Central Waters Brewer's Reserve Bourbon Barrel Scotch Ale

This rich, malty ale has been aged to perfection in our barrel house. Subtle and smooth, this is a decadent display of patience and process. Join us in a toast to good health. Slainte!

3.9

258 reviews

Amherst, United States

Community reviews

4.0 Black appearance. Aroma is coffee and malt. Flavour is smooth, coffee, sweet, bitter and malt.

4.0 Vintage 2015

4.2 35,5cl Bottle @ Lekkerbier de Bierwinkel, St. Nicolaasga, Netherlands. Dark brown colour with a thin tan head. Aroma is malt, sweet, dried fruits, oak, bourbon. Taste is malt, caramel, raisins, vanilla, toffee, oak, bourbon. Medium to full body, average carbonation.

4.1 355ml bottle. Cloudy, dark brown colour with small to average, frothy, half-way lasting, minimally lacing, dark beige head. Slightly toasty. dark malty aroma, notes of toffee, vanilla, oak, caramel, butterscotch. Taste is sweet, toasty dark malty, notes of toffee, vanilla, oak, caramel, some butterscotch, nougat; oily to viscous texture, super-soft, silky, smooth palate, fine carbonation. Superbly balanced, harmonious, integrated.

3.7 Pours a dark ruby. Aroma of oak and burbon. Taste is sweet with a bit of sharp bitterness that’s woody

4.7 Oh my, this is a bomb of subtlety ! Perfect aroma of scotch, moor . Pour very dark. Taste of scotch, even and moor, with green gofer beens finish. Heavy bodied whixh works fine. Sth very special !

4.4 LCI. Uit de fles geschonken. De lekkerste scotch ale die ik gedronken heb: zoet, gedroogd fruit, bourbon en hout. Mooi in harmonie. Zacht van smaak door de barrel aging

4.2 Bottle. Dark brown black-ish pour. Aroma of sweet bourbon, caramel fudge, raisin, figs, dates, oak, ripe red fruit and malt. Taste has dates, caramel fudge, rich bourbon vanilla, oak, caramelised malt, raisin and a bourbony finish. Sticky mouthfeel. Just what I hoped it would be, excellent.

4.0 Poors dark brown, no foam remaining. Aroma is very nice, so is taste. Warm, boozy and sweet, nice barrel aged. (Arnhem 201902)

4.0 355 ml bottle. Pours dark red-brown color with a large beige head. Bourbon is evident on the nose, toasted malts, caramel, some coconut tones. Flavor is caramel and some toffee, hints of licorice, bourbon-y vanilla tones, biscuit, some spice tones. Smooth toasted malty palate, alcohol well hidden, lots of flavor. Very nice. 4426

3.7 35,5 cl bottle vintage 2018 @ home Aroma has very sweet malts and ripe fruits. Also alcohol, liquor and licorice. Flavour has sweet malts, alcohol, liquorice and some mild calvados tones. Finishes with woody notes and liquor. You can taste the alcohol here but it is not disturbing too much. A slow sipper with drinkability not so great.

1.2 I'm surprised this beer gets such high ratings. The bottle I tasted was pretty rough. Copper colour with weak beige foam. Aroma a little better than flavour, but both super-boozy in a hot, fusel alcohol way. Bourbon barrel aspects were too heavy-handed: overpowering vanillins, oak tannins, mushy oxidation. Perhaps this was once a nice malty, caramelly Scotch ale base, but it's barely palatable now.

3.7 33cl flesje. Helder donker robijnrood kleur, fijne romige bruine schuimkraag. De geur van whisky en toffee. Smaak is zoet, whisky, karamel, rozijnen en vanille. Medium lichaam, veel koolzuur.

4.3 30/XI/18 - on tap @ Billie’s Beer Festival Day 1 (Antwerp), BB: n/a - (2018-1805) Thanks to the RateBeer crew for sharing today’s beers! Clear dark brown beer, small creamy light beige head, unstable, non adhesive. Aroma: lots and lots of whisky, a bit peated, alcohol, caramel, ripe banana, more peated notes, nice! MF: ok carbon, medium to full body. Taste: alcohol up front, caramel, malty, bit sweet, sugary, more alcohol. Aftertaste: nice, sugary notes, more malts, whisky kicking in, caramel notes, good stuff!

3.9 355ml bottle, 2018 vintage. Thanks c0fein! Heavy with bourbon notes, some sweet syrup, toffee, oak, wood, caramel and hints of raisins. Quite smooth and balanced. Nice winter warmer, reminds me of Founders Backwoods Bastard.

