Follow Sean Inman to the best in craft beer
Each year Smog City Brewing releases Buzzworthy a “bourbon barrel-aged honey stout brewed with over 600 pounds of raw buckwheat honey…”
Two things have changed this year. First it’s in cans and there is a special red wine barrel-aged variant for 2024. And you know that Smog City does barrel-aged variants quite well.
Amburana is used quite frequently to finish bourbon but The Bruery is taking their Black Tuesday base to create Amburana Noir, a double barrel-aged imperial stout aged in both Buffalo Trace Bourbon barrels and Amburana wood barrels. The beer will register at a super high 20.7%.
Yes, the following beer might be a few rungs above over the top but that is par for the course from Pipeworks Brewing in Chicago.
The beer is El Unicornio and it will be an Amburana Wood-Aged Horchata Ale with rice, lactose, vanilla and cinnamon.
Sierra Nevada’s famed Narwhal is getting a campsite variant with a Barrel-Aged Toasted S’More. It is an imperial stout aged in Bourbon barrels with cocoa nibs and natural graham cracker flavors. No mention of marhsmallow though for this 11.9% beer.
Back to Lough Gill based in Sligo, Ireland and the last of the three real big beers on three different barrel types…
We have reached Tara. This time the oatmeal stout is aged in Pedro Jimenez Sherry barrels so this should be quite distinct from Spear and Trinity. This is much more my speed. There are layers here. A deep wine sweetness is first. Then there is an oaky woody note that pops up. The base is still thinnish but the flavors are adding to it. Has a proper musty sort of grand library with a fire taste.
Dubuisson has a few special big bottles and one that is on my wish list is their Bush Triple aged in oak barrels. Those barrels previously housed white Burgundy wine, the famous Charmes Meursault.
I think barrel aging and Tripels sounds great.
This month the theme is unique and hard to find and I have three that will test your mettle as both a beer shopper and a beer drinker.
Homage Brewing – The Flower Called Nowhere Barrel Aged Saison – 6% – “This marks the 5th blend of one of our favorite beers to make. A few years ago we conceptualized a Saison with delicate nuances of flowers. We trialed various flowers and settled upon Europe Rose for its soft and fragrant aroma, as well as Osmanthus, which has a unique fragrance of peach and apricot that compliments the stone fruit qualities of the wild yeast. Lastly, we added Chrysanthemum, which has a sweet, hay, and honey like quality that supports the aged hops in the beer, adding a rustic touch.”
New Belgium – Tart Lychee – 7.5% – ” sour ale brewed with lychee and a hint of cinnamon that combine to create a beautiful balance between sweet and tart.”
The Bruery – Cire – 18.9% – “Produced through painstaking care and attention from our Bruers, Cire is more than just a beer; it’s our Solera Blended Anniversary Old Ale. Blended from the best of the Bruery’s stock each year & aged in Buffalo Trace and Heaven Hill Bourbon barrels, Cire carries a deeply complex, layered flavor profile. The perfect way to commemorate 16 years of leadership in the industry.”
One of four barrel-aged expressions of a Scottish Ale, the Single Malt Whiskey matured version might not have the spirit geek cred of Caribbean Rum or Islay casks, but the issue is how does the base Innis & Gunn beer react with each cask.
Though I am afraid of the combination of clear bottle and non-refrigerated bottles, I picked up the lone bottle to try and the aroma is nice and Scotch-y but then the flavor turns a little too sweet. Almost cola sweet but that aroma keeps pulling the affair back to center. I like the subtle smoke note here as well. I wonder how this tastes fresh, would it have less caramel?
Old Rasputin Imperial Stout from North Coast Brewing is a classic of the style, but even a classic can change it up a little.
Back in April 2022, North Coast Brewing Company partnered with Westward Whiskey. “Single malt barrels were shipped to Fort Bragg and filled with Old Rasputin in August 2022. Now the results of our hard work have paid off, and we are proud to bring you a special offering: Our iconic Old Rasputin Russian Imperial Stout aged to perfection in Westward Whiskey Single Malt barrels!”
Back to Smog City Brewing and their 2024 edition of Infinite Wishes, a barrel-aged stout, after a lager review detour.
The 2024 pours an inky black with a nice coffee foam head that dissipates in a bubbly fashion. For such a big ABV beer, this is not thick sludge but rather a sprightly beer. The predominant note is oak. Dark and roasty and far more dry than sweet. As it warms, a little chocolate pops through the wood but curiously not much bourbon coming through on this. Just perfect though for a spring day.