I’m a long time over FWs blends, and barrel program, there’s just too much sameness about a plethora of beers, and they generally aren’t things that I care for a great deal anyway. That combo means that I’m not much interested or intrigued (with a few exceptions).

Pour is black, and as expected in terms of the color, and the height and retention of the head are not great. Alcohol legs – of course..

Nose is also ‘as expected’, with bourbon notes and some solvent alcohol.

Taste is, ‘as expected’ with light liquor notes all over the malty base.

And therein lies the problem. An almost totally indistinguishable beer from a TON of other FW beers in the barrel/aging/liquor/blending series. I just don’t see the point of so many beers, and I fail to find those distinguishing characteristics. It’s slick in the mouth (of course), and burns a little on the way down. Curiously, as it warms it doesn’t get smoother in fact there are more tobacco and leather notes. Bitterness really builds. Not an endearing feature. Alcohol becomes punishing, not pleasant.

With maybe one or two future exceptions, and the one bottle of the Anniversary beer that I have left in the cellar, I’m pretty much done with expensive, indistinguishable beers from FW. No point.