Barrel Aged

Posted in Hi Wire Brewing, Don't Miss This

Three different barrels & a little crazy: Hi-Wire Sour Pumpkin Ale

Hi-Wire Sour Pumpkin Ale is all over the flavor map. That’s a good thing. There’s a lot going on in this beer.

As fall creeps in, Asheville, North Carolina based Hi-Wire Brewing has released Sour Pumpkin Ale. Put the pumpkin spiced latte down because things are about to get a little weird.

After spending time wandering around local Rayburn Farm, Hi-Wire was struck with the idea of sourcing a beer from a single farm source. Sure, this is a pumpkin ale so you’re probably thinking something with pumpkins, cinnamon, and cloves. Make it taste like pie and ship it, right? Wrong.

Let’s talk pre-barrel. The base beer spent time in stainless steel tanks, with roasted delicata pumpkins, cinnamon basil, and blue ginger. Blue ginger is a Hawaiian variety known for its superior flavor. Cinnamon basil is also called Mexican spice basil. Methyl cinnamate found in the cultivar gives off flavors of the cinnamon spice when the leaves are crushed.

If this beer is already sounding unique, Hi-Wire isn’t done yet. After three months in stainless steel, the beer was split into rum, whiskey, and red wine barrels for six months, then blended back again. There’s nothing “basic” about this creation.

At this point, it is downright impossible to use something as simple as “pie” to describe Hi-Wire Sour Pumpkin Ale. It just doesn’t fit. Sour Pumpkin is aggressively sour as you dive in, melding into a light wash of ginger and cinnamon. As the beer warms, the blend of barrels are fighting for palate domination. Honestly, we think the rum won. This is no simple wild ale, with typical flavors. Everything about this beer is unpredictable in the best of ways. Speaking in the spirit of Hi-Wire’s hometown of Asheville, “Keep Fall Weird.”

Hi-Wire Sour Pumpkin Ale is a limited,  375-milliliter bottle release. Not for the faint of heart (or palate).

Style: American Wild/Sour Alehttps://beerstreetjournal.com/tag/american-wild-ales/ (w/ Pumpkin. Blue Ginger. Cinnamon Basil. Barrel Aged. Whiskey. Red Wine. Rum.)
Availability: 375ml Bottles
Debut: 9/2/17

8.6% ABV

PIC: Beer Street Journal

by Reid Ramsay
Posted in Great Lakes Brewing Company, Coming Soon

Great Lakes Barrel Aged Imperial Smoked Porter debuts in bottles this month

Great Lakes Barrel Aged Imperial Smoked Porter will be available in bottles for the first time ever this month.

The beer is pretty self-explanatory by name – a smoked porter that has been aged in bourbon barrels. The finished beer boasts notes of smoke, chocolate, and coffee.

Bold and robust with rich chocolate and coffee aromas, a subtle smoky flavor, and a sweet finish

Each 22-ounce bottle of Great Lakes Barrel Aged Imperial Smoked Porter is hand numbered and only available at the brewery’s gift shop in Cleveland, Ohio. $17.95 per bottle.

A limited run of draft will be available in select markets shortly after September 23rd.

Style: Smoked Porter (Barrel Aged. Bourbon.)
Availability: 22oz Bottles, Draft. Limited release.
Debut: 9/23/17

8.5% ABV

 

by Reid Ramsay
Posted in Reformation Brewery, New Releases

Reformation Barrel Aged Jude celebrates new beer laws

Reformation Barrel Aged Jude debuts today, alongside a new era for Georgia craft breweries. Today, you can finally buy a pint directly from the brewery.

Woodstock, Georgia is home to Reformation, who started aging Barrel Aged Jude over 9 months ago. The Belgian-style tripel has been resting in fresh bourbon barrels since late December.

This unique version of Jude has been aged for over nine months in bourbon barrels, with 9.2 percent ABV the beer is described as having notes of bourbon and oak atop a balanced malt sweetness and clean, citrus finish.

Reformation Barrel Aged Jude will be available in 16-ounce cans exclusively at the brewery on September 1st – the first day Reformation is legally allowed to directly sell to a customer.

Style: Belgian-style Tripel (Barrel Aged. Bourbon.)
Availability: 16oz Cans. Brewery Only.
Debut: 9/1/17

9.2% ABV

by Reid Ramsay
Posted in Founders Brewing, Coming Soon

Founders Tank Bender, a barrel-aged anniversary beer debuts in October

Founders Tank Bender debuts in October, celebrating the brewery crossing the 20-year mark.

