Revolution Ryeway to Heaven 2017

Brewed By: Revolution Brewing Company in Chicago, IL

Purchased: 12oz CAN from a 4-pack bought at Revolution Brewing Tap Room in Chicago, IL; 2017

Style/ABV: American Barrel-Aged Rye Ale, 13.0%

Reported IBUs: 20

Every now and then a beer comes along that is one-dimensional in its execution but basically drops a bomb on the style. This is that beer. Prepare your insulin. Prepare your anus. Ryeway to Heaven is "Brewed with over 60% rye, this limited production rye ale has a seductively ample body which suggests sweetness while retaining a dry finish. Aged 12 months in American Rye Whiskey barrels, this “Ryewine” as we call it, is wholly unique in its malt and barrel-derived complexities."

Ryeway pours into a distinctly worn, amber-red body, kicking up a finger of tan head. This was pretty lively when I cracked the can, which is not a bad thing by any means.

Revolution Ryeway to Heaven 2017

The aroma on this beer is just...ridiculous. You get big barrel up front which adds burnt sugars, oak, vanilla, and caramel. There is a distinct maple syrup and marshmallow scent, with rye, honey, Graham cracker, and pecans. It's not unlike smelling creme brulee, but with a kiss of alcohol. I'm reminded of pecan pie and Baklava as well. There are also fruity notes, with some cherries dancing around in the mix.

On the taste: straight away you notice the T H I C C and huge mouthfeel. The taste boldly mirrors the nose, with marshmallow and maple leading the way as the main characters. Hints of pecan pie, creme brulee, and Baklava dance with alcohol and bourbon, vanilla, oak, light char, caramelized sugars, and Graham cracker. There is some honey sweetness and a dash of rye spice to round everything out.

This is a full-bodied, beautiful sipping beer. Palate depth and duration are both very high. This is complex insofar that it has great depth for what it is, which is an over-the-top "rye wine" aged in rye whiskey barrels. On the beer spectrum this is firmly in the realm of sweet, sugary, and boozy. Still, there are layers of goodness here, with marshmallow and maple up front; the mids roll into all those beautiful barrel/char/oak/burnt sugar flavors; the back end drops cherries and alcohol, and lots of rye spice. The reminders of various pastry desserts are present throughout.

Rating: Decent Divine Brew (4.75/5.0 Untappd)

Ryeway is a baller sipping beer...it's basically liquefied pastries in a can. No complaints from me. Hopefully next year RevBrew makes more of it.

Random Thought: Now I'm tasting some good Baklava...mmm...Baklava

Revolution Mineshaft Gap 2018

Brewed By: Revolution Brewing Company in Chicago, IL

Purchased: 12oz CAN from a 4-pack bought at Revolution Brewing Tap Room in Chicago, IL; 2018

Style/ABV: American Barrel-Aged Barleywine, 14.3%

Reported IBUs: 55

Oh baby, I am excited for tonight's brew. Revolution's Mineshaft Gap is part of their Straight Jacket release, and puts a cognac twist on their Barleywine. Per Rev: "Our Institutionalized Barleywine takes shelter in Cognac barrels for 12 months before emerging imbued with characteristics of one of the worlds most storied spirits. French oak adds character that is subdued but complex as compared to American varieties, making this a perfect beer for the best of times or the end of times."

This might be the "headiest" of the Revolution barrel-aged brews, pouring with a couple fingers of relatively long-lasting, amber/caramel-tinged head. The body of this beer is a beautiful ruby red, and there is a nice ring of lacing sustaining in my glass.

So full disclaimer...I am not a cognac guy. I'm way out of my element on this. On the other hand, I have dabbled with some brandy here and there, so I'm not a complete stranger to the flavor. The aroma on this is bonkers though. Like, the aroma is crawling out of the glass. I can smell this four or five feet away. When I really get my nose into the beer I'm getting a lot of the base. There are big notes of licorice, Twizzlers, caramel sugars, cherries, and caramelized and candied oranges But "the twist" is that French oak. This lays up some vanilla on the nose, with a hefty amount of wood/barrel, and some nice spice. There's also an estery quality to the aroma that is reminiscent of a Belgian Quad. I'm wondering if that is courtesy of the yeast used, which is likely some English Barleywine yeast. You get some almost turbinado or Belgian Candi sugar. 

