Sierra Nevada Bigfoot
Prompted by this thread on Beer Advocate
Wife and kids out of town, don't have to go to work tomorrow, let's see what happens :)
2/14/19
1st comparison: 2008 and 2015
A: They both look very similar in the glass, surprisingly the 2008’s head lingers a bit more. Both are dark ruby color, crystal clear and light tan head. The 2008 might be a tiny bit darker, but that could be my imagination.
S: When I poured the 2008, I got a blast of caramel and fruitiness like dark cherry or prune. Nothing obvious as I poured the 2015. In the glass, the hops are more apparent, but not in a “this is centennial or cascade or …” just a definite hoppiness.
T: Very bitter, lots of hops but not obvious west coast Sierra Nevada hops, lots of caramel malts, makes me thing dark British caramel vs something basic like C40, light toffee, hint of sweetness. The 2008 gives me hints of chocolate, but probably more me thinking Heath Bar (toffee covered in chocolate).
M: Rich, round/almost creamy, tongue coating, medium amount of carbonation (even in the 2008). The hoppy bitterness lingers for a long time on the tongue. Somewhat palate wrecking, but in a good way, I guess I really like hops.
O: I’m surprised how similar these two vintages are. The 2008 comes across as a little rounder on the tongue and a little more muted in flavor, but neither are small/shy beers, they walk up and punch you in the mouth. One conclusion from tonight, I’m done keeping multiple vintages of Bigfoot. I’ll still hold back some each year because it is a different beer after a couple of years, but after a couple of years, there is not enough of a difference to my palate to keep 10 different vintages in the basement.
Probably a bad idea but, let’s throw 2018 into the mix
More citrus hops, a little more fruitiness that I think is the hops vs malt or yeast driven. A bit more tingly carbonation on the tongue, seems a little more on the crisp side relative to the older vintages. The easiest way to summarize is to compare 2008 to 2018. The 2018 has much more hop flavor, obvious citrus and pine. While the 2008 is hoppy, it is without the hop flavors, it is mostly just a hoppy bitterness. The lesser hop flavor in the 2008 lets a little bit more of the malt shine through.
The difference between 2015 and 2018 ends up being that the 2018 comes across as “fresher”, it is a little bit more “alive” or hoppy/fruity/flavorful. Not necessarily better, just fresher. The 2008 ends up with a little bit more malts, more restrained hops, slightly muted vs fresh. In the end, I’m somewhat amazed at how little difference there is between 2008, 2015, and 2018, maybe the oxygen caps actually do something.
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A couple days later, still no wife and kids, time for 2013 vs 2019. I am deliberately not reading what I wrote the other night to see what happens.
A: The 2013 is hazy/murky while the 2019 is crystal clear, both are a dark copper/reddish color. The head lingers on the 2019, but drops to a thin film on the 2013.
S: The 2019 has a orange/grapefruit/citrus scent along with a general sweetness, makes me think of the bottom of an OJ glass after all the juice is gone like there is still a hint of citrus remaining. As I write that I think "both poetic and stupid sounding at the same time" :)
Very little citrus on the nose of the 2013, mostly a caramel maltiness.
T: The 2019 has a sweet citrus flavor that makes me think candied grapefruit maybe with a little caramelized sugar. A definite bite of hoppy bitterness. The 2013 comes across as a more malty sweetness, some darker caramel flavors and hops more underneath vs up front like the 2019.
M: The 2013 is a little more rounder like some of the carbonation has disappeared. The 2019 is crisper but not really more carbonated. Both are very tongue coating/destroying.
O: My first thought when I poured the 2013 was the oxygen cap failed since it is a sort of ugly, hazy color. It is especially ugly compared to the clarity of the 2019. After drinking them both there is no obvious sign of oxidation (cardboard or metallic flavors). But the 2019 is more preferable to me, I find myself reaching for that and forcing myself to also keep going back to the 2013.
So, I think I like the 2019 better than the 2013. And I think that I liked the 2018 better than the older vintages the other night. Obviously I need to compare 2018 to 2019 and see what happens.
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A couple days later, still no wife and kids, time for 2013 vs 2019. I am deliberately not reading what I wrote the other night to see what happens.
A: The 2013 is hazy/murky while the 2019 is crystal clear, both are a dark copper/reddish color. The head lingers on the 2019, but drops to a thin film on the 2013.
S: The 2019 has a orange/grapefruit/citrus scent along with a general sweetness, makes me think of the bottom of an OJ glass after all the juice is gone like there is still a hint of citrus remaining. As I write that I think "both poetic and stupid sounding at the same time" :)
Very little citrus on the nose of the 2013, mostly a caramel maltiness.
T: The 2019 has a sweet citrus flavor that makes me think candied grapefruit maybe with a little caramelized sugar. A definite bite of hoppy bitterness. The 2013 comes across as a more malty sweetness, some darker caramel flavors and hops more underneath vs up front like the 2019.
M: The 2013 is a little more rounder like some of the carbonation has disappeared. The 2019 is crisper but not really more carbonated. Both are very tongue coating/destroying.
O: My first thought when I poured the 2013 was the oxygen cap failed since it is a sort of ugly, hazy color. It is especially ugly compared to the clarity of the 2019. After drinking them both there is no obvious sign of oxidation (cardboard or metallic flavors). But the 2019 is more preferable to me, I find myself reaching for that and forcing myself to also keep going back to the 2013.
So, I think I like the 2019 better than the 2013. And I think that I liked the 2018 better than the older vintages the other night. Obviously I need to compare 2018 to 2019 and see what happens.
