2001 Dogfish Head World Wide Stout

Wow, so its been quite a holiday of consumption. Tonight is New Years Eve already, I can't believe it. I recently made a local trade of some of my rarer out-of-state brews and something I got in return was the 2001 Dogfish Head World Wide Stout. I did my research and decided that it was an '01 based on the fact that the bottle had the words "vim and vigor" combined with a copper cap. DFH beers, especially the higher ABV ones, can tend to be astringent, a lot of them age incredibly well. This is no exception. Clocking in at around 18% ABV fresh, this beer needs to age!
Pours a beautiful oily black, as thick as can be. The smell is amazing: toasted marshmallows, caramel, honey, port and sherry. It just tastes so smooth for its ABV, having been aged almost 8 years that is no surprise. Its sweet but with a beautiful port like character, its vanilla and rummy... almost buttery. It is definitely a rare treat indeed - I'll probably never have this same vintage ever again. But I figured today was as good a day as any to bust it out. I think it's a great afternoon sipper, a nice warm up to what will most likely be an extravagant evening. The beer is just so sweet it really is like fine port, but with the dark maltiness you'd expect. This is quite possibly one of the best beers I have ever had, and really shows the incredible depth and complexity aging can really add to the appropriate beers. It is smooth and mellow but maintains it's incredibly complexity, everything you want in a perfect beer.

Cellar Party Tonight

I will be having my first in what will hopefully become a tradition around this time of year. A great opportunity to try some of these amazing beers all together; to appreciate style after great style with company of good friends. To give you just a sneak peek at what will be offered...
Struise Pannepot Reserva 2005
Nogne-O Dark Horizon 1st and 2nd edition
Struise/Mikeller Elliot's Brew
Alesmith Decadence 2006
Anchor Vertical 06, 07, 08
...and alot more

Every style I love will be on hand, and I will accompany these great and rare brews with some fine cheeses and meats. I hope you love it too...

Three Floyds Behemoth Barleywine

Well this beer just had to be saved for a special occasion and it was. One of the last beers left (and for a reason) in the WLV package, this beer is a big bold style from an even bolder brewery. An American Barleywine, i.e. more hop-oriented is a favorite style of mine and this beer is an excellent example.
Three Floyd's beer just impress in so many ways and a big part of that is the carbonation and the smoothness it entails. Behemoth Barleywine just epitomized so many of their great flavors in true form. A hop bomb completely, this beer much like the Dreadnaught seems to possess every single type of hop descriptor in one beer: citrus, pine, earthy, grapefruit. This beer is so thick and smooth, the hop and malt bill do gooey battle over your tongue with the hops winning. But that is not a problem, the malt note flashes toffee and butterscotch and fits quite nicely with the gooey hops. It has incredible drinkability for a 12.5% barleywine, but much like all their other beers alcohol is just not a factor in the flavor.
So it's almost time for my first ever Cellar Reserve night on Dec 27th. I have been saving and collecting for this event for quite some time and I can't think of a better opportunity to try some of these world-class beers with friends. Keep posted for me information on what will be a momentous occasion to say the least.

Struise Insanity

It's been quite a few days on the beer calendar. Let me first say that I'm not one to frequently indulge in Belgian beers that often. I actually am not that big a fan; the Belgian beer image: the result of a American beer image gone wrong after years of swill conditioning (more on that later).....anyways.... but I find Struise to be quite Americanized in a way. First off, they are not overly Belgian-y and by that I mean not overly Belgian-y yeast flavor and they are quite bold. I see the appeal of the Belgian yeast in its deceptive drinkability and smattering alcohol. These are great world class beers. Anyways, I stopped at Spuyten Duyvil Grocery on my way home today and scored some amazing treats. Struise Pannepot Reserva 2005 and Struise Pannepot 2006 were had. If I decide to drink these, it will have to be the perfect occasion. If not, I will have to trade them for something I've never had and seeked for awhile.

Mission Accomplished!

Well the trip to The Beer Yard was quite a success -- acquiring everything we set out to and some more. Having tried some of these "impys" last night, I can describe them up in one sentence: deceptive drinkability. I'm going to be reviewing these beers separately, giving them the spotlight they deserve, but they did not disappoint -- even with such normal high expectations for 100 percentile beers on ratebeer. These are beer collectors items, or at least that's how I want to look at them, and they will all get better with age. This trip marked the true beginning of the best part of the beer calendar. A full range of winter seasonals to choose from and a stocked cellar. Some friends coming into town for the holidays and a perfect occasion to bust out some great rare beers. This is the joy of high-end beer and the adventure that comes along with it!

Potential PA Beer Run Upcoming

So I haven't been to the The Beer Yard in Wayne, PA for awhile and was thinking about spicing things up a little bit more than they've already gotten. The past few weeks have been incredible beer days. Marked by the abundance of Goose Island Bourbon County Stout on tap, and my package from WLV Liquors its been great. But hmm, how can I up the ante a little bit, you know find some really rare beers and then go get them? Yea, sounds like a plan, I think I might have to do that...especially before they are all gone? Well, it shows here: http://www.beeryard.com that they have some pretty incredible stuff again--always exceptionally rare. I mean De Struise Black Albert is one of the rarest and most coveted beers in the world aside from Three Floyds Darklord or the up and coming Surly Darkness. Keep looking and it gets more ridiculous. Apparently, fresh to the U.S. is Amager Bryghus bringing along their highly acclaimed Hr. Fredrickson and of course Nogne Dark Horizon 2nd Edition is there too. But ouch, my wallet is already feeling the pinch, I'll just have to think about this as an investment. Hey, considering the current economic landscape, really rare craft beer that only gets better with age should be a good investment...right? Well, maybe not, but I still want these beers and I just have to might go get them...