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Indian Wells Whiskey Barrel Amber Lager


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RATINGS: 6   MEAN: 2.9/5.0   WEIGHTED AVG: 2.82   EST. CALORIES: 360   ABV: 12%
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COMMERCIAL DESCRIPTION
As a young boy in the 1940’s, Cliff Fyffe used to Comtemplate the old, broken whiskey barrels in the Evan Williams Distillery Yard. He noticed the barrels were sweating out the aged Kentucky whiskey in the summer heat. The whiskey would pool in the barrels in amazing quantity. Cliff shared this memory with the Indian Wells Brewing Co. founders, Rick and Greg, who suddenly had an inspiriation! They reached out and contaced Evan Williams Distillery directly and ordered a dozen, 55 gallon, used oak barrels that had held their flagship whiskey for two years. Indian Wells Brewing Co. then left these barrels in the direct Mojave Desert sun until the whiskey sweated out. When the barrels were ready, they brewed a special ’amber’ style lager by using their own natural artesian spring water, filling the whiskey barrels and allowing them to lager down to 34-degrees for months. The beer in this custom designed 1/2 gallon growler is the result; our own delicious whiskey barrel aged amber lager. It pairs well with BBQ and is just great for sipping. We hope you enjoy drinking it as much as we enjoyed making it. Cheers, Rick and Greg


2.5
   AROMA 5/10   APPEARANCE 2/5   TASTE 5/10   PALATE 2/5   OVERALL 11/20
Ibrew2or3 (4985) - Phoenix, Arizona, USA - NOV 1, 2011
Big thanks to cbkschubert for taking one for the team and getting this thing. Thanks again Craig. Growler that is nearly 60oz too big pours out sort of brown with copper hues and virtually no head to speak of (so I won’t). The aroma is just bowl you over straight up booze with a combination of harsh whiskey and nose searing heat. The taste is similar as it basically only offers up various whiskey booze notes ranging from sweet candy like whiskey to harsh ‘out of a 99¢ 1 liter plastic jug’ whiskey. It goes downhill from there as you dare to consume more. So when you’re ‘spit balling’ about what beer to make next how did it end up being an amber lager into a barrel? It would be interesting if a style was picked that could stand up to this much barrel time and create a small semblance of balance.

4.3
   AROMA 8/10   APPEARANCE 4/5   TASTE 9/10   PALATE 4/5   OVERALL 18/20
dwyerpg (3577) - Las Vegas, Nevada, USA - SEP 21, 2011
Way better than I expected. This was pretty smooth and creamy yet full of whiskey notes both in aroma and flavor. Was quite a hit at my 30th b-day party.

2.9
   AROMA 6/10   APPEARANCE 3/5   TASTE 6/10   PALATE 2/5   OVERALL 12/20
cbkschubert (2752) - Cochise Co., Arizona, USA - SEP 10, 2011
Wax sealed growler from Total Wine - Pours a clear deep amber color with basically no head or lacing. Very light carbonation. Aroma and flavor was whiskey. That’s it. Finish was whiskey. Medium body. What possesed Indian Wells to bottle this in growlers ($20)? What an exspensive learning experence.

1.5
   AROMA 4/10   APPEARANCE 2/5   TASTE 2/10   PALATE 2/5   OVERALL 5/20
BOLTZ7555 (2017) - Phoenix, Arizona, USA - AUG 20, 2011
Man, was this stuff God-awful! Light crimson/tangerine pour with a small fizzy white head that melts in seconds. Aroma is faint barrel, whiskey, and dull malt. Flavor is again subtle whiskey, vanilla and malt. Has that strange amber aftertaste of off-caramel/toffee/yuck that some brews in the style have. Watery. Poured the entire growler after only a few tastes...don’t bother!

3.3
   AROMA 6/10   APPEARANCE 3/5   TASTE 7/10   PALATE 3/5   OVERALL 14/20
daknole (5865) - Scottsdale, Arizona, USA - AUG 13, 2011
Gold pour. Just a whiskey and water. But I love whiskey and it’s a good thing.

2.9
   AROMA 7/10   APPEARANCE 3/5   TASTE 6/10   PALATE 2/5   OVERALL 11/20
dcschiller (1682) - Scottsdale, Arizona, USA - JUL 4, 2011
(wax-capped growler from Total Wine Tempe). Yep, I bought the bullet on this one. Pours a ruby color with tan head. No carbonation or lacing. Aroma has some decent bourbon notes along with a bit of fruit. Taste is sweet malt with some light bourbon and a hint of bitterness. Thin bodied with an alcohol bite, although fairly well hidden for a 12% amber. Has a weird aftertaste. This was better than I thought, but it became a chore to drink it as time passed. Not sure why they used an amber for the base beer?


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