Oskar Blues Ten FIDY (Whiskey Barrel)

Sampled ’08 BSAF. Beer is very dark brown, very nearly opaque. Head is huge, light brown, creamy, diminishing but mostly lasting.<P>The aroma is malty with moderate/heavy notes of cookie, chocolate, roasted grain, coffee, light note of sweet molasses; Hoppy with light notes of resin/pine, grassy herb; Yeasty with a light note of basement; Light/moderate notes of bourbon, light notes of vanilla, coconut and under-ripe banana. Smells of molten chocolate cake.<P>The flavor is heavily sweet, moderate acidic with a long, lightly acidic, moderately sweet, lightly bitter finish.<P>The body is full, the texture is velvety and the carbonation is average.<P>Big, rich dessert of a beer.

Draft: Jet black. Frothy burnt mocha head. Ink, overripe plums, espresso, scorched sawdust, plastic, soy sauce and molasses comprise the unrefined nose. Velvety-soft on the palate. Slick and oily. Fudgelike viscosity collides with gritty char, cocoa and rich espresso. Immense depth as smoky roast and prickly tannins nestle snugly into the palate. Barrel yields a touch of toasted coconut. Loses definition toward the center as it becomes syrupy, limp and alcoholic. Slick twang of molasses, soy sauce and overripe plums compounds this and keep the malts from adhering to the palate. Whispers of smoke fail to overcome the overly slippery, excessive fruitiness. Hint of plastic further tarnishes all luster that might otherwise exude. Finishes with dusty oak and oodles of char and smoky roast with a lingering ashen dryness. Because the cans of Ten FIDY highly vary in quality, I’ll assume this was a lackluster batch. While drinkable, I find it to be disappointingly sloppy and alcoholic. Gotta love the appearance, though!

Draught at the 6th Boulder Strong Ale Festival. Pours opaque with an average, fizzy, dark brown head, somewhat lasting with fair lacing. Aroma is heavy malt (molasses, chocolate, coffee), average hops (perfume), average yeast (leather) with notes of alcohol, prune, and date. Full bodied, creamy texture, average carbonation, and a bitter finish. Long duration, moderate sweetness and bitterness, light acidity.

On tap. Poured the same thick, viscous black as ever witha thick, deep brown head that remained quite well. Aroma was similar to regular Ten Fidy, strong roasted malts, chocolate, some coffee, with a hint of spicy bourbon. Flavor was also similar, strong roasted malts with chocolate and coffee, and bit of oat smoothness, finishing with some vanilla and lightly spicy bourbon. Very good, but not much different than regular Ten Fidy (at least the batch I had). Still, try it if you can.

On Tap @ Chandler Whole Foods....... OH HELL YES!! Pours a deep dark sludgy black with a really huge creamy brown head. Aroma of Ten-Fidy but with a nice Whiskey aroma. Flavor of oak, chocolate, vanilla, whiskey, roasted malts, coffee. The mouthfeel is really nice on this one and a bit creamier than regular Ten Fidy. The The whiskey flavor is much more well balanced with this beer compared to some other barrel aged brews i’ve recently had. Wow, an amazing brew became even more amazing.