Cellared Beer Reviews: May 2014

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jedwards

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Getting ready to move out to SF at the end of June, so expect to see a lot of cellar-clearing by me in the next six weeks or so.

Had some folks over last night to open a couple older bottles...

13971265069_f6f204236d_o.jpg


That's four versions of Bass No. 1 Barleywine separated by almost 120 years -- from right to left, the Bass No. 1 "Best By 1 Dec 1987" (which should be a 1984 bottle), the 1929 Prince's Ale, the 1902 King's Ale, and the 1869 Ratcliff Ale.

I've had the King's several times before and the Prince's once previously. This King's was pretty middle-of-the-road flavor-wise -- nowhere near the bottle we opened on NYE, but not destroyed by any means. Some must & ash on the nose, good levels of tartness, and improved quite a bit as it warmed -- more cherry/prune flavors, a hint of peaty smoke, and some balsamic tartness particularly on the nose. The one time I've had Prince's before several of the people there who had it prior to that said it wasn't a great bottle, and that Prince's usually beats King's. This was definitely the case last night, the Prince's had a rich, syrupy texture, lots of vinous tartness on the nose and in the beer, some leathery astringency, and a very-well-balanced iodine/smoke component. Really excellent. The 1984 No. 1 was nowhere in the same ballpark as the rest with a big toffee flavor, no tartness or smoke, and a watery mouthfeel. It seems like differences in product/packaging have resulted in a beer with a lesser lifespan than the old stuff.

And the Ratcliff... this is not a bottle from the 2006/2007 auction of the White Shield find. Our understanding of the history of this bottle is that it was given to a long-time employee of Bass by Bass in the 1970s, and stored in a cellar by him until his death. We have some very nice photos of the bottle & capsule that I'll post here once they're processed, but suffice to say that the capsule (lead, wax, & cork) on this bottle was better than any King's I've ever opened or seen. We held the bottle at a shallow angle to keep the cork damp for several months and while we were not able to get it out in one piece, it didn't disintegrate and we were able to keep it out of the beer. Right after pouring, it had a huge vinous port nose and some nearly fresh fruit (plum & peach). It maintained good levels of oxidative tartness throughout the drinking process but that incredible first impression of port faded fairly quickly and we were left with the more standard raisin/prune fruit flavors. Lots of good peaty smoke and a wet tobacco flavor that became more prominent as it breathed. I got umami/smoked meat flavors (possibly amplified by the smoked elk sausage and bacon-wrapped dates that were paired with it) but no direct "soy sauce", though I will say that at this point I become thirsty for old stouts when I open a bottle of soy sauce, so maybe don't trust my impression on that one. Some folks at the tasting filled out BJCP sheets so we should have some additional impressions coming as well. Overall, up with the best King's Ales I've had, with some really interesting unique qualities. Couldn't be happier that the one time I'm going to drink this beer it was a great bottle.
 
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Getting ready to move out to SF at the end of June, so expect to see a lot of cellar-clearing by me in the next six weeks or so.

Had some folks over last night to open a couple older bottles...

13971265069_f6f204236d_o.jpg


That's four versions of Bass No. 1 Barleywine separated by almost 120 years -- from right to left, the Bass No. 1 "Best By 1 Dec 1987" (which should be a 1984 bottle), the 1929 Prince's Ale, the 1902 King's Ale, and the 1869 Ratcliff Ale.

I've had the King's several times before and the Prince's once previously. This King's was pretty middle-of-the-road flavor-wise -- nowhere near the bottle we opened on NYE, but not destroyed by any means. Some must & ash on the nose, good levels of tartness, and improved quite a bit as it warmed -- more cherry/prune flavors, a hint of peaty smoke, and some balsamic tartness particularly on the nose. The one time I've had Prince's before several of the people there who had it prior to that said it wasn't a great bottle, and that Prince's usually beats King's. This was definitely the case last night, the Prince's had a rich, syrupy texture, lots of vinous tartness on the nose and in the beer, some leathery astringency, and a very-well-balanced iodine/smoke component. Really excellent. The 1984 No. 1 was nowhere in the same ballpark as the rest with a big toffee flavor, no tartness or smoke, and a watery mouthfeel. It seems like differences in product/packaging have resulted in a beer with a lesser lifespan than the old stuff.

