Tag Archives: barrel aged

4 - Good (buy), Beer Reviews, Belgium, De Struise Brouwers, Stout - Russian Imperial

De Struise Black Damnation XXV – Black Nuts

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Brewery: De Struise Brouwers
Country: Belgium
ABV: 13%
Style: Russian Imperial Stout
Other Notes: Bottle 772/2000, 2012 vintage

Brewer Description: (from bottle) A massive stout from Flanders aged in Ardbeg barrels.

My rating: 4
My beeradvocate.com rating: 4.23
My ratebeer.com rating: 4

Intro: A 750ml bottle, number 772/2000, 2012 vintage, bottled on 2nd March 2017. Poured into a snifter glass.
Appearance: Black in colour with a very thin brown head that dissipated quickly while leaving only sparse spotty lacing.
Aroma: Leather, peat, roasted malts, chocolate, oak, burnt sugar, boozy.
Taste: Roasted malts, chocolate, black coffee, peat, ashy, smoky, burnt caramel, boozy, whisky, light to moderate bitter finish.
Mouthfeel: Medium to full bodied with soft carbonation.
Overall: It’s an enjoyable sipper, but for the peated barrels, I preferred both Hollow (Laguvulin) and Octopussy (Octomore) just that little bit more.

4 - Good (buy), Beer Reviews, Founders Brewing Company, Stout - Imperial, USA

Founders KBS – Cinnamon Vanilla Cocoa

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Brewery: Founders Brewing Company
Country: USA
ABV: 12%
Style: Stout – Imperial
Other Notes: Barrel Aged Series. 2021 release. Imperial Stout with coffee, cinnamon, vanilla extract, and cocoa nibs aged in oak bourbon barrels

Brewer Description: (from bottle) Here’s one for the cocoa lovers: KBS Cinnamon Vanilla Cocoa – the sumptuous, deep coffee and chocolate flavors of KBS rise to the next level with a swirl of cinnamon and a hint of vanilla to create a sweet-but-not-too-sweet barrel-aged drinking experience. It’s a whole new spin on KBS that’s sure to sweeten your spirits.

My rating: 4
My beeradvocate.com rating: 4.35
My ratebeer.com rating: 4.2

Intro: A 12 fl. oz. bottle, bottled on 3rd September 2021. Poured into a snifter glass.
Appearance: Pitch black with a one finger brown head that had good retention and left nice lacing.
Aroma: Cinnamon, vanilla, chocolate, coffee, with notes of raisin and bourbon.
Taste: Light to moderate bitterness, dark chocolate, cocoa nibs, black coffee, some sweet notes, cinnamon, vanilla, dark fruit, raisin, bourbon.
Mouthfeel: Smooth, creamy, velvety, full to medium bodied with soft carbonation.
Overall: Great aroma, and taste was nice, but the cinnamon was perhaps a bit strong. It was sweet, but there was a good bitterness that balanced it, such that it wasn’t overly sweet. A good variant, however I do prefer the original KBS more.

5 - Excellent (must buy), Beer Reviews, England, Mills Brewing, Wild Ale

Mills Picture Pot Blend 3

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Brewery: Mills Brewing
Country: England
ABV: 6%
Style: Wild Ale
Other Notes: Mills Brewing make beer with minimal modern intervention, relying on local wild yeast cultures and the influence of nature to ferment

Brewer Description: (from bottle) Picture Pot was made from a blend of three brews produced in January and November 2019. Fermentation took place in Californian Chardonnay and Herefordshire cider barrels. The resulting blend was dry hopped with whole leaf Loral and Enigma. Drink young for fresh hop aromatics and aged for increased brettanomyces funk.

