Sierra Nevada 30th Anniversary Grand Cru.

Finally got around to this one, which should hopefully inspire me to finish up all the posts I have drafting. Of course, the tense on this won't make sense because this one won't fly until the backlog gets dispatched. I've just been really lazy and uninspired to hit all those keys. Anyhow, I've had this for a while, since before the summer, but only put it in the fridge a couple months ago and then forgot about it/was never in the mood. But here we are, Xmas Eve: a blend of Oak-aged Bigfoot (22%) and Celebration and Pale (78%)and then dry-hopped. It is an expectedly beasty 9.2%.

My face on the first sip: :O It is a confusing mish-mash of flavors. The Bigfoot, a pretty hoppy b-wine, immediately makes itself known. The mellower, by comparison, Celebration and Pale show up and take over, though still surrounded with a persistent Bigfoot stomping around the edges. The resin-y character of Celebration and the slightly sweeter Pale do ok until Bigfoot's time spent in bourbon barrels demands a retelling. The bourbon flavors are present but well-tempered, with caramel and hot notes.

I'm not going to lie. This tastes a lot like the DIPA I've been trying to churn through. That homebrew batch is about 5 months past its prime, and I've been working very strategically to utilize that 5 gallons. I'll post a picture, if I remember, but my time away did not treat it well. Basically, the hops died and rotted and turned the brew brown, and it became super malty. I suspected the Tap-a-draft bottles are not hard and those allowed oxidation damage, but the bottles were also as awkward. Anyway, this reminds me of those. But I like this one better, probably because it's from SN, and I actually had to pay decent money for it. But I probably wouldn't buy this again, even though I enjoy all of its constituents separately.

• Appearance: Muddy orange and red hues but otherwise fairly clear. Fine, creamy, persistent cap.
• Smell: Rich, malty, a bit pungent.
• Taste: Naturally, diverse. All components are evident and reasonably balance with one another. Taste progresses fairly linearly and distinctly rather than introducing anything surprising.
• Mouthfeel: Expected weight and carb from the style and blend. The Celebration and Pale significantly lower the viscosity of Bigfoot to make it quick.
• Drinkability and Overall: 9.2%ABV. A decent sipper worth a try but probably not a repeat buy.