Holy fuck. This shit is INSANE. On my first sip I'm being drowned in thick caramel, French oak, cognac, and candy sugars. It is like Straight Jacket with Belgian-Candi-sugar-hugs and layers of French oak. And the body is thick and sticky. Oh baby. There are layers in here too. I'm pulling out cherries, Quad-like overripe stone fruit notes, estery yeast phenols, licorice/Twizzlers, layers of toffee and caramel sugar, and tons of vanilla and oak. The vanilla is accompanied by a light spice.

Revolution Mineshaft Gap 2018

What's incredible about this beer are two things: (1) the booze is held in check. I'm going to expand on this point in a minute, because I have heard a few people say this beer is hot (which it is). (2) the base beer remains present. I was kind of expecting the cognac treatment to thin this beer out. But NOPE. The base beer has held up like a champ here. This has all the candy sweetness and density you expect with Straight Jacket, but with that cognac twist.

There's alcohol here. Because cognac. And "duh." If you have never had brandy/cognac, this might not be the best beer to pop your cherry. It's boozy stuff. Brandy especially, and ESPECIALLY fruited (plum) brandy, is often alcohol-forward and not in that smooth-like-grain-alcohol-kind of way. It's like that first time you had barrel-proof bourbon. It's like the first time you ever took a shot of vodka.

Having said all that, this beer is not brandy. It's a fusion of beer aged in cognac barrels. And while you pick up plenty of the spirit, the beer itself is smooth. This is full-bodied, and it wears the 14.3% beautifully. It is right where you want it to be. The palate depth is medium-to-deep. This is very complex but within the confines of the medium. Palate duration is amazing though. Each sip is lingering for a few minutes. The progression is like [get your nose close to the glass and pick up a shit load of fruity cognac notes] up front tons of vanilla and base beer and candied cherries and oranges; the mids takes you to cognac land with more French vanilla showing up; the back end drops wood and caramel sugars, toffee, some spice, and finishes between sticky sweetness and candy fruits. There is lingering residual Belgian Candi sugar note.

Rating: Decent Divine Brew (5.0/5.0 Untappd)

Damn. I was not expecting to love this as much as I do. This is an instant buy for me moving forward. They had like four 4-pack limits on this. My regret is not maxing that limit. Still...I think this probably works as a very special occasion beer. I could even see myself throwing a cigar at this, although it also seems like a bit of waste when there is so much nuance here. For me, the real surprise is how prominent the oak and vanilla is. If you like vanilla and oak this beer is going to work for you. Revolution has absolutely dialed in their barrel game. Jeez.

Random Thought: So my guy, Josh Noel, and Chris Quinn (who I have the utmost respect for) dropped an article comparing Goose Island to Revolution. I'm more-or-less in agreement with them. I think regular Bourbon County overall is better than the regular Deth's Tar. So that's where I really diverge, I guess. I'm in agreement that Cafe Deth is better than Bourbon County Coffee 2017, but I also really liked the 2017 BCBS Coffee. Straight Jacket over the Bourbon County Barleywine is a no-brainer. I'm gonna have to pop my bottle of BCBS Reserve, but I kind of think DBVSOD might actually be better. I had Reserve at the brewpub on Black Friday and I thought it was amazing...but I also think DBVSOD is amazing. Comparing Northwoods to Deth By Cherries is just dumb and Noel should feel bad. Same deal with Prop vs. Ryeway. Ryeway is (by the way) blow-a-load-on-my-face good. But so is Prop. I'm not surprised Quinn isn't the biggest Prop fan. I think that speaks to the diverge in beer (at least for someone classically trained as a Ceasaroni) between appreciating nuance vs. appreciating pastry stouts in 2017. Comparing Rare '15 to VSOD is also dumb. '15 has had a lot of time to mature and age, and VSOD is inherently thinner. So I don't really get that comparison. 