My rating: 5
My beeradvocate.com rating: 4.5
My ratebeer.com rating: 4.4

Intro: A 750ml corked and capped bottle, bottled in April 2021, with a best before date of April 2026. Poured into a 3 Fonteinen stemmed glass.
Appearance: A lightly hazy golden colour with a two finger white head that had pretty good retention and eventually settled to a nice fluffy cap, while leaving some nice lacing.
Aroma: Green apple, grapefruit peel, white wine grapes, vinous, grape gummy candy, light berry notes, oak, citrus zest.
Taste: Light to moderate tart and sourness, white wine grapes, grape gummy candy, light oak, citrus zest, and a touch of funk.
Mouthfeel: Medium bodied with moderate to soft carbonation.
Overall: Really nice aroma and flavours, and just so easy and enjoyable to drink. This is great to drink right now, but I wish I had another bottle to age since I do enjoy funk, and it would have been interesting to see how this ages.

4 - Good (buy), Beer Reviews, England, Mills Brewing, Wild Ale

Mills Okay

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Brewery: Mills Brewing
Country: England
ABV: 6%
Style: Wild Ale
Other Notes: Mills Brewing make beer with minimal modern intervention, relying on local wild yeast cultures and the influence of nature to ferment

Brewer Description: (from bottle) Okay was made from a blend of two golden worts produced in April and August 2019. Fermentation took place in two ex Ross cider barrels and two white Burgundy barrels. Raw Scottish heather honey was added just prior to bottling. This provided sugar for conditioning as well as trapping the delicate earthy aromatics in the bottle. The resulting beer is relatively full-bodied with a surprisingly fluffy mouthfeel.

My rating: 4
My beeradvocate.com rating: 3.98
My ratebeer.com rating: 3.9

Intro: A 750ml corked and capped bottle, bottled in November 2020, with a best before date of November 2025. Poured into a 3 Fonteinen stemmed glass.
Appearance: A slightly hazy golden orange colour with a big almost three finger white head that had good retention and left some nice lacing.
Aroma: Dusty, funky, white grape, apple cider, oak, hay, dried leaves with a twang of lemon zest.
Taste: Tart, lightly sour, juicy, white wine vinous, grapefruit, minerals.
Mouthfeel: Medium bodied with moderate carbonation.
Overall: Not sure I get the honey, but this was just refreshing and enjoyable.

3 - Indifferent (might buy, probably drink), Beer Reviews, Heroes Beer Co., Hong Kong, Stout - Milk / Sweet Imperial

Heroes BR&MSBAIMSwMSCN&V (4th Anniversary)

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Brewery: Heroes Beer Co.
Country: Hong Kong
ABV: 10.4%
Style: Stout – Milk / Sweet Imperial
Other Notes: Bottle 307 of 720

Brewer Description: (from bottle) Bourbon, Rye, and Maple Syrup Barrel Aged Imperial Milk Stout with Maple Syrup, Cacao Nibs and Vanilla. Imagine eating a chocolate pancake with maple syrup while drinking an Americano. Starts off with dessert-like aromas of maple syrup, vanilla, and dark chocolate notes. Follows through with a complex but smooth malt profile with dark chocolate, espresso beans, raisins, dark caramel and toasted bread. Bitterness is medium but enough to support the sweetness. Medium oak character from bourbon, rye whisky, and maple syrup barrels comes through to help add structure to palate.

My rating: 3
My beeradvocate.com rating: 4
My ratebeer.com rating: 3.9

Intro: A boxed, black waxed, 650ml bomber, bottle 307 of 720, packaged on 4th October 2021, and with a best before date of 4th October 2024. Poured into a snifter glass.
Appearance: Dark brown to black in colour with pretty much no head and no lacing.
Aroma: Maple syrup, dried dark fruit, raisins, prunes, vanilla, bourbon, light roast, chocolate, caramel.
Taste: Sweet, bourbon, dried dark fruit, raisins, prunes, maple syrup, caramel, vanilla, chocolate, light roast.
Mouthfeel: Creamy, velvety, full bodied with no carbonation.
Overall: Great aroma, but it was too sweet for me. I don’t get the bitterness that the description talks about, which would definitely help it along. It’s okay as a sipper, but usually when I think sipper, it’s due to the apparent alcohol or alcohol strength rather than because of it’s sweetness, and I easily preferred both the 2nd and 3rd anniversary beers.