3.7 Bottle from a friend. Dark brown color, beige head. Bitter taste with dried fruits, nuts, toffee, bourbon, caramel and toast. Bitter finish with dried fruits, bourbon, toffee, caramel, nuts and toast. Excellent scotch ale.

3.7 35,5cl-fles van bij Dranken De Caigny te Essen. U: Zeer donker bruin met een beige schuimkraag. G: Herfstbladeren, rozijnen, wat vanille en bourbon. S: Moutzoet. Gedroogd fruit, karamel, bourbon en vanille. Alcoholwarmte. M: Volmondig met medium carbonatie.

4.2 12 oz. bottle, pours a deep dark mahogany with a small beige head. Aroma is very rich, with heavy bourbon barrels upfront, with a touch of vanilla, and some caramel. Flavour follows through, with wonderfully rich and elegant bourbon barrels dominating upfront, followed by caramel and brown sugar. Nice and bourbon-rich. Pretty the epitome of the scotch ale category here. Wonderful stuff.

4.1 Bottle Aroma-almond, vanilla, caramel Appearance-brown, clear, tan foam Taste-medium bitter, medium sour, light sweetness Palate-full body, sticky, average carbonation, long finish Overall-very good

4.0 30 November 2018. Billie's Craft Beer Fest. Cheers to Anke, tderoeck & 77ships! Hazy dark brown with a lasting, thin, off-white head; little lacing. Strong aroma of plum, pear syrup, burnt caramel, licorice, almond, cookie dough, milk chocolate. Taste is medium to heavy malty sweet, lots of caramel & dough, faint plum; light to medium spicy bitterness brings licorice, green tea & a woody & nutty accent. Dryish, herbal hoppy finish, lingering caramel, dough, woody vanilla, warming herbal liqueur alcohol, tad bourbony. Medium body, syrupy texture, fizzy carbonation. Very rich and tasty!

3.6 Thanks! Sampled draft @ Billie’s Beer Festival 2018. Day 1. Black syrup. Nose is way too alcoholic, hot, varnish alcohol, little else. Taste is harshly boozy, way too much alcohol, toffee, caramel, mocha but heavy near pure alcohol dominates too much.

4.3 Draft taster @ Billies Craft Beer festival. Mahogany clear, no head Dry caramel, toffee, dried malty, bourbonon, vanilla, medium bitter finish Good body, medium carbonation.

3.8 Sampled @ Billie's Craft Beer Fest 2018, Day 1. A very dark brown beer with a small off-white head. Aroma of strong sweet dark malt, liquorice. Taste of sweet strong dark malt, liquorice, vanilla, wood.

4.2 Pours dark, unclear, caramelly brown. Small white head. Smell is bourbon barrel, smooth and sweet' taste is full, bourbon, intense, grainy, tad sweet, malty. Very balanced. Very nice, as always with CW.

3.9 12oz bottle (thx, Chris S.!) at Taylor's place. Pours a dark brown with a tan head. Aroma is bourbon, some slight molasses notes. Taste is sweet with bourbon and some boozy notes. Good bourbon character in here. Nice.

3.8 Bottle from Lekkerbier, St. Nicolaasga. Lots of bourbon upfront with dark malt, wood, caramel, toffee, warming alcohol, notes of dried fruits, raisins. Flavour is sweet with a light bitterness, some booze in the finish. Body is medium to full. Pleasant warming BA Scotch Ale.

3.8 Bottle @ home. Opaque dark brown to black color, light dark red glare, medium sized beige / tan head. Aroma is malts, dark malts, bourbon. Taste malts, raisins a bit, dark malts, bourbon, some bitterness as well. Decent body, average carbonation. Alright.

3.0 donker bruin met rode gloed en lichte kraag. aroma van chocolade, moutig, en scherp alcohol. smaken zijn dun, scherp alcoholisch, toffee, caramel, hmmm ik het tig betere scotch ales gehad dan deze, ben er niet weg van en de BA is ook niet bijzonder, allemaal erg scherpe bourbon, zoals alle BA bieren van central waters.

3.7 Bottle. Dark brown color. Caramel, vanilla, Bourbon and a hint of roast and soft earthy notes in the aroma and flavor. Malty sweet, toffee, warming alcohol. Nice.

4.0 A deep dark brown scotch ale with a thin lacing mocha head. In aroma, sweet caramel malt with loads dark fruits, bourbon barrel notes, light licorice, alcohol warmth, very nice. In mouth, a nice sweet fruity caramel malt with loads of bourbon barrel notes, woody notes, alcohol warmth, light vanilla, very nice and balanced. On tap at Ginger Man NYC.