Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 8 | Flavor - 8 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 8

Rated May 2008. Poured up in a half pint glass at the brewery via a beer engine. The body is deep rust – copper with slight haze and cool looking tan head with little off white bee bee sized foam oddities. They shrunk and were gone in a couple of minutes. The aroma is sweet nutty malts mixed with mild bourbon, some wood and faint dark fruity esters. The elixir enter silky smooth with cask hand pumped carbonation. I get wood notes bleeding slowly into sweet smooth bourbon booze, toffee and sweet nutty malts to roasty malts. The malts turn grainy for a moment before the bourbon enters in a little bit harsher form than before but not in the least bit distracting. To go along with that into the finish I get sweet roasty malts and nutty goodness. I love it when a barrel aged beer doesn’t have the base beer goodness wilt and vanish under the weight of the booze. Well done.