Rodenbach 2010 Oak Aged Ale (Barrel No. 144)

For the December shipment of the Michael Jackson Rare Beer of the Month Club, I received a bottle of Rodenbach 2010 Vintage Oak Aged Ale (Barrel No. 144) The beer pours a red-tinted brown color with a thin bubbly white colored head. The aroma consists of cherry, vinegar, tartness, sugar, pie crust, and oak. The taste has a nice pucker to it with a strong cherry and vinegar flavor to it on the front end before sugar and pie crust arrive on the finish. An oak dryness lingers after all the other flavors arrive. The alcohol content is 7.0% ABV. This was an absolutely spectacular beer and was even better than the typical Rodenbach Grand Cru. The age and oak added an entirely different dimension to this beer and made it more than enjoyable.

Woodcut No. 6 Oak Aged American Ale

While at the Odell Brewery, I picked up a bottle of Woodcut No. 6 Oak Aged American Ale and brought it back in my luggage. This beer features Mosaic hops which are blowing up right now. The beer pours an amber color with a lofty frothy cream colored head that leaves specks of lacing on the glass. The aroma consists of passion fruit, tangerine, toasted caramel, pineapple, and orange. The taste is bold with strong caramel up front and plenty of passion fruit, tangerine, orange, and pineapple flavors. A light oak dryness with a peppery spice comes in on the finish. The alcohol content is 10.0% ABV. This beer is full of tropical fruit and delivers a wonderful flavor with a light spice and oak accent. It also has an earthy presence to it with some grassy accents.

Great Divide Espresso Oak Aged Yeti

At the Colorado Brewer's Guild Brunch at Freshcraft, I ordered a glass of Great Divide Espresso Oak Aged Yeti. The beer pours a black color with a frothy brown colored head. The aroma consists of espresso, coffee, chocolate, toasted malts, caramel, and oak. The taste is dry and bold with dark espresso bean and bacon flavors. Oak accents are strong with bold Belgian chocolate making up the backbone. The finish has a touch of vanilla and caramel. The alcohol content is 9.5% ABV. For a coffee infused beer, this one ranks near the top of them all. It had such a strong coffee presence build upon dark chocolate, and the oak really added the drying aspects to make it spectacular.

Church Brew Works Oak Aged Barley Wine

I stopped in to Church Brew Works during Pittsburgh Craft Beer Week to sign paperwork for our rehearsal dinner. While there, I ordered a glass of the Oak Aged Barley Wine. The beer pours a dark brown color with a thin filmy beige head. Bubbles collected on the side of the glass. The aroma consists of raisin, fig, malts, chocolate, caramel. The taste is dry with a dark chocolate base and plenty of raisin, fig, and dark fruits. Oak shines through and dries out the mouth with bourbon accents and a hint of cherry. The alcohol burn lingers and is quite warming. The alcohol content is 9.5% ABV. I’d say this was a rather delicious barleywine with great oak and bourbon flavors. I’ve had their regular barley wine before, and the oak aged version really stepped it up a notch with a nice smoothness, even though it does burn on the way down.

Stillwater Oak Aged Folklore

I ordered a glass of Stillwater Oak Aged Folklore from Devil’s Den in Philadelphia. This beer was a firkin served from a beer engine.The beer pours a black color with a foamy brown colored head that linger for a little while. The aroma consists of chocolate, smoke, earth, fig, and oak. The taste is light and chocolatey before a nice smoke presence takes over the mouth, leading to an oak finish. Hints of spicy yeast and toasted malts also are present. The alcohol content is 8.4% ABV. This beer gave off the experience of drinking a wine, as the body was light and the oak and smoke were largely present. I absolutely loved this beer and would love to have another glass.

Boulder Obovoid Oak-Aged Oatmeal Stout

I ordered a glass of Boulder Obovoid Oak-Aged Oatmeal Stout from Geo’s in Latrobe, PA. The beer pours a dark brown color with a frothy beige head. The aroma consists of chocolate, toasted malts, and caramel. The taste is smooth and sweet at the same time with coffee, chocolate, and lots of caramel. Hints of vanilla come out to complement the dry toasty finish that allows some oak notes to peek through. The alcohol content is 8.0% ABV. The smoothness of this beer cannot be underestimated, and the oak accents provide a wonderful accent on the finish.

Southern Tier Oak Aged Pumking

A beer I have been looking for was Southern Tier Oak Aged Pumking, and I have to thank Fat Head’s in Pittsburgh for arranging to tap it when I was in town. The beer pours an orange-amber color with a thin filmy white head. The aroma, as with the non-aged version, consists of pumpkin, nutmeg, cinnamon, allspice, pie, and has some hints of oak. The taste is also right down the alley of Pumking, but the oak dulls some of sweetness. It is still easy to pick up the pumpkin pie sweetness, but some of the nutmeg, allspice, and cinnamon flavor pull a little more forward. Finally, the oak dries out the finish, eliminating the sweet film that is left on the side of the mouth. The alcohol content is 8.6% ABV. The Oak Aged Pumking is mellower version of a great beer, in my opinion. For those that know me and/or read this blog know that I love Pumking, but I liked this version even better, as the oak gives it a more mature flavor and mouth feel.