And the Ratcliff... this is not a bottle from the 2006/2007 auction of the White Shield find. Our understanding of the history of this bottle is that it was given to a long-time employee of Bass by Bass in the 1970s, and stored in a cellar by him until his death. We have some very nice photos of the bottle & capsule that I'll post here once they're processed, but suffice to say that the capsule (lead, wax, & cork) on this bottle was better than any King's I've ever opened or seen. We held the bottle at a shallow angle to keep the cork damp for several months and while we were not able to get it out in one piece, it didn't disintegrate and we were able to keep it out of the beer. Right after pouring, it had a huge vinous port nose and some nearly fresh fruit (plum & peach). It maintained good levels of oxidative tartness throughout the drinking process but that incredible first impression of port faded fairly quickly and we were left with the more standard raisin/prune fruit flavors. Lots of good peaty smoke and a wet tobacco flavor that became more prominent as it breathed. I got umami/smoked meat flavors (possibly amplified by the smoked elk sausage and bacon-wrapped dates that were paired with it) but no direct "soy sauce", though I will say that at this point I become thirsty for old stouts when I open a bottle of soy sauce, so maybe don't trust my impression on that one. Some folks at the tasting filled out BJCP sheets so we should have some additional impressions coming as well. Overall, up with the best King's Ales I've had, with some really interesting unique qualities. Couldn't be happier that the one time I'm going to drink this beer it was a great bottle.
Save some of those things for after the move...

Also, this is maybe the wrong thread, but didn't you post something recently about building your own cellar? Was that at your current place, or planned for the new one?
 
Save some of those things for after the move...

Don't worry, there'll be plenty coming with me :) (though depending on how the move is timed, I may leave it here for a month or two then come back for it).

Also, this is maybe the wrong thread, but didn't you post something recently about building your own cellar? Was that at your current place, or planned for the new one?

I don't think it was me... I had a nice cellar build-out before I moved here when I was living in Providence, but I'm currently just boxes at a wine storage facility in Denver.
 
I don't think it was me... I had a nice cellar build-out before I moved here when I was living in Providence, but I'm currently just boxes at a wine storage facility in Denver.
What are your plans once you get out here? There are plenty of storage spaces around, so that's always an option. If you get lucky some houses will have serviceable basements, I think that's more common in the city too.
 
1994 Triple Bock - Both wife and I loved it. It was my first 1994, I've had the 1997 a few times. I think it's a nice drink.

2002 JW Lees Harvest - this beer gets so tawny with time on it. Lots of caramel, sweet toasted sugars. Nice beer.

2011 Founders Breakfast Stout - still has coffee on the nose and plenty of it. Flavor is lackluster with some leather and pretty aggressive oxidation in the form of wood flavors.

2007 Samichlaus - glad I opened this one. I have been down on the bottles I had because it was so sweet and alcoholic, but it's coming around to a more enjoyable, albeit still sweet beer. I think a 3L of this to open for a kids 21st would be pretty legit. I think it could hold.
 
2007 Samichlaus - glad I opened this one. I have been down on the bottles I had because it was so sweet and alcoholic, but it's coming around to a more enjoyable, albeit still sweet beer. I think a 3L of this to open for a kids 21st would be pretty legit. I think it could hold.

Set a reminder for Christmas of next year and ill report back on how a 21 year old bottle of the chlaus is.
 
Set a reminder for Christmas of next year and ill report back on how a 21 year old bottle of the chlaus is.
I won't have to, I already got an invitation to snuggle with you that morning.

Your daughter put you an ISO for you it said: FT: 21 Sammy ISO: Bear for my dad. ;)

We decided on next year Xmas as the date.
 
Getting ready to move out to SF at the end of June, so expect to see a lot of cellar-clearing by me in the next six weeks or so.

Had some folks over last night to open a couple older bottles...

13971265069_f6f204236d_o.jpg


That's four versions of Bass No. 1 Barleywine separated by almost 120 years -- from right to left, the Bass No. 1 "Best By 1 Dec 1987" (which should be a 1984 bottle), the 1929 Prince's Ale, the 1902 King's Ale, and the 1869 Ratcliff Ale.

