Weyerbacher - Insanity

Tonight I'll be reviewing Insanity from Weyerbacher Brewing.  Every time I taste a new beer from these guys I become a bigger and bigger fan.  Since I started reviewing, I've had Tiny, Blithering Idiot, Harvest Ale and Imperial Pumpkin Ale and have been generally impressed with each beer I've tasted.  Weyerbacher seems to brew a huge variety of beers, ranging from their straight forward Harvest Ale to their Dark Braggot Honey Ale (a GAFB Gold Medal winner!).  You can never be quite sure as to what they will brew next.  But you can certainly depend on it straying from the style guidelines.

Weyerbacher Insanity is Blithering Idiot aged in oak bourbon casks.  If there is one thing that can make a big beer better, it's aging it in oak.  While I wasn't a huge fan of Blithering Idiot as a stand-alone Barley Wine, I think the noticeable flaws I found would be remedied with some age, especially on wood.  Their website doesn't tell me how long they let it age in the casks, or really any other information for that matter.  So lets just get to the tasting.

Burnt amber brown.  The foam is fizzy like a sparkling wine.  It recedes just as quickly as it formed leaving no evidence of its existence.  The aromas are of sweet dark fruit - plums and figs mostly - with maple syrup and hints of vanilla and brown sugar.  Everything about the smell is very prominent, and the flavors are just as bold.  This is where the barrel-aged really shines through.  Plenty of bourbon undertones are supported by a big, but not thick, malty body.  Oaked vanilla, brown sugar, caramelized dark fruit and burnt caramel are all discernible.  A very light carbonation combined with a strong alcohol warmth keep this English Barley Wine finishing smooth.

Overall - This is a huge beer with an ABV at 11.1%.  But you wouldn't know it without reading the label.  The alcohol is so well blended with the bourbon-esque characteristics you could easily forget the alcohol was there if it weren't for the pleasant warmth it provided in the finish.  Weyerbacher Insanity should be treated like a port wine or bourbon and consumed at room temperature.  Above 50 F is where these subtle flavors will be most noticeable.  Insanity is a complex and very tasty oak-aged English Barley Wine that will certainly get better with age.  I'll drink Insanity over Blithering Idiot anytime.