Innis & Gunn Limited Edition Oak Aged Beer (Bottle)

Package: 330ml embossed bottle in a spiffy royal blue presentation box. Appearance: The pour puts a luxurious glowing ruby-orange ale in the glass with a sticky frothy 2 finger off white cap which lasts well and laces. Aroma: Wonderful nose to this one: Roasted cocoa from the dark malts some vanilla from the oak casks some floral and citrus zip from the hops..deeeelish! Character: Adequate malt spine, silken mouth feel, mellow oaky-chocolate charater. Flavor profile In the front you get massive doses of malt joined immediately with the vanilla tastes the oak inparts then a flood of Slovenian hops washes a zesty floral-lemmon decenment across the tongue...mid palate these tastes develop/mingle/mutate...you get whisps of smoke, coffee, cocoa, raisin bread, sharper tones like metal, lime peel, herbs. Then the long wet finish highlights the rich malts giving way to the hops like biting into a fresh biscuit pastry with an orange center and the orange gradually gets stronger and more tart. Some warming from the alcohol and the whole experience leaves you satisfied and comfortable. Impression If the beer has a fault it is that it is so rich you just can’t see slamming back 3 or 4 of these so I adjusted the drinkability rating accordingly...it is still one of the mellowest, rounded beers I have ever tasted but its just so damn rich that you would rather savor than imbibe. A great offering. Barrel aged beers rule!

dark ruby read with a light tan head. Sharpness in the nose that mellows the more you inhale. Spiced alcoholic mix with wood. The aromas come across in the flavours... very mellow. Fizzy in the mouth. Subtle bitters on the back of the tounge.

Bottle, from Waitrose. Copper bronze, good lasting dirty white fluffy head and moderate condition. Gentle woody smokiness in the nose with a gentle maltiness and a slight orangy citrus note, soft and sweet in the mouth with a slight tangy fruitiness some vanilla and caramel and more oak notes, sweetness remains in the finish with a little caramel and vanilla and a slight tanginess lingering.

Points for effort, but this is a kaibosh of ideas really. This I&G is good but a bit less meaty than say Fuller’s Vintage ’60 - it is lighter and more sour and has plenty of scotch-like oak aromas which I don’t really care about either way. I’d like more body, spice and a finer aroma - this has a kind of morning--pajamas aroma to it, which is evident in cheaper oaked red wines. Drink moderately chilled to reduce this flaw (maybe it’s just me.) Wasn’t as offputting the next time I tried it - a little cooler.

Pours a great head, bourbon colour and aroma, lace in glass, with a hint of open fermentation and vanilla. Taste is smooth with bourbon, wine, sherry, woody, a fine achievement.Great carbonation and drinkability. Bigger buzz alcohol, this is a 7.2% clearly marked on bottle

Bottle from LCBO. Clear dark copper with a medium white head. Aroma is caramel, wood, vanilla, lemon, hops, cookie dough and earthy notes. Alcohol is more present in the flavor than in the aroma, same thing for the oak. Body is a little too thin.

Drank in a trappist glass. Clear dark copper poor with little head. Aromas of lemon, oranges, vanilla, acohol, pepper, creamy caramel and cookie dough. Zesty tangy feel to it and you can definitely smell and taste the oak aging. Vinous taste to it. Very lightly bitter. All the aromas come back to the flavors and palate and smacks you right in the face.

<!-- i -->this is my beer #4000, so I will be egoistic and raise my glass to my 19 years of beerhunting !<!-- /i --> - it pours a clear ruby-amber colour under a rare and unregular foam; a beautiful, powerful and at the same time subtle, floral hoppy nose where notes of cognac and red fruits can be met; a bit toasty; slightly oily and with a good malt body, robust bitterness and a long hoppy, yeasty and fruity finish with a warming alcohol touch - complex and dangerously drinkable; thanks to fiulijn for this bottle !