Cellared Beer Reviews

[greg4579]

Drank a 2013 Churchill's Finest Hour (blue wax) last night. Split the bottle with a buddy and it had minimal oxidation and was a tremendous oaky bourbon bomb. Never had it fresh, but I'd say the bottle could easily hold on for another couple years...but I'd be hard pressed not to drink anymore if I had them. Great beer. Closest parallel I could make was Puga25.

 

[stakem1]

With my cellar flooding twice in a month, it has basically become a part time job relocating and drinking these beers. Rather than bore people by posting everything, here are a couple that kinda made it to the highlight reel for good, or bad reasons.

Bruery Rueminator 2016 - This is almost a perfectly executed doppelbock but completely ruined by raw/virgin oak. It drinks like you are chewing on a toothpick.

Fantome dark white 2016 - this beer was so great fresh out the gate, I went and bought a case, drank half, tucked the other half away. Fast forward 2 years, the fruit dominance has faded leaving a mineral/carbonic bite to it. Still too young to showcase oxidation/tome house character so ill check in on this one again in maybe 3 or more years.

Stoudt’s wine barrel aged fat dog oatmeal stout - What a blast from the past this was. My wife and I attended beer fests at this brewery prior to having children. Their barrel aged beer releases were so low bottle counts that even the locals/regulars didnt know they existed. I believe this bottle is 5 years old. Very nice dry wine character, soft oak and a bounty of coffee/bakers chocolate.

Nebraska Whiskey BA Fathead 2011 - This was a gift from a friend when Nebraska made its debute to PA. Ironically my buddy bought it for me as a joke because his wife called me fathead. Drank it this past weekend at 7 years in the bottle. Pretty nice. Not showing its age at all. The barrel character is quite unique with a sort of floral meets burning incense character. Still, after 7 years its hot

 

[Shakedwnst]

With my cellar flooding twice in a month, it has basically become a part time job relocating and drinking these beers. Rather than bore people by posting everything, here are a couple that kinda made it to the highlight reel for good, or bad reasons.

Bruery Rueminator 2016 - This is almost a perfectly executed doppelbock but completely ruined by raw/virgin oak. It drinks like you are chewing on a toothpick.

Fantome dark white 2016 - this beer was so great fresh out the gate, I went and bought a case, drank half, tucked the other half away. Fast forward 2 years, the fruit dominance has faded leaving a mineral/carbonic bite to it. Still too young to showcase oxidation/tome house character so ill check in on this one again in maybe 3 or more years.

Stoudt’s wine barrel aged fat dog oatmeal stout - What a blast from the past this was. My wife and I attended beer fests at this brewery prior to having children. Their barrel aged beer releases were so low bottle counts that even the locals/regulars didnt know they existed. I believe this bottle is 5 years old. Very nice dry wine character, soft oak and a bounty of coffee/bakers chocolate.

Nebraska Whiskey BA Fathead 2011 - This was a gift from a friend when Nebraska made its debute to PA. Ironically my buddy bought it for me as a joke because his wife called me fathead. Drank it this past weekend at 7 years in the bottle. Pretty nice. Not showing its age at all. The barrel character is quite unique with a sort of floral meets burning incense character. Still, after 7 years its hot

Ate many a meal at Stoudts on my travels between Philly and PSU (‘06) and don’t remember ever seeing any barrel aged beers

 

[davey101]

Never had this beer before. If I ever saw it on a shelf I'd have grabbed a Pannepot instead. Some random store in Northern Maine had some bottles on a clearance rack so I grabbed two. Nose is oxidation, feet, and candi sugar. Smelled pretty bad initially but it eventually aired out and took on some more fruitier aromas. Probably not stored ideally during it's life. Taste is a bit better. Sweet candi sugars, light bannana and clove, peaches and wet cardboard. Pretty decent beer, curious how the Reserva stacks up.

 

[lazerviking]

Any of you guys have experience with old Oerbier. I don't think I've had a bottle older than 7 years, which I thought was fantastic. Can anyone speak to it's potential to go longer than that?

 

[stupac2]

Any of you guys have experience with old Oerbier. I don't think I've had a bottle older than 7 years, which I thought was fantastic. Can anyone speak to it's potential to go longer than that?

jedwards can I bet.

 

[jedwards]

jedwards can I bet.

