Irie Stout- 9 months later

I'm never that good at saving beers. I tend to drink my beers too early, and rarely let beers sit for a long period of time. Before I got more into kegging, there was always the issue of bottle availability as well. The bottom line, the fact that a bottle of Irie Stout managed to last 9 months is a first for me. Seeing the last bottle amongst my bottles, I was curious about when I brewed this one, so I checked the date in my brewing notebook and found out that it was brewed on March 13, exactly 9 months to the day, so on December 13th, I cracked open the Irie.
This beer wasn't one I was too happy about this year. While some people liked, I felt that I had tweaked it beyond what I had wanted. In an effort to get the ABV high, I added some Black Treacle, an English Molasses, and I felt that it was too present. The beer ended up about 10.5 % abv, and for the first couple months, there was too much heat.
The original Irie had been a nice balance of fruity flavors and chocolate, it was drinkable and captured the Caribbean feel of what I wanted. But over time I tried to make it more "Imperial" and each time felt like I had gone too far away from the orginial plan. This latest version was probably the closest to an "Imperial" beer as the Irie was going to get. It was complex and over time the alcohol definitely mellowed out. While the Irie at 9 months was much better than it was earlier, I learned my lesson that I shouldn't always mess with a good thing. Nevertheless, it was fun to age a beer this long, and I can see how, particularly with a high ABV stout, it really changes the beer in a positive way.

The Irie pours black with a three finger light khaki head that lingers some on the glass. Aromas of tropical fruits (mango, passion fruit) as well as molasses and slight alcohol are present in the nose. There's a fizzy carbonation, which adds some refershing qualities, but takes away from the "stoutiness." Some chocolate and more complex fruitiness at first, with some molasses as well. There's no roastiness, but some citrusy/orangey flavors. The mango-tropical dominates the fruitiness more than the citrus (both Mango and Orange preserve were used in the brew). There's some lingering chocolatey sweetness in the finish, as well as some alcohol. As it warms, the chocolate definitely becomes more apparent.

Overall, I'm glad I saved a bottle. It taught me a lesson on Imperials, that I knew was the case, but it was nice to taste the difference. I felt that the treacle was still too present and the flavors were more complex along the lines of an Impy stout than I wanted for my personal preference. Still a good lesson learned.
I plan on getting in a review of my Holiday Cranberry Orange Wheat in before Christmas arrives.
Salud!
Bearded Brewer