Firestone Walker 11 (XI Quercus Alba)

Formerly brewed at Firestone Walker Brewing Co.
Style: American Strong Ale
Paso Robles, California USA

Bottle shared with Greg Clow, Hogtown Harry, Blankboy, and Jerc, courtesy of Harry. Wood, bourbon, smoke in nice aroma. Dark brown, small foamy head. Great taste - bourbon prominent, but not overwhelming, oaky sweet, well balanced. Nice long sweet linger with alcohol present. Really good.

(Bottle 65 cl) Courtesy of WeeHeavySD. Hazy amber golden with tiny impurities and a rough, off-white head. Aroma of bourbon, wood and burned caramel. Quite a rich body with roasted malt, wood, burned caramel, overripe fruit and vanilla. Has a distinct alcohol burn in the finish. 190608

Botte #5 at Papsoes blindtasting. Clæoudy red brown coloured with a medium sized off white head. Sweet aroma of bourbon whisky, caramel, dried fruits, wood and vanilla. Sweet flavour of dried fruits, caramel, liquorice, wood, vanilla and bourbon whisky with notes of alcohol. Warming alcoholic finish.

Bottle. Papsoes MadsBerg homecoming blindtasting, bottle #5. Pours hazy and golden amber to brown with a lacing off-white head. Chocolate and dry malt aroma. Flavour is medium dry malt and chocolate smooth. Mild whiskey malt flavour slowly increasing in intensity. Warming and smooth malt finish. Holds a mild bitterness and a dry malt flavour into the finish. Fruity and whiskey finish.

Clear mahogany red with little head. Strong oak aroma with leather, caramel malt and smoke. Crazy smooth palate with an extremely rich body. Complex flavors dominated by vanilla and oak but with toffee, citrus rind and malt playing second string. Though this ale wasn’t planned as such, the blended result is pretty nice.

Bottle. [After party @ Papsoe, thanks buddy] Mahogany dark color. Aroma of explosive bread and smooth toasted malt, mild dark fruity tone, hint of alcohol, almost port wine and very vinous. Over the palate came heavy and complex wood and vanilla like notes with some spicy notes as well. Full bodied with a soft carbonation and thick mild alcoholic texture. Heavy sweet flavor with good counter bitterness. Lingering bread and vinous like finish. Very nice! 8 / 3 / 8 / 4 / 16

2008-06-11. Very dark brown body with a small tan head dissipates. (3+) Modest bourbon and wood in the aroma, light alcohol, vanilla touches. (7+) Warming wood and alcohol in the through, woody vanilla, muted sweet malt base. (7+) Pretty good, and the barrel is not overbearing, but I did find it to be the dominant character on my palate. Nice, but fails to take it up a notch for me because of that. Bottle shared by HogTownHarry

Thanks to BigErn for cracking open this rare gem.
Pours brown in color with only a slight head at first. Smell is wonderful. You can definitely tell that the base majority of this beer is the imperial brown. Both in the smell and taste. Just the perfect amount of heaven hill barrel aging hits you in the taste. I don’t think the brown is a big enough beer to be able to holdup against the onslaught of stout, porter and infusion from the barrels that hits it. A little thin on the mouthfeel. I was really looking forward to this beer, and from what I read on the paper insert the brewer provides, sounded mouthwatering. But I have to say, this may be one of those beers that fails to live up to the hype/demand.