Nickel Brook Winey Bastard (Pinot Noir Barrel Aged Bolshevik Bastard) - Better Bitters Brewing Co.

liamt07

Ontario (Canada)

3.38/5  rDev -11.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.5

On tap at C'est What, again into a full pint glass (side by side with the Old Kentucky).

Dark brown with a tan head. Nose is winey, tart dark fruits in the blackberry/currant vein. Some chocolate, oak and vanilla. Taste has more tart dark fruits, oak, vanilla and sweet malt. Chocolate again and a tannic finish, with some red wine balsamic. Medium body, sweet but tart fruit in the finish. Low carbonation. Admittedly, I've never been a fan of wine BA's imperial stouts and this didn't do much to sway me. Best sip of this pint was the last, oddly.

Serving type: on-tap

01-17-2013 17:35:07 | More by liamt07

peensteen

Ontario (Canada)

3.58/5  rDev -6%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Jet black with a ring of tan head,decent retention, some lace but not a whole lot. Smell is dominated by wine and fruit up front , oak and some slight roasted malt, wine is pretty heavy in the nose though. Tatse follows the nose big wine flavours up front, fruity and a bit tart/sour, roast is more aparent in the finish, bit of chocolate in the aftertaste as well. Lightly carbonated, medium body, pretty decent feel. This was interesting and pretty good overall, perhaps a bit too much wine to make this something to come back to but certainly worth a shot though.

Serving type: on-tap

02-07-2013 14:57:21 | More by peensteen

rappmann

Ontario (Canada)

3.63/5  rDev -4.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

On tap at bar volo, served in a tulip.

A - Pitch black reddish head, no lace

S - Lots of sweetness, almost like a concord grape, off the bat you can tell the barrel did a lot to the base beer

T - Sour and dry much more like a wine, lots of stone fruit like cherry and sour apricots very interesting

M - Nice, a bit carbonated for my liking

O - Interesting to say the least, enjoyable but I don't see how much of this stuff I could put back....far superior to the base beer

Serving type: on-tap

12-17-2012 05:18:53 | More by rappmann

TheSevenDuffs

Ontario (Canada)

3.78/5  rDev -0.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Bolshevik Bastard aged in pinot noir barrels for 12 months.
On tap @ Bar Hop. Served in tulip.

A - Black with a thin layer of bubbly medium brown head.

S - Oak and red wine up front - stronger barrel aroma than expected. Some roast and char are present in the background.

T - Tart grapes dominate up front with a big oak presence. Mid-palate adds roast and hints of chocolate. The finish is bitter and tart with vinous fruit and oak. The base beer is definitely overshadowed by the barrel characteristics. This drinks almost more like a wine than a beer.

M - Medium body. Light to moderate carbonation.

O - A very interesting beer but for my tastes this was aged in the barrels for too long. The pinot noir and oak dominated the base beer, which is normally a robust and flavourful imperial stout.

Serving type: on-tap

12-29-2012 19:36:43 | More by TheSevenDuffs

northyorksammy

Ontario (Canada)

3.9/5  rDev +2.4%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

On tap at Amsterdam charity event. Wine colour. Big pinot noir flavour that overwhelms with some Imperial Stout and chocolate in the finish, not astringent. Some cherry.Big mouthfeel. Flavourful, more of a wine, it can win a wine medal. Interesting and worth a try, bit not a great IS.

Serving type: on-tap

12-02-2012 05:22:52 | More by northyorksammy

jrenihan

Ontario (Canada)

3.93/5  rDev +3.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25

Beer is black with no head. Not much more to say about it.

Smell contains red wine. berries, oak and some cocoa. Nice but a little faint.

Taste is a real surprise. A serious red wine flavour throughout, along with loads of oak. Berries, tannins and vanilla. The stout flavours are actually hard to pick out- almost reminds me of a wild ale without any of the sourness or funk. There is a bit of chocolate and roast malt down there. Pretty unusual.

Full bodied, moderately carbonated. A bit sticky.

Overall, a very unusual beer. The most wine-like beer I have had, the barrel just dominates this thing. I expect that this would be a very divisive beer. Personally, I quite like it, but it would not be for everyone.

Serving type: on-tap

01-12-2013 21:46:46 | More by jrenihan