Folklore - Red Wine Barrel Aged - Stillwater Artisanal Ales

UCLABrewN84

California

3.68/5  rDev -0.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Thanks to John11486 for sharing this one at AndrewK’s tasting.

Pours an almost opaque super dark brown with a foamy dark khaki head that settles to wisps of film on top of the beer. Small streaks of lace form around the glass on the drink down. Smell is of malt, brown sugar, caramel, and some red wine aromas. Taste is much the same with a mild bitterness on the palate with each sip. This beer has a good level of carbonation with a crisp mouthfeel. Overall, this is a pretty good beer but I think it smells better than it tastes.

Serving type: bottle

10-29-2012 19:49:38 | More by UCLABrewN84

cpetrone84

Pennsylvania

3.53/5  rDev -4.3%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

pour is jet black, fairly tight light brown head. the nose is different, rather peaty, light roast, black licorice is strong with a touch of grape. The taste is heavy peat, light dry bakers chocolate, sweetness in back, red grapes and light vinous. The body is creamy, gentle carbonation and very drinkable.

Serving type: bottle

06-18-2012 16:58:12 | More by cpetrone84

russwbeck

Virginia

4.25/5  rDev +15.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A: The beer pours out of the bottle clear brown and rests in the glass a deep black color that you can't see through at all. Three fingers of light brown head build up and settle to half an inch of a nice, thick cap on top of the beer. Thin lacing coats the glass on the way down.

S: The roast and spice character has taken a small step back, and has been replaced by oak and slight notes of booze, which surprises me because of the lower than average ABV. Light malt and dark fruits hide underneath.

T: This taste is much better than non-barrel aged Folklore. The oak and deep red wine characteristics blend with the Belgian Strong Dark Ale extremely well. I must say this is the first time I've had a BSDA aged in anything at all, but I really like how the darker wine notes bolster the sweet malt and dark fruits in the base beer. There's a sharp hint of alcohol at the very backend that isn't unpleasant and is a welcomed change up to the spiciness of regular Folklore.

MF: Still, the mouthfeel is a bit too much on the light side for what I love about this style. The carbonation is great and I believe the newfound balance has greatly improved the drinkability (not that Folklore was undrinkable, I just think this has improved on that).

O: As I've said throughout the review, the barrel aging definitely increased the quality of this beer. I liked the balance and the wine characteristics a lot more than what I tasted in the base beer. I really wish I found some of the bourbon barrel variation of this!

Serving type: bottle

05-28-2012 01:01:04 | More by russwbeck

brewandbbq

New Hampshire

3.68/5  rDev -0.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

750ml bottle.

Pours opaque black with an inch-plus head of bone. A partial skim coat and tattered lacing throughout the glass.

Aromatics lead off with chocolate, espresso, char, nougat and a hint of vinousity.

Full bodied with a creamy, crisp mouthfeel.

Bakers chocolate, coffee grounds, Oreo shells, and a trace of red wine start the palate. Sweetish and roasty in nature with a very light barrel charcter.

Finishes with charred chocolate, Kahlua, and light grapeskins.

This beer tastes like a stout that has either been aged in a wine barrel quite briefly or blended with a non-BA beer and the barrel aging character has been diluted.

Certainly a dissapointment given the high price tag.

Serving type: bottle

04-19-2012 00:24:15 | More by brewandbbq

Blanco

Pennsylvania

4.25/5  rDev +15.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

The beer looks rather like a stout in the glass: black with tan head. But as it pours you can see the hints of dark ruby red/purple. Decent lacing from a tiny head that hangs around for a while. Smell is a mix of roast malt with a slight vinous and dark fruit quality. Everything so far about this beer screams of being a hybrid of a stout and a red wine, but that might be just my expectations given the aging process that are pushing this thought forward. Taste is similar in that it does just seem like a belgian stout with the dry roastiness and with a slight hint of a wine quality to it. It's more stout than wine though. Medium bodied.

This is another pretty solid beer from Stillwater. I've had both 25 to one and Folklore and this beer is very reminiscent of the base. The stout-like qualities are at the forefront while the barrel adds a sort of "hybrid characteristic.

Serving type: bottle

02-13-2012 05:30:35 | More by Blanco

Thorpe429

Illinois

3.63/5  rDev -1.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Thanks to yourefragile for the assist. Pours a very dark brown with a thin head. The nose brings a light amount of oak plus a heavy dose of red wine. Flavor has a strong bit of wine and moderate roast in the background. Somewhat tannic. Light-medium body with good carbonation. Very slight wine-like acidity to the finish. Pretty good, but not as good as the bourbon version.

Serving type: on-tap

01-02-2012 20:06:17 | More by Thorpe429

yourefragile

District of Columbia

3.45/5  rDev -6.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

On tap at Maxs. "8.4% dark farmhouse ale aged 10 months in Bordeaux barrels".

Pours a still milk chocolate, tinged ruby with a khaki head that fades to nothing. Aroma is fruity and herbal; red wine, grape, cherry, spearmint and light roast. Mouthfeel is odd, fizzy and medium thick with a thin finish. As this warms the wine barrel dominates and the roast and spice of the base beer fades away. Aftertaste has an odd grapey, medicinal twang. Interesting, but not as good as the bourbon existent or his other red wine treatments.

Serving type: on-tap

12-20-2011 22:51:37 | More by yourefragile