North Coast Old Stock Ale

It pours a beautiful deep red color. The faint aroma is of cherries, toffee and malt.Taste is spicy, bitter and sweet, and contains toffee, malt, cake dough and caramel. Alcohol shines through a bit in the finish. This is the way I want my barley wine! Not overly bitter and without the malty notes coming through, as in this years bigfoot. Since it’s already enjoyable fresh, I’d wager it’d be fantastic after a year or so in the cellar.

2008 vint. Whew one whiff of booze a tiny taste and frown later and handed to the wife....who loved and ranked and bought more

2009 version. Red tinged coppery brown. White head that fell pretty quick and some visible carbonation. Aroma is rich and full of caramel, molasses, vanilla, some wood and earthiness. The taste is also fruity in a prune and raisin kind of way, and has a lot of alcohol on the finish that lingers into sweetness again.

Pours a dark, cloudy chestnut brown color with a thin beige head. Sweet and malty alcohol aroma with hints of vanilla, oak, butterscotch, caramel and whiskey. Flavor is similar aroma with a nice malt backbone that balances out thee strong, sweet alcohol presence. Yeast/ bread notes with hints of butterscotch and vanilla with a nice alcohol warmth in the finish.

a side by side with 2 bottles - a 2007 and a 2009. The 2007 was murkier and had a much more potent alcohol aroma. The 2009 seemed hoppier and more carbonated. Both had a strong alcohol, dark fruit, caramel and sugary aroma. The taste included the differences already listed 񢉙 hoppier - 2007 less carbonation - more alcohol taste) but the similarities included a biscuity taste along with raisin, sugar, caramel, vanilla and a bourbon like finish. Both years were solid and very enjoyable. I look forward to trying the other 2009s I have stored in a year or two.

This is good stuff, but will obviously be enjoyed more after some time. I just did a side by side of 2007 and 2008, and even the 2007 tasted a bit young, though the 2008 had a better hop flavor and presence (go figure).

2009... I feel that this beer is actually ready now. I felt it was mellow and not hot on the end at all Smells of malt, sugar, plums, oak, vanilla and carmel. Pours a reddish brown with some head. Fantastic balance and carbonation with a very smooth and pleasant finish. Flavor was intense but mellow at the same time. Some stone fruit tone, plum and raisin, brown sugar some oak and vanilla going on here.. Nice Brew.. I had 2008 and 2007 but never rated them...

’06 version, on tap at Blue Palms Anniversary. Pours burnt orange-brown with a slight head. Aroma is sugary, caramel, strawberry-peach, with mature notes of peat and booze. Flavor is sweet, balancing dried fruits (peach, apricot), with wood, toffee, and nuts. Palate is very pleasant, smooth, medium-thick with soft carbonation. This is an easy beer to drink, and there is certainly a lot going on here. As a finished my 5oz, I kept getting different flavors upfront, leading to a satisfyingly confusing verdict that left me with the impression of wood, berries, and caramel. Very good.