I think the reality is it's not really productive to do these 1:1 comparisons because there is so much difference and nuance. So as always I appreciate the in-depth tasting notes, and the ranking thing is meh. The takeaway though is...2018 is a good year to be a craft beer fan in Chicago.

Destihl Dosvidanya Rye 2017

Brewed By: Destihl Restaurant and Brew Works in Normal/Bloomington, Illinois 
Purchased: 500ml (1 pint, .09oz bottle) bought at Destsihl in Bloomington, IL; 2017 (batch date: 2017)

Style/ABV: American Barrel-Aged Russian Imperial Stout, 12.5%
Reported IBUs: 84

Tonight's beer is part of the increasingly interesting Midwest portfolio of stellar BA stouts. I've been sleeping on this one for a few years, but the word really needs to get out. About Destihl: 

Destihl is a brewery (Bloomington) and brewpub (Normal, IL & Champaign, IL) based out of the Midwest. Specifically, the middle of Illinois in the middle of the United States. Daaaa midwest. The brewery was founded by CEO & Brewmaster, Matt Potts, in 2007. Like many brewery founders, Potts started out as a homebrewer, and would eventually trade his law school education and law practice for those sweet barley suds. Destihl currently brews a myriad of regular and barrel-aged beers, including an increasing portfolio of tasty sour brews. For more info, check out their website. 

So Dosvidanya is Distihl's big barrel-aged Russian Imperial Stout. It is clearly inspired by beers like Bourbon County Brand Stout, but has its own unique flavor profile. The Dosvidanya Rye is another wrinkle to the Dosvidanya lineup, featuring 2-row malt, chocolate malt, roasted barley, wheat, black malt, caramel malt 120, munich malt, victory malt, extra special malt, rice hulls, and of course rye whiskey barrels.

Destihl Dosvidanya Rye 2017

The appearance of this beer is dark, and it manages to produce Stormy Daniels amount of head. There's a fair amount of lacing, and I'm not just talking about her outfit. The legs are abundant, but what really works here is the beer's gentle demeanor. From the onset the bottle art conveys a sweet gentle tone, but lurking beneath is a brutalist concrete interior, hardened mentality, and cutthroat soldier. You have to be tough as nails to handle all four and a half eight inches of el presidente. Or whatever. 

I would say this is one of the more aromatically interesting stouts I've had in a while. The nose conveys rye, dark cherry notes, fudge, oak, chocolate, nice layers of wood, and some hints of coffee. Missing from the nose is overt raisin and whiskey tones, which you often find in these stouts. It's a welcomed change of pace.

The taste is a complex fusion of rye whiskey barrel, cherry-fudge, chocolate dipped cherries, layers of wood, almost-cherry-skin without any hint of sour, chocolate-forward coffee without any artificial or adjunct chocolate notes, gentle alcohol kisses, and a lot of complex caramel notes. It's a very constrained and mature interpretation of the style.

My untappy notes say: "Next best deviant after the og. Tons of chocolate, rye, coffee, licorice, vanilla, macaroon, wood, spice. 3d and complex like anal." I of course penned that slightly tipsy at Dosvidanya day. But to give credit to myself, I think that is mostly fair. I'm not getting quite as much vanilla or macaroon at the moment, but the licorice is a natural comp to the big cherry notes in this beer. This is full-bodied, complex stuff. It has good depth, complexity, and structure. The way this lingers on your palate reminds me of Deschutes' The Abyss. It kind of has a bitter, cherry-forward, caramel-driven finish with hints of rye. It doesn't finish overly sweet, and it leans away from the barrel/spirit sweetness and instead favors complexity and flavor. Again, this is a very mature stout. I'd say up front I'm getting chocolate, black cherries, chocolate-cherry-coffee; the mids drop rye and licorice and the viscosity picks up; the back end starts with aggressive layers of wood and barrel, and fade into lingering rye and cherries and caramel and dryness. 

