Tag Archives: ba

4 - Good (buy), Beer Reviews, Denmark, Mikkeller ApS, Porter - Imperial

Mikkeller Brian Bourbon BA

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Brewery: Mikkeller ApS
Country: Denmark
ABV: 12.3%
Style: American Imperial Porter
Other Notes: Brewed & bottled by Mikkeller at Cervesa Del Montseny, Barcelona, Spain

Brewer Description: (from bottle) Imperial Porter aged in bourbon barrels.

My rating: 4
My beeradvocate.com rating: 4.25
My ratebeer.com rating: 4

Intro: A 330ml bottle with no clear bottled on or best before date (my best guess would be 4+ years in the bottle). Poured into a snifter glass.
Appearance: Black in colour with pretty much no head and only some sparse spotty lacing.
Aroma: Roasty, dark malt, chocolate, coffee, oak, licorice, bourbon, toffee and maybe a hint of char.
Taste: Sweet, bourbon, licorice, toffee, roasted malts, chocolate, oak, coffee, molasses, some dark fruit, char, and a light bitterness on the finish.
Mouthfeel: Creamy, full bodied, with soft carbonation.
Overall: A good sipper from Mikkeller. Sweetness was on the borderline for me, but it got balanced by the roast and light bitterness on the finish.

4 - Good (buy), Beer Reviews, Denmark, Mikkeller ApS, Stout - Imperial

Mikkeller George Bourbon BA

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Brewery: Mikkeller ApS
Country: Denmark
ABV: 12.12%
Style: American Imperial Stout
Other Notes: Brewed & bottled by Mikkeller at Lervig Aktiebryggeri, Norway

Brewer Description: (from bottle) Imperial Stout aged in bourbon barrels.

My rating: 4
My beeradvocate.com rating: 4.38
My ratebeer.com rating: 4.2

Intro: A 330ml bottle with a best before date of 19th May 2024. Poured into a snifter glass.
Appearance: Black in colour with no head and no lacing.
Aroma: Roasty, chocolate, coffee, oak, bourbon, and vanilla.
Taste: What you’d expect from the aroma, roasty, chocolate, coffee, oak, bourbon sweetness and vanilla.
Mouthfeel: Creamy, full bodied with soft carbonation.
Overall: A wonderful sipper with really nice bourbon sweetness complementing the roast, chocolate and coffee.

3 - Indifferent (might buy, probably drink), Australia, Beer Reviews, Farmhouse Saison, La Sirène Brewing

La Sirène Reserve Saison

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Brewery: La Sirène Brewing
Country: Australia
ABV: 7%
Style: Belgian Saison
Other Notes: Avant Garde Collection. 2016 vintage. Barrel-aged vintage Saison – rustic, vinous, wild. Oak 3.5/6, fruity 3.5/6 and funk 4/6

Brewer Description: (from bottle) Reserve Saison is composed of a blend of our classic Saison vintages that have been aged in Burgundian barriques & hogsheads since 2015 and 2016. The Reserve Saison displays generous oak character & balance with ethereal yet rustic notes of the indigenous wild yeast residing within the walls of our brewery. The Reserve Saison is the ultimate expression of our site and house style, imparting a sense of place, time and season to this wild ale.

My rating: 3
My beeradvocate.com rating: 3.94
My ratebeer.com rating: 3.8

Intro: A 375ml bottle, batch no. 230313, bottled on July 2018. Poured into a 3 Fonteinen stemmed glass.
Appearance: A lightly hazy golden orange colour with a big two finger white head that dissipated fairly quickly to a thin layer and left nice curtain lacing.
Aroma: Light funk, brett, lightly vinous, grape, some stone fruit, peach, apricot, lemon peel and a touch of lime soda.
Taste: Sour, light funk, brett, vinous, grape, oak, lemon, lime and a bit pithy.
Mouthfeel: Light bodied with high spritzy carbonation.
Overall: Nice Saison with lots of citrusy notes on the finish.

4 - Good (buy), Australia, Beer Reviews, La Sirène Brewing, Wild Ale

La Sirène Cuvée de Bois

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Brewery: La Sirène Brewing
Country: Australia
ABV: 6.2%
Style: American Wild Ale
Other Notes: Avant Garde Collection. 2018 vintage. Oak-aged Wild Ale with chardonnay – solera method. Funk 4/5, sour 2/5 and oak 2/5

Brewer Description: (from bottle) La Sirène 2018 Cuvée de Bois is a special wine hybrid mixed fermentation farmhouse ale blended with select French oak barriques of La Sirène Saison. Using our vintage basket press, Australian chardonnay free run juice was brewed into a specially designed farmhouse beer, then blended with our barrel-aged Saison. The 2018 Cuvée de Bois is a delightful blend of balanced wild farmhouse complexity and grape forward acidity crowned by the elegance & depth of toasted French oak.

My rating: 4
My beeradvocate.com rating: 4.21
My ratebeer.com rating: 4.1

Intro: A 375ml bottle, batch no. 230230, and bottled in February 2019. Poured into a 3 Fonteinen stemmed glass.
Appearance: A clear golden straw colour with a big two finger white head that dissipated fairly quickly and left only some sparse spotty lacing.
Aroma: Light funk, sweet white wine, grapes, peach, apricot, with a hint of oak and citrus.
Taste: Sour, tart, funky, white wine, grapes, stone fruit, peach, apricot and lemon peel on the finish.
Mouthfeel: Medium bodied with moderate carbonation.
Overall: Nice enjoyable grape and stone fruit flavours.

4 - Good (buy), Beer Reviews, North Coast Brewing Co., Stout - Russian Imperial, USA

North Coast Old Rasputin Rye Whiskey Barrel Aged

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Brewery: North Coast Brewing Co.
Country: USA
ABV: 11.3%
Style: Russian Imperial Stout
Other Notes: XVIII release

Brewer Description: (from bottle) Barrel-aged Old Rasputin Russian Imperial Stout. Stout aged in rye whiskey barrels.

My rating: 4
My beeradvocate.com rating: 4.12
My ratebeer.com rating: 4.1

Intro: A corked and caged 500ml bottle, XVIII release. Poured into a snifter glass.
Appearance: Black in colour with a one finger dark tanned to brown head that had good retention and left lots of nice lacing.
Aroma: Light roast, chocolate, whiskey, oak and vanilla.
Taste: Rye whiskey forward providing sweetness, light roast, chocolate, coffee, oak and vanilla.
Mouthfeel: Medium bodied with soft carbonation.
Overall: Body was lighter than I’d prefer for what it is. I get the whiskey booze forwardness, but I don’t get much of the usual spiciness from rye whiskey (maybe I’ve held on to this bottle for too long?). But nevertheless, it is still an enjoyable sipper.