I've had the King's several times before and the Prince's once previously. This King's was pretty middle-of-the-road flavor-wise -- nowhere near the bottle we opened on NYE, but not destroyed by any means. Some must & ash on the nose, good levels of tartness, and improved quite a bit as it warmed -- more cherry/prune flavors, a hint of peaty smoke, and some balsamic tartness particularly on the nose. The one time I've had Prince's before several of the people there who had it prior to that said it wasn't a great bottle, and that Prince's usually beats King's. This was definitely the case last night, the Prince's had a rich, syrupy texture, lots of vinous tartness on the nose and in the beer, some leathery astringency, and a very-well-balanced iodine/smoke component. Really excellent. The 1984 No. 1 was nowhere in the same ballpark as the rest with a big toffee flavor, no tartness or smoke, and a watery mouthfeel. It seems like differences in product/packaging have resulted in a beer with a lesser lifespan than the old stuff.

And the Ratcliff... this is not a bottle from the 2006/2007 auction of the White Shield find. Our understanding of the history of this bottle is that it was given to a long-time employee of Bass by Bass in the 1970s, and stored in a cellar by him until his death. We have some very nice photos of the bottle & capsule that I'll post here once they're processed, but suffice to say that the capsule (lead, wax, & cork) on this bottle was better than any King's I've ever opened or seen. We held the bottle at a shallow angle to keep the cork damp for several months and while we were not able to get it out in one piece, it didn't disintegrate and we were able to keep it out of the beer. Right after pouring, it had a huge vinous port nose and some nearly fresh fruit (plum & peach). It maintained good levels of oxidative tartness throughout the drinking process but that incredible first impression of port faded fairly quickly and we were left with the more standard raisin/prune fruit flavors. Lots of good peaty smoke and a wet tobacco flavor that became more prominent as it breathed. I got umami/smoked meat flavors (possibly amplified by the smoked elk sausage and bacon-wrapped dates that were paired with it) but no direct "soy sauce", though I will say that at this point I become thirsty for old stouts when I open a bottle of soy sauce, so maybe don't trust my impression on that one. Some folks at the tasting filled out BJCP sheets so we should have some additional impressions coming as well. Overall, up with the best King's Ales I've had, with some really interesting unique qualities. Couldn't be happier that the one time I'm going to drink this beer it was a great bottle.
who's that sexy dude in the grey shirt in the background?
 
Birthday tasting last night, did a few fun things:

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1987 JW Lees Harvest Ale. Cellared at Toronado until last year, in good conditions since then. Opinions varied on this (as they usually do with old beer) but I thought it was doing great. It's got those oxidized port-like notes I love, no sour oxidation I hate, though some mild but weird harshness on the finish. I doubt this will get any better, it probably peaked a decade ago, but it was certainly interesting.

jYnsITL.jpg


Lente. I still think this is the best one, though Zomer is close. I also don't think it has fallen off at all.

N3Fw3km.jpg


Zomer. Delicious as always.

dtNcwDb.jpg


Herfst. Overcarbed as always. Cork shot off. Otherwise it tastes nice.

JFLZrIq.jpg


Winter. Sold but unspectacular. The Toyota Corolla of the series.


We also had a 2009 BCBS bomber. Drink those soon, I think it has clearly peaked.
 
Sorry, no pics. I don't have a smart phone and don't care. Anyway, I popped a 2008 C&C La Folie with a couple friends last night in celebration of my engagement. I'm not much of a wordsmith and have never written a formal review but that stuff is for real. Fresh La Folie doesn't touch what that 2008 brought to the table. The fruity cherry flavor meshed really well with the sourness. The sour taste was more in line with what you get from a real Belgian Flanders than an AWA. It reminded me of Caractere Rouge but more balanced. It wasn't as sweet fruit juicy forward as CR. I wantz mor. It now blows my mind knowing that Jeff Lebesch didn't want people aging this.
 
2011 Rose close to 3 years old.

j1GHFpj.jpg



Honestly, the best vintage/age I've had of this beer. It's still amazing fresh, but I always thought it could use just a little more vinegar sourness. The 7 year old bottle I had not too long ago was crazy sour, but almost a little too acetic & vinegar-y with much of the raspberry faded. This age is perfect. Jammy raspberry, perfect level of acetic & lactic sourness, huge dirty jock strap funk. Goddamn I love this beer.
 
