Hell's Bottom - Rye Whiskey Barrel Aged - DC Brau Brewing Co.

circus_cat

Virginia

3.65/5  rDev +1.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

I'm not going to do a full review because I had it a few weeks ago at the brewery in a little sampler cup...so I certainly can't do it justice. I do want to say a few words about it though. I haven't had the non-oaked version. With this version, though, it's worth noting that this is a VERY barrel-forward beer. I love an oaked beer and really appreciate the character it imparts. If you don't like oaked beers or just kind of like them, this beer might be a little much. It borderline tastes like whiskey (I'm a bourbon drinker, so I enjoyed it). If you're in that latter category that just kind of likes oaked beers, you should try their Penn Quarter Porter Oaked. Much more mild than this one.

Serving type: on-tap

08-17-2012 19:01:34 | More by circus_cat

drabmuh

Maryland

4.1/5  rDev +13.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Disclaimer, I have never had the base beer so I can't comment on how well it survived the barrel aging process. This beer, however, is quite barrel forward. On tap at Churchkey, beer is black / dark brown with a thin off tan head of small bubbles, large bubbles, low retention, low carbonation, looks fine.

Aroma is boozy and sweet with a nice malt / oaky character to it.

Beer is medium in body and very sweet on the palate, the booze is dominant in the front half of the palate, the finish is almost tangy sweet but not dry, interesting tannics at the end, overall a decent strong bold flavored beer here. I wouldn't have guessed in a million years this was 5ish % alcohol. A pretty bold stout.

Serving type: on-tap

07-23-2012 16:20:58 | More by drabmuh

russwbeck

Virginia

3.28/5  rDev -8.9%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Appearance
This beer's appearance has some character to it. Slightly see through black to brown color with a light brown head. The retention is better than the others, but is still a bit underwhelming

Aroma
The aroma is feint, but does have a nice amount of vanilla with some slight oak. Slightly medicinal and fruity. Not a great initial impression, sadly.

Taste
The taste is really roasty, and bit oaky, with some slight rye, but overall is sort of bland. It has a nice dry finish that is amplified by the rye, but the low ABV on this has sort of hurt the flavor I think. I'm not really getting a lot of the great flavors that I expected

Mouthfeel/Drinkability
Lighter than average body that I'm thinking just didn't hold up well in the barrels. Not as much carbonation as I would have liked either. It's silky smooth on the palate, I just didn't like much else

Value
This beer went back to the $5 price range, which was way too much for how good the beer was.

Serving type: on-tap

07-23-2012 00:36:19 | More by russwbeck