Stone Bourbon Barrel-aged Arrogant Bastard

Stone Bourbon Barrel-aged Arrogant Bastard.

8.1 % ABV. 100 IBU. 

Stone Brewing, Escondido, CA. 

Fairly clouded, Burgundy-hued, large beige head atop. 

In the nose: Caramel and cocoa. Oak and vanilla. Rich and malty, with barrel effects edging in. Dark fruit delights. 

In the mouth: Oaky and smokey. Rich, sweet, malty, deep and devastating. Cherry and vanilla and deep bourbon barrel goodness. Big hop bitterness meets massive malt. Huge. Intoxicating. Delirious. Take your time, but take your chances. It's a biggie. More dark fruit deliciousness. 

Good stuff here. Just one a day, though, for real. Do it nice and moderate-like. K?

I, from a slumber that’s been anything but peaceful. I don’t take kindly to idling and I am anything but neutral. Life has nothing to do with killing time, and the knowledge that months have passed since the onset of my sequestering in this pitch-black oaken tomb (albeit a barrel flush with brilliant aromas of vanilla and char) does not sit well. But then comes a tingle followed by rejuvenating warmth, signs that something is different…something has changed…and for the better.

I feel stronger yet somehow more nimble and refined. I feel even more self-assured, and my vision for what is good and right, honest and true, is as laser-sharp as the brawny, bawdy, liquid Arrogance that shall further advance my battle against all things mediocre and geared toward the lowest common denominator. I have been born anew and, in the process, anointed with vibrant, inspiring, previously unexperienced character, all while maintaining everything I am and have always been—bold, bullish, unadulterated, and yes, Arrogant. 

Are you Worthy of quaffing a beverage of this intensity, irreverence and quality craftsmanship? Not likely, but for those who “get it,” I know my time in this bourbon barrel has not been wasted. Cheers to you, enlightened imbiber. On second thought, cheers to me! 

Stone Oaked Arrogant Bastard Ale

I penned these notes in December of 2006....


Clear crimson coloring, edging on darker maroonish, but a full, lush, creamy-toned head, leaving lace. I like it.

Aroma: cherries, whiskey, vanilla, berries, cognac, luscious and lovely. Wide open, deep, complex, mature, and heavenly.

Taste: vanilla jumps up first, smothers the palate with the flavor of that sweet bean, fruit flavors join in as well, but vanilla maintains it's dominance. Yums.

Medium mouthfeel, body, smooth, tasty, ...almost too smooth. But so delicious. If, maybe, too much vanilla. I like other things that arise from the flavors of various oak barrels.
Wait. Oak chips? Oak...chips? No barrells? Hmmm...

Tasty, delicious, ...I like it, but not as much as the Original A.B. So, sue me.
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From this bottle, I'm liking it more than I did 5 1/2 years ago, probably more than the original. And I've learned a lot more about barrel aging, and chips and such. Also, I didn't get that much vanilla this time, much more vinous and mellow.

Stone Ruination IPA

My first taste of this hoppy monster was months after it's first release, back in the fall of 2002. I was in Portland, Oregon for a wedding, and was amazed by the quantity and quality of the craft beer to found there. Every place I went, and every function I attended, there was always good beer, and sometimes nothin' but, no Bud Lights or Heinekens thrown in there, just Deschutes, and Rogue, New Belgium, and all the usual suspects. And some unusual. Dead Guy was at the wedding reception, and the after-party was BYOB. But there was a gas station down the street, with an excellent selection. Not only couldn't you find most of these beers in Minnesota then, but you certainly couldn't find anything good(and still can't) at a gas station, midnight on a Saturday. I picked up more beer than we needed, 2 6-packs, and 2 Stone bombers, Arrogant Bastard, and Ruination Ale. It ruined me.
I got several other Stones to bring home from the trip, the Imperial Russian Stout, and Old Guardian Barley-wine.
It wasn't until January of 2004 that I tried it again, having acquired it in trade with a Californian. Now we finally have it here, and I tapped my first keg tonight. Here are those 7 year old notes, from that second sampling:

Beautiful, bright orange color...fine, 1/2", bubbly head.
Aroma: Big, bad, gorgeous hoppiness, fruit aplenty, some grapefruit, yeah, but peach, orange, tangerine, non-stop, glorious hops...so sweet, so utterly pleasant, abundantly delightful. Bright, luscious, lively...all bow in honor of the almightiness of humulus lupus!
Shall we sip? Do we dare?
Full force of hops on the palate, a devastating wave of hops across the palate up, over, around, about, and above the senses! Dominant to say the least, absolutely overpowering and spreading nothing but delight to those of us hopheads who revel in the luxury of an immersion of such bitter, tasty delights!
Each time you put down the glass, and finish your gulp, the flavor subsides on the palate, resides fully in the senses, and you eye that glass and are eager for more. You don't need it, for the flavor has never left your senses, but it tempts, it teases....like the label says, it ruins you for anything of weaker flavor, and why would you ever want that, anyway?
Fantastically delicious, this super-hopped ale, one I'd return to as often as I could, when fortune provides. This is the IPA that should be the emblem, the acme, the standard any IPA should strive for!"