(Draft at Bryden’s, Toronto, Dec 31 2011). Poured a dark amber, maybe a bit hazy (it was dark!) with some tan froth on top. Aroma strongly woody vanilla from the barrel, with some sugary sweetness from the malt and just a bit of the citrus hops. Flavour follows the nose but the whiskey and beer characters are a little more evenly balanced, with the toffee of malts and the pine/citrus hops on the finish recalling the base beer. Finishes a little bitter, medium-bodied with faint booze. One has to like whiskey to like this beer, I think, but it nicely combines the characters of the barrel and the underlying brew.