Monday, July 5, 2010

Harviestoun Ola Dubh

Harviestoun Ola Dubh
Type of beer: Ale
Container Type: 330 mL bottle
Alcohol by volume: 8.0%
Country of origin: Scotland
Rating: 83% (see below)
Number of times I've had this beer: 1st
Cost: $7.25
Tasted on: 7/5/10
Colours of label: Black/Orange/White
Drank From: Glass
Label Reads: "Ale Matured in Whisky Casks". "Aged in selected oak casks, formerly used to mature Highland Park's beautifully balanced 12 year Old Single Malt Scotch Whiskey.", "Ola Dubh (or 'Black Oil') is so named because it is gloopy and viscous. This limited release has been matured in casks from Orkney's award-winning Highland Park distillery to add complementary whisky notes to what is already an amazing brew. It is chocolaty with a roasty, bittersweet aftertaste. " "Highland Park is made with the same enduring belief and integrity, to the same exacting standards, as it has been since 1798. That's why it's the most respected single malt in the world, recently named Distiller of the Year. Like our friends at Highland Park, we at Harviestoun are passionate about quality. We hope you can enjoy this Ola Dubh Special Reserve and you feel that our efforts to brew one of the world's finest beers have been worthwhile".
website: www.harviestoun.com
Best for: Purchasing contraband sound systems
Ratings:
Taste: 17/20
Flavour: 17/20
Buy again: 13/20
Aroma: 8/10
Satisfaction: 9/10
Complexity: 9/10
Intangible: 10/10
Handwritten notes: Wow! A deep and dark milk chocolate with an ever-present bitterness. It is thick like a glass of chocolate milk. I used to like chocolate milk as a kid. Now, the thought of chugging another animal's bodily fluids as a thrist quencher on a hot day is just disgusting. But this beer has something more than that, a hidden woodiness that suits the chocolate malt just perfect. Screw my objection to dark beer in the summer. This is the cat's meow.
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Beer #418 of 3,652

2 comments:

Lost said...

One of the first craft beers I reviewed was the 30-year variant of this stuff. Double the cost of the bottle you had, but SOOOOO worth it. The oakiness of the whiskey really comes through in the 30 year, and is UBER smooth.

I have dreams about how awesome that beer was.

I haven't tried the 12 year, but the way you describe it, I'm sure it is equally excellent.

-Lost

Bard said...

I see that there's a 40 year too. I can't imagine how much that costs.

I don't know, there's something about drinking a beer brewed in casks that were used while my dad was in high school that's odd but appealing.

I will definitely do my best to track down the other variants of this.