Oak Horizontal - Victory Brewing Company

BeerImmediately

Pennsylvania

3.8/5  rDev -6.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Cellar (55-60) temp into goblet.

Pours with a very short/skim off-white head over a fairly clear amber body. Some tiny carbonation flowing up. No real lacing to speak of.

Aromas include a healthy dose of vanilla bean and oak, along with caramel, sweet phenols, toffee and maple syrup. A sweet beer lover's dream.

Whoo... wow. A chunky, muted, sweet version of Old Ho. Full mouthfull of flavors including the aforementioned vanilla and salt water taffy. Fair amount of chemical/rubbery quality, that once I noticed, I had a little trouble getting past. English style (muted) hop profile. Somewhat drowned out by the overly sweet flavors. Touch of smoke in the finish. This would make a seriously awesome salt-watery taffy flavor (Ok, for beer nerds only).

Mouthfeel was pretty slick and oily. Exactly what I would expect from barrel aged barleywine. So, well done here.

I really hope my other bottle molds and meshes the flavors over time, as I plan to hold onto it for about 3 years. Aw heck, I may buy 3 more and try one each year until 2017.

Serving type: bottle

01-07-2013 02:31:44 | More by BeerImmediately

j1knapp

Maryland

4/5  rDev -2%

06-06-2013 00:09:39 | More by j1knapp

oglmcdgl

Pennsylvania

4/5  rDev -2%

06-01-2013 03:31:17 | More by oglmcdgl

troegaarden

Pennsylvania

5/5  rDev +22.5%

05-28-2013 23:39:05 | More by troegaarden

levylaw

Pennsylvania

4/5  rDev -2%

05-22-2013 13:36:54 | More by levylaw

Casey3236

Pennsylvania

4.75/5  rDev +16.4%

05-16-2013 03:44:05 | More by Casey3236

inkdemention

Nevada

3.5/5  rDev -14.2%

05-16-2013 03:19:46 | More by inkdemention

waddellc2

Pennsylvania

4.25/5  rDev +4.2%

05-12-2013 23:48:11 | More by waddellc2

whallgren

Pennsylvania

4.5/5  rDev +10.3%

05-12-2013 19:18:12 | More by whallgren

JohnnyMc

Ohio

4.09/5  rDev +0.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4

Pours out a very dark amber/murky brown with a finger of off-white head.

The aroma has huge notes of vanilla, bourbon, toffee and caramel. There is some oak, but it's not dominating. Smells very sweet and slightly boozy.

The taste also has a very heavy vanilla flavor, almost to the point of a coconut type of taste too. A decent amount of bourbon, toffee, caramel and some butterscotch notes too. The wood is definitely more prominent in the taste and especially as it warms. There is a little bit of bitterness on the back, but it's mainly sweeter.

The body is medium and the mouthfeel is slightly creamy. The ABV is not all that hidden here, you can definitely smell, taste and feel it as it goes down. Some time would mellow it out.

A very nice BBA Barleywine, but the heat and the overbearing sweetness at times keeps this from being amazing. Still a good beer and worth trying.

Serving type: bottle

05-12-2013 14:35:01 | More by JohnnyMc

fdig23

Pennsylvania

4/5  rDev -2%

05-09-2013 23:17:40 | More by fdig23

Magery

Kentucky

3.75/5  rDev -8.1%

05-07-2013 19:31:36 | More by Magery

JoshBrews

Missouri

4.75/5  rDev +16.4%

05-07-2013 15:47:45 | More by JoshBrews

cpetrone84

Pennsylvania

4.05/5  rDev -0.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25

Pour is dark ruby red with a right tan head. The nose has a deep malt complexity of rich chocolate and caramel, nice bourbon presence, strong but not overwhelming. Dark fruits behind with a light vanilla wood note. Taste has more bourbon, light vanilla and oak with the chocolate richness coming through. A touch green in back with dark chewy fruits through the Finish and a bit of alcohol around the edges. Body is thick and well carbonated, smooth and creamy and soft on the palate.

Serving type: bottle

05-07-2013 13:31:05 | More by cpetrone84

MichPaul

Michigan

4.5/5  rDev +10.3%

05-06-2013 01:26:35 | More by MichPaul

buzzy

Pennsylvania

4.5/5  rDev +10.3%

05-04-2013 15:05:49 | More by buzzy

eawolff99

Colorado

4/5  rDev -2%

05-03-2013 03:02:45 | More by eawolff99

spycow

Illinois

3.75/5  rDev -8.1%

05-01-2013 05:10:22 | More by spycow

ThePorterSorter

New York

3.75/5  rDev -8.1%

04-28-2013 19:13:02 | More by ThePorterSorter

rab53

Massachusetts

3.75/5  rDev -8.1%

04-25-2013 02:09:47 | More by rab53

Pahn

New York

3.86/5  rDev -5.4%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 3.75

750ml bottle into a snifter.

Appearance: Free pour yields a fizzy offwhite head that dissipates immediately. Nice clear ruby/maroon.

Smell: Very fruity. Jolly Rancher. Faint oak, but mostly very sugary malt and interestingly deep grape/berry fruitiness. Almost smells like fruity hops.

Taste: Way more oak and bourbon than your average BA beer. Doesn't taste like high quality bourbon, but the sugary malt keeps it tasty. High hop bitterness. Toasted oak that pushes into over-oaked territory (tasting like fresh cut wood smells with a lot of tannins), but again balanced out by the sugary malt.

This beer works very well. It's very dry, very bitter, and very hot... I think it could have stayed longer in barrels, though who knows since it already tastes a bit overoaked. A lot of what makes the base beer undrinkable fresh has been remedied, and honestly the bitterness and heat has some real charm when combined with the oak and bourbon flavors. Beautiful aftertaste once the bone-dryness resolves. Aftertaste bumps it up to a generous 4.0.

Mouthfeel: Medium bodied. Very bitter and dry--which I love. Moderate carbonation.

Overall: Definitely a flawed beer; the oak is a bit overdone, it's too hot, too bitter, not deep enough (the malt is pronounced and sweet but not very complex)... and yet. The overall taste is good, and I'm going to enjoy this bottle over the next day or two.

Victory doesn't really have their shit together when it comes to barrel aging beer. They seem to over or underdo it. However, the beers aren't horribly expensive, and the finished product tastes good. I'm not really impressed, but I'm not disappointed either.

Serving type: bottle

04-20-2013 02:37:34 | More by Pahn

brutalist

Pennsylvania

4.25/5  rDev +4.2%

04-19-2013 22:57:23 | More by brutalist

Jason1337

Pennsylvania

4/5  rDev -2%

04-17-2013 18:08:13 | More by Jason1337

jpatton0127

Pennsylvania

4.25/5  rDev +4.2%

04-16-2013 13:06:45 | More by jpatton0127

tdizzlegrizzle

Pennsylvania

4.5/5  rDev +10.3%

04-16-2013 10:31:55 | More by tdizzlegrizzle