Back on Track

So I am finally getting caught up from my mini Beercation to the cities. I have a ton to blog about so tonight I will just throw down about Town Hall's Big and Barrel Week. I got to Town Hall right around 4:30 after google took me in the wrong direction and I got lost. I have been to Town Hall many times and figured something was wrong when I printed the directions, but didn't double check. To my surprise, none of the kegs from early in the week had been kicked. This meant I had a lot of drinking to do as I wanted to try them all. I stared out with the Big Ben DIPA.

Served in a 10 oz goblet.

Served with 1 finger of off white head. Good retention and nice lace. Color is a clear copper.

Aroma: a massive amount of fresh pine hops with some caramel malts to balance it out. A big blend of citrus and some pineapple. The Amarillo hops stick out a lot.

Taste: lots of fresh hops. Big pine flavor. The amarillo hops stick out the most again. Lots of caramel malts. Big flavor.

Mouthfeel: bitter and more bitter. Huge hop bite. Medium bodied but big for the style. Decent carbonation. Ends with a big amarillo hop flavor a little dry.

Overall, an awesome beer from TH. Glad I got to try it. Very drinkable! Good rep of style and I normally don't like amarillo hops that much. Would have again.

Next was one of the beers I wanted to try really badly: Twisted Jim (Jim Beam Barrel Aged Twisted Reality Barleywine).

Served in a 10 oz goblet.

Served with 1/2 finger of beige head. Fades to a thin layer. Leaves some splattered lace. Color is a dark hazed caramel brown.

Aroma: Bourbon, oak, vanilla, and tons of malt up front. Lots of raisins, molasses, and cherries. Some caramel and cocoa. This beer is pretty big.

Taste: The Jim Beam and oak really shows here. Vanilla and molasses also heavy. Huge caramel and toffee malts. Some earthy hops balance it out. Very light heat. Big flavors. Very nice.

Mouthfeel: smooth creamy and warm. Fuller bodies with a medium amount of carbonation. Ends a little dry, but pretty clean.

Overall, this is a solid beer. Very drinkable and I want more. Glad I have a growler to cellar. I highly recommend this one. This one is a beer I could drink all the time.

The next beer I had was the Scottish Wee Heavy - Aged in American oak wine barrels

Served in a goblet.

Poured with 1/2 finger of light tan head. Fades to a thin layer. Color is a dark ruby hued copper. Very dark brown.

Aroma: big and malty. However it has some oak and big grape flavors. Some caramel and smoke. Just a big malt bomb with some extra additions.

Taste: the wine barrel aging in this beer is odd. Very odd taste. Grapes, oak, caramel, toffee, smoke, and roasted malts. Decent, but odd.

Mouthfeel: smooth, creamy, and bubbly. Medium bodies with a higher amount of carbonation. Ends malty, sticky, and oaky.

Overall, I wasn't too impressed with this one. It was good but nothing amazing. I think they should have picked other barrels. I think Scottish ales age very nicely in bourbon barrels, but not oak wine barrels. Not something I want too much of.

Finally, I tried the Barrel Aged Batch 1000. This one is a DIPA aged in wine barrels. Sound unique, right?

Poured into goblet.

Pours 1/2 finger of beige head. Decent retention with some nice lace. Color is a hazed burnt orange.

Aroma: sweet malts and grapes. Very interesting ipa. Subtle oak notes. Huge citrus blend. Floral hops, but faded a bit. Very nice

Taste: wine notes a mashed grape flavors. It blends well with all the grapefruit citrus flavors. Big pine flavors. Lots of hops. Some oak.

Mouthfeel: bitter but creamy. Medium bodied with a medium amount of carbonation. Ends sticky and typical for the style.

Overall, a very interesting take on a dipa. Good and unique. The grapes complement the citrus well. Very bitter. Fairly drinkable.

After that I grabbed a growler of Masala Mama and I was finally leaving Town Hall, knowing I would be back in around 16 hours.

I will blog again tomorrow more about my weekend, including my thoughts on the Barrel Aged Czar Jack!

Thanks for reading!
-Ben