LLWxhFy.jpg


(Cross posted with DDT)

If you have one of these and are concerned that the fruit will have faded, don't be. Holy **** this was an absolute fruit bomb. Still supremely sweet and extra "jammy."

My non-beer-drinking wife tried it and said it tasted a bit like red wine. Not an insane descriptor for someone who doesn't drink much beer - the dark fruit is the dominant flavor for sure.

All in all it's drinking pretty great right now if you like the dark fruit flavors and sweetness. If you're waiting for it to mellow out on those, it definitely has not.

I should mention that this was stored in what are probably sub-ideal conditions. I keep it dark but at whatever the ambient room temperature is - don't have a basement.
 
eb60603ff6878e6e46dcdda8fc298fa1_640x640.jpg

Fuller's 2009 Vintage Ale

The recommend drinking by 2012, but say it can last for years after.

Aroma is heavy caramel and toffee with a ton of malt backing it up. Taste is creamy malty sweet bread, really reminds me of a cream ale actually. Almost no detection of oxidation on this one. Sweet bready finish that lingers quite a while on the palate. All an all I'm pretty pleased with this cellar experiment.
 
Does it count as cellar reviews if the beers were aged for 18 years in someone else's cellar? I feel like its cheating if I post about beers that I have not personally cellared since their purchase.
 
Does it count as cellar reviews if the beers were aged for 18 years in someone else's cellar? I feel like its cheating if I post about beers that I have not personally cellared since their purchase.
I think people here mostly care about peoples' experience drinking aged/cellared beers. Not who exactly cellared it.
 
Does it count as cellar reviews if the beers were aged for 18 years in someone else's cellar? I feel like its cheating if I post about beers that I have not personally cellared since their purchase.
Totally fine. Just report the conditions it was in (this is good practice for everyone anyway).
 
ok, in that case...

4D36440C-969A-4BDA-8DA4-5B43108817F0-574-00000060C117B19B_zpsde944831.jpg


One of the stanky old schultheiss berliners from the unknown timeframe of "70's" or something like that. It did not suck. But, it also wasnt anything amazing either. Everything about it seemed dulled/dumbed down from the vintages of this that ive drank from the 90's and early 2000's that were downright amazing and geuze-like.

This bottle was not flat but carbonation was quite low for the style. It had a very dusty aftertaste and overall watered down feel to it. Id drink it again just for the shits of it but would not actively seek out a bottle this old.
 
10398099_10152466343049919_2507739632879095160_n.jpg

2011 Driftwood OCD.
I heard rumors they waxed them post-gold foil for some quality issues. There is nothing wrong with this. Drinking like a champ! Very sweet, some caramel, toffee, a very light oxidation with a light sherry note. I did pick up a lot of "graininess", lots of faded hops, 100 IBU and the initial hotness has fallen off substantially.
 
10405563_10152455364344919_5509393200550145500_n.jpg

2013 BT and CR are still f'n hot and delicious.
2013 White Oak was a bit more syrupy than I recall fresh but a wee bit more vanilla and the raspberry has faded substantially on the BWXII.
 
We did CW 1414, 15, and Black Gold wednesday night. They all basically look and smell the same. Black Gold had a bit more booze on the nose and slight hints of chocolate/spice. They each had some spice from whatever barrel was used. The thin mouthfeel just can't really carry distinct differences in these 3. 1414 is starting to oxidize a bit, so I wouldn't wait any longer on that beer. If you're trading big for Black Gold, then just know that you're just getting a tick out of it. It's not significantly better than 15. It's pretty boozy if anything.
 
so this was a treat. been trying to track this down for years. it sat on the ****ing shelf and i passed on it and by the time my lazy ass went to get one, it had been discontinued. anyways, local hooked me up. slightly oxidized but honestly it kind of worked with. light sherry notes. still lots of roast but dark lovely chocolate and very rich with dark cherry. this ruled, and for 8% it had a thick body and low carbonation.

Bppwx92CQAAuyqr.jpg
 
Did the partial Firestone Walker Anniversary Series vertical (13-17) last week for my birthday:



The picture is a coovie made from the last pour of each bottle. It wasn't bad, better than at least 15.

