Brooklyn Black OPS (2014) from Brooklyn Brewery in Brooklyn, New York This is Brooklyn Brewerys highly anticipated annual release that is somewhat hard to find and usually sells out fast. This is Mikes second taste and review of this cult brew. I lucked up on the last bottle of the 2013 version of this brew at Elios Wine Warehouse in New Orleans, Louisiana late last year. I was able to get a bottle of this years version at Whole Foods in Metairie, Louisiana back in early December 2014. In case you dont know, Brooklyn does not show this beer in their line-up on their webpage, but they do have a page for it on their website - part of this mystique is explained in the next paragraph! This is one of the Brooklyn Quarterly Experiment brews. Brooklyns Black Ops webpage has this to say: Brooklyn Black Ops does not exist. However, if it did exist, it would be a strong stout concocted by the Brooklyn brewing team under cover of secrecy and hidden from everyone else at the brewery. The myth is that this supposed “Black Ops” was then aged for four months in bourbon barrels, bottled flat, and re-fermented with Champagne yeast. Presumably such a beer would raise a rich, fluffy dark brown head and it would combine chocolate and coffee flavors with a rich underpinning of vanilla-like bourbon notes. A beer like that would be mighty nice, but it would be hard to make more than few cases – it could never be sold or released to the public. They say that the brewmaster revealed the beer to a few other people at the brewery only after it had been barreled. The rumor going around is that the brewery plans to drink the beer themselves over the holidays and give some to their family and friends. That’s what they say. But frankly, there’s no evidence for any of this. This beer is obviously a figment of people’s fervent imaginations. People tend to get loopy around the holidays. Everyone go home now – there’s nothing to see here. Beer Advocate calls this a Russian Imperial Stout. The bottle label says Stout Aged In Bourbon Barrels. Brooklyn calls it a Strong Stout in the paragraph above. This beer gets a score of 92 Outstanding from Beer Advocate w/1982 reviews (the bulk of those reviews will be for past vintages). The Bros have not yet rated this. It gets a 100 Overall and a 95 for the Style on ratebeer. More from Beer Advocate: Brooklyn Black Ops was aged for four months in bourbon barrels, bottled flat, and re-fermented in the bottle with Champagne yeast. The 2014 Batch is 11.6% ABV as opposed to previous years listed below: 10.7%-2008 --- 11.6%-2009 --- 11.3%-2010 --- 10.7%-2011 --- 10.5%-2012 --- 11.5%-2013 This is a 750 ml. (25 oz.) corked and caged bottle, and it is 11.6% ABV and bottle re-fermented. Forget IBU ratings - this is not what this beer is about! This pours BLACK - as black as black can be, and no light gets through. This pours THICK - like motor oil. A nice head of really fluffy brown foam develops with an aggressive pour, hangs around and then fizzles down to a small cap, and it leaves minimal lacing (I am drinking this from a Belgian snifter). The very first whiff (right after the first pour) is vanilla, extremely rich and dark malts, and a hint of bourbon. First taste - holy freaking cow - this is absolutely heavenly. Vanilla, rich roasted dark malts, dark breadiness, oak, smoke (tiny bit), licorice, milk chocolate, café au lait, and of course, the bourbon, but it is restrained and well done! This is, without a doubt, the smoothest bourbon barrel aged stout I have tasted. I am highly impressed with this beer, just as I was with last years vintage. This is so rich and yet so refined. It is in a class by itself. The vanilla here is perfectly done! The bourbon influence is subdued but always lurking in the background, and it never overpowers. All of the other components play their part and provide a wonderful beer tasting experience that is second to none. The wood influence is the main part of the vanilla/bourbon taste. These guys have nailed this bourbon barrel aged thing down even more this year. OK, so do not look for hops, and do not look for all the things you normally look for in a brew like this. This is one of the best Barrel Aged Imperial Stouts that you will find and it is drinking very well right now, and it will continue to improve with age. It is to be sipped and enjoyed. It is most excellent.
Posted on: Wed, 31 Dec 2014 04:50:54 +0000
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