Brewery – Brink Brewing Company
Beer – Barrel Aged Armored Heart
Style – Russian Imperial Stout
ABV – 10.2%
Don’t let the name fool you, this beast is silky smooth. Waves of roastiness are balanced by sweet chocolate & toffee notes. Beware though, it packs a punch!
Brink managed to choose something really special to use as their first ever bottle release. The event was on January 13th, 2018 and man… it was a doozy. The weekend was frigid, and there was a nice fresh layer of snow on the ground. That didn’t deter some of Cincinnati’s most hardcore Brink fans from braving the elements and lining up hours ahead of the noon opening time to make sure they could snag bottles… and bottles there were. The base beer(s) were a Rye Whiskey barrel aged version, alongside a Rum Barrel aged version of the imperial stout. To sweeten the deal, the brewery also released a really limited amount of variant bottles too.
The variants were all coffee beers, with only 27 of each of the three variants being released. It was a blast, and I really, really hope that this beer sees the inside of some other barrels soon!
2018 Variants
- White Wax – Heaven Hill Rye Whiskey Barrel Aged Armored Heart
- Yellow Wax – Rum Barrel Aged Armored Heart
- Red Wax – Rum Barrel Aged Armored Heart with Vanilla and Deeper Roots La Armonia Hermosa Coffee
- Green Wax – Heaven Hill Rye Whiskey Barrel Aged with Deeper Roots Bukonzo Coffee
- Pink Wax – Heaven Hill Rye Whiskey Barrel Aged with Deeper Roots Community Blend Coffee
My Thoughts On Brink Barrel Aged Armored Heart
This beer is a fantastic first foray into a bottled beer. While I’m sure that this will do ok tucked away in a cellar for a while, I’m of the opinion that it’s prime for drinking right now. The rum barrel version brings a nice butterscotch flavor as the beer hits room temperature, while the rye version has a bit of a whiskey punch that I also love in a Russian Imperial Stout.
This is a really amazing example of how barrels can really effect the flavor of a beer – and showcases the flavors of those two barrels amazingly.
The variants… I’ll have to get back to you as I experience each one of these. I’ve got them all tucked safely away at home, but am waiting for a special occasion or two to dig into them!
