7.4/10
—
Appearance 4
Aroma 8
Flavor 8
Texture 8
Overall 7.5
Deep dark brown coloured body with almost no head at all - a sliver of a tan head on top with no movement at all (no big surprise there). Aroma of toasted malt, caramelised sugars, pungent earth, smoked peat, alcohol and way more malt than anything else, but a good deal of pitted fruit sweetness noticeable as well. Light to Medium-bodied; Definetely seemed to thin out over the years (as expected) with a subdued, yet noticeable alcohol bite in the back end with a lot of smoked peat, a good deal of earthier and pungent malts, some residual yeast and a finish of pure caramelised sugars with a good level of sweetness on the end from some figs, prunes and a touch of dates as well. Aftertaste shows a nice moderate complexity without much alcohol burn at all - this goes down quite easily, especially considering the alcohol percentage, and stays that way - the caramel and earthy malts are much more strong than any alcohol pungency or any astringency at all. Overall, a nice and nuanced beer that shows layers and most importantly, seems to have aged well over time - the alcohol is almost non-existent, the flavours have muddled and mellowed quite a bit and the beer shows a more elegant flavour throughout. Great to sample, especially after having it all this time and letting some of the yeast and sediment do its work on a such a high alcohol beer. I sampled this twelve ounce bottle purchased from New Beer Distributors in New York, New York on 02-November-2013 for US$2,99 just after having my first kid, now having three and sampling this at home in Washington about four and a half years later on 21-March-2018 after an inch or snow here in Springtime in Washington. Vintage: June 2013 // Purchased: November 2013 // Sampled: March 2018
Tried
from Bottle
on 22 Mar 2018
at 07:29