Heh. Oerbier outside of the 2000-2005 range can essentially age indefinitely -- we opened a bottle of the original 1980 fliptop in 2014 and it was spectacular. I have it in my cellar back to the mid-80s and they're still terrific (assuming what you taste seven years on is what you're into).

 

[ExPimp]

Decided to start working through all these damn beers I have...

11/20/2009
This one had less oxidization than others I've had around this age. No, I don't think my ****** wax job when I was first getting "cellaring" beer helped.

9/27/16
I fee like this is a sweet spot for this beer.

2011
This is a hazy ass barleywine, I don't remember it looking like this (been awhile since I've bought this beer though). Still going strong, glad it's not the "Belgo" version they released this year.

12/15/2009
I love this beer with age on it, probably my favorite of the quads. I'd take a Rochefort or St Bernardus at a younger age, but the old Westys are great.

 

[BeersMorgan]

That glass

 

[Skittle34]

If I remember correctly, that bad boy holds a full 18 oz too

 

[ExPimp]

That glass

Yea, wish I still had some Our Finest Regards to drink out of it.

 

[BeersMorgan]

Yea, wish I still had some Our Finest Regards to drink out of it.

RIP in peace.

EDIT: Our Finest Regards was on a bottle list recently for $38, I said I'd never pay it but I'm pretty sure if I had a buzz I'd split it with someone and not regret it


I have one Barbapapa left and my Pretty Things are all gone forever

 

[Espeer]

This was an ugly pour - murky as hell.

Had a pronounced tartness which probably helped drinkability since it wasn't so crazy sweet. No carb at all.

Drank it, but mostly out of principle.

 

[davey101]

2013 vintage. Much, much better then the poorly aged regular 2015 bottle I had recently. Pretty one dimensional though. Like a basic old ale with some Belgian yeast esters and some boozy bourbon notes. Pretty tasty though.

Based on the 5th anniversary mention this must be a 2013 bottle. Not good, definitely way over the hill. Some roasty stout notes go right into a sour vinegar infection. Didn't make it too far into this bottle unfortunately.

 

[tosh1]

From BravoDawg spoilt on me for sure.

It was as described and I drank it.

Just glad I had some lambic left afterwards.

Thanks Will!

 

[KevSal]

batch 1 (2014)

super mellow, not too sour, slightly funky. mellowed out some of the character i liked about this one. had it 2 years ago and it was off the charts.

 

[user 306349]

ended up scoring a Sanctification b4 750ml (2009) from the Wall of Beer at Brews for New Avenues last weekend. the person who donated a lot of vintage Russian River to the wall is a local who keeps their bottles in a legit storage location since purchase, so I'm hoping this is on par with the bottle I had in 2014. looking forward to reviewing this later this week!

 

[tosh1]

Drank a few of these recently, found a bunch on the shelf in the last few weeks so have been able to drink a couple and restock.

This beer has always beem great, these recent bottles are fantastic.

I am close to the end of finding bottles on the shelf I am sure. Likely stop drinking what I have on hand for a while longer after this one ( or one or two more)

 

[jedwards]

RIP in peace.

EDIT: Our Finest Regards was on a bottle list recently for $38, I said I'd never pay it but I'm pretty sure if I had a buzz I'd split it with someone and not regret it


I have one Barbapapa left and my Pretty Things are all gone forever

I have a few of the historic Milds and a small pile of OFR, then it's all gone. Gotta go check out the new spot once it's up and running.

 

[user 306349]

Sanctification b4 - 2009

kept in the fridge for the past 48 hours, cork had a nice pop and the aroma of tart lemons with a touch of vinegar immediately fills the room.

taste is great, lots of lemon with some nice oak in the background with no traces of vinegar or detracting pucker notes.

all in all, this beer is really ******* good for a nine year old AWA and I'm glad I got to revisit it.

 

[tosh1]

Sanctification b4 - 2009

kept in the fridge for the past 48 hours, cork had a nice pop and the aroma of tart lemons with a touch of vinegar immediately fills the room.

taste is great, lots of lemon with some nice oak in the background with no traces of vinegar or detracting pucker notes.

all in all, this beer is really ******* good for a nine year old AWA and I'm glad I got to revisit it.

I got a couple Of these left. This is a great batch

 

[Der Fuchs]

For those of you holding pretty things bottles be aware that the caps they used weren't up to extended aging and most of their beers have started showing heavy oxidation by now. I would drink them if you have them, they are going downhill fast. At least that was my experience with the last 5 or so different varieties I bought up when I heard they were going under.

