something with the typical English Pale Ale style, though this time around, there’s enough flavor around to make it feel balanced and actually decent. I enjoyed this beer, despite not being very blown away by it. B-
  • Lagunitas A Little Sumpin’ Sumpin’ Ale – A very nice IPA style beer, though BA lists it as an American Pale Wheat Ale. Not sure what that means, but it turns out that it’s a lot like a regular old (well, a very good, actually) IPA. Lots of American Hop Character, quite nice. I’d like to try it again sometime… B+
  • Left Hand Milk Stout – Another beer I’ve had before and enjoyed. Reminds me very much of Lancaster’s Milk Stout – very roasty, some coffee flavors, and overall a decent roasty stout. Solid, but not one of my favorites. B
  • New Belgium Lips Of Faith – Cocoa Mole – A most unusual beer. I get lots of caramel malt and chocolate out of this, but the chipotle spice is what really gives this beer an extra kick. It was pretty good in the context of beer club, though I’m not sure I’d love to drink an entire bottle of the stuff. B
  • AleSmith Old Numbskull – My other contribution for the night, this was the biggest beer of the night, and boy does it have an intense aroma/flavor profile. Lots of caramel and citrusy, resinous hops. Really nice and I liked it a lot, but I was glad to have shared it with a bunch of other folks. Overall, might be the second best beer of the night behind the Nugget Nectar. B+

A great time was had by all, so it was another successful beer club, and as always, I’m already looking forward to next month!

World Wide Stout

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When do you drink an 18% ABV beer? Special occasions? Every other Flag Day? Leap Day? For breakfast? On the second Friday of March in the year of our Lord 2012? Ah, yes, that last one will do the trick, but it was a fortuitous turn of events that got me there, and I’m still at a loss as to when to open some of my other massive face-melters. It’s a delicious mystery wrapped in an alcohol soaked enigma, with a chaser of dehydration and hangover.

Fortunately, Dogfish Head packaged this one in a 12 ounce bottle, so it’s at least mildly approachable (I will leave the rant about big beers in big bottles for a later date). Apparently created on a whim at the Dogfish Head brewpub during the winter off-season months (which, I imagine, is how most Dogfish Head beers are created), this beer held the strongest beer in the world title for a short time. In this day and age where crazy Scottish brewers are making 55% ABV abominations and packaging it in taxidermied squirrels, it’s easy for beers like this to get lost in the shuffle, but credit where credit is due: Dogfish Head was making this beer in 1999, well before extreme beers were trendy or popular. And I do think this still stands up well today.

Anyways, events conspired to keep me sober for a while after work last Friday, which left me in need of a stiff drink (and just the right amount of time for a single serving). This would normally be a job for Scotch or Bourbon, but I thought this 18% ABV face-melter would do the job, and boy was I right:

Dogfish Head World Wide Stout

Dogfish Head World Wide Stout – Pours a deep, dark brown color with a syrupy appearance and about half a finger of tan head. Wonderful aroma filled with caramel and vanilla notes, maybe even some fruity character poking through along with a little booze. Smells more like a really big barleywine than a stout. Taste has lots of sweetness to it, that caramel malt being quite prominent, with some chocolate and maybe even some vanilla, but the big surprise is the sorta fruity booze that emerges in the middle and dominates the finish. Very little roastiness here, but tons of intricate flavors emerging as it warms up. Maybe just a touch of balancing bitterness in the sticky finish. Mouthfeel is full bodied, chewy, and hot. Carbonation isn’t high, but it’s not at a bad level either. The finish has just a little stickiness to it. Surprisingly well balanced and approachable for an 18% ABV monster. Tons of warming alcohol character going on in my belly after just a few small sips. This is certainly not a beer to drink quickly. Overall, I’m very impressed by this beer, a complex sipper, something that will probably age well, and quite interesting. Dogfish Head says it has a depth “in line with a fine port” which just makes me want to go to the liquor store and get me some of that stuff, as I’ve never had any before and I’d like to know if that’s an accurate description or just Sam making stuff up. For my purposes, this makes an excellent dessert beer. Not your typical stout, and definitely worth a try. A-

Beer Nerd Details: 18% ABV bottled (12 oz). Drank out of a snifter on 3/9/11. Bottled in 2010 (bottle has a “D” after the year, which I assume is some sort of batch indicator).

Man, this thing kicked my ass. As noted above, the bottle was apparently from 2010, which was something I bought inadvertently… but I’m glad I did so because I’ve heard the alcohol character overwhelms “younger” bottles. I’ve got another one of these in the cellar, which I can perhaps crack open the next time an 18% ABV opportunity comes along (and who knows when that will be). Incidentally, I also have some 120 minute IPA in the fridge (and in my cellar) that’s definitely still young, and I have no idea when I’ll get to that one… not to mention the bottles of Cuir and Coton I’ve been sitting on (those aren’t quite as strong, but they’re up there and they’re in 750 ml bottles too)…

Update: Tee Hee.