330ml bottle: 03442 April 2013. Broached between 5 on 8th Dec 2014, cheers Simon for bringing this to the Shrewsbury Bottle Share meeting. Dark and inviting look, but who wants to stare at a beer like this? The aroma draws you in, a huge peat bog of a smell, with a whisky hint in amongst the roasted malty esters of chocolate, liquorice and dark fruits. Taste starts fairly sweet and then a mini-sourness arrives to calm down the sweetness, a wine like depth to the flavouring gives a warm feeling in the mouth and stomach: just a great beer really.

330 ml bottle into tulip glass, bottled in 7/2011. Pours nearly opaque dark brown color with a small dense khaki head with good retention, that reduces to a thin lace cap that lingers. Light spotty soapy lacing clings around the glass. Aromas of dark chocolate, cocoa, roasted malt, brown sugar, raisin, peat smoke, wood, tobacco, leather, toast, light vanilla, and roasted earthiness. Damn nice aromas with good balance and deep complexity of dark/roasted malt and barrel notes; with good strength. Taste of dark chocolate, cocoa, roasted malt, brown sugar, raisin, peat smoke, wood, tobacco, leather, toast, dark bread, vanilla, light clove, and roasted earthiness. Lingering notes of chocolate, cocoa, roasted malt, brown sugar, raisin, peat smoke, wood, toast, tobacco, dark bread, and roasted earthiness on the finish for a while. Very nice flavors with deep complexity and great balance of dark/roasted malt and scotch barrel flavors; with zero cloying flavors after the finish. Light-medium carbonation and medium bodied; with a moderately creamy, smooth, and slightly chalky mouthfeel that is good. Alcohol is very well hidden with only a slight warming present after the finish. Overall this is an excellent barrel aged old ale. All around great complexity and balance of dark/roasted malt and scotch barrel flavors; and very smooth to sip on. A very enjoyable offering.

Bottle No: 10504, Bottling Date: Feb 2012. Znakomite czarne piwo, jak oleisty olej nieprzezroczyste z niewielka brazowa piana. Przypominalo w zapachu porto, a dalej trufle gozka czekolada. W smaku lekka nutea wedzona i drewniany posmak whisky, trufle i kakao, rodzynki i chyba jeszcze troche tortu czekoladowego. Po przelknieciu troche pozostaje posmaku alkoholowego w gardle oraz cieplo pochodzace z whisky. Palonosc portera na przyzwoitym poziomie. Ladna buteleczka zdobiona i numerowana, gdyby jeszcze ta pianka sie trzymala dluzej to bylby ideal. Goraco polecam skosztowanie innych rocznikow, oczywiscie chodzi mi o beczki po Higland Park Single Malt.