Great Divide Barrel Aged Hibernation

Aroma: 7 | Appearance: 7 | Mouthfeel: 7 | Flavor: 8 | Overall: 7

Pours clear mahogany with a nice pale buff head. Aroma offers bourbon, candy and toasted malt notes. Flavor ups the bourbon and cuts back on the sugary tone, then adds a bit of caramel. Mouthfeel has decent fizz and body. Don’t hibernate, drink up.

Aroma: 7 | Appearance: 5 | Mouthfeel: 7 | Flavor: 7 | Overall: 6

2011 bottle - I don't know what it is about the Great Divide barrel offerings, but they have a truly offensive aroma. Sour mash and unpleasant 'meatiness' are dominant. The pour is a prety murky btown with no head and ample carbonation. Dominant whiskey forward flavors with notes of raisins, dates, and figs along with a deep malt backbone that finishes nicely. A good brew, not worth the price.

Aroma: 8 | Appearance: 9 | Mouthfeel: 9 | Flavor: 9 | Overall: 9

12.4% 2011 version. The whiskey covers up some of the base beers complexity, but damn is it good. Whiskey gives way to chocolate, dark fruity malts, oak and vanilla. Wonderfully delicious, and the aroma is a near 10. Decadent, and slightly reminiscent of last years BA Decadence. This could get a 4.5 if I ever revisit, or just feel more generous. Hints of the awesome malty character in the original beer really make this great.

Aroma: 6 | Appearance: 6 | Mouthfeel: 6 | Flavor: 6 | Overall: 6

First of all, not sure why Americans insist on barrel aging their beers. This rating is for bottle #281. The beer pours a dark mahogany colour with a very thin head. The aroma is heavily woody, with some slight rye aromas and some malt. The flavour is more of the same with some malt hints masked by the flavours of whiskey and charred wood. Not enjoyable. Based on a reported price of $25, it isn;t worth is as a previous reviwer mentions.

Aroma: 7 | Appearance: 8 | Mouthfeel: 6 | Flavor: 6 | Overall: 7

750 ml bottle. Pours a murky brown with almost no head (a vigorous pour produced a little frothiness that quickly went to a thin collar).

The aroma is chocolate and bourbon with dark fruit and molasses. Smells a bit like a decadent rum cake / fruitcake. There is a touch of fusel alcohol. I can smell the original Hibernation but it's been bourbonized.

The flavor is surprisingly subdued. There's some chocolatey bourbon and dark fruits leading to a bitter alcohol finish. As it warms, a bit more flavor comes out - but it still tastes like watered down Hibernation with a splash of whiskey. The mouthfeel is full with very little carbonation and is a bit watery.

Overall, this is not overdone with the alcohol like the bourbon yeti was. Both barrel versions I've had have been very lightly carbonated. I'm surprised by how subdued the flavors were for me, given how complex original Hibernation is. It's interesting to try, but regular Hibernation is better, and this is not worth $25 a bottle.