All were purchased by me and "cellared" in my lame ass closet, except for 13 which was obtained in a trade a few years ago then stored in the same way as the others. The guy who sent me that I feel pretty confident had it cellared correctly. Having had 11 and 12 recently at various bottle shares and found them both dull, muddled, and fairly oxidized, I can't imagine they or 10 are doing well right now (but I could certainly be wrong).



13: Parabola and friends. This is showing some signs of oxidation but not an unpleasant cardboard type. Surprisingly enough somewhat boozy given how old it is, compared to say, a fresh Parabola. 4/5



14: The easy standout of the bunch. The roughly even blend of Double DBA, Sticky Monkey, and Parabola brings out some of the best aspects of each beer. I didn't detect any oxidation and I'd happily put this up among my favorite Firestone Walker beers period. I had this last summer at Barrelworks along side '12 and '13 Parabola. 5/5



XV: Easily the weakest of the lineup, which is what my initial impression was off a bunch of drunken Chicago pours at Huna Day. Nice to get that confirmed in a more controlled tasting environment. Thin, boring, less than the sum of its parts. Too much Helldorado? 3.5/5



XVI: One of the nicer blends, clearly below 14 but as good as either 13 or 17. A lot of the other people there could swear they could detect some of the tequila barrel presence from the PNC, but I'm skeptical. I do think this is a great blend of stouts (Velvet Merkin, Parabola, PNC) and barleywines (Stickee Monkee, DDBA, Helldorado). 4/5



XVII: Fresh on draft I found this to be utterly amazing, almost like a coconut Parabola. I was actually pretty shocked that so much Bravo is in this blend as both Parabola and Velvet Merkin combined. From the bottle I was somewhat underwhelmed. It's good but I wanted that great experience like with the draft version. 4/5

Also Sticky Monkey/Stickee Monkee is listed as an English barleywine on every note sheet, which makes me think this "Central Coast Quad" nonsense is just so they don't have two beers in their lineup (it and Sucaba) listed under the same style.
 
Did the partial Firestone Walker Anniversary Series vertical (13-17) last week for my birthday:



The picture is a coovie made from the last pour of each bottle. It wasn't bad, better than at least 15.

All were purchased by me and "cellared" in my lame ass closet, except for 13 which was obtained in a trade a few years ago then stored in the same way as the others. The guy who sent me that I feel pretty confident had it cellared correctly. Having had 11 and 12 recently at various bottle shares and found them both dull, muddled, and fairly oxidized, I can't imagine they or 10 are doing well right now (but I could certainly be wrong).



13: Parabola and friends. This is showing some signs of oxidation but not an unpleasant cardboard type. Surprisingly enough somewhat boozy given how old it is, compared to say, a fresh Parabola. 4/5



14: The easy standout of the bunch. The roughly even blend of Double DBA, Sticky Monkey, and Parabola brings out some of the best aspects of each beer. I didn't detect any oxidation and I'd happily put this up among my favorite Firestone Walker beers period. I had this last summer at Barrelworks along side '12 and '13 Parabola. 5/5



XV: Easily the weakest of the lineup, which is what my initial impression was off a bunch of drunken Chicago pours at Huna Day. Nice to get that confirmed in a more controlled tasting environment. Thin, boring, less than the sum of its parts. Too much Helldorado? 3.5/5



XVI: One of the nicer blends, clearly below 14 but as good as either 13 or 17. A lot of the other people there could swear they could detect some of the tequila barrel presence from the PNC, but I'm skeptical. I do think this is a great blend of stouts (Velvet Merkin, Parabola, PNC) and barleywines (Stickee Monkee, DDBA, Helldorado). 4/5



XVII: Fresh on draft I found this to be utterly amazing, almost like a coconut Parabola. I was actually pretty shocked that so much Bravo is in this blend as both Parabola and Velvet Merkin combined. From the bottle I was somewhat underwhelmed. It's good but I wanted that great experience like with the draft version. 4/5

Also Sticky Monkey/Stickee Monkee is listed as an English barleywine on every note sheet, which makes me think this "Central Coast Quad" nonsense is just so they don't have two beers in their lineup (it and Sucaba) listed under the same style.

