Captain Lawrence Smoke from the Oak (Bourbon Barrel)

Brewed by Captain Lawrence Brewing Company
Style: Porter
Pleasantville, New York USA

Bottle supplied by eaglefan, thanks Brian! Large tan head, fair retention with minimal laceing. Dark brown color with some red edging, better clarity than the Rum barrel version i supplied. Nose is mostly whisky with notes of wood, light dark fruits, light earthiness, medium sweet malts, sorta Dubbelish. Body is med/light, prickly carbonation, lightly oily. Bourbon flavors are prominant,, backed by a light woodyness, chocolate, roast and a light smokeyness. Not sure about any bretty notes but their is something a little funky about it. Dry, whiskyish finish. The carbonation levels on these brews seem to be the biggest detractor, for me anyway, otherwise we have some interesting brews here. Thanks to Brian for sharing. Thanks to jjpm74 for making this fun Capt. Larry event possible. Thanks John, You rock bro!

Batch 1 bottle from jjpm74. Pour was well-carbonated (not a gusher, though, like Slob’s bottle of the rum version), full brown color, nice tan colored well-sustaining head, especially for a barrell aged beer. The aroma was light chocolate, some fruitiness, oak, bret (must be how they got the carbonation?), bourbon, chainsaw dust (short of ashy, but that fresh chainsaw smoke was there). Flavor followed suit, really enjoyable, not sticky or thick or anything, envigorating carbonation, I was loving the brett-like character immensely, almost like my favorite orval had a presence somewhere in this thing, light raisin notes coming out with higher temperature. Only knock on this beer was that the porter elements seemed fairly faint (too complex overall to call watery, but...), would have been nice for more malts and porter to come through, although I was very pleased that the bourbon notes didn’t overrun the beer or make it sticky! Wow, what a wonderful surprise of a beer, totally fun to do, especially side by side the rum version. Thanks so much, John!

Dark brown with small mocha-like head. Pretty nice lace. Nose has a lot of oak, some char, smooth bourbon. Flavor is more wood, a little smoke, sweet bourbon. Thinner mouthfeel than expected. Pretty good.

thanks nhorween. bottle. light bodied pour, looks like a dark almond mochiatto mastacino cherry pepper extravaganza. smells like oaked wood. what’s the point of rating this stuff. it smells like it’s supposed to. it tastes the same way. a bit thin, but really really balanced. i’m pretty happy with it. 6.4% is pretty weak though

Bottle, 750, Batch #1. Dark brown/black opaque pour with an oily head. Coffee, stone fruit, definite woodiness and some bourbon - caramel and vanilla show through. Flavor is not conventional - bourbon throughout, but doesn’t overwhelm. Really very smooth. Subtle , other than the alcohol in the finish. Orangey type finish. Acidity in the finish. The bitterness stays with you, nice.

Logan’s pre-GABF 2007 party. Head is mostly diminishing. Body is dark brown to black. Aroma is lightly to moderately malty (roasted grain, molasses), with notes of wood, cherry, and cardboard. Flavor is moderately sweet, lightly to moderately acidic, lightly bitter. Finish is lightly to moderately sweet, lightly to moderately acidic, moderately bitter. Medium body, velvety texture, soft carbonation. Not the most elegant oxidation and kind of simple, but otherwise reasonably enjoyable. Surprisingly little bourbon character.

From a 750mL Bottle, Batch 1. Generously shared by goldtwins. Pours a dark brown color with cocoa hues and a thick layer of tan, fizzy foam. Some tart, vinous notes noticeable in the aroma instantly, along with some smokey, earthy coffee and caramelly bourbon. Smells a bit hot. Medium bodied, softly carbonated mouthfeel. Starts out with some vinous chocolate characters, slightly tannic, and then transitions to more smokey grape. Some dry oak comes through in the finish, along with more tannic red grape. Not much bourbon. Flavors are pretty good, but like jimmack mentioned, I didn’t find a whole lot of bourbon and actually found this to be more like a slightly lesser version of the wine barrel. Thanks for sharing, Larry!

750 ml bottle. Batch #1. Pours nearly black with a moderate, creamy light tan head with a few large bubbles pushing through. The head almost looks like when I am proofing yeast to bake bread. The head lasted to the bottom of the glass and left nice lacing all the way down as well. Very nice aroma of light smoke, oak, bourbon, vanilla and caramel. The flavor really followed the aroma with lots of bourbon, caramel, oak, vanilla and just a bit of smoke. Absolutely delicious. Warming alcohol presence at the finish; I would have guessed the abv was a good bit higher than 6.4%, but it in no way interfered with the flavor or enjoyment of this beer. An absolute gem.