CulturAle Press

Cellaring Beers:   Avery Mephistopheles, Strong Stout, Boulder, Co. At 11 Years From our “Vault”

Date:  February 23, 2018

The Story— Avery, as we have mentioned here before, was one of the first “super craft” breweries in the United States.   It brews very good traditional styles, but ranges far off the reservation for many of its intensely strong and flavorful ales.   Mephistopheles was an early excursion.

I’m not quite sure how we had the smarts to put down this beer and let it be for over a decade.  It was one of the best beers we tasted in 2007 and I’m stunned by our forbearance in letting this one lie.   The original notes describe a huge, complex,  brilliantly balanced extravagance.  Lots of dark fruit, but less prune than dark roast.  Ellie liked it, I loved it. It was brewed to a somewhat stunning original gravity of 1.134 with Turbano sugar to push the alcohol to   16%.  I’m not sure the beer has improved over the decade, but it certainly hasn’t lost much.   Sometimes it’s enough to put a really great beer down so you can have a merely great beer later.   You can’t go back in time, but you can bring some of the past with you when you cellar beers.

The Beer—  At 11 years it’s, big, deep, boozy, and fruity with dark fruits and an ashy roast.  The only disappointment was from some unexpected oxidation.  As it drinks molasses and some flowers join dark fruit skin that stops just short of tart.  Ellie’s notes- Some of Thomas Hardy character of deep syrup, roasts and stewed fruit, lasting wood, tart and boozy with some surprising hop survivors.

Value — Good.   The big beers from Avery are only a bargain if you can find a store that’s given up on them.  Usually you’ll pay double digit dollars for a small bottle of nectar.

Values:  “fair” is a good beer at an above market price, “good” is worth the money, “very good” is a bargain, and “excellent” is a steal.

 In February, we’re digging into our legendary “vault” where we’ve been storing hundreds of bottles of beer waiting for the right time to taste them (or sell them for charity).   The charity market has slowed, so we’re working through them in front of a fire and finding some disappointments, but more very surprising delights.   You can find the full list –eventually– here on this “index post.”

 We’re often asked to share our tasting notes on over 34,000 beers; this blog is in answer to those requests.   Not all our notes, though.  The great beer writer Michael Jackson admirably followed the Thumper Rule, and we’ll try to do the same.  (“If you can’t say something nice, don’t say nuthin’ at all.”)   All the beers we post are from the top half of our ratings and most are from the top quarter.   Of greater value, we think, are the stories behind the beers,   and we try to give you enough about the brewery, the style and the places to find great beer to help you on your own beer journeys.   At CulturAle Press we try to write books and publish posts that will help you “Drink Well and Travel Safely.”