Stickee Monkee. It was listed as a English barleywine in blends 16 and 17. I very much felt this was another, fantastic, BA beer from FW. However, to confuse a Quad with a English barleywine is a stretch. Let's face it. It's another FW hybrid which reaches for the BA strong ale category. It's fermented w/ British ale yeast with undisclosed malts/hops....and where was my invite? I'm a FW slutpuppy.
 
Stickee Monkee.

Yeah, the reason I did the "Sticky Monkey/Stickee Monkee" thing is because it's actually called Sticky Monkey on the FW 14 blending sheet. No idea why they changed the name to the double-E version.

It was listed as a English barleywine in blends 16 and 17. I very much felt this was another, fantastic, BA beer from FW. However, to confuse a Quad with a English barleywine is a stretch. Let's face it. It's another FW hybrid which reaches for the BA strong ale category. It's fermented w/ British ale yeast with undisclosed malts/hops....

Completely agree on all of this.

and where was my invite? I'm a FW slutpuppy.

Somehow I doubt you would have flown to South Carolina for this. But apologies for the oversight, from a fellow FW slutpuppy. :)
 
IMG_20140526_175610.jpg

Love me some aged Bigfoot. '14-'06

Everyone like this better and better as we opened the next older bottle. The hops kept fading making it more carmely and smoothing out the beer.

The fact that the beer doesn't fall apart after 4-5 years is a huge testament to how well made it is.
An erection of historic significance has just happened....
 
Getting ready to move out to SF at the end of June, so expect to see a lot of cellar-clearing by me in the next six weeks or so.

Had some folks over last night to open a couple older bottles...

13971265069_f6f204236d_o.jpg


That's four versions of Bass No. 1 Barleywine separated by almost 120 years -- from right to left, the Bass No. 1 "Best By 1 Dec 1987" (which should be a 1984 bottle), the 1929 Prince's Ale, the 1902 King's Ale, and the 1869 Ratcliff Ale.

And the Ratcliff... this is not a bottle from the 2006/2007 auction of the White Shield find. Our understanding of the history of this bottle is that it was given to a long-time employee of Bass by Bass in the 1970s, and stored in a cellar by him until his death. We have some very nice photos of the bottle & capsule that I'll post here once they're processed, but suffice to say that the capsule (lead, wax, & cork) on this bottle was better than any King's I've ever opened or seen. We held the bottle at a shallow angle to keep the cork damp for several months and while we were not able to get it out in one piece, it didn't disintegrate and we were able to keep it out of the beer. Right after pouring, it had a huge vinous port nose and some nearly fresh fruit (plum & peach). It maintained good levels of oxidative tartness throughout the drinking process but that incredible first impression of port faded fairly quickly and we were left with the more standard raisin/prune fruit flavors. Lots of good peaty smoke and a wet tobacco flavor that became more prominent as it breathed. I got umami/smoked meat flavors (possibly amplified by the smoked elk sausage and bacon-wrapped dates that were paired with it) but no direct "soy sauce", though I will say that at this point I become thirsty for old stouts when I open a bottle of soy sauce, so maybe don't trust my impression on that one. Some folks at the tasting filled out BJCP sheets so we should have some additional impressions coming as well. Overall, up with the best King's Ales I've had, with some really interesting unique qualities. Couldn't be happier that the one time I'm going to drink this beer it was a great bottle.
Did you ever end up posting the photos?
 
Some of the good photos are in pdawson's article: http://beerandbrewing.com/VRCJ8ikAAHkq_V01/article/19th-century-beer-in-a-21st-century-world

I have some more, will try and recall where I stashed them.
Cool article.

"After short negotiation, forty-five bottles of American beer (the first two years of the Crooked Stave Cellar Reserve and a few miscellaneous whales) were en route to England." Out of curiosity, is there any chance you can divulge the full trade?
 
Honestly, I don't totally remember. I'd been picking up the CS reserve beers as well as various other American beers for Kirk all year (I'd be doing the same for him again if I was still trading much), and he was looking out for old UK stuff for me, so it really just worked out well that was talking about it with Corey, who was also interested in old beers and happened to have a bunch of earlier CS stuff.
 
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