Poured out of a four pack of bottles.
The Kentucky Honey Barrel Brown Ale pours out a deep chestnut brown with a finger or so of a bubbly and creamy looking light tan head. The head dissipates after about a minute or two, which is slightly disappointing. The 10% ABV gives the beer a little bit of alcohol legs if you swirl it in the glass. The head leaves a bit of lacing along the side of the glass, but it, like the head, dissipates relatively quickly. Overall a pretty nice looking beer, although I wish there was a bit more head retention, since I only got a couple of sips before the head vanished entirely.
At 44 degrees (straight out of the fridge
At the colder temperature the aroma is very sweet - nutty, toffee, caramel and honey. A bit of alcohol and oakiness is present, but at this temperature the aroma is pretty straightforward.
Flavors wise, the sweetness is much, much lower. Lots of darker beer flavors are present here, with some licorice, and coffee, along with a little bit of fruitiness from the alcohols present toward the finish. There are a few bourbon barrel flavors here as well - a bit of vanilla and a very tiny bit of oak - but it's mostly the darker malts at this temperature.
A moderately light body and relatively high carbonation gives a slightly lighter body than I expected, although it isn't watery or too thin. I would have liked a bit of a smoother body, but this is okay.
At 54 degrees (on the counter for about 30-40 minutes
Still lots of sweet malt aromas, just like at the colder temperature. There is a more pronounced alcohol fruitiness, and the oak and vanilla bourbon flavors are much more noticeable. Overall, it's still a very sweet aroma, but a little bit of personality is start to peek through - much more interesting!
Taste wise, there is a bit more of balanced flavor, with some sweeter dark chocolate and toffee sweetness to balance out some of darker and more bitter flavors that were present in the colder version. The darker, more bitter coffee and licorice flavors are still present, but mostly in the finish, which seems to be a bit longer and more drawn out at this temperature. The long finish really lets the barrel flavors come out, and this definitely has more of a duel personality at this warmer temperature - almost sweet upfront, and a bit of bitter and bourbon burn in the (long) finish.
The body is still essentially the same, although with the more interesting aroma and flavors, it doesn't quite seem as out of place (or the 10% ABV is removing my capacity to care!)
At 62 degrees (or about 1:30 on the counter)
Lots of the sweet and nutty caramel and toffee malt aromas, along with the fruity alcohol aromas and the smokey and oaky bourbon barrel scents. There is a hint of the bitter coffee and licorice that was so strong at the colder temperature, but now there's a lot more to take in, and those are pushed a little bit into the background.
At this warmer temperature, everything is nicely balanced and very flavorful. What was a slightly harsh and singular bitterness has now become much more balanced and rounded with the addition of about 18 degrees of warming. The flavors strike a great balance between the sweet toffee and caramel flavors balancing with the very oaky and vanilla from the barrels, the bitter dark malt, and the finish has a nice balance of alcohol fruitiness and a little bit of dryness.
The body feels a bit smoother and rounder at this warmer temperature, and not quite as "prickly" in the carbonation department as it was at the coldest temperature.
Overall
Like most of the beers that I've tried this with, the Kentucky Honey Barrel Brown Ale can have a duel personality, depending upon the temperature that you drink it. If you're looking to get the most out of a good craft beer, it really is worth the time to let it sit out and get a little bit of the chill off - the flavors and aromas you'll get will make sure that your patience is rewarded. Unlike some of the bourbon barrel-aged stuff, this beer does a nice of job of being a beer first, and letting the barrel flavors enhance the beer-ness, rather than just hitting you over the head with the bourbon flavors alone.
