Cellared Beer Reviews

[Treebs]

Official cellared beer reviews thread. If you've got 'em, post them here! No more monthly threads. It'll be much easier to have one rolling thread from this point forward.

Starting this thread off with a 2003 Bigfoot thanks to harrymel.




No muddiness on the pour, just a nice dark sheen. Very low carb, but not flat. Fits this beer nicely.

Oxidation on the nose, but pleasant and zero cardboard. Dark fruits and a little bitter hops peaking through.

Taste is like the nose. Bitter leafy hops still, dark fruits, dry rye flavor in the malt. Bready and sweet. A little leather.

Mouthfeel is nice, low carb. Completely drinkable still. Pretty dry.

Still doing nicely and could tack on a couple more years if you so choose.

 

[Arbitrator]

2008 Ten Fidy thanks to my wife loving this beer back in the day and then not caring for it anymore.

A: Pours, like everyone says, a thick, viscous motor oil black. It's a sight to behold spewing out of the can. Something seems more visceral out of this serving format than a similar stout in a bottle.

S: Strong cardboard oxidation and autolysis (soy) on the nose. Mild undercurrent of chocolate, coffee, port/sherry.

T: Unlike the aroma, sherry is much stronger here, leading into soy, chocolate, and roasted grains. While I don't care for the soy component, I can see this pleasing someone who enjoys stouts and old ales. It's an interesting progression. The finish is cardboardy, though it is masked by lingering soy.

M: Chewy up front. Still plenty of carbonation for a body of this magnitude. Initially (when cold), the beer had a very weak finish that really showcased the level of cardboard it has developed -- but as it warms, the soy becomes more expressive and the body regains its grip in the finish.

O: I lost my taste for this beer years ago, but I'm impressed at how well it has held on. It doesn't really please my palate, but I encourage fans of imperial stouts to try this experiment.

 

[jedwards]

Been on deck for awhile, figured I'd do it tonight to celebrate the New Unified Cellar Reviews Thread.

The bubbles at the edge are definitely from the pour -- no hiss or trace of carbonation on this one. The nose has some must/basement that I don't like which cleared up a bit as it aired, a bit of smoke, and some stale coffee & Madeira notes. Body is thin and watery, has some tannic astringency on the finish. Taste is spot-on to start with heavy prune, tobacco, and sweet port, but there's an unpleasant metallic thing on the finish and I get almost none of the peat/iodine notes I'd typically expect, and it's lacking a richness and roundness especially in the tart/vinous department. I've had generally mixed luck with pre-70s bottles of Courage/BP RIS (which I attribute in part to the general difficulty of getting a well-kept bottle), and this one isn't great. Still fun to drink, though. Took a page from the world of oxidized wines and left about 1/3 of the bottle set out -- will revisit in a day or two and see if breathing changed anything.

 

[matedog]

Been on deck for awhile, figured I'd do it tonight to celebrate the New Unified Cellar Reviews Thread.

The bubbles at the edge are definitely from the pour -- no hiss or trace of carbonation on this one. The nose has some must/basement that I don't like which cleared up a bit as it aired, a bit of smoke, and some stale coffee & Madeira notes. Body is thin and watery, has some tannic astringency on the finish. Taste is spot-on to start with heavy prune, tobacco, and sweet port, but there's an unpleasant metallic thing on the finish and I get almost none of the peat/iodine notes I'd typically expect, and it's lacking a richness and roundness especially in the tart/vinous department. I've had generally mixed luck with pre-70s bottles of Courage/BP RIS (which I attribute in part to the general difficulty of getting a well-kept bottle), and this one isn't great. Still fun to drink, though. Took a page from the world of oxidized wines and left about 1/3 of the bottle set out -- will revisit in a day or two and see if breathing changed anything.

I remember at the last share telling you about the 09 Pannepot I just got and your response was "that's not old enough." Now I see you weren't joking.

 

[stupac2]

I remember at the last share telling you about the 09 Pannepot I just got and your response was "that's not old enough." Now I see you weren't joking.

He was probably joking a little. Also, where'd you get that? I love me some aged Pannepot.

 

[matedog]

He was probably joking a little. Also, where'd you get that? I love me some aged Pannepot.

Oh I took it as such. This was more of a "holy **** that is an old beer" comment.

Picked it up at Star Grocery a month or two ago. I'm in no rush to drink it so I'll save it for the next Beer Rev share or whenever.

 

[CommanderofAwesome]

Oh I took it as such. This was more of a "holy **** that is an old beer" comment.

Picked it up at Star Grocery a month or two ago. I'm in no rush to drink it so I'll save it for the next Beer Rev share or whenever.

Star is legit. Beer buyer is best in the bay by a wide margin.