Look...before I drop the score...this is riding the line between a strong above-average and light divine brew for me. I think there are a lot of amazing barrel-aged stouts presently available, and I would not hesitate to recommend this beer. BUT BUT BUT what makes this beer ESPECIALLY INTERESTING is the presence of the almost-jammy-but-not-at-all-sour fruity cherry notes. It's just a super unique, uncommon flavor not present in 99% of barrel-aged stouts. And that not only counts for something, but it makes this variant especially unique and interesting. I've emphasized on this blog before how I think review scores are basically bullshit and that people need to move in the direction of nuance with beer. There is nothing I've tasted quite like the Dosvidanya Rye 2017. It's almost flirting with something like Goose Island's Backyard Rye, only way more complex. And I really dig that. I'm curious to see how this ages, but as it stands on this present date: 

Rating: LIGHT LIGHT Divine Brew (4.5/5.0 Untappd) 

Random Thought: Destihl has figured out the stout game, but they are really lagging behind with cool glassware. As I am aware, there is no Dosvidanya glassware. And that is ridiculous considering they have made 'Dosvidanya Day' an event. ISO: kick ass Dosvidanya glassware.

2017 Goose Island Bourbon County Brand Coffee Stout - a divisive beer that reminds me of Prop '16

Brewed By: Goose Island Beer Company (owned by AB InBev) in Chicago, IL 

Purchased: 16.9oz bottle bought at Binny's in Chicago, IL; 2017

Style/ABV: Russian Imperial Stout, 12.9%

Reported IBUs:60

It's been a long time since I've featured Goose Island's Bourbon County Coffee Stout on this blog. I wanted to briefly throw out my thoughts on this year's vintage, because it seems to be pretty hit and miss with people.

So first and foremost, let's note that this year's BCBS coffee is brewed with Intelligentsia Black Cat Espresso. Every year Goose uses a different coffee blend:

The pro and con of using a different coffee blend every year is that you get some very different tasting vintages. I seem to recall the 2015 coffee having more citrusy notes. I think a lot of people really cling to the 2012 and 2014 vintages. And yeah, just every year you get a slightly different beer because the coffee is different.

So here's the deal with the 2017 vintage...aside from pouring out and looking like BCBS (nothing new here), the aroma on this beer is a blend of velvety smooth Mexican chocolate, bourbon, raisins, vanilla, and ash. 

And that really carries through in the taste. This is an EARTHY and ASHY beer. I'm guessing a lot of that is due to the blend of coffee they used. There's almost a level of spice and heat present in the beer. Like, I'm tasting super earthy Mexican chocolate in this. And when you combine the hints of ash and heat with t

2017 Bourbon County Brand Coffee Stout

he slight alcohol burn inherent in this beer, it really feels like a Mexican stout. The spice flirts with cinnamon, and the base beer (BCBS Vintage 2017) is a chocolate bomb. It reminds me of the chocolate you might dip your churro in. A lot of people are reporting green peppers in this beer. I'm definitely getting some earthy, peppery notes, but it is more of a chili note. Maybe an Anaheim chili or a poblano note. Green pepper is a very distinct note in beer, typically associated with stale coffee. And that's really not what I'm getting here, but hey that is just my basic bitch palate. 

In terms of everything else....this is Bourbon County so you should know what to expect. There's the big base beer, which is assertive and sweet and bourbon-y. This year's vintage is all about the chocolate right now. So there's a prominent chocolate presence over-the-top. For whatever reason, the BCBS Coffee 2017 is a little thinner than the other variants. I'm guessing that is due to the blend of cold pressed coffee. It also has a slightly lower ABV than the base. It's still medium-to-full-bodied with good complexity and depth. And overall, this really unfolds in waves with lots of chocolate and ash up front; spice and peppery heat and alcohol and barrel in the mids; the lingering finish is smokey. It's basically like they accidentally brewed Prop 16. Again.

