Aon - Pecan Mud Cake (Double Barrel Aged Islay Whisky/Cognac)

I’ve seen this smiley face pass by on Facebook and other media many times recently and I already suspected this is more serious a beer than it looks - very curious about this, also seen its very high score here. Thick and creamy, lightly lacing, irregular but very dense, deep brownish beige head over an opaque ink black beer, already showing its viscosity upon pouring. The bouquet is strong, perfumey and nothing less than divine: finest quality Belgian chocolates, milk chocolate or even Mars bars, hot chocolate milk, espresso beans, cappuccino, cognac, lush vanilla tannins, moist oak wood, walnut (or I suppose its close relative pecan nut, seen the name), brownies, hints of old nut shells gathered from a dry forest floor, toasted brown bread, pipe tobacco, candied cherry, dried fig, single malt whisky with even a very, very subtle peated note, some cured meat but not nearly as dominant as in many other imperial stouts these days, brown sugar melting on hot pancakes, raisins, vague liquorish, vague bitter herbs somewhere - I could smell this aroma for hours on end. In the mouth, this magnificent thing of sheer beauty opens with concentrated candied ’praline’-like sweetness but not exaggeratedly so, not becoming cloying anywhere and balanced with a deep, underlying, very basic but effective sourishness as well as surrounding meaty umami accents. Carbo is evidently soft and fit for the style, mouthfeel is thick, viscous and heavy on the tongue with the consistency of chocolate milk, or even thicker. A world of beautiful dark malts opens in the middle, deeply chocolatey, caramelly, nutty, toasty and eventually roasted and even black coffeeish, all blending into one deliciously bittersweet unity. Something iron-like lies on top of this massive pile of malts but does not disturb at all - if anything, it only adds another detail to the overall flavor. The thick layer of bittersweet malts slides down heavily upon swallowing, and as expected, the finish adds so many more beautiful things: retronasal tannins yielding lovely vanilla fragrance and ’wet wood’ aromas, spicy hops providing peppery bitterishness well in balance with the malts, cognac and whisky are both more or less distinguishable. Soft brandy-like alcohol warms the chest. Maybe not the most suitable beer for a damp hot day like today but there was no way I could have waited till next winter to sample this. And I am glad I did: this completely lives up to the hype. It combines the tradition of BA stouts with the new hype of peanut butter- and other overly creamy and sweet ’liquid candy bar stouts’ in a most beautiful way. An enduring masterpiece, top class in every perspective and among the best stouts (or even beers ’tout court’) I had the pleasure to enjoy so far. This can stand any comparison with the nobility of American BA stouts and I’ll be savoring this as slowly as possible just to prolong the pleasure. Highly recommended.

Bottled 330ml (Saveur Biere)
I’ve had this twice at Beer Hunters from tap but saved my rating to bottled version as I had it in the fridge. Opaque black color, small brownish head. Aroma has chocolaty mud cake, some Islay peatyness, underlying fruityness. Full-bodied, hided ABV well. Mud cake, chocolate, some alcohol, peaty Islayness. Lingering cocoa and mud cake in the aftertaste. Less whiskey than in the keg version. De Molen knows impys.

[5/11/16] Draught at Banksia in Copenhagen. Black with a nice small brown head. Wonderful huge aroma of chocolate, mocha, peanut butter, Nutella, vanilla, whiskey. Sweet flavor, very rich, with chocolate, peanut butter, Nutella, vanilla, light booziness, and a bitter finish. Full-bodied. Really great.

Bottle. Black color with big dark beige head. Aroma is coconut cream, hazelnut, maybe pecan, vanilla, coffee. Taste is booze, cognac, liqueur, more nutty flavours, and a bit plummy. Not so smokey. Low carbonation, silky mouthfeel. Amazingly different, and it works out.

(330ml bottle @ VilleValla Pub, Linköping, May 10 2016) Pours pitch black with a loose head of tan bubbles. Aroma is rich, sweet and indulgent with notes of fudge, chocolate cake, vanilla extract, candied pecans, some cognac spirit character and a bit of burnt malt. Flavour follows the nose, quite sweet and driven by a core of fudge and baked chocolate with lots of extract-type nutty notes, boozy spirit with a little sweet coganc grape/berry, vanilla, roasted malts have a bit of tar and light smoke but not much Islay, Finish emphasizes the cognac character and nuts, but is rather sweet and a bit boozy in comparison to the normal and bourbon variants with just a little wood. Full bodied with smooth carbonation. A really nice dessert-y base beer becomes even more dessert-y in this barrel treatment but lacks the bitter balance of the other variants, I would have liked more peat here.

Draught@CBC2016 Yellow session. Black colour, small brown head. Aroma is nutty, chocolaty, some slight alcohol as well as some liquorice and mild alcohol. Flavour is very nutty, floral, some liquorice, alcohol and toffee with mild roast as well.

Bottle from Tall Boys, Leeds. Black colour with a tan head. Aroma nut, treacle, coffee and chocolate. Taste coffee sweet.

Bottle at Leightons. big thanks to Dirty D. It pours jet black with a thick tan head. The aroma is rich, honeycomb, crunchie, creamy, tar, rich roast, burnt tires,vanilla, toasted nuts, fudge and cinder toffee. The taste is rich, oily, roasted malt, toffee, toasted nuts, chocolate, peanut bitter, good warming alcohol boost, tangy berry, coffee and fudge with a rich, warming finish. Full body, fine carbonation and oily mouth feel. Rich and decadent. Tasty stuff.

Bottle at home, 20th May 16. Pours black, viscous, elegant. Aroma fills the room, chocolate, fudge, coffee, roasted nuts are evident. Taste is full on and rich, chocolate, fudge, lots of nuts, roasty, slick and delicious. Moorish and complex. Great stuff

Originally rated on 18.5.2016. 330ml bottle from Saveur-biere.com. Rating #6000! Pours pitch black with a tiny brown head. Aroma of intense dark chocolate, mud cake, wood, peat, whisky, oak, ripe apples and stingy notes. Taste is smooth, slightly stingy and woody with some ripe apples, whisky, oak, loads of vanilla, cocoa, mud cake, chocolate and peat. Finish is smooth, slightly woody and warming with some peat, cognac, oak, whisky and loads of cocoa, milky chocolate and mud cake notes. Quite intense slow sipper, a bit boozier and sweeter than the other versions. Still a damn tasty beer though.