Bourbon Barrel Ard Ri - Upland Brewing Company

jale

Michigan

3.18/5  rDev -16.1%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3

Had on tap at Heorot in Muncie,

A: Pours brown with a finger of tan head.

S: Bourbon, chocolate and a hint of coffee.

T: Bourbon upfront with moderate booze. Chocolate, vanilla and a hint of coffee. Finish is molasses and raisin. The base just was'nt enough to hold up this beer. Just too thin.

M: Light body for the style.

O: Just Ok

Serving type: on-tap

10-30-2011 14:21:35 | More by jale

robwestcott

Indiana

3.98/5  rDev +5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

grabbed this growler at the brewery in mid december and just now popped it open.

poured cold from the growler a deep dark caramel / mahogany to a portsmouth brewery balloon glass with a 1/2 finger, short lasting, tan head leaving a rim of froth hugging the side of the glass.

aroma of earth hops, bourbon and sweet dark cherries.

the hops have settled a bit since the sample i had in december. sweet cherries and caramel forward, with a bit of a tingly hop bite to the roof of the mouth. the bourbon is present, certainly, but its subtler than expected. hot, but subtle all the same.

big bodied, medium carbonation, sweet, creamy.

drinkable - one or two pints. overall, very good sweet bourbon barleywine.

pouring a couple pints in a couple bottles that'll head out to trade partners on monday. enjoy...

Serving type: growler

04-23-2011 18:18:32 | More by robwestcott

brew3crew

Ohio

3.8/5  rDev +0.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

On tap at the Brewery.
A-solid black color with white lacing and head that retains Decently throughout
S-sweet sweet bourbon
T-cant really get much of the base beer. Nice vanilla and oak undertones. Very smooth
M- medium body and very smooth. Dry finish
O-solid, but not much other than bourbon...

Serving type: on-tap

03-31-2011 01:44:20 | More by brew3crew

brundo4

Illinois

4.1/5  rDev +8.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Pours a beautiful deep red with a two-finger head and very light lacing. Aroma is heavy with bourbon, oaky vanilla, grassy hops, carmel and molasses. The first sip is of strong grassy hops, which then fade into an intensely strong maple syrup flavor with a lot of vanilla and lingering oakiness, not unlike the smell really, but deeper and more delicious than the smell suggests. The mouthfeel is a nice middle ground. It could stand to be thicker but the thinness adds to its potential drinkability, which, given the abv/bourbon quality, isn't particularly high but I've been able to take down half the growler very, very happily. Recommended.

Serving type: growler

03-23-2011 03:49:05 | More by brundo4

JamesS

Indiana

4.43/5  rDev +16.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 5

Pours a very nice deep red with good initial head and a bit of nice lacing. Decent semi-sweet and tangy malt aromas, but mostly a huge whiff of bourbon in the nose that dominates. Good flavor, mostly bourbon (which shouldn't be surprising) with a nice bit of zing at the end from the strong Irish red ale. Goes down smooth, although I recommend this as a sipping beer. (On tap at Tomlinson Tap Room)

Serving type: on-tap

03-22-2011 17:03:42 | More by JamesS

AgentZero

Illinois

3.18/5  rDev -16.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Kudos to Jason Allen (anyone know him, from Chicago?) for scoring this.

A - Much darker than its non-BA counterpart. Hardly any head to speak of, left the sides of the glass clean.

S - Lots of bourbon, oak, and vanilla. Has that barleywine smell, a lot like this year's version of Khunhenn BA Barleywine.

T - The base beer comes through a little bit with notes of sour rye. Lots of bourbon, with vanilla, oak, and booze. Tastes a little bit watery. Not unpleasant, but nothing great.

M - Smooth, medium bodied, low carbonation.

O - Better than the base beer, but shocked at how high the early reviews on this are. It's a little above average, but would be a stretch to call it good.

Serving type: growler

03-20-2011 02:58:03 | More by AgentZero

Sean9689

Illinois

2.9/5  rDev -23.5%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 2 | overall: 3

Thanks to Jason for the growler. Poured into CCB snifter.

A - Pours a watery dark brown, no head, thin ring, no lacing.

S - Sweet dark fruit, burnt sugars, cinnamon, wet cardboard.

T - Sugar water sweetness, alcohol hints, sweet finish.

M - Too light, watery, bleh.

D - No more, please.

Serving type: growler

03-20-2011 02:55:16 | More by Sean9689

jrallen34

Illinois

3.4/5  rDev -10.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

Thanks to Khumbard for this, drank from my Narke glass... Pours a much darker color than the original, dark glassy semi clear copper, good color. Very little head, a light tan head that forms a very watery and bubbly ring, not good looking... The aroma is great, can't even recognize the base, like a good ba bw. Whoppers with bourbon and dark fruits... The taste is incredibly light and watery. It tastes like a 6 hour old rum and coke that had all the ice melt. The finish is very chemically and alcoholy.

Pass.

Serving type: growler

03-20-2011 02:51:43 | More by jrallen34

cpmichael

Indiana

4.47/5  rDev +17.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Poured into a Duvel tulip glass. Growler filled at Upland the day before. 03/072011

A: Pours a brownish-red, with a minimal amount of foam.

S: Whoa, tons of bourbon in this guy. It gives off a sweet vanilla smell that works so well for this. The oak is noticeable as well as some malty characteristics.

T: The taste is true to the nose, the bourbon and oak flavors are ever present. It makes for a sweet beer, but not too sweet. The malty base of the standard Ard Ri comes out.

M/D: A very smooth and mellow bourbon barrel beer. The 9.3% is not really noticeable. One could drink a dangerous number of these if not careful.

This is an awesome beer, I am typically not a huge upland guy, but this is easily their best beer I have ever had. And Yes, I have had the lambics. Give me BB Ard Ri any day.

Serving type: growler

03-10-2011 00:45:47 | More by cpmichael

khumbard

Indiana

4.5/5  rDev +18.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

This is the bourbon barrel aged version of the standard Ard Ri, which is probably my favorite standard Upland seasonal. I was told that this was aged in Buffalo Trace barrels.

Pours a ruby red with a small dissipating head, pretty standard. The nose on this beer is great. Big barrel notes: bourbon, vanilla, oak, and a decent amount of malt. Taste is very smooth, but the barrel is the big star here. This one is for someone who likes big bourbon and oak notes in their beer, which I do. After the bourbon, oak, and vanilla.... there is the solid malt base of the regular Ard Ri, which finishes with a slight hop bitterness. The mouthfeel is nice, the lower carbonation level fits well. Drinkability is great, this goes down very easy. There is some alcohol there, but whether its the 9.3% or the big barrel flavor it's hard to tell. However, for me... I could drink this one all night and be quite happy. Overall, this is probably the best beer I've had from my hometown brewery. I will be back over to the brewery as many times as possible this week to have more of it.

Serving type: on-tap

03-09-2011 01:34:20 | More by khumbard