BridgePort Bourbon Barrel Old Knucklehead

Brewed by BridgePort Brewing (Gambrinus Company)
Style: Barley Wine
Portland, Oregon USA

22oz bottle. Poured a deeper amberish / brown color with an averaged sized off white head. Aromas of wood, a little earthy, dark fruits, toffee, and some boubon. Tastes of boubon, vanilla, caramel, dark fruits, and oaky woodiness. Light alcohol in the finish. Its not an ’in your face’ barley wine or barrel aged beers, but it is quite drinkable and I did enjoy it.

Pours a transparent copper amber with a small froth of off-white head. Has a sweet toasty dark caramel nose with some oaky bourbon and light fruits. Starts with good fullness and some toasty sweet caramel malt with a decent fresh grapefruity hop balance with some soft oaky bourbon and black cherry notes before a drier bittersweet finish. A pretty good bourbon aged barleywine.

Bottle thanks to wikedpedia. Highly viscous dark burgundy red colored body, thick flowing and slow moving. Bit of a transparent nose, honestly not much going on other than some weak scented bourbon and sherry, some sweetish malts, some airy, dusty, dry (maybe ashy) toasted malt. Bourbon character is minimal. Flavor is pale, mild, a little prickly, some alcohol apparency, some sticky fruit and nearly hot alcohol, the bourbon is not very well developed. I’m not sure what to think.

Bottle: Ruby color, light head and lacing. Nose of baby wipes, citrus, oak and more baby wipes. Gross. The citrus gives it a healthy pH level so at least it "feels" safe. The flavor is sharp like cough syrup. Weird cranberry and sweet malts; Christmas fruits and spices mulled in a bad place. VERY medicinal. Awful. Like salty ice cream.

Bottle. Pours a clear amber color with a small off-white head Has a sweetish malty slightly hoppy aroma wit hsome hints of bourbon and caramel. Fruity malty caramel and vanilla flavor with some oaky hints and also some hoppy bitter hints. Has a sweetish malty caramel and vanilla finish with some hoppy hints in the aftertaste.

Had this bomber for a year or so. Dark red tinged amber color with a high beige head. Aroma of dark malts. Possibly a touch of tobacco. Medium plus body with creamy/fizzy carbonation. Flavor is dark malt, arguably bourbon, and some astringency that might be wood. Rather warming. Finishes with more of a bourbon character and actually seems dry - though that may be comparison with the beginning. I say it’s underrated, but maybe sitting around awhile improves it.

Bottle provided by kp for his cellar party: Reddish hued with a small head and good lace. Resiny, grapefruit, dill, spice, grassy hop, toffee, and musty grains on the nose. The taste is equally underwhelming with sweet fruits and dark malts with some hop spice and wood on the finish. There is a strange astringent nature about this beer which I found unwelcoming. The mouth feel is sprite and sharp, aggressive medium-bodied beer.

WHAT BOURBON??? Seems too young and brash. Utterly disappointing for now and not sure aging will help at all.

#19 beer on a 28 beer blind BW tasting. Poured a clear gold color with a small white head. Earthy hop aroma that actually smells like a lager. Some notes of sulphur and toasted malt. Malty and toasty flavor. Warming and semi-sweet.