I’ve already posted about my enthusiasm for Older Viscosity, which is Port’s/Lost Abbey’s brew, a stout with bourbon aging and more strength.  The label states that this is not your dad’s wimpy 30 weight motor oil.  So, I went into the beer expecting some serious thickness and depth, especially since this is 80% fresh viscosity mixed with 20% bourbon barrel aged beer.  The beer is either 10% or 10.5%. (The website appears to need an update since the bottle says 10%…maybe a minor detail but a detail nonetheless.)

The Pour: Maybe this beer is dark, maybe it’s strong, maybe it’s big but not as big as the label claims.  I honestly expected Dark Lord thickness or something somewhat close.  If you call a beer thicker than motor oil, make it truly big.  I’ve spoken my peace about it, so let me talk about the merits of the beer.  Again, this was not as dark or viscous as I expected.  It was still dark but not like a still night.  It had a small but steady, brown head.

The Nose: Plenty of grains, coffee tones, and ripe juicy fruits graced the nose of Old Viscosity.  I almost thought I caught an aroma similar to oats.  Chocolate aspects certainly came through as well.  However, I didn’t catch the oaky or bourbon vanillas that one might expect with a beer like this.

The Taste: There was a very nice full mouth-feel on Old Viscosity, which was due, in part, to the pleasant amount of residual sweetness left in the beer.  The juicy fruit acidity and hint of oats were a nice addition to the flavor while the dominant chocolate tones left the underlying coffee to do a bit of work on its own. Some of the acidity, I think, comes from the barrel.  So, I did get a hint of the oaky tannins but not as much as I expected.  All this transitioned into a dry, cocoa powder finish, which pushed a bit of bitterness to the palate.

Overall, I’d drink this beer again and would enjoy doing so.  My main criticism has been made above, so I’ll leave that one alone.  However, I would like to see something more like a 30% blend, so that we could taste the barrels a bit more.  That could have been a nice benefit to the beer.  Worth a try for sure.

Mike’s Rating:

Overall Satisfaction: ★★★★☆ 

Among other Barreled beers: ★★★½☆