April 2015 Cellar Reviews

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stakem1

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Shitty pic but thats Berkshire Bourbon Barrel Scotch Ale from 2007. The brewed for Julios edition.

Im not totally familiar with this place but I have a strange suspicion that they filter their suds or just dont bottle condition because after 8 years there was no sediment in the bottle and very minimal "aged" character showing. Lots of blended fruity malt and alcohol flavors. Never had this fresh so its hard to really have a solid opinion.

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12 year old bottle of DFH WWS

Like the other bottle listed above, this looked like it also was not bottle conditioned. No sediment and I cant stress enough how dangerously drinkable this **** is with age. 18% was not detectible until the beer got to room temp and this **** went straight to my head. Slight soy action to the nose. Not as sweet as some vintages but still maintains the familiar WWS base of flavors. Only gripe being this is quite thinned out at this point and has a short lived prickly feel of carb left.
 
I have a question, is there any reason to break this out monthly? Seems to me it would be perfectly fine to just have a "cellar reviews" thread that got super massive. Any reason not to?
when i created this thread (and some in the past) i thought about that very same idea. im not opposed to it but this subforum is very low traffic and i dont see it as a benefit either way
 
Just had a big tasting this past weekend, so I'll try to hit on a few beers that would qualify as cellared. 2012 Kate the Great is a whimsical combo of wet cardboard and dark fruits with a papery mouthfeel. I'd trade it at this point if you have one. The 3 Black Magick stouts from Voodoo are incredible especially Apple Brandy. There all drinking like fudge. I can't imagine them getting any better than this. Not really "cellared" per se but folks might be cellaring it, HF Aaron. I just don't know what makes this beer better. I'd drink it right now. It is equal to the best barleywine I've had. It compares to King Henry in terms of richness bordering on stout-like with the bourbon character.
 




Did a blend of Brooklyn Black Chocolate Stout, a one and two year old at about 50-50 ratio just eye balled. This was really nice and would recommend trying this. It was very roasty with hints of chocolate and finished relatively smooth with a slight alcohol burn. This beer needs at least a year to mellow out, way too hot fresh, and next time i'll have to try a 3 year blend
 




Did a blend of Brooklyn Black Chocolate Stout, a one and two year old at about 50-50 ratio just eye balled. This was really nice and would recommend trying this. It was very roasty with hints of chocolate and finished relatively smooth with a slight alcohol burn. This beer needs at least a year to mellow out, way too hot fresh, and next time i'll have to try a 3 year blend
No notes of comparison between the 2 years, just a blend and drink?

This beer was something I use to buy 3-4 cases of every year. At $26-28 a case it was a no brainer. However, the price increased almost 5 bucks each season and when it broke 40 a case I stopped buying it.

In hindsight, even at 40+ per case that beer is a good deal. I cant tell you the last time I had one but im 90% certain I have a mini vert of this going back to 08. Im sure the 08 is over the hill at this point but thanks for the reminder, im gonna bump this up on my to-drink list.
 
No notes of comparison between the 2 years, just a blend and drink?

This beer was something I use to buy 3-4 cases of every year. At $26-28 a case it was a no brainer. However, the price increased almost 5 bucks each season and when it broke 40 a case I stopped buying it.

In hindsight, even at 40+ per case that beer is a good deal. I cant tell you the last time I had one but im 90% certain I have a mini vert of this going back to 08. Im sure the 08 is over the hill at this point but thanks for the reminder, im gonna bump this up on my to-drink list.

i'll try to remember next time, good point though. I did do a 4 yr vertical around Christmas time and thought I posted my findings, but after a quick search I guess I forgot. From memory the 1 year old was most enjoyable. Each year tasted different with the oldest starting to pick up some medicinal flavors so I would say don't let them go past 5 years IMO.

I've never seen specific born on dates with these, but I guess they are bottled around Aug/Sept since they show up on shelves in October. So I would say to drink the 13-14 release in early 2015, the heat really mellows out.

cheapest i've seen this $8 per 4-pack. You must have been buying this one way before me, $28 per case is a steal.

hope that helps!
 
finishing up a bottle of BA Bigfoot from 2013.

