3.8 AROMA 7/10 APPEARANCE 4/5 TASTE 8/10 PALATE 3/5 OVERALL 16/20
UPDATED: OCT 24, 2008 10th rating to make the beer official. Bottle from the brewery. Pours thick dark amber color. Lots of cardboard oxidized hops and booziness. I think it hasn’t aged well, or has been in the barrel too long. Reminds me a lot of Green Flash 2nd Anniversary barley wine consumed 4 yrs old. Low carbonation. Aroma get’s better after sitting a few minutes to a buttery malty oakiness.
2.8 AROMA 6/10 APPEARANCE 4/5 TASTE 6/10 PALATE 2/5 OVERALL 10/20
UPDATED: FEB 13, 2009 Bottle. Poured a clear, deep ruby-brown color with a thick beige head that slowly faded to a thick layer and left some spotty lacing. Aroma of spicy bourbon oak with some vanilla and a bit of caramel malt, some light plum, and a bit of earthy hops. Smooth, lightly spicy entry transitions into a sharp caramel maltiness with some light brown sugar and some spicy alcohol throughout leading into a sharp, abrasive earthy hoppiness and a lingering spicy bourbon finish. Low carbonation , slick but somewhat thin on the palate, especially the finish. Flavor is just too abrasive and a bit boozy, I didn’t want to finish my glass. Could be good in about a year, but at $25 there is no way I will find out.
4.1 AROMA 8/10 APPEARANCE 5/5 TASTE 8/10 PALATE 4/5 OVERALL 16/20
750 Bottle 182/461. 8th rating, thank you kindly wetherel for bringing it back from Colorado. Pours orange brown with a tan head. Nose is oaky with a whiskey vanillahybred thing. Taste is sweet thick and viscous. Overall pretty nice. A big beer in many ways but not too hot at all. Fairly strange in some ways and awesome in others. I like, thanks John for brining this over.
4.3 AROMA 9/10 APPEARANCE 4/5 TASTE 9/10 PALATE 4/5 OVERALL 17/20
Bottle #223; big thanks to waolsen for sharing rating #1000 w/ me! Big fluffy head. Sugary, boozy aroma with some cinnamon and oak. Really f’n awesome. Lots of bourbon and oak, but alcohol is smooth and not sharp at all. Did a side by side with the regular, and the complete loss of hop character stuck out. Turned it into a very different beer; a better one if you ask me!
4 AROMA 8/10 APPEARANCE 4/5 TASTE 8/10 PALATE 4/5 OVERALL 16/20
Bottle # 223: Aroma of bourbon, oak, and a bit of caramel. Poured copper/amber in color with a large, creamy, dense, beige head that lasted throughout. Hazy. Sparkling. Flavor is medium sweet. Tastes of bourbon, oak, vanilla, light caramel, tar, light smoke, and some tobacco. No hops. Light to medium body. Smooth, creamy texture. Soft carbonation. Alcohol, bourbon, vanilla and and oak finish.
4 AROMA 8/10 APPEARANCE 4/5 TASTE 7/10 PALATE 4/5 OVERALL 17/20
Aroma: barrels, oak, vanilla, whiskey, some minerals
Appearance: reddish-brown, creamy colored head, some lacing
Flavor: minerals, whiskey, vanilla, oak barrels, alcohol-y
Palate: smooth and creamy, strong alcohol and light vanilla aftertaste
4.2 AROMA 8/10 APPEARANCE 4/5 TASTE 8/10 PALATE 5/5 OVERALL 17/20
UPDATED: OCT 11, 2008 Cloudy and muddy dark tawny brown. Creamy tan head sitting 1/2 inch tall in one glass, while the other has only a 1/8 inch film. Nose is creamed vanilla, oak, and overripe fruit - plum, apricot, oranges. Creamy and full up front, rich sticky plum, tobacco, vanilla, amaretto... more of this creamed orange and creamed plum flavor, a little of the fruity sweetness from the regular Ruffian shining through. The whiskey character is thankfully not overdone - primarily vanilla and toffee notes compliment the rich creamed plum and nectarine fruit flavors. A little hot in the back, creamy and frothy throughout, the extended finish really the only spot where it seems to thin out as the alcohol becomes strong. Overall, really delicious and warming. A subdued and quiet aged barley wine complimented by a mild bourbon presence and without an overbearing barrel character.
4.3 AROMA 8/10 APPEARANCE 5/5 TASTE 8/10 PALATE 4/5 OVERALL 18/20
bottle. dark woody pour with thin head. lacing. nice aroma woody and whisky, rich malts. rich. whisky very well placed. smooth. floral hops subdued. great job.
4.3 AROMA 8/10 APPEARANCE 5/5 TASTE 9/10 PALATE 4/5 OVERALL 17/20
Picked up a couple of these last night...big thanks to Kevin for the heads-up. Pours nicely, translucent red-brown color. Big barrel in the nose...very oaky, nice whiskey notes...sweetish caramel too. Flavor is superb....no surprises. Full bodied with great vanilla and whiskey flavors. A great effort.
4.1 AROMA 8/10 APPEARANCE 5/5 TASTE 8/10 PALATE 4/5 OVERALL 16/20
Great looking brew, a deep burgundy color that has lasted the entire session so far, at least 30 minutes. Fairly nice nose has some complexity from the barrel (vanilla, whiskey, newer oak) as well as some notes from the original beer (caramel, fruit.) Flavor is nicely balanced between original beer and oak elements. Bold flavors of whiskey, caramel, toffee and vanilla. Very tasty and impressive in every way. A good beer now, but being that it is properly bottle conditioned, this ale has excellent potential.
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