North Coast Old Stock Ale

Carmelly orange color with a small whitish head. Aroma shows a lot of alcohol with some very sweet, fruity notes and a bit of floral hops. Lots of sour orange juice flavor mixed with alcohol with hops present mainly in the finish. Syrupy but a little thin on the palate.

The aroma on this is amazing, like a sweet wine, fruity, with noticeable alcohol. Appearance is very hazy, and brown/red, also closer to a port wine than a beer. Taste is sweet, with just barely enough hops to make their presence known. Nice smooth finish, a little sweet, and a pleasing alcohol burn. Mouthfeel is a little on the thick and oily side. Very enjoyable barley wine, one of the best.

Pours clear mahogany with a medium smallish head. No lacing. Aroma of booze and figs. Flavor is sweet, but not cloying. Malt profile is a real treat with some dried fruit and candy flavors. Could use maybe a touch more hop bitterness, but I give it a couple extra points for the amazing ABV burn it leaves down the back of the throat. Very nice! It will be interesting to see how this one ages.

Sampled from 2004 edition...WOW!! This has a kick and a half! Smells like sherry when you pour, lots of sweet aromas....cloudy brown color, no real head or lacing, this a nightcap brew if there ever was one, and is made to be layed down!!!

2006 Vintage. Pours a dark brown/caramel with a thin swirly head that quickly dissipates into nothingness. the aroma is extremely rich and appealing. Hints of raisins, caramel and barley. The taste is very grape-like and indeed reminds me of a port wine or a sherry. Definitely packs a whallop at 13.25 ABV but that alcohol content is hidden very well by the complex aromas and flavors.

2007 vintage. Pours a murky off-gold with slight lacing, no real head. The problem I’ve had with Old Stock in the past is the alcohol is always right up front through every stage. While there’s some nice caramel and bready malts, and some tangy hops in the background, the alcohol tends to dominate every step. Maybe a couple of years aging will really help mellow things out.

300 ml bottle, 2007 vintage - clear brown with no head upon pouring; sweet aromas with obvious signs of the high alcohol content; first taste is a little bitter with a decent hop kick

Updated rating 7/15/09 - At a tasting a few months back, we had an ’01, ’05 (reg) , ’06 and ’08 along with the ’05 brandy and bourbon versions; i’d have to admit that I was shocked by the older vintages; old stock is a top notch BW that ages wonderfully; the ’01 had a touch of smoke and was easily my fav vintage followed closely by the ’05 (reg); cherry, apples, toffee, musky and just wonderfully; a highly rated, but underrated BW; rating increased from 3.7 to 4.1

350 ml bottle from Bevmo. Hazy deep brown with no head. Caramel, toffe, and alcohol aroma. Initially sweet malty taste of caramel, toffee, and chocolate, with a slightly pungent citrus character, and an alcoholic finish with fig notes.