Bourbon Barrel Aged Shipwreck Porter - Arcadia Brewing Company

theghost3

Louisiana

4.22/5  rDev 0%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Thanks to injuredreserve for this gem.

Bottle is waxed & capped.

Pours a deep, dark brown, almost black witha 2-finger cafe au lait head. Smell is strong of bourbon and vanilla with a spiced rum scent at the end. The taste is strong bourbon with toasted coffee malts and just a hint of sour mash in the finish. Medium-bodied, carbonated, and slightly acidic.

This is drinkable considering the 12 percent ABV. The carbonation can be a bit jarring at first, but that's to be expected from a beer aged in bourbon barrels.

Serving type: bottle

04-15-2011 04:19:47 | More by theghost3

GinsuDave

Michigan

4.5/5  rDev +6.6%

05-17-2013 01:06:21 | More by GinsuDave

Jade

Ohio

4.5/5  rDev +6.6%

05-11-2013 02:23:50 | More by Jade

andjriz

Oklahoma

4.25/5  rDev +0.7%

05-09-2013 09:09:32 | More by andjriz

CRJMellor

Arkansas

4.25/5  rDev +0.7%

05-07-2013 02:05:02 | More by CRJMellor

zachary80

Indiana

4/5  rDev -5.2%

04-21-2013 03:45:29 | More by zachary80

AlphaKingKegger

Ohio

4.5/5  rDev +6.6%

04-19-2013 05:14:59 | More by AlphaKingKegger

JohnnieNepal

Michigan

4.25/5  rDev +0.7%

04-17-2013 01:30:21 | More by JohnnieNepal

CMUbrew

Michigan

4.45/5  rDev +5.5%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

12oz bottle into a Founders snifter

A: Black, just like you would expect in a porter. Brown head that is quick to recede to a ring around the glass.

S: Huge bourbon whiskey punch hits you right in the snout. Pretty much just smells like neat whiskey. It's impossible to pick up on anything else

T: Smooth and mellow bourbon whiskey meets dark roasty and toasty malts. Wood, vanilla notes, delicious caramel and barrel sweetness on the finish. Seriously tasty right here. Despite smelling like spirits, there is hardly any boozy heat to be found. Age may have done this beer a big favor because it is very easy drinking right now.

M: Medium-full body. Definetely rich and full for a porter, approaching stout levels. Creamy, smooth, slightly slick.

O: This was one incredible beer. I'm very glad I let this sit for a year because it's drinking fantastic right now. Anyone that still has bottles should really consider opening them right now. I can't see it getting much better than this.

Serving type: bottle

04-15-2013 01:22:30 | More by CMUbrew

funhog

Illinois

4/5  rDev -5.2%

04-13-2013 04:12:06 | More by funhog

Ncpogs

Illinois

4.25/5  rDev +0.7%

04-06-2013 23:36:39 | More by Ncpogs

rhoadester69

Michigan

4.25/5  rDev +0.7%

04-05-2013 02:43:20 | More by rhoadester69

kjkinsey

Texas

3.75/5  rDev -11.1%

04-03-2013 00:57:16 | More by kjkinsey

Sparky44

Illinois

4.25/5  rDev +0.7%

03-24-2013 02:30:16 | More by Sparky44

Irishize75

Michigan

4.25/5  rDev +0.7%

03-16-2013 03:15:01 | More by Irishize75

jonandhisflask

Kentucky

5/5  rDev +18.5%

03-15-2013 05:43:27 | More by jonandhisflask

alelover

Michigan

4.5/5  rDev +6.6%

03-11-2013 20:39:28 | More by alelover

tectactoe

Michigan

3.34/5  rDev -20.9%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.5

2011 vintage. Pours a very dark brown, almost black color as it sits in the glass. A light-ish, tan colored head perches on the top of the beer at a little less than a quarter-inch, but grows significantly when the glass is swirled.

One whiff of this and there's no doubt that this baby spent quite a while inside of an old bourbon barrel. Bourbon is probably the heaviest smell up front, along with some mild oak and a soothing vanilla aroma. It's obviously malt heavy but still a little sweeter than I would have imagined. Very syrupy and molasses-like with lots of melted brown sugar around the edges. Very light oak and wood aromas join in at the tail end, but don't impeded or stick around for too long.

Much like the aroma, the taste is very bourbon heavy as well. Very, very hot at first, almost akin to the burn from taking a sip of straight-up scotch or whiskey alone. Wow, did they forget to empty the barrels when they aged this stuff? There's a huge oak and wet, musty wood flavor that pops through in spurts between the blanket of heavy booze. Light vanilla and coconut notes travel through the profile but again, they're not match for the heavy bourbon. Despite the heavy booze, the beer is still extremely sweet, almost cloyingly so, and it has a strange soy-sauce like flavor heavy in the aftertaste. Medium-heavy body, slick and oily with medium carbonation.

Eh, I was definitely let down a bit by this one. A little too sweet, way too bourbon heavy, and has some strange flavors that didn't mesh well. Maybe it's the 2011 version? I've heard later releases have toned down the bourbon quite a bit, but this one was a little too much.

Serving type: bottle

03-10-2013 21:54:52 | More by tectactoe

Rons35

Michigan

4/5  rDev -5.2%

03-10-2013 20:11:40 | More by Rons35

Holmes698

Pennsylvania

4.5/5  rDev +6.6%

03-09-2013 17:47:26 | More by Holmes698

cates1tg

Michigan

5/5  rDev +18.5%

03-01-2013 16:04:12 | More by cates1tg

sixerofelixir

Ohio

3.75/5  rDev -11.1%

02-27-2013 18:00:19 | More by sixerofelixir

AndyAvalanche

Massachusetts

4.26/5  rDev +0.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25

12oz. bottle poured into a Duvel Tulip style glass. The liquid looks like a standard quality porter during the pour, slightly darker than a cola brown. Once it settles in the glass it looks a little bit darker brown that gets closer to black in the deepest parts of the liquid and some nice mahogany/amber edges. Huge white to almost tan colored head with many different sized bubbles, good lacing too. Overall a really good looking beer.

All the classic aromas of a really good barrel aged porter/stout are present on this one. Plenty of hints of dark roasted malts, coffee and chocolate that's completely surrounded by nice vanilla/oak/bourbon aromas.

I initially wasn't too impressed with the flavor but it grew on me quite a bit, it gets better with every sip. Plenty of roasted malt flavors, the typical coffee and bitter chocolate flavors that is complemented by some oak and a nice vanilla aftertaste.

Mouthfeel threw me off guard initially. Much lighter in the body than I expected, by a lot. I'm not sure if that's a bad thing, it just threw me off since the style is generally very thick in the mouthfeel. Still there is a good carbonation level and not much of a bite from the 12% ABV. I was a little surprised how drinkable this is, dangerously drinkable actually. Thinking more on it, I like the direction Arcadia took here on the mouthfeel, it's good and balances everything out really well. Just a solid brew all around, wouldn't mind seeing more of this one.

Huge props to Ron for an awesome trade!

Serving type: bottle

02-27-2013 03:05:05 | More by AndyAvalanche

Agentveba

4.75/5  rDev +12.6%

02-24-2013 21:50:11 | More by Agentveba

MrVonzipper

California

4.75/5  rDev +12.6%

02-24-2013 09:15:42 | More by MrVonzipper