Rating: DECENT Above-Average (4.5/5.0 Untappd)  

Full disclaimer: I'm one of the fucking weirdos that LOOOVVESS Prop '16. If you found Prop '16 off-putting and/or disgusting, you will hate this beer. If you hate peppery notes or ash notes in your beer, you will hate this beer. The ash notes definitely drift into that cigar-y, smoked tobacco, smoked cigarette realm. And that's not gonna work for a lot of people. For me, I could see myself pairing this beer with some grilled steaks or a cigar. Fajitas even. It's too bad this beer was so limited and unavailable, because I think it has serious food potential. But as it is now it's a super hard beer to acquire and will likely be opened at bottle shares and loved by some and totally shit on by others. So good job Goose Island, and also fuck you.

Random Thought: A cursory observation is we should commend Goose Island for taking risks with new coffee blends every year. And we should criticize Goose Island for making so little of the coffee that you have no real good way of getting enough of this stuff to do verticals or to pop these bottles liberally with food. I mean there was SOOOO much regular BCBS available this year....why not give the people what they want. Oh well.

Revolution Double Barrel V.S.O.D. 2017

Brewed By: Revolution Brewing Company in Chicago, IL
Purcased: 12oz CAN from a 4-pack bought at Revolution Brewing Tap Room in Chicago, IL; 2018 (filled 01-04-2018)
Style/ABV: American Barrel-Aged Oatmeal Stout, 17.0%
Reported IBUs: 27

So in some ways, tonight's beer is basically a copy and paste of last night's VSOD review. Except it really isn't. Because while VSOD was an exercise in how beer can be a vehicle for barrel character, DBVSOD -- IN SPITE -- of being more boozy and featuring more barrels (i.e. Woodford Reserve Double Oak and Whistle Pig 10 year Rye), is actually a return to beer-forward notes. 

Revolution Double Barrel V.S.O.D. 2017

Now I'll grant you the beer basically looks the same. "The beer produces a finger of brown head that fades into sweet nothings." It is dark, viscous, and Stout-y. And you really only catch glimpses of dark brown on the far edges of the beer when sticking it in bright light. [insert jokes about how this beer is dark like my soul or my preference in women or whatever]. 

The aroma is where things get really interesting. The beer is like a fusion of Deth's Tar and VSOD -- big anise notes, lots of the base beer, vanilla, wood, fudge, rye and wood spice, and maple on Eggo waffles. There's definitely some alcohol on the nose, which I'm frighteningly pretty immune/blunted to. There's also a good amount of caramel -- a note that is so common and taken for granted in beer you could easily miss.

This is aggressive on the palate, with an almost cola-esque quality up front as your palate gets walloped by 17% ABV, barrel tannins for days, and a fair amount of dark sugars. There's almost a Quad-like quality to the fruity aspects of this beer, with hints of cherries and raisins and overripe fruits. The palate duration which I'll talk about more in a second is off the charts, and the lingering profile in your mouth is blissful bourbon with rye-like notes, alcohol heat, wood, and grain. As the beer oxidizes a bit and warms up, the fudge, oak, coconut, and vanilla characters start to open up and pop. Oh, and there's a kiss of maple and Eggo waffles.

Obviously this is a sipper. This is a battered, worn-in beer. It's not T H I C C like some of those 10% pastry stouts, and I don't think it needs to be or wants to be. When you dial up a beer to 17% and barrel-age the bejesus out of it, you don't need it to be super thick. The slight thinning out of this beer is like the balding gym junkie who is pure testosterone, all muscle, and firing 8 hearty ropes. This plays off the barrel and the spirits, and so I'll accept that it is a heavy medium-full. Palate depth is in the land of sipping, as in you can take a sip of this, let it linger on your palate for 60 seconds, and go back for more. It's like the deep end of the pool at the YMCA. This is also super complex, which -- duh. The complexity is going to trip some people up and there will be detractors. This is not a beer to drink at any temperature below cellar and preferably room. This is not a beer to butt chug unless you're a masochist. This is a beer to pour in your glass and mull over for an hour or two. Because again, up front this is loaded with fruity notes, alcohol, rum, bourbon, and wood; the mids roll into anise and caramel and more overripe fruits; the back end is alcohol and rye and wood spice, with caramel and oak and vanilla and fudge coming along for the ride. 