A barrel-aged eisbock has been chosen to mark the double decade milestone, a first for the brewery. The style is created by freezing water off the beer, leaving behind a much stronger beer. Apparently, the brewery bent one of their fermentation tanks in the process, thanks to collapsing ice.

A liberal addition of Munich malt highlights the toasty and dark fruit notes while a stay in bourbon barrels tames those intense flavors.

Those looking to get their hands on Founders Tank Bender will have to make a trip to the 20th-anniversary party on October 14th. Founders is only offering this special release at the brewery to the fans that been active since the beginning, “…to illustrate the importance of our home base”.

750-milliliter bottles will be available on October 14th, both individually, and in special gift sets with glassware.

Style: Eisbock (Barrel Aged. Bourbon.)
Availability: 750ml Bottles. Brewery only.
Debut: 10/14/17

?? ABV

by Reid Ramsay
Posted in Three Taverns Brewery, Coming Soon

Coconut, Espresso & Sherry barrels: Three Taverns German Chocolate Helm’s Deep

This beer was a massive hit at the 2017 Shelton Brothers Festival in Atlanta. On September 1st, Three Taverns German Chocolate Helm’s Deep will be found in bottles for the first time.

Another strong entry in Beer Street Journal’s highly unofficial “dessert beer” category, Three Taverns German Chocolate Helm’s Deep definitely delivers. The 13% alcohol by volume imperial stout has been aging in Sherry barrels and infused with coconut and espresso coffee. Calories don’t count here.

Infused with espresso and toasted coconut before aging in Sherry barrels, this variant of Helm’s Deep produces flavors of German chocolate cake drizzled with coffee and rich Sherry sweetness.

Three Taverns German Chocolate Helm’s Deep will be available in 750-milliliter bottles at the brewery on September 1st.

Style: Imperial Stout (w/ Coffee. Coconut. Barrel Aged. Sherry.)
Availability: 750ml Bottles, Draft. Limited release.
Debut (Bottles): 9/1/17

13% ABV

by Reid Ramsay
Posted in Saint Arnold Brewing, Coming Soon, Headlines

A fan favorite gets barrel-aged. Saint Arnold Bourbon Pumpkinator is coming this fall

A great seasonal is about get a little better, thanks to some time spent in oak. Saint Arnold Bourbon Pumpkinator is coming this fall.

The brewery’s seasonal, single batch, pumpkin beer has a cult following among their fan base. It got its start as the ninth release the brewery’s Divine Reserve Series. The brewing team’s pumpkin beer approach is an imperial pumpkin stout, brewed with black and caramel malts, plus pumpkin, molasses, brown sugar, and spices. This “pie in a bottle” offering is the most expensive beer Saint Arnold has brewed.

In 2017, the Houston, Texas brewery is kicking the seasonal up a notch, with Saint Arnold Bourbon Pumpkinator.

As Bishop of Metz, Saint Arnold spent his life warning of the dangers of drinking water and extolling the virtues of beer. During his funeral, his pallbearers stopped to quench their thirst, but they only had one mug to share among them. Then a miracle happened. The mug never ran dry, and all the mourners we satisfied.

Saint Arnold has begun teasing the release of this barrel-aged offering, but no debut date has been set.

Style: Imperial Stout (w/ Pumpkin. Molasses. Brown Sugar. Barrel Aged. Bourbon.)
Availability: 12oz Bottles
Debut: TBA

12.9% ABV

Ed note: Bottle size has been changed to 12oz, instead of 22oz as previously reported.

by Reid Ramsay
Posted in The Bruery

With a cherry on top: The Bruery White Chocolate with Cherries is on the horizon

One of California’s most decadent dessert beers is getting a cherry on top. The Bruery White Chocolate with Cherries is on the horizon.

A bourbon barrel-aged wheatwine serves as a boozy canvas for the waves of chocolate and vanilla introduced into this beer. The end result is wash of chocolate, vanilla oak, and vanilla beans, finishing in with a warming alcoholic heat.

Taking things a step further, the brewery has added a blend of tart and sweet cherries.

If you closed your eyes in our barrel house, you might think our brewers become chocolatiers. They dipped cherries into this limited edition of our bourbon barrel-aged wheatwine-style ale. With white chocolate flavors thanks to fresh vanilla beans, cacao nibs and extensive oak-aging, this treat for the senses has been enhanced with the addition of tart, sweet, juicy cherries.

The Bruery White Chocolate with Cherries will be a 750 milliliter bottle release. Release details are currently not available.

Style: Barleywine (w/ Cherries.  Barrel Aged. Bourbon.)
Availability: 750ml Bottles
Debut: TBA

14.2% ABV

by Reid Ramsay