 

[libbey]

2013 vintage. Much, much better then the poorly aged regular 2015 bottle I had recently. Pretty one dimensional though. Like a basic old ale with some Belgian yeast esters and some boozy bourbon notes. Pretty tasty though.

Based on the 5th anniversary mention this must be a 2013 bottle. Not good, definitely way over the hill. Some roasty stout notes go right into a sour vinegar infection. Didn't make it too far into this bottle unfortunately.

Yea that was an Imperial Milk stout. Quite tasty fresh but I can't see that beer holding up over time.

 

[BadJustin]

Appearance: A black, oily beer with a light tan head. Surprised it had as much carbonation as it did for an 8 year old stout.

Smell: Slight oxidation at opening, but faded as it opened up. A bit of roast, mostly dominated by dark fruits (plums and raisins) and a hint of cocoa.

Mouthfeel: Medium body, little oily. Carbonation created a softer feel than the 2012 I opened 3 years ago.

Taste: Dark fruits dominate the palate with some cocoa and a bit of a bitter bite at the finish. Some wet cardboard when still cold, faded as soon as it warmed.

Overall: A great beer, probably a few years past its prime. For an eight year old stout it was much better than I expected.

 

[Phin1]

BadJustin w/ the old school NY whaleish imperial stout from Phil's heyday.

Sipping on a 2012 KBS right now. It pours a rich black color with a tan head. After only a moment, only a thin ring sits on top. On the nose, dark chocolate and faint roasted malts. Tastes kind of like that pot of coffee that has been sitting for 2+ hours, a bit of bourbon still present. It finishes better w/ some sweetness, bitter dark chocolate. Tasty & interesting, but 2-3 years past any type of "prime". Had plenty of LBS over the years, so happy to have engaged in some science.

Drank from a glass mug...still need to figure out how to add photos that are not on IG. I'm practically an old man, please cut me slack.

 

[stakem1]

2013 DDG

What a huge disappointment. This has turned to acetone.

 

[Gonzoillini1]

2013 DDG

What a huge disappointment. This has turned to acetone.

I was the outlier in my local group regarding Batch 1 of DDG, but that tracks pretty much with what I thought 4-5 years ago.

I will say that the new Veritas batches (which I hear a number of have used a DDG like blend as their base) have been pretty damn tasty fresh.

 

[iong516]

still need to figure out how to add photos that are not on IG. I'm practically an old man, please cut me slack.

I got the imgur app, uploading is easy, then when you're viewing the photo you can tap the image and a little U with an upwards arrow appears at the bottom, which when you tap offers "Copy Link" that gives you a link you can paste and fancy messageboard code [ img ]link[ / img ] and take out the spaces.

 

[jammery]

I got the imgur app, uploading is easy, then when you're viewing the photo you can tap the image and a little U with an upwards arrow appears at the bottom, which when you tap offers "Copy Link" that gives you a link you can paste and fancy messageboard code [ img ]link[ / img ] and take out the spaces.

damn. all this time i've been opening the image from the imgur app into the chrome browser on my phone. then opening the image by itself. then copying the link from the browser. then pasting that into TB.
good to know.

 

[davey101]

2006 "Dark Green Cap" WWS. I found a stash of '04's back in 2012ish and drinking those beers was a revelation to me at the time. My first venture into cellared beer and honestly one of the best beers I've ever had. I thought those still had some steam in them then, but 12 years seems like it may be too much even for an 18% beer.

Opens with a small hiss. Surprisingly it pours out with some small edging and some visible carb. Nose starts off heavily oxidized. Not off to a good start but I let it sit for a few minutes. After a while the oxy takes a back seat and notes of port and chocolate start to come forward. Towards the end of the nose there's a strong note that I can only describe as burnt toffee. Taste is not what I was expecting. Smoked malts, tootsie roll, port, and light coffee roast. No wet cardboard or any off flavors. Medium bodied and just the perfect amount of carb. The high abv isn't harsh at all, it just provides warmth to lift up the flavors. Just a perfect sipper. I love old DFH beers and I've always wanted one of these weird dark green cap vintages but I thought it was going to be way over the hill at this point. It's just excellent, it's aged so gracefully unlike most American strong ales and stouts. This is just so good.