Avery Barrel-Aged Series 3 - Black Tot
Imperial oatmeal stout aged in rum barrels. No. 3 in our barrel-aged series.
3.7
170 reviews
Boulder, United States
Community reviews
(12oz bottle courtesy of mike). Pours a dark brown with thin khaki head. Aroma has oak, vanilla and chocolate. Taste is vanilla, lacto sour and some vanilla. Medium bodied with slick texture. Nice beer
12oz bottle. Big thanks to Dosbeerigos for sharing this one. The color and pour was extremely dark and thick. Had a thin brown head with a good amount of lacing. Aroma was dominated by chocolate and boozy rum. Flavor was boozy, chocolately, and a tad sour. Possibly a little bit infected. Regardless though it was a treat.
Bottle: Never have I smelled so tart/sour for an Imperial Oatmeal Stout. Black, deep brown edges, little lacing or head. Interesting mix of deep roasted malts, sweetish oatmeal, based on a tart and slightly fruity backdrop. It actually makes this one not as heavy for an Imperial Stout, and likely more palatable. Very slight mustiness on the backside, some basement funk. Body and mouthfeel are moderate, not realy heavy. Just seems like a sourish Imperial Stout. A little bit of the Rum appears on the finish. Not the best of aromas or flavor, but it all works rather well.
Bottle, as (nearly) always to Mesandsim. Poured jet black with a tan coloured medium head. Oh yeah baby. Aroma has oak wood type notes, a fair dollop of alcohol which always puts lead in my pencil, lovely leather and butter aroma. It’d be like fighting the Fonz in a Lurpak factory. Flavour is smooth and sweet, some vanilla, lovely oak aging. One of those you can really enjoy and lose yourself with. Belter.
Infected bottle @ home, courtesy of foppa78. Deep black appearance with a dark brown head. Rum, oatmeal, dark malts, and a bit of sourness in the nose. Soured, slightly red fruity, thick oatmeal/chocolate malty flavor on top of the rum. Oatmeal and chocolate malt on the finish along with some booze and some sourness. A slight alcoholic burn also. Surprisingly, the sourness in the beer is an interesting addition to the strong oatmeal stout flavor.
The beer pours dark black with a very da rk tan head. The head rises a couple fingers, is very creamy and has great retention and lacing.
The aroma is super sweet some vanilla that is mixed with roasted coffee.
The taste is also really matly but in a good way, its not to sweet but just a very sweet ris. The middle and end brings about some light coffee and a great vanilla finish.
This beer is very creamy and warm with a great lasting taste.
Overall, this is a very good well balanced stout.
Bottle (Thanks to Doodler) at home - shared with Mette. Pitch black - brown head. Burned, coconut, rum, sweetness, tartness, nice fruity, chocolate, coffee, vineous, medium wooden, light smokey, carcoal, licorice, burned, raisins, dried fruits, dades, light burned ryebread, light malty or wooden sourness and light acid notes, that gives it some freshness and light mouthfeeling. Very nice - high drinkability.
Reviewed from notes taken after a noninfected bottle right around release--so maybe there hadn’t been time.
Pours black with a thin, lastig mocha head. Nose brigs dark rum, spice, toasted malt, chocate, and a bit of coffee. Taste brings a bit of booze with those characteristics and isn’t as complex as I would have hoped from the nose. Feel is nice and he rum flavors work a bit better to hide the alcohol. Drinks quite well and i am glad that I cracked my bottle early.
Serving type: bottle
Reviewed on: 10-12-2010
Pours a deep, rich brown. Not a ton of head, but with some aggressive pouring, a decent half finger head is there that releases to a thin layer and nice lacing.
Aroma is definitely rum barrel, dark malts, dark sugars and subtle sweetness.
Tastes excellent. Slightly sweet and malty with great characters of the barrel... touch of smoke, rum, molasses.
Finishes without any real aftertaste, just a bit of sweetness.
Overall, excellent beer and no issues.