Minerals on the nose. Still rather bitter, but less so compared to the terrible beer it was upon release.

Anybody want my last bottle? Buy me Pringles.
 
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Opened this guy last night. Lot of cherry bordering on medicinal but not quite getting there. At 12% you hardly notice it. Struggling what to say, it's held up pretty damn well, and unique. Can't think of similar beers. Was really surprised by the cherry.
 
Opened up a 2005 Chimay Grand Reserve as well as a 2003 Rochefort 10 along with numerous other quads last evening, and the 05 Chimay was the star of the show.

Caramel meets deep dark fruit notes of plum / raisin and light oxidation with a full but obviously aged body and good carbonation.

One of the best aged quads I've ever had.
 
Opened a Bullfrog Crime of Passion this week - the bottle that is getting released soon. It was delicious. Nice acidity, great carb, and great fruit flavors.

2014 St. Lam - Decent. Very fruity, but little to no funk. Going to sit on this one for a while.

Apricot Funker - really good, but jesus christ, learn how to filter your ****ing beers. The bottom 1/4 of the bottle was a waste.
 
2005 Bruocsella, courtesy of jedwards.

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I'm not the biggest fan of this beer fresh, but with age it was delightful. Good level of sourness while still being funky, but none of that soapiness I tend to get from Cantillon's still lambics. I can understand why SeaWatchman goes bananas for these guys.

Gimme.

Really though if that were a European label it would probably say 2002 on it.
 
2010 Expedition Stout.

Pours just like it does fresh, beautiful brown head. Taste was roasty, a bit more milk chocolate than the dark chocolate I remember in fresh Expedition though. ABV is nowhere in sight, this stuff is crazy smooth. The overall intensity of the flavor was just a touch lower than I would have liked, otherwise this beer only became smoother and easier drinking with mostly the same flavor profile and a creamier mouthfeel. I'm sitting on about a case of '13 and '14 and will probably try to drink between the 2-4 year mark instead of waiting 5.
 
2013 Arctic Devil


Mixed feelings so far, but it needs to warm up a little bit more. Like harrymel said last month, the barrel character is virtually nonexistent. I'm getting tons of dark fruit, chocolate, caramel, and faint soy sauce notes. I'm really confused by the bitterness I'm getting in the finish...odd. This isn't terrible, and definitely mellowing out as it warms up, but I think this beer is just so ****ing good fresh vs aged. I probably won't sit on any for longer than a year in the future.
 
Opened some beers with a few non TB guys on Sunday...

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2013 BCBS: It's BCBS... It's delicious. Had it with the 2014, preferred the 2013.

2012 BFM Bon Chien: Really hasn't changed much since the last time I had it. Did seem to have a lot more vinegar going on. Wasn't a huge fan...

2013 FW DDBA: Hasn't really don't much of anything besides a ton of floaties. Certainly a lot of caramel and burnt marshmallow flavor going on.

2013 FW Parabola: This got lost in the cellar... Really wasn't a fan. Seemed to lose a lot of the barrel from fresh. Had some burnt/cigar like qualities that I didn't enjoy.

JK Atrial Batch 4: Exactly a year old. This is a take your pants off kind of beer. Don't see how this would get much better... Funk and raspberry work together perfectly.

Everything else in the picture was close to fresh...
 
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To Infinium, AND BEYOND!

Well, it's weird. The beer has taken on a artificial grape, mildly tart character. Some must, some hay. Plenty of amber like malts. Wouldn't call it terrible, but wouldn't go nuts for more. At $5 per bottle at the local, could be interesting to buy up and bring to tastings.
 
Opened a Bullfrog Crime of Passion this week - the bottle that is getting released soon. It was delicious. Nice acidity, great carb, and great fruit flavors.

tell me more pls, how does it compare to other kiwi jumpoffs?
 
SN 30th anniversary Jack & Kens black barleywine


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At 5 years old this beer is tasting phenomenal. I opened one about a year ago and it was in a pretty weird place, so I wasn't expecting a lot from this......but damn!!!!! This bottle is drinking amazingly. Slight signs of oxidation in the nose, but that's pretty much buried under a massive dark chocolate aroma, along with an earthy hop presence. Taste pretty much follows up the nose. I'm surprised by the bitter hop bite in the finish, but then again this is a Sierra Nevada beer.

