Aroma- Vanilla and chocolate dance around the glass with a sweet finish.

Appearance.- Deep dark brown color with a thin brown head. No lacing in the glass

Taste- A slight roasty malt flavor comes through at first with a natural vanilla taste coming immediately afterwards. For a Robust Porter not as much husky roasty flavors come through. This helps the vanilla taste come through and does complicate the beer. Most of the coffee flavor comes through as a chocolate flavor and not much coffee flavors. The beer does finish very nicely with a chocolate note.

Mouthfeel- The body is a little thin for a Robust Porter but still about a medium. The beer is lightly carbonated which helps to smooth the beer out a little.

Overall- A nice beer that is definitely quite easy to drink all night. The beer is done extremely well and one of the better coffee beers that are out there. You might be disappointed by the beer if you are expecting a big roasty beer with a ton of coffee flavor with the beer due to the name but overall this beer is just about perfect for me.

Aroma- Oak Barrel aromas first hit your nose. This is followed by rich caramel and rum aromas. The hops are definitely not here unlike when the beer is fresher. A slight alcohol warmth is present.

Appearance- A dark amber with a white head. The head is thick and puffy at first with no lacing. The head does totally dissipate throughout drinking the beer. It will go to just the edges of the beer.

Taste- Rich caramel flavors predominate the beer with raisiny rummy flavors that thick and rich. The barrel is American Oak I believe with vanilla being predominate. The hops are earthy and floral but subtle. The bitterness is a perfect balance for an IPA. This is still definitely high enough for an IPA but not overbearing at all.

Overall- This is an extremely well made beer. With all of the Barrel beers that are on the market today with them being a used bourbon and you get a glass of beer that tastes of bourbon with a background of beer, this beer is refreshing and beautiful. The vanilla and caramels play well together. The beer is lacking in hop character in he nose for an IPA but it definitely makes up for it with the rich caramels. Definitely worth aging the beer has definitely gotten better with age.

Notes- This beer was served in a large tulip glass from New Belgium Brewing. Beer was served at a temperature of 50F. Beer was cellared for 3 years at 45F in the dark.