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In an attempt to try to make a little extra from this beer blog I’ve been writing for the last 15 years, I decided to sign up for some affiliate programs. One of the programs I tried was The Rare Beer Club. When I joined, I got a very nice note from them along with a couple of rare beers, including this one. This one looked very unique, being a barrel aged imperial lager, so I was eager to try it. I’m looking forward to the other beer they sent, which I will review soon. While I had heard of the Louis XIII cognac, this is the first beer I’ve had of it’s kind, and the first beer I’ve had from O’so Brewing.
Location: Poured into a TEKU pint glass at my home in Bloomington, IL from the 750ml bottle.
Numbers: 10% ABV, ~320 Calories
Appearance & Aroma: It’s a light amber-orange color, and is fairly hazy. It had a thick, white, creamy head on it, which fell after a several minutes to a thin layer covering the beer. It left quite a bit of lacing on the glass. The aroma was quite complex with a mix of citrusy and grassy-hoppiness and oaky barrel smells, which immediately brought me back to the Highland Brewing Barrel Aged Imperial Kashmir IPA I had many years ago (which, frankly, it’s amazing I’m still thinking about that beer).
Taste & Feel: The body is medium, and the mouthfeel is smooth with a bit of hop oiliness. The flavor up front is a smooth, almost juicy citrusy and grassy flavor, almost like an IPA. The citrusy flavors come out a bit more in the middle, with some lemon and orange zest juiciness. The oak barrel flavors really come out in the finish, mixing with the citrusy and grassy juiciness, and lasting for a minute or two in the finish. The oak flavor mixes nicely, with more of a pleasant, fresh oak barrel flavor.
Food Pairing: This is a complex beer that could easily be enjoyed on its own. However, like an IPA, I’d probably pair this with a nice burger, allowing the breadiness of the bun and the oakiness of the beer to complement one another.
Overall Impression: With a barrel aged beer, I was expecting a bourbon character, but this seemed to be a beer that was aged more in a fresh oak barrel – and it wasn’t a new “green” oak barrel, but a nice, smooth oaky flavor. Overall, it was a very complex beer, that, at first, I found strange, but continued to grow on me as I continued to sip it. While it was a lager, the flavor profile reminded me more of an IPA that had been barrel aged. It’s definitely a unique beer that you should try if you can get your hands on. If you join The Rare Beer Club, tell them I sent you and recommended this beer. Cheers!
My Rating: 
