Captain Lawrence Smoke from the Oak (Bourbon Barrel)

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

Thanks to PUB’N for this one. The pour is turbid blackish merlotish colored with the deep ebony showing some signs of deep purple through light. The head is large, about 3-fingers worth of light brown foam. The aroma is gorgeous; a mix of scotchy caramelly malt, oaky bourbon, figgy brown sugary fruit, tart cherry hints, plus winey cabernet, plum, and blackberry notes. The aroma almost seemed to shift back and forth between vinous and spirity, and I inhaled for a long time. The rauchiness was not overpowering in the aroma, either, which portended the beauty of its integration once I took a sip. The flavor; my God, Bob Griese, let me tell ya’ ’bout the flavor. Initial fruity notes blast the palate, with blackberry, plummy, and merloty notes. Nanoseconds later the cascade of other flavors hits, figgy fruit, malt, mild and not overpowering oaky bourbon, and a well integrated rauchy element that is just smooth as silk and extremely seamless. If Aecht Schenkerla is the Mike Tyson of rauchbeers, then this one is Sugar Ray Leonard. As it warms up, it gets a bit more tart and Flemish soury, with the tart cherry, plum, blackberry, and vinous flavors coming out a bit more, and the oaky bourbon and rauchy flavors remain throughout, assertive yet nicely tucked away in the background, knowing they are there but willing to let the other flavors step up and have their day in the sun. This is truly one of the better beers I have yet quaffed, and an example of why I’ll be hunting beers until the day I’m pushing up daisies.

Bottle via trade, puzzl I’m guessing. Batch 1 bottle. Pours black with a big puffy tan/brown head. Nose is awesome, it has some vinous notes like the wine version. As well as a lot of nice bourbon and oak and sweetness. Damn awesome nose, with some reminiscent feelings of Angel’s shae as well. Taste is so damn interesting. This is a fantastic beer. Big vinious qualities, bourbon, oak, sweetness and a lot of character. This is a fantastic and damn interesting brew. Another winner from Captain Lawrence.

This has to be my favorite of the great SFTO series. A ton of oak, smoke (of course) and bourbon mix with some dark fruits and a cherry tartness. They are all great, this is my favorite.

Bottled. A black beer with a huge brown head. The aroma is sweet and acidic with notes of roasted malt, brettanomyces, alcohol, and wood as well as a light smoke note. The flavor is sweet and acidic with notes of roasted malt, citrus, and wood, as well as light notes of chocolate and alcohol, leading to a dry and tart finish. Thanks Papsoe for sharing.

Richmond "industry" gathering. Deep hazy borwn. Aroma smoke and surprisingly winey and vinuous. Flavor was layers of dark fruit, more wine notes, and faint smoke. Double checked, and this was the bourbon barrel, not wine, which was surprising with some of the notes detected. Really nice brew, and to me one of the highlights of the event.

In short: Unclassifiable woody (barrel), roasted. chocolaty, sour and somewhat funky beer. Smooth and highly complex. Unreal.
How: Bottle 750ml, batch 1, about 6 months old. HUGE thanks to Dave (dmac621) for this one.
The look: Very dark burgundy body with a large tan head with medium retention
In long: Lots and lots of barrel with some oak sourness. The roastiness blends in with the barrel for a roasted wood sensation. Lots of chocolate. And lets not forget the funkiness that approaches Brettanomyces. Fruity notes limited to a light plums and grapes presence. Finish has some ice-cream, more wood and ashes. Despite the wide flavour spectrum (funkiness, sourness, chocolate, wood, etc.) the beer is not intense at all and let itself drink like a session-beer. Soft body and soft carbonation. This stuff is way out there. At time it felt like a chocolaty Flemish Sour and at other times it felt as a Jolly Pumpkin Porter (which doesn’t exist). This thing is unreal. Any more “out there” and it would only be available exclusively in a parallel universe.

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.

Bottle from the brewery. 160 cases produced of this, which is quite impressive considering he still doesn’t have a bottling line. This beer is really, really good. I had a few samples from a couple different growlers at the brewery (not sure what they were filled from), and they were pretty good, but not amazing. Well, as I work my way through the bottle, the beer is really opening up and exhibiting some very impressive craftsmanship. I’ve had probably 20-30 bourbon aged stouts now, and very often, the bourbon will be overpowering; dominant; the beer itself will die. Even in big beers like BA Blackout, Heresy, and to a degree, BA Dark Lord. Such is not the case here. The barrel really marries to the beer, even at it’s modest 6.5%, and enriches it to a fantastic degree.

Aroma is a deep, luxurious bourbon vanilla, green grapes and red wine. Slightly peppery with a touch of brandy. Pour is perfect, pitch black with a lovely lightly burnt head. In the mouth there is such a huge depth of flavor to be found; fruity up front, with apple, grape, peach; bourbon in the middle -- here the barrel really makes its showing; and pure, rich stout flavors at the tail, finishing in delicate chocolately stoutness. Drinkability is extremely high. This just gets better and better as I drink it. A fantastic effort.