This was the beer that really got me into barleywines, so admittedly my opinion may be a little biased. I just wish this wasn't my last bottle. I recommend opening one sooner rather than later if you have any bottles left.
 
SN 30th anniversary Jack & Kens black barleywine


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At 5 years old this beer is tasting phenomenal. I opened one about a year ago and it was in a pretty weird place, so I wasn't expecting a lot from this......but damn!!!!! This bottle is drinking amazingly. Slight signs of oxidation in the nose, but that's pretty much buried under a massive dark chocolate aroma, along with an earthy hop presence. Taste pretty much follows up the nose. I'm surprised by the bitter hop bite in the finish, but then again this is a Sierra Nevada beer.

This was the beer that really got me into barleywines, so admittedly my opinion may be a little biased. I just wish this wasn't my last bottle. I recommend opening one sooner rather than later if you have any bottles left.
Love this beer. About a year and a half ago I noticed a substantial maduro tobacco character, glad to not hear you note it.
 
SN 30th anniversary Jack & Kens black barleywine


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At 5 years old this beer is tasting phenomenal. I opened one about a year ago and it was in a pretty weird place, so I wasn't expecting a lot from this......but damn!!!!! This bottle is drinking amazingly. Slight signs of oxidation in the nose, but that's pretty much buried under a massive dark chocolate aroma, along with an earthy hop presence. Taste pretty much follows up the nose. I'm surprised by the bitter hop bite in the finish, but then again this is a Sierra Nevada beer.

This was the beer that really got me into barleywines, so admittedly my opinion may be a little biased. I just wish this wasn't my last bottle. I recommend opening one sooner rather than later if you have any bottles left.
I picked up a bottle at Torpedo Room a month or two ago in Berkeley. They might still have some.
 
2012 Black Note:

Not going to write a full review, but I'm starting to see a pretty consistent theme with a lot of the beers I've been aging. It wasn't worth aging. Certainly not bad, in fact it tasted really really good, but the mouthfeel was a little thinner than it is fresh. Wouldn't age again more than 1-2 years.
 
Perhaps a little random and obscure, but opened a 2012 (frankly could have been 2011) Old Schoolhouse Imperial Stout this week. It had been sitting in the cellar for years, constantly looked at it and considered, but always passed over for whatever reason.

Holy balls! Really nice. Lots of milk chocolate, some coffee and roast, super smooth and everything out together, great feel. First time ever trying this one, so no idea what it's like fresh, but with 3-4 years on it, it's l-e-g-i-t.
 
Opened a '13 Wanderer (there any other years of this bottled?). I've never gotten heartburn from a sour before, but holy **** I did with this guy. Burns the back of the throat like yamar68

Sour as ****, cherry is dominant over taking any black berries (if they were ever there). Personally I would hold on before opening another bottle. Hoping the acidity dies down, but maybe it wont.
 
Opened a '13 Wanderer (there any other years of this bottled?). I've never gotten heartburn from a sour before, but holy **** I did with this guy. Burns the back of the throat like yamar68

Sour as ****, cherry is dominant over taking any black berries (if they were ever there). Personally I would hold on before opening another bottle. Hoping the acidity dies down, but maybe it wont.
Must be bottle variation! Opened one last night, and it was the most balanced bottle I've had. Soft on the palate, lots of cherry and blackberry. Easily the best Wanderer I've had.

Or maybe it just didn't seem crazy sour after Imperial Berry Bu...
 
So since it's May and we're still posting in this thread is it time to just make an all encompassing Cellar Reviews thread? With each month's thread only getting between 20-30 posts seems a little bit redundant to keep up a monthly thread.
 
So since it's May and we're still posting in this thread is it time to just make an all encompassing Cellar Reviews thread? With each month's thread only getting between 20-30 posts seems a little bit redundant to keep up a monthly thread.
Sounds good. Want to start it?
 
Oooh, this sounds fun. I'll dig up something old for later as well.
 
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