Aged about 10 days short of 1 year (according to bottle date). Heavy black pour with a pillowy light brown head. Amazing aroma. Initially hits with sweet molasses, but quicky gets backed up with candied oatmeal and a bit of milk chocolate. Taste is very much the same. Licorace, oatmeal, mild chocolate, a bit more oatmeal, more than a bit of booze, and a touch of wood. It’s interesting, but the aftertaste is too boozy sweet. Texture is very full, almost chewy. Too expensive for a ho-hum beer, too. Just too boozy and sweet, I suppose.
Pours a deep dark chocolate brown/eggplant color that is almost pitch black and completely opaque. Even when held to a light source there is no semblance of lighter color. Thin coffee colored head that very quickly fades into a minimal ring.
Complex aroma with lots of roasty malt notes balanced by the earthy oak tones and sweet rum/liquor presence. Hints of chocolate malt, toffee, molasses, oatmeal, roasted coffee bean, licorice and toast. I’m really surprised how the stout element of the base beer have held up in the nose. Slightly vinous with subtle oak and vanilla notes. Hopefully the flavor holds up t the aroma and is not a complete rum bomb.
I have heard that this beer might be infected but I guess got lucky because I’m not picking that up at all. Maybe some slight oxidation but nothing too noticeable. Much to my pleasant surprise the balance noticed in the aroma comes through in the flavor. Complex and well balanced with the rum barrel aging complimenting the oatmeal stout flavor rather than completely overpowering it. Plenty of roasty malt notes with hints of chocolate, oatmeal, toffee, nut and licorice. Only slight tannis but still vinous with hints of grape and other dark berries. Also, there is a nice sweet rum presence as well as some slight vanilla. Slightly dry finish with some nice alcohol warmth.
I was very excited about this beer because it was complex, well balanced and most of all not infected.
From a 12oz into a pint glass. Pours a dark oily brown with little head and little lacing. Aroma of coconut and Rum. Mouthfeel is moderate for an imperial stout. Not much carbonation at all. Some tangyness to the taste, but mainly roast and coffee. Rum isn’t all that present in the taste but it’s there a little bit. Definite sourness there as well. An ok beer but not worth the exorbitant price!
Bottled. A black beer with a lazing dark brown head. The aroma has notes of wood, alcohol, prunes, over ripe fruits, and rhum. The flavor is sweet with notes of wood, alcohol, and rhum, leading to a slightly tart finish.
(bottle) deep black with dark tan head. Aroma of oak. Taste is oak. Also hints of oak and oak. Some oak in the finish.
Bottle from January. Pours dark and inky, completely black in the glass, with a thin tan head, very fine clinging lacing. Aromas of sugar cane, fig, grass, vanilla, toffee, and bread, rich and deep. Full body, fizzy and smooth, lightly dry. Lingering medium sweet flavor, medium-strong bitter finish, creating a surprisingly complex interplay. Some alcohol hotness and rum notes in the finish.
Finally. After many months of searching, I have finally found my elusive white elephant. I was worried about the rumored "infection issues", so when I finally found one at the vintage cellar, I was a little hesitant to buy more than one bottle. The very dark near black pour with creamy ring of brown head is appealing. But despite a nose of rum and chocolate, the flavor is completely dominated by tart black cherry juice. However, despite this seeming ’flaw’, this beer is quite delicious. It almost reminds me of bells cherry stout. A bit thin on the palate, still a quite delicious brew.
12 oz. bottle shared by Tmoney99. Pours very dark brown with a small beige head. The aroma is roasted dark malts, light rum barrel notes, dark chocolate, and coffee with cream. The flavor is chewy, dark roasted malts, caramelized malts, dark chocolate, the barrel notes are light except for some boozy flashes. Full bodied, chewy; creamy and smooth. There is nothing that stands out as special with this, especially when comparing it to other less expensive less hyped stouts. The main negative is the lack of aroma, but the flavor doesn’t pop either.
Bottle shared by plovmand, thanks swabbie!
Pours pitch black with a brown head.
