Guess who's back. Back again... Alright, enough of that nonsense. It's that time of year again. My barrel aged advent calendar, for the 6th year, I believe. I pull beers from my cellar, and my wife picks a random beer each night for me. The three requirements are: 1) the beer must be aged in a barrel of some sort (bourbon, scotch, rum, wine, etc.); 2) the beer cannot come from a vessel larger than 16oz.; and 3) the beer cannot be bottled/canned from the current year of the advent calendar. Here we go. Barrel Aged Advent Calendar Day #1 Bottled 12-2-2020 Coffee hits the nose first, followed by vanilla, bourbon, and oak in that order. Taste has vanilla, coffee, bourbon, and then oak. The finish is coffee and oakey bitterness. The body is medium-full with an appropriately low amount of carbonation. I definitely feel that, overall, this one is past its prime. All of the advertised flavors are present, but they don't seem to have the same harmony as in years past. This is my last bottle, so it won't be appearing again. Overall: enjoyable but past its prime. 4/5

Barrel Aged Advent Calendar Day #2 Bottled on 12-2-2020 Vanilla first, then coffee and bourbon in the aroma. Taste has vanilla first, followed by coffee, bourbon, oak and chocolate notes. The aftertaste has vanilla and coffee. Slight bitterness in the finish from the oak, which helps keep the sweetness in check. There's a lot of different flavors in this that are all distinct, yet work well together. No one flavor dominates or distracts from the other flavors. The body is full, the mouthfeel is smooth and the carbonation is appropriately low. I seem to like this one more and more each time I have it. Hopefully it continues to get better and better as the years pass. Unfortunately, the adjuncts will probably fade with time, but we'll see. I either have 1 or 2 bottles left. High 4.5/5

Barrel Aged Advent Calendar Day #19 Bottled on 12-2-2020 Dark fruits, vanilla, bourbon and coffee notes in the aroma. Taste has vanilla, dark fruits, bourbon first with the coffee showing up in the late mid-palate and lingering into the finish along with a little bit of oak. The body is full with an appropriately low amount of carbonation. Very well made stout. I wish the coffee was a bit stronger throughout, but it's still a tasty and complimentary addition. High 4.5/5

Backlog from December 14th Vanilla, coffee and bourbon in the aroma. Taste has coffee, bourbon and chocolate. The vanilla is definitely the stronger aroma. The body is medium-full and the carbonation is lower. Good representation of both vanilla and coffee mixed with the base. High 4.25/5