Bonus! Accidentally Aged Terrestrial India Brown Ale.

Aged Terrestrial 

Brewery: Wellington Brewing Company

Type: Independent Microbrewery     Est.: 1985

Location: Guelph, Ontario, Canada

Beer Style: India Brown Ale

ABV: 5.9%      IBU: ?

Format: Crown Capped Brown Glass Bottle  Size: 750 ml

Cost: $7.95 CAD     Purchased At: LCBO

Twitter: @WellingtonBrew

Ok, don't judge. Sometimes I forget I have beers. I have A LOT of beers in the house, and juggling them sometimes... ah... I... get confused, or I misplace them. (Much to the chagrin to the Queen of Pint Jockey Headquarters). Outside of the Fridge of Fame... (Which I keep getting told is supposed to contain food...) I have a little storage area in the basement behind my workbench. This beer has been there since July. Of 2015. However when I went to look up the price I discovered that it had been on shelves at the LCBO since the previous may. So this beer is 18 months old. A year and a half for a hopped brown ale is a bit of a stretch. I was actually concerned that when I cracked it, it was going to, well lets just say, not smell appropriate. However it surprised me. I popped the top and cautiously waved the neck of the bottle under my nose and I smelled, delicious fruity beer.

Relieved, I could not wait to try it.

Onto our beer.

Pours a pitch dark brown with a massive, and fluffy off-tan head, made of small and medium bubbles that shrink randomly, leaving a strange cappucino-esque head. Nose is clean and woody with hints of sweet malt, and surprisingly very bright for its age. Hints of smoky caramel, baking spices, and touches of vanilla fill up the back. First sip is the first sign of age. Hints of smoky malt some charcoal, mouthfeel is still light and refreshing. A slightly more mineral feel to it. Hints of good German rye bread, the ones with some char on the crust. Chocolate builds on the finish with hints of espresso, touches of used leather and a resounding earthy feel. Aeration is all coffee, a nice medium roast with some hints of condensed milk and a whipped cream mouthfeel. Finish is very stout-like, dry and rich.

Final Thoughts:

This is a horse of a different colour. This beer is very far from where it started. That is the amazing thing about ageing beer. It really is a living organism that can grow and mature and improve if you keep it healthy. If you do not it can sour and go bitter. Good metaphor for life, ain't it? Always take care of your beer (and yourself) so it can reach it's maximum potential. Quite frankly... I was shocked this beer survived as long as it did. Usually beers with higher alcohols do better in the long run, but at a little less than 6 percent this hopped brown ale did just fine. I will admit there was a tinge of metal, most likely from contact with the crown cap, when the bottle was not stored perfectly. However it did not distract from the beer's enjoyment, I'll just be more careful storing my beers. This was certainly one of my best back corner finds. Maybe I will have to keep feeding the corner, with a few surprises for future blog posts.


Cheers

CJT


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