Score
7.24
|
|
Bottle share @ Hansen's. Dark pour with light brown foam there. Roast and some dark bitter chocolate in the nose with some burnt toast. Tastes sweetish, light roast and bit of sweetness there. Maple if you say so. Finish is sweetish and you can also feel some light roast.
Pours black ( dark for the style huh) tanned, medium big head. Very stable. Smell is sweet, caramel, perhaps a mild touch of maple, but not much at all. Taste is full, sweet, caramel, mild maple, much more hidden than expected. Dried fruits ( in the style of blueberries). Médium full body, médium, small bubble carbonation. Bit boozy at the end. Decent, but had higher hopes for this one.
750 ml bottle into tulip glass, 2018 vintage. Pours opaque very dark brown color with a 2 finger dense and rocky khaki head with fantastic retention, that reduces to a nice cap that lingers. Dense soapy lacing clings on the glass, with a fair amount of streaming carbonation retaining the cap. Fantastic appearance. Aromas of big milk/dark chocolate, cocoa, caramel, maple syrup, fudge, marshmallow, vanilla, toffee, brown sugar, bourbon, toasted oak, biscuit, nuttiness, and dark/brown bread; with light notes of coffee, licorice, molasses, dark fruit, smoke, tobacco, herbal, and roast/toast/oak earthiness. Damn nice aromas with great balance and complexity of dark/roast/bready malt, maple syrup, and bourbon barrel notes; with great strength. Taste of huge milk/dark chocolate, cocoa, caramel, maple syrup, fudge, marshmallow, vanilla, toffee, brown sugar, bourbon, toasted oak, biscuit, nuttiness, and dark/brown bread; with light notes of coffee, licorice, molasses, dark fruit, smoke, tobacco, herbal, and roast/toast/oak earthiness. Very mild herbal/roast bitterness and bourbon/oak spiciness on the finish. Lingering notes of milk/dark chocolate, cocoa, caramel, maple syrup, fudge, marshmallow, vanilla, toffee, brown sugar, bourbon, toasted oak, biscuit, nuttiness, dark/brown bread, light coffee/licorice/molasses/smoke, and roast/toast/oak earthiness on the finish for a while. Incredible complexity, robustness, and balance of dark/roast/bready malt, maple syrup, and bourbon barrel flavors; with a great roasted bitter/sweet and bourbon/oak spiciness balance; with zero cloying flavors after the finish. Very clean on lager flavors, with minimal fruity/yeasty notes. Medium carbonation and very full body; with a very creamy, silky, velvety, and bready malt mouthfeel that is fantastic. Slight slickness, sticky hops, chalky roast, oak tannins, and increasing dryness. Mildly increasing warmth of 10%, with zero barrel booziness lingering after the finish. Overall this is a fantastic barrel aged doppelbock! All around outstanding complexity, robustness, and balance of dark/roast/bready malt, maple syrup, and bourbon barrel flavors; very smooth and dangerously easy to drink for the big ABV, with the mildly bitter/tannic/drying finish. More of a schwarzes Doppelbock, but not overly roasty. Amazing balance of rich dessert malt complexity and maple syrup flavors; with awesome barrel integration. No booze/tannins, and minimal dryness. Not overly sweet for the ABV. A highly enjoyable offering, and spot on style example. They really nailed it.