Its sometimes interesting to compare two or more beers in a series, to find out what different treatment can bring to the flavour of the beer. Sunturn brew is an 11% barley wine from our Norwegian friends Nøgne Ø. This one is brewed with 30% peat smoked malt and 20% rye malt. 
It pours impenetrable black with the merest suggestion of ruby brown corona when held up to the light. As you'd expect it reeks like an Islay whisky and peat is the only flavour in your mouth for the first few sips. Once the palate shock has subsided however, other flavours are allowed to come through. There's the juicy red berry rye flavours and a whole jumble of dried fruits and chocolate from the malt. Its a complex beer which evolves as you drink it and you certainly have plenty of time for contemplation as that alcohol is not shy about showing its head.
What happens when it is aged in a bourbon barrel then? in this case an unfortunate mess. It starts off promising with al the requisite vanilla and butterscotch on the nose, but the tasty peat phenols have disappeared altogether to be replaced with harsh alcohol flavours and unbearable caramel sweetness. If I'd kept some of the unaged version I dare-say they'd have made a beer greater than the some of its parts, but on its own the barrel aged version has just been left for far too long and is a struggle to get through.
What have we learnt then? It takes a deft hand to barrel age a beer well. We've also learnt that brewers will still try to sell their beer when its been ruined, especially if gullible beer buyers (this one included) will part with their cash for it.
Beer aged in spirit barrels is often just too rough or unbalanced on its own. It's one reason why Fuller's blends barrel-aged beer with fresh beer for Brewers Reserve - the other reason is to bring the strength down to something saleable and avoid accusations of grogging.
ReplyDeleteThe finished product surely has to be tested for ABV (in house or externally) in any case for proper calculation of duty? I know in some cases this is only estimated. I think length of time aged, age of barrels, time between emptying and filling and flavour strength of the base beer all have a part to play in perceived booziness of the aged beer.
DeleteAll true, but it's nowhere near an exact science and you have no real idea what the aged beer will be like until you actually taste it. I tried a couple of Stouts straight from the wooden cask the other week while visiting a friend. He's an experienced professional brewer, but he still had no real idea what to expect until he tasted it - and also got a few others to taste it for reference purposes. (I don't know if ABV is normally done via a lab test though, I thought it was from OG/FG.)
DeleteOh no! The Sunturnbrew was just about my favourite beer of 2012. Absolutely adore it. I have the barrel aged version stored away for a rainy day. I was so looking forward to it. I shouldn't be surprised though. I've yet to have a good bourbon barrel aged beer
ReplyDeleteJust save it for a rainy day in a few years time! Hopefully the booze will have melded a bit by then. Not sure how old it is already though
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