Victory Otto in Oak

I picked up a bottle of Victory Otto in Oak from Al’s of Hampden, the bourbon barrel aged version of Otto.  The beer pours a dark amber color with a frothy beige colored head. The aroma consists of smoke, bourbon, vanilla, oak, caramel, and campfire. The taste is smoky and meaty with a bit of caramel accent. The bourbon warms up the finish with hints of vanilla, but the beer lacks a little in body. The alcohol content is 8.1% ABV. This was a nicely smoked beer with plenty of bourbon and vanilla accents. For the most part I liked it, although I thought the body was a little lacking.

Victory Otto Ale

I picked up a bottle of Victory Otto Ale from Wegman’s in Mechanicsburg while I was grocery shopping. The beer pours a reddish-amber color with a frothy beige colored head that leaves some lacing on the glass. The aroma consists of toasted malts, smoke, wood, campfire, and caramel. The taste is dry and smoky, but not overly so, with a solid caramel based. There are hints of the wood used to smoke this beer with, as well as a bit of pepper. The alcohol content is 8.1% ABV. This was a well done smoked beer, as the smoke does not take over the flavor nor does it completely dry out the mouth. Rather, it provides a nice accents to a sweet caramel base.