Rating: Strong Divine Brew (5.0/5.0 Untappd)

This is like...the craziest shit Revolution has ever done, and worth every penny. Which isn't even that much at $35 for a 4-pack. Pound for pound this is up there with BCBS Rare '15 and Reserve, and it's cheaper and comes in a can. The downside is this was a very limited release, and the limit per person was two 4-packs. But...the good news is people are still trading this for absurdly below value. I don't think people quite comprehend what they have on their hands. I'll take all the Double Barrel VSOD. This is my Friday night beer. I love these big-ass, barrel-aged stouts I can sip on for an hour or two. Really awesome shit, and makes me really excited for what Revolution has in the works for their 2018 releases.

Random Thought: I should probably make my Superb Owl pick. As a lover of greatness, I am hoping the Pats win. As a realist, I think Philly has a really good chance. That Eagles team is stacked. Either way, both teams have hilarious and entertaining fan bases. Should be a hell of a Superb Owl.

Revolution V.S.O.D. (Very Special Old Deth) 2017

Brewed By: Revolution Brewing Company in Chicago, IL
Purcased: 12oz CAN from a 4-pack bought at Revolution Brewing Tap Room in Chicago, IL; 2017
Style/ABV: American Barrel-Aged Oatmeal Stout, 13.4%
Reported IBUs: 27

Shit is getting serious now. VSOD or "Very Special Old Deth" is Deth's Tar aged for two years in barrels. This one actually clocks in at a slightly lower ABV than Deth's Tar.

But man, the pour on this is battered and viscous. The beer produces a finger of brown head that fades into sweet nothings. The only thing keeping any carbonation on the beer's surface is my sweet Revolution glass's laser etching. 

The aroma here is absurd. Front and center is an absurd amount of barrel, oak, wood, and vanilla. It's that splintered barrel aroma that is in your face and aggressive and poignant. To me it is reminiscent of the Reserve Bourbon County from 2017. Once you muscle your way through the layers of barrel, the aroma opens up into chocolate and brownie and fudge. 

The taste of this beer is boozy bliss. Straight away I'm noting chocolate dipped raisins/Raisinetts spiked with massive amounts of bourbon and rum. The barrel and woody dryness meets the tongue next -- as you might expect, there is a fair amount of oxidation here. There's ample amounts of coconut and vanilla, with some shades of maple syrup sweetness. There's also a fair amount of spice, and some lingering residual hoppiness. I'm getting some rye bread and notes that remind me of dark grains. Good stuff.

Revolution V.S.O.D. (Very Special Old Deth) 2017

What is there to say about this beer that you can't glean from the beer's description or infer knowing what the base is about. This is a full-bodied, complex beer that lingers on your palate for a long time. It has a lovely progression with oxidized wood, barrel, oak, and Raisinetts up front; the mids roll into rum, bourbon, spice, more dark fruits, hints of fruity and floral coffee; the back end drops coconut and vanilla and chocolate. The beer fades to black leaving kisses of drying alcohol and wood on your tongue, with lingering maple sweetness. It's wild. This is also a sipping beer. 

Rating: Strong Divine Brew (5.0/5.0 Untappd)

Random Thought: I want to spend some time taking a crap on Josh Noel's face, because I think his assessment of this beer was way wrong. But we should probably talk about price and format. I know this whole can thing has become a joke of sorts, but the price of these beers is insane. VSOD was like $30 for a 4-pack. That's basically $0.625/oz or $13.75 for a bomber. $13.75!!! And these are in fucking 12oz cans. So you can split a can with a friend, or solo-dome it and not feel like the world's biggest alcoholic. To compare, Goose Island Reserve was selling for around ~$24 and came in a 16.9oz format. Just food for thought...