 

[robertgoulet]

A buddy and I opened up a couple of fun bottles on Sunday.

The first cellared bottle was a BB Nov 2014 Saison Dupont. Lemon, dark fruit some very light funk. Mouth feel was slightly more full than fresh and it has lost the pepper notes I always associate with Dupont yeast. While still enjoyable, I definitely prefer fresh.

2012 Fantome. The last bottle from our trip to the brewery a couple of years ago. This was probably the best beer I've ever had. Nectarines for days. Some lemon with light lactic and a little funk. So fruity. Dragon fruit, melon. Mouthfeel was outstanding.

De Struise Pannepot Reserva 2009. I've had a mess of the Reservas over the last couple of years and I think six years is a little too old. It seemed slightly over-the-hill with the nose being a muted version of the taste which was still very good with chocolate and dark fruit notes - particularly raisins.

 

[PerHops]

I remember that fantome sur lie. That is to this day the best beer I've ever had

 

[golden1]

13 was a bit to sour, 14 is still very fruit.

 

[harrymel1]

2011 Project Bourbonic Plague

*********, this **** is ******* sweet. Like grape syrup with tannins.

Will sell the rest on MBC prolly.

 

[PHBoiler]

I didn't take a picture as I was at a brewery release and had my hands full. February 2013 HF Florence is really drinking beautifully. Really bright effervescence and good carb retention throughout. Complex and funky/Bretty throughout. Reminded me of the recent batch of Flora in terms of complexity. Dry as a bone with a nice lemonade tartness as well. That beer got nothing but better I will say that. I'd think if you have some, you should entertain the idea of giving this bottle a run. Maybe a few of the folks I shared it with at Transient can chime in as well. I'm not a total ace in describing what I'm drinking, but I know that I love dry Saisons and this one really hit all the marks.

 

[jedwards]

Opened up this North Coast Old No. 38 last night. Not dated, but acquired with a group of beers from 1995/1996 so it's most likely around that age, and tastes like it (also, the label changed in 1998, so we at least know it's from before that). Soy sauce and molasses on the nose, thin watery body, brown sugar sweetness and more soy/umami on the palate. A bit of milk chocolate and some stale coffee flavors on the finish.

In conclusion, I cannot recommend aging a dry Irish stout bottled in a screwtop for twenty years. Fun to try, though

 

[Der Fuchs]

No pics but we did a few older beers last night.

1993 Thomas hardy's silver anniversary- no carb, surprisingly mild oxidation, sweet with lots of leathery molasses and an undertone of dark pit fruits, madeira, and stale coffee. Quite a bit better than the 94' we drank a month ago. Glad we didn't let it go any longer. Def a sweet spot for me. 8.5/10

1995 triple bock - cork pushed into bottle. Immediate explosion of the notes of leather, salt, black treacle, port wine, and smoke. Tastes were described as 'salty honey molasses' and 'fig preserve reduction' . I got a hint of the soy sauce but the saltiness registered as a cleaner flavor than soy (like the salt in a gose). This was oxidized pretty well but didnt take away from the experience for me. Would love to pour a bottle over some vanilla ice cream. 8/10

2001 abyss - decent carb. Notes of cacao, leather, oak, coffee, and licorice. Taste was damn good. Chocolate and coffee all day with an underlying hint of oak and licorice. I was surprised how well this has aged. Might be my favorite year for abyss. I cant imagine these getting better. drink em if you got em. 9/10

 

[Lognar]

1995 triple bock - cork pushed into bottle. Immediate explosion of the notes of leather, salt, black treacle, port wine, and smoke. Tastes were described as 'salty honey molasses' and 'fig preserve reduction' . I got a hint of the soy sauce but the saltiness registered as a cleaner flavor than soy (like the salt in a gose). This was oxidized pretty well but didnt take away from the experience for me. Would love to pour a bottle over some vanilla ice cream. 8/10

This has reawakened my desire to go after a bottle...****.

 

[golden1]

2014 BA Everett.

Just turning, drink that **** before the inevitable infection takes control.

 

[harrymel1]

2011 Founder's Imperial Stout

Fudge. Leather. Robust. Bitter.

Would bang again. I am very impressed with how well this beer holds up. IMO, one of the better "shelf" beers you can toss into the cellar for a few years. I think this is the oldest I've had, but I would bet it keeps for another couple to few years. Noice.

 

[Arbitrator]

2001 abyss

Did you mean 2010 or 2011?

 

[Der Fuchs]

Did you mean 2010 or 2011?

