Framinghammer Baltic Porter - Bourbon Barrel Aged - Jack's Abby Brewing

stonermouse

Massachusetts

4.63/5  rDev +3.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.75

Finally, Framinghammer is bottled. A BA version. Even better. I have come to love this brewery, and thus will attempt to review this beer as objectively as possible.

The pour is quite pretty. The body is the color of a cup of coffee, while the brew foams up nicely with a multi-hued brown head that forms at the pour and never goes away. Very impressive.

The aroma is a bit muted for some reason- perhaps it's me. I wish I detected a bit more booze and heat from the smell. As it is, it smells a bit like a mild English Brown spiked with a shot of Jack- malty yet slightly sweet.

On the flavor front, this beer kicks serious ass. Like many Jack's Abby beers, they are Lagers almost in name only. This drinks like a barrel-aged porter should, just slightly thinned out. The flavor is very big and complex. It's mildly coffee-forward, with a good shot of brown sugar and vanilla sweetness. So delicious. The barrel adds just a touch of bourbon, and the wood sharpens the flavor a bit.

Mouthfeel is just slightly thin for the big flavors, but it's also clean. Surprisingly, the finish has a bitterness to it that clings. I expected a sweet finish.

I really tried to be objective here. Jack's Abby just keeps hitting home runs. This brew can easily stand with the best of the barrel aged porters and stouts.

Serving type: bottle

03-30-2013 02:12:42 | More by stonermouse

greg4579

Pennsylvania

4/5  rDev -10.3%

06-19-2013 12:46:03 | More by greg4579

cofeeguru

Minnesota

4.5/5  rDev +0.9%

06-19-2013 02:30:32 | More by cofeeguru

scotv

New York

4.25/5  rDev -4.7%

06-19-2013 01:09:31 | More by scotv

MMAJYK

Georgia

4/5  rDev -10.3%

06-18-2013 20:57:11 | More by MMAJYK

Jacob007

New Hampshire

4.25/5  rDev -4.7%

06-18-2013 16:34:30 | More by Jacob007

TobiasG

Massachusetts

4.75/5  rDev +6.5%

06-16-2013 23:58:39 | More by TobiasG

nrs207

Pennsylvania

4/5  rDev -10.3%

06-16-2013 17:56:41 | More by nrs207

scray24

Colorado

4.5/5  rDev +0.9%

06-16-2013 04:34:14 | More by scray24

IndyDad

New York

4.25/5  rDev -4.7%

06-16-2013 02:34:51 | More by IndyDad

doremite

Massachusetts

4.75/5  rDev +6.5%

06-13-2013 20:35:35 | More by doremite

ComRock12

Massachusetts

4.5/5  rDev +0.9%

06-13-2013 12:47:38 | More by ComRock12

beertardis

Rhode Island

4.5/5  rDev +0.9%

06-10-2013 23:41:58 | More by beertardis

tehmogue

Massachusetts

4/5  rDev -10.3%

06-10-2013 13:58:42 | More by tehmogue

SHCC

Massachusetts

4.5/5  rDev +0.9%

06-09-2013 13:39:05 | More by SHCC

johnnnniee

New Hampshire

4.5/5  rDev +0.9%

06-09-2013 02:51:34 | More by johnnnniee

BEERMILER12

Maine

4.49/5  rDev +0.7%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

A: Pours a pitch black color with a fingers worth of brown-tan head that fades down quickly

S: Roasted malts, chocolate, and light coffee open things up. Goes into some bourbon, vanilla, and oak. Smells quite sweet, but in a good way

T: Starts off with the roasted malts, chocolate (both milk and dark), and coffee. Slowly transitions into bourbon and oak. Some sweetness comes along as well, with vanilla and caramel attributing. Alcohol barely noticeable

M: Medium-full bodied with low-moderate carbonation. Fairly thick

O: One of the best baltic porters I've ever had, even without the wonderful barrel aging attributes that the barrel provides. Surprisingly not hot at 10% plus the BB, which makes this all too easy to drink. A little pricier than most JA offerings I've seen, but that is expected. Awesome brew

Serving type: bottle

06-09-2013 02:32:24 | More by BEERMILER12

jwps214

Massachusetts

4.75/5  rDev +6.5%

06-09-2013 01:54:57 | More by jwps214

KWMiles

Minnesota

4.5/5  rDev +0.9%

06-08-2013 22:02:32 | More by KWMiles

Nuggethops

New Hampshire

4.5/5  rDev +0.9%

06-08-2013 13:47:27 | More by Nuggethops

vicsju1991

Pennsylvania

4.5/5  rDev +0.9%

06-08-2013 04:27:28 | More by vicsju1991

Phillyz

Pennsylvania

4.5/5  rDev +0.9%

06-07-2013 05:42:47 | More by Phillyz

Sender

Minnesota

4.75/5  rDev +6.5%

06-07-2013 04:00:58 | More by Sender

spycow

Illinois

4.25/5  rDev -4.7%

06-07-2013 02:56:47 | More by spycow

jondeelee

Massachusetts

4.4/5  rDev -1.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Barrel-Aged Framinghammer opens to a thick, black aroma laced with sugar and vanilla. Fresh-ground oily coffee beans, tobacco, ash, black malt, anise, and burnt toast crust mix nicely with large swaths of toffee, brown sugar, vanilla bean, and heavy whipping cream. Additional chunks of thick brown bread float in the mix, along with toasted pecan and a few dark fruit esters, including fig, date, and raisin. The effects of the barrel aging are pleasantly subtle, adding slight overtones of charcoal and alcohol-soaked wood. As a whole, the nose is very nice, featuring a wide variety of nicely interlaced aromas, and the interplay between roasted coffee, ash, toffee, and whipping cream is especially alluring. The only real fault here lies in the comparative weakness of the aromas, which only manage perhaps a medium-strength appearance.

On the tongue, the beer is bold and darkly beautiful, the barrel aging immediate and potent, with wide swaths of bourbon-laced vanilla and oak crashing instantly against the taste buds. These mix beautifully with the fresh ground oily coffee beans, ash, and smoky tobacco, as well as the toffee, burnt multigrain toast crust, milk chocolate, and heavy whipping cream, the effect vaguely like Bailey’s, but with far more burnt underpinnings. In subsequent sips some of the nuance of the initial sip is gone, the burnt and alcoholic notes overtaking many of the more subtle flavors, but touches of fig, date, and raisin fruit esters are still present, as are bits of pine resin. The beer becomes more ashy and bourbon-laced as it is held on the tongue, never approaching straight bourbon, but moving ever closer, held back by the few remaining sugars. The aftertaste is a continuation of these latter ashy, bourbon-soaked fruits, lingering on the tongue for a decent while. Mouthfeel is an oily, viscous medium to medium-strong, and carbonation is medium-light.

Overall, this is excellent beer, featuring almost everything one could want from a barrel-aged Porter, and in fact the flavors in here are so nice that they show up many barrel-aged Imperial Stouts. But perhaps the best thing of all is the price: for a world-class beer, my .5 liter bottle was only $5.95, making this just about the best buy I’ve ever had.

Serving type: bottle

06-07-2013 00:47:07 | More by jondeelee