Heavy Seas Mutiny Fleet Below Decks Bourbon Oak

Brewed by Heavy Seas Brewing Company
Style: Barley Wine
Baltimore, Maryland USA

Serve in Snifter

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Bottle at Peter’s 2nd annual spring gathering. Pours a clear light brown with a thin white head. Smells of bourbon and vanilla, not a lot of depth. Very sweet and vanilla loaded. Overly sweet, finishing with a lightly tart dry bitterness.

bottle, thanks to thirdeye11, amber brown color with tan bubbles, woody malt vanilla aroma with a sweet woody bourbon, oak flavor

In short: A sweet Sambuca flavored barley wine with only moderate bourbon barrel presence. Uninteresting
How: Bottle 22oz. Consumed when probably one year of age. Bottle from a friend from the dark site of the beer web sites. Thanks Heath
The look: Mostly clear copper-bronze body, many small particles, medium beige head
In long: Unimposing nose of sweet pastry (baklavas comes to mind), barley candy and timid bourbon notes. Taste is malt sweetness over more malt sweetness, sucking a big kid barley candy lollipop, caramel, sweet sugary pasty, a big shot of Sambuca, raisin bread, some vanilla, light notes of bourbon soaked oak, star anise like spiciness. Full big doughy mouthfeel. Very very sweet. The Sambuca and anise-like spiciness were not much fun. Smooth at first but gets more and more abrasive the more you drink it, I almost didn’t finish my bomber. Another disappointing bottle from Heavy Seas, and you’d be surprised at how many people will try to avoid you if you walk towards them smiling and with a bottle of Heavy Seas in one hand and an axe in the other.

beer of summer @ OTH. deep copper color, tan head. aroma, bourbon goodness, oak, light note of vanilla followed by some dark fruits. flavors, nice warming abv, lots of bourbon, vanilla, wood while not overpowering the whole aspect. Caramel malts, toffee, butterscotch. Vanilla is sweet and nicely present, some earthly notes in the finish. solid beer.

Bottle. Pours a bruin body with a light off white head. Boozy body, bourbon, woody boozy tones. Vanilla and caramel sweetness. Dark fruit tones with a medium etoh warming. Very rich and chewy. Ok.

Bottle and served in my Duval snifter: Deep ruddy brown with a small but constant frothy head and spotty lace. The aroma has notes of roasted and nutty malts, vanilla and oaky bourbon barrels, some marizpan and floral esters, hint of maple syrup and sea salt. The taste starts aggressive with lots of boozy and BA influence surrounding the base sweet malts and somewhat hidden ripen dark fruits. Seems quite young still and likely really needs some cellaring to bring about a more classic English Kilned flavor profile. The bitterness is partly hop driven and far too brash at this point along with what appear to me as natural earthy tone that still need developed further. A bottle of this is going into my cellar not to opened prior to 2012, maybe then it will be what I want to be... or not. Promising like a blue chip prospect, the jury is still out.

Bomber. Pours a mostly clear amber brown with a frothy fizzy head. Aroma is tons of caramel sweetness, earthy, hair, leather, oak, bourbon barrel, and some metallic hint with light herbal notes. Flavor is bourbon, oak, candy sugar sweetness, honey, toffee, toast, light burnt malts, ashy oak and old wood, and some astringency in the end with a light alcohol burn which comes from a thinning body in the end.

(22oz bottle) clear rich orange with a film and ring of white bubbles with nice lacing as well. Nose of bourbon, honey, more bourbon, caramel, and brown sugar. Taste of brown sugar, bourbon, alcohol, honey, fairly smooth, vanilla, chocolate, spicy and alcohol in the finish.

Bottle:   Deep caramel, a little muddy, moderate foamy head, off-white, fairly nice lacing.   Soft bourbon on the nose, a little fruity even, bready, sweet caramel, mild hopiness.   Smells inviting!   A bit more alcoholic than I expected, that and chocolate cherry covered like flavorings up front.   It really comes across as a rum of sorts, with chocolate and dark cherries.   Mild maltiness on the backside, smidgen of bourbon and woodiness.   Not bad, not a lot of depth and it does seem to end rather quickly.   Fairly clean.   Body and mouthfeel are moderate to full, seems pretty silky.   Warming after the finish.   Sweet caramel maltiness lingers, with some light alcohol.   Not as hot as the Cabernet bottle at least.   Thanks to lukin013 for the bottle!

22oz. Bottle: Aroma of malt, chocolate, caramel, slight dark ripe fruit, and a hint of oak. Poured deep amber/brown in color with a small, tan head that diminished but lasted throughout as a film on top of the beer, as well as around the edges. Very hazy. Barely sparkling. Good lacing. Flavor is light to medium sweet. Tastes of malt, slight Bourbon, slight vanilla, light oak, slight caramel, slight chocolate, and a hint of alcohol. Medium body. Slick, slightly viscous texture turns lightly dry. Soft to average carbonation. Malt, caramel, slight wood and light vanilla finish is dry. 10%ABV well hidden throughout.