****. good catch. 2011

 

[jedwards]

Just came into some 2002 Anchor Our Special Ale, popped one to see how they're faring. Still a bit of carb, nose is toffee/brown sugar with a fair bit of spice. Body is thin but not quite watery, a fair bit of spice (clove is the most prominent) but not overwhelming or astringent, some basic malt sweetness and a nice caramel note. Overall pretty good! I know the spice profile changes year to year so not sure how any adjacent years are doing, but I'd certainly be curious to try them.

 

[GuzzleMcBrew]

Hey guys. New to this thread, but I am going to start posting some of my weekly ventures into the cellar because I love what you all contribute.

Treehouse Lucid: the bottle of this I had the night it released was heavily DuPont/3711/traditional French saison influenced. A lot of sach, some Brett, almost no lacto. The two bottles that I have touched this month (10 months later?) are straight Vinous, balanced, pleasantly acidic fire. I am a TreeHouse fanboys,

V012:
I had low hopes. I have never been very impressed with a LA beer, found many of them buttery. The remake of CCK thing had me intrigued, but I was not prepared for how awesome this was. It gushed like a ************. Poured a soft orange red hue with insane head. Cheese rind funk, acid, cherry notes. Liked it as much as Grzzz Kriek B2, but it was much more funky and chewy than the Kriek which was more dry, mineral tartness. Two sides of American Kriek- this was more LPK for me, Grzzz was more 3F.

 

[JBP]

Anyone had DB Huna lately? Regular '14 Huna was holding up awesome as of a few weeks ago. Was curious about DB with so much going on in it.

 

[GuzzleMcBrew]

DBH was really tasty as of February. Lots of syrupy bourbon, not much pepper cinnamon going on.

 

[golden1]

Anyone had DB Huna lately? Regular '14 Huna was holding up awesome as of a few weeks ago. Was curious about DB with so much going on in it.

Wouldn't it be 13 huynuapoo?

 

[JBP]

Wouldn't it be 13 huynuapoo?

I suppose it would, good catch.

 

[Treebs]

Opened a 1994 Triple Bock courtesy of mjohnson17 on Wednesday.

Both of us didn't go in with very high expectations, but heard this was one of the better, if not best, vintage. After having the 1997 I was hoping what we heard was true.

No hiss when the bottle was opened and the cork was very dry/crumbly. Very still pour with no carb.

Sherry and Port wine oxidation in the nose with some plum.

Tons of soy and umami on the taste. Very sweet. Light alcohol burn with some Leather. Plum. Dessert wine.

Syrupy mouthfeel. Smooth.

Needless to say I absolutely loved this. Would bang again 10/10.

 

[Lognar]

Opened a 1994 Triple Bock courtesy of mjohnson17 on Wednesday.

Both of us didn't go in with very high expectations, but heard this was one of the better, if not best, vintage. After having the 1997 I was hoping what we heard was true.

No hiss when the bottle was opened and the cork was very dry/crumbly. Very still pour with no carb.

Sherry and Port wine oxidation in the nose with some plum.

Tons of soy and umami on the taste. Very sweet. Light alcohol burn with some Leather. Plum. Dessert wine.

Syrupy mouthfeel. Smooth.

Needless to say I absolutely loved this. Would bang again 10/10.

Sounds like a thing out of my dreams. Srsly.

ISO 94 Triple Bock!

 

[danbanana]

Sounds like a thing out of my dreams. Srsly.

ISO 94 Triple Bock!

Had one a few years ago and loved it, too. It was brought to a share as a joke but it was no ******* joke.

Have one more bottle...

 

[stakem1]

I think this was the first bruery shelf beer I ever snagged in PA. It has been in the cellar for ~ 5 years and was fantastic. Lots of citrus and underlying fruit with noticeable bretty barnyard.

For whatever reason, I distinctly remember buying these 2 while in NYC in 2009. They were already 2 years old back then so I figured why not tuck them away for awhile longer. Now...at ~8 years old (bottled sept 2007) the pete character has really meld into the base roast/earth. The special 12 had some soy in the nose. The reserve 30 was not showing its age at all. No oxidation that I could tell and the 30 had some nice barrel character that was absent in the 12.

 

[harrymel1]

Opened a 1994 Triple Bock courtesy of mjohnson17 on Wednesday.

Both of us didn't go in with very high expectations, but heard this was one of the better, if not best, vintage. After having the 1997 I was hoping what we heard was true.

No hiss when the bottle was opened and the cork was very dry/crumbly. Very still pour with no carb.

Sherry and Port wine oxidation in the nose with some plum.

Tons of soy and umami on the taste. Very sweet. Light alcohol burn with some Leather. Plum. Dessert wine.

Syrupy mouthfeel. Smooth.

Needless to say I absolutely loved this. Would bang again 10/10.

I like the 1997.