Barrel Monkey
Minneapolis Town Hall Brewery

Barrel MonkeyBarrel Monkey
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From:
Minneapolis Town Hall Brewery
 
Minnesota, United States
Style:
Imperial IPA
ABV:
Not listed
Score:
84
Avg:
3.68 | pDev: 14.95%
Reviews:
13
Ratings:
32
Status:
Retired
Rated:
Aug 13, 2014
Added:
Feb 25, 2012
Wants:
  2
Gots:
  1
No description / notes.
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
 
Rated: 3.5 by zestar from California

Aug 13, 2014
 
Rated: 4 by Alpar from Wisconsin

Aug 09, 2014
 
Rated: 3.75 by ThePorterSorter from Oregon

Jun 22, 2014
 
Rated: 4.25 by arniepnminne from Minnesota

Apr 14, 2013
 
Rated: 4.75 by josephwa from Minnesota

Feb 04, 2013
 
Rated: 3.25 by Thorpe429 from Illinois

Jan 17, 2013
 
Rated: 3.5 by imperialking from Illinois

Jan 17, 2013
 
Rated: 2.5 by westcoastbeerlvr from California

Jan 08, 2013
Photo of Arbitrator
Reviewed by Arbitrator from California

2.15/5  rDev -41.6%
look: 2.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2 | feel: 2 | overall: 2
Chilled bottle into a glass, courtesy of lurchingbeast. Thanks! From notes.

A: Pours a hazy golden body with off-white head.

S: Stale, oxidized hops, bourbon, mild oak with some vanilla.

T: As in the nose, there is a strong flavor of stale, oxidized hops. It dominates over the barrel character, which contributes some bourbon, oak, and vanilla. In short, this pretty much tastes exactly what you'd expect from a barrel-aged DIPA: it's a stale beer with bourbon flavors. Mediocre is being kind.

O: Town Hall really has not made a strong impression on me.
Nov 16, 2012
 
Rated: 3.25 by AleApostle from Illinois

Oct 24, 2012
Photo of drabmuh
Reviewed by drabmuh from Maryland

3.42/5  rDev -7.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
Barrel aged IPA = blah...always. Served in a Town Hall glass. Beer is hazy, almost brown, tan head low retention, no lacing.

Aroma is oaky, malty, shadow of hops.

This brewery makes some of my favorite IPAs but not this one. I am close to offended by this beer. Malty, sweet, earthy bitterness, mild oakiness, mild booze. Weird not a repeat ever.
Sep 28, 2012
 
Rated: 3.75 by orangesol from Pennsylvania

Aug 21, 2012
Photo of GregSVT
Reviewed by GregSVT from Texas

3.6/5  rDev -2.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3
750ml waxed bottle into a snifter

A: Pours a hazy amber with a white head that fades to a ring and leaves some lacing on the glass.

S: The nose has a bit of muted hops along with some vanilla, caramel malt, and a weird citrus fruit aroma.

T: The taste is a bit better. The hops are still decent and the first thing you notice and after that you can taste caramel, vanillla, and a bit of whiskey.

M: The feel is medium bodied and creamy.

O: This is a weird one. I'd like to try it a bit fresher but I believe even then the hops would be muted given it sits in the barrel for a while. Not sure I'd try this one again but glad I got a chance.
Aug 08, 2012
 
Rated: 3.75 by Schlais from Minnesota

Jul 01, 2012
 
Rated: 4.25 by plumcrazyfx from Minnesota

Jun 29, 2012
 
Rated: 3.25 by beersis81 from Illinois

Jun 02, 2012
Photo of Sean9689
Reviewed by Sean9689 from Illinois

3.01/5  rDev -18.2%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 2.5
Bottle, thanks to AsianZero!

A - Pours reddish/copper color, frothy white head, sticky lace.

S - Bourbon and hops really do not mix for me, which is basically what this beer is. It's basically a mix of booze, light hops, malts, and some carmel notes. Not much into this one.

T - Similar to the nose, a DIPA with bourbon and oak overtones, not my cup 'o tea. Syrupy sweetness, booze, oak, light hops, malts. The bitter notes are just old and boring...I guess that's what happens when you barrel-age a DIPA. Pretty boozy. Finish is bitterness & booze.

M - Medium body, good carbonation, oily booze finish.

O - I really prefer not to have anymore Barrel-Aged DIPA, no matter how rare the tick. I really enjoyed the regular Monkey DIPA when I had it out of a growler, but the BA version didn't do much for me. Pass.
May 11, 2012
 
Rated: 4 by CheapBeerBuzz from California

May 08, 2012
Photo of largadeer
Reviewed by largadeer from California

3.5/5  rDev -4.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
Thanks, David.

Muddy pale amber body. Pours with a slim head that retains fairly well. Smells like oxidized hops, brown sugar, pine, and boozy bourbon. Palate is similar, definitely tastes like an aged IPA with a faded, oxidized hop flavor. Plenty of toffee malt comes through. The barrel is big and boozy, and starts to dominate the flavor profile as the beer warms. Finishes decently bitter and dry, with a light boozy kick. This is strangely enjoyable for a barel aged DIPA, but nothing I'd drink a ton of.
May 08, 2012
Photo of MasterSki
Reviewed by MasterSki from Canada (ON)

3.48/5  rDev -5.4%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3
Thanks to Mike (AgentZero) for sharing this one. Served in a Captain Lawrence tulip.

A - White foam settles to a thick collar, near-complete cap, and spotty lace. Hazy golden orange body.

S - Smells like an old DIPA, but with whiskey and vanilla. The fading hops give off that cheesy oxidized beta acid aroma, and there's a hefty amount of sweet malt and butterscotch from the barrel. Reminds me a little of Founders Hand of Doom.

T - Taste is pretty similar - sweet malts, oak, whiskey, and tons of butterscotch and vanilla from the wood. Some residual hop bitterness, but not much in the way of hop flavor.

M - Smooth texture, medium-full body, dry tannic finish, and some very mild alcohol warmth. Unobtrusive medium-low carbonation.

D - While this beer is exactly what I expected from the combination of DIPA and bourbon barrels, it seems like a waste of both. It's well-executed but conceptually flawed - the flavors clash and result in moderately cloying sweetness.
Apr 24, 2012
Barrel Monkey from Minneapolis Town Hall Brewery
Beer rating: 84 out of 100 with 32 ratings