Arcadia Bourbon Barrel Shipwreck Porter

Brewed by Arcadia Brewing Company
Style: Imperial/Strong Porter
Battle Creek, Michigan USA

Bottle. Medium tan head that was semi-fizzy and mostly lasting, minimal lacing, no visible carbonation, opaque, and a dark brown-black hue. Nose was bourbon, vinuous, vanilla, chocolate, and wood. Flavor was vinuous, bourbon, somewhat thick, vanilla, roasty, some chocolate and a bit of dark fruits. Nicely done. Tingly mouthfeel. Medium body. Definitely worth a try if one comes your way.

Dark brown, with a light brown head. Aromas are bourbon, along with soime chocolate, dark fruit, and vanilla. Flavors are boutbon, vanilla, dark fruit, chocolate, and coffee. Thanks to OhioDad for this bottle.

Very well done porter, although it was incredibly smokey. A little sharper than i thought it would be for being barrel aged.

Unpolished black with barely a brownness peeking at the bottom. Small tanned, evenly foamy top. Collar stays thin and tight with a broken skim once the top creeps away. Not much lacing, a bit of low ended sheeting and skragly, boney fingered strings. Aroma is deeply whiskey-fied with modest maple and vanilla sweetness hovering with very light roasted chocolate. Perhaps a bit understated and uncomplexing, but man do I like it. Same goes for the taste. Deeply whiskey toned and warming with a nice inlay of vanilla tossed in. Dark and deceptive. Intriguingly layered in depth with the whiskey; first the vanilla, very open and soaking, then some maple, a thin peel of sweet banana, and ends with a puff of chocolate resonating under the heat late after the finish. A nice little roasty effect is also evident as it begins to peak interest, but the chocolate puff and fluff is the mainstay once the warming begin to set in. A tender pull of dark vanilla sweetness is left soaking into the cheeks as the warmth sits firmly in the throat, belly, and mind. Quite nice. Feel is left with a middle grounding of mediumish body, leaving the warmth do alot of the work and not so much the body or flavor. Perhaps a tad to whiskey-like. The front is the most empty, gains then fades, then gains again, and as already stated, mostly in warmth and not so much in thickness.But all the flavors inside the warmth do keep it interesting enough to persue more sippage. And that is what you’ll do with this big warming brew, sip and sip and sip, through and through and through. Quite nice overall really. Impressionable, yes, but could use more stature and thickness compared to other, more complexing Porters. Whiskey Oak-aged or not. Still...a very solid Porter worth checking out.

Bottle. Nearly opaque body with a thin ring of bubbles. Nose-smells sour like a Flemish sour with hints of cherry. Taste-light butter, strawberry, high CO2, woody, caramel, cola, and sawdust. Good porter base with a medium amount of barrel aged flavors. Has a raw edge for a barrel aged beer. Has a prune like sweetness as it warms that is enjoyable. Slight metallic aftertaste.

Bottle: Clear dark brown with a full persistant tan head, sweet whiskey aroma, full bodied with a sticky mouthfeel, starts sweet and ends very sweet. A bit too sweet if you ask me.

22oz bottle acquired in trades with OhioDad & Styles (thanks!). This one was a gusher - poured all over my bar and left a nice trail all the way to the bathroom sink. Why do the majority of Arcadia beers do this (and why don’t I remember that until too late!). Poured a dark, dark brown with a large sized off white head. Aromas of wood, vanilla, anise, and bourbon. Tastes of ligher wood, vanilla, brown sugar, roast, and light chocolate. For some reason, both the aromas and tastes reminded me a little of root beer.

Thanks to hopdog. Pours a hazy brown amber with a bubbly/foamy tan lacing head. This one was a gusher. Aroma of chocolate, vanilla, light coffee, dark fruits and a lighlty woody. Flavor of coffee grinds, dark chocolate and cocoa powder, light bitterness and a roastiness that lingers.