Barrel: Woodford Reserve Bourbon Barrel

Aging time: 12 months

Grain Bill: 2-Row, Crystal 60, Chocolate, Black Malt, Honey Malt, Special Roast

Hops: Magnum, Palisade, Willamette

ABV: 10.5%

Adjuncts:  Café Mexicano, Ghirardelli Dark Cacao,  Organic Cocoa Nibs

My first crack at “barrel-aging” was treating my first stout recipe with oak chips soaked in my homemade Kahlua.  Making my own coffee liquor at a larger scale was not sustainable, so I naturally started acquiring barrels.  While the base recipe has not changed much, the ability to

• 2019 // 2nd Place // Pacific Brewers Cup // Category 33A: Wood-Aged Beer

Barrel: Maker’s Mark Bourbon Barrel

Aging time: 9 months

Grain Bill: 2-Row, Oats, Carafa III, Crystal 60, Black Malt

Hops: Magnum, EKG

ABV: 13.65%

Adjuncts:  Coffee, piloncillo, cinnamon, orange zest, chile guajillo, and lactose

A Café de Olla inspired milk stout that delivers as its name suggests.  A silky smooth creaminess provided by the lactose adds a full-bodied mouthfeel to the coffee and roasted malt notes.  The base beer was aged in a freshly dumped Maker’s Mark Whiskey barrel for 9 months.  We finished the beer in conditioning tanks with Mexican coffee, cinnamon, orange zest, and chile guajillos for a unique Café de Olla experience.

• 2017 // Best of Show // 1st Place // Doug King Memorial
• 2019 // 1st Place // Pacific Brewers Cup

• 2019 // 1st Place // Pacific Brewers Cup // Category: 16A. Sweet Stout
• 2017 // Best of Show // 1st Place // Doug King Memorial // Category: Spiced Beer

Barrel: Sonoma Distilling Bourbon Barrel

Aging time: 12 months

Grain Bill: Golden Promise, Marris Otter, Crystal 60, Crystal 120

Hops: Magnum, Mt. Hood, Goldings

ABV: 13.25%

Lamberto XXVIII is an English Barleywine that was boiled for 4 hours under very high heat.  The high heat caramelizes the wort and the long boil intensifies that caramelization.  We let it age for 12 months in a hard-to-get Sonoma Distilling Bourbon Barrel.  The final beer is rich and intense, with notes of caramel, maple, dark fruits, toffee, and a solid display of bourbon.

• 2017 // 3rd Place // Orange County Fair

!COCHI LOCO!

Yes, we added bacon to bourbon barrel-aged barleywine base, Lamberto XVIII.  We baked 15 lbs / bbl of center-cut hickory smoked bacon and tapped dry all the oils.  We finished the barleywine on the bacon until we got a nice smokey, salted caramel finish.  You can almost chew it it’s so fucken delicious!

FELIX!

Felix takes our bourbon barrel-aged barleywine base that has a well-matured, oaky and sweet bourbon foundation and we finished it on Madagascar vanilla beans.  The addition of vanilla beans brings prominent and savory vanilla sensation to the forefront of your tongue. Sip on this at 45º for the most full-bodied vanilla character experience.

BALTAZAR!

We blended our bourbon barrel-aged barleywine base with our mead made from buckwheat honey.  Buckwheat honey provides an earthy malty aroma and rich toasted toffee, molasses flavor, similar to barleywines. It’s a match made in heaven!