Flying Dog Oak Aged Gonzo Imperial Porter

One of the beers I looked forward to trying on a recent trip to Pittsburgh was the Flying Dog Oak Aged Gonzo at Fat Head’s. The beer pours a black color with a bubbly tan head. The aroma consists of chocolate, vanilla, toasted malts, milk, and oak. The taste is biting at first with bourbon but as it warms, it becomes a sweeter bourbon flavor. There are vanilla accents aplenty in this beer while the chocolate moves to the background with toasted malts and molasses. The alcohol content is 9.5% ABV.  There was lots of bourbon in this beer, but I thought it blended very well with the intense chocolate and toasted malt profile of Gonzo. The touch of vanilla was perfect for this beer, and it played really well with the caramel flavors.

Terrapin Oak Aged Big Hoppy Monster

While out on the town in Pittsburgh, I ordered a glass of Terrapin Oak Aged Big Hoppy Monster at Mad Mex in Shadyside. The beer pours a dark amber color with a bubbly white head. The aroma consists of caramel, oak, pine, and lemon. The taste is smooth and sweet with lots of caramel on the front end. Hints of pine and lemon peek through before a big oak finish. The alcohol content is 8.5% ABV. I would say that the oak aging does the beer well and provides a nice dry to the finish. From what I recall, the beer had somewhat of a subdued hop flavor than the non-aged version, but I think it was a fair trade-off.

New Holland Oak Aged Hatter

I picked up a bottle of New Holland Oak Aged Hatter from Brass Rail in Campbelltown. The beer pours a golden color with a bubbly white head that leaves a hint of lacing on the glass. The aroma consists of caramel, lemon, grapefruit, oak, and pepper. The taste is dry and oaky with plenty of caramel on the front end with some lemon and grapefruit. The alcohol content is 5.1% ABV. I would say that the oak aging definitely killed off the dry and hoppiness of this beer, for the better or worse. While it was a good beer, The Mad Hatter on its own was much better.

Iron Hill Oak Aged Saison de Sorachi

Another Iron Hill beer that my friends and I decided to share was the Oak Aged Saison de Sorachi. The beer pours a golden color with a thin bubbly white head. The aroma consists of lemon, sour funk, wheat, and oak. The taste is dry and smooth with lots of lemon and grass hops right up front. The wheat base shows after the hops subside and then has a wonderful oak finish. There is a nice Belgian yeast flavor in the after taste. The alcohol content is 7.3% ABV. The dry oaky flavors added a nice complexity to this beer by playing with the wheat and lemon flavors.

Iron Hill Oak Aged Cherry Quad

I stopped in to Iron Hill in Lancaster for some bottles of their sours, but did not have luck in getting all of them. However, one of the sours was on tap, the Oak Aged Cherry Quad. The beer pours a dark brown color with a thin filmy tan head. The aroma consists of vinegar, sour cherries, and raisin. The taste is sour and puckering with lots of sour cherry, some sugar, vinegar, raisin, and chocolate hints. The finish is dry with oak and leaves a lingering vinegar taste. The alcohol content is not available online, but I would estimate it to be approximately 10.0% ABV. The sour induction to a quad provided a wonderfully craft beer. The quad style is thick enough to add extra flavors and mouth feel to the beer, and doesn’t let the vinegar flavor get carried away on the palate.

Southern Tier Oak Aged Unearthly Pale Ale

My buddy DahCheet brought over a bottle of Southern Tier Oak Aged Unearthly India Pale Ale over to watch the start of the Stanley Cup playoffs. The beer pours a golden orange color with a thin filmy white head with bits of lacing left on the glass. The aroma is strong and powerful with lots of caramel, vanilla, fresh lemon and pine hops, tangerine, and orange. The taste is biting up front with lemon and pine hops before the oak dryness comes in play. The finish brings out a big caramel profile, and the after taste spritzes some citrus, including lemon, tangerine, and orange. The alcohol content is 11.0% ABV. The smoothness of this beer, courtesy of the caramel, paired with the sweetness and bitterness of the citrus was wonderfully done. The dryness that shows up in the middle due to the oak aging was also quite welcome.

Great Divide Oak Aged Yeti Imperial Stout

TJ's in Paoli had the Great Divide Oak Aged Yeti Imperial Stout on draft at the Pliny the Younger tasting, so I decided to give it a try. The beer has a black color with a foamy tan head. The aroma consists of oak and chocolate. The taste is nutty and chocolate, but very smooth and good. I was really impressed with the oak accents that were incorporated in this beer. The alcohol content is 9.5% ABV. The balance between oak and chocolate in this beer was amazing, and the oak really helped bring out the toasted malts. The alcohol provided a nice warming effect without being too bitey.