Nice aroma with notes of chocolate, roasted malt, caramel, dark fruit, alcohol and oak.
Flavour is roasted malt, caramel, dark fruit, figs, alcohol with a sour hint and a nice oak and vinous finish.
Bottle shared with Anker. It pours pitch black with a creamy tan head. The aroma is chocolate, roasted malt, raisins, wood, sweet toasted caramel and dark fruit. The flavour is hard roasted malt, figs, raisins, dark fruit, chocolate, wood and some booze. Quite vinous finish.
Bottle 12fl.oz.
Clear dark brown color with a small to average, frothy, fair lacing, mostly diminishing, off-white head. Aroma is moderate to heavy malty, roasted, caramel, barrel - oak - wood, dried fruit, bourbon. Flavor is heavy sweet, light light dark berry tart - acidic and heavy bitter with a long duration, licorice, bourbon - rum alcohol. Body is medium, texture is oily, carbonation is soft, finish feel is light alcoholic. [20101102]
Bottle at Papsø.
Pitch black coloured with a small beige head.
Roasted aroma of bourbon, oak and dried fruits with notes of dark chocolate.
Roasted flavour of berries, oak and dark chocolate with notes of alcohol.
Roasted and berryish finish.
Bottled. Pitch black coloured. Dense light brown head. Aroma of rum, sweetness, alcohol, ripe fuits. Flavour of ripe fruits, alcohol, spice, caramel. Medium bodied. Fruity end. Alcohol on lips on palate
12 fl oz bottle. Pours pitch black with a small tan head. Aroma is raisin fruity and dark roasted malt. Sweet malty, fruity, mild acidc and lingering fruity, Alcohol. Dark malty and fruity into an acidic finish.
Bottle 35,5 cl. Courtesy of MaltOMeal. Pours black as tar with a tiny light brown head. Hard roast aroma with some barrel character. Solid body, burned malts and raisins with a somewhat tart underlying edge. Hard roast malty bitterness. 021110
Draft during CBC Chicago. Pours a near black with a fine fizzy darker head. Aroma is quite roasty, bit of berries, and warming rum, I like it. Flavor is dark chocolate with a big boozy rummy finish, the beer seems to be very nice, the rum doesn’t, light bit of sugary fruitiness that I like, maybe a bit from the rum. Creamy body with fizzy light carbonation, would be nice without that boozy edge.
Poured from a 22oz. bottle into a tasting glass.
The color is a dark black with about two fingers of brownish head and some lacing.
The smell is a bit roasty with a smoky dark chocolate flavor. This is a slight tobacco hint as well.
The taste is roasted malts and some dark chocolate right up front with some coffee flavor in the back that does come out briefly. A nice rich flavor that is coating on the tongue as it goes down.
The feel of this beer is a bit heavy but not more than any other imperial stout. goes down well and has a slight still as it slides down your throat.
bottle - 12 oz) Dark black with a thin tan head. Big roasted aroma with a very nice rum spice backbone. Flavor is actually a bit fruity with the rum coming up right behind it. Well balanced with a nice wood and rum hint at the end. Some hints of dark fruit sweetness and light oatmeal at the finish.
(Sample Date: 7/10/2010 Source:Other) Lots of chocolate with some booze in the aroma. Black with small head. Nice roasty chocolate flavor with a bit of grainy astringency. Rum in the background. Finish is quite smooth.
Bottle on 07/10/2010. Dark black body with a medium creamy light brown head. Sweet chocolate and light wood aroma. Sweet chocolate and caramel flavor with light rum and wood notes. Medium full body with low carbonation.
Pour dark brown, close to black, with a quickly leaving burnt orange head. the aroma has roasty malt, coconut, oak, vanilla, hints of rum, milk chocolate and light richness - wow! Medium / thick body with a light amount of sharp carbonation. The flavor starts with the aroma traits, but a bit thinner along with some spice, light sourness, smoothness of oatmeal and a pleasant alcohol warmth. The finish has a satisfying blend of rum, creamy stout, some spice and warmth. Very nice.