I’m a huge fan of barley-wines like Old Foghorn and Sierra’s BigFoot — so Cooper’s Vintage Ale 2008 called out to me from the shelf. The bold Porter-y flavor and heavy duty alcohol always make me feel I’m getting prime ROI from my drink. I had to give it a go.

Cooper’s is a popular beer from Austrailia and I hear many good things about it. I have no reason to expect anything but a great beer from these guys.

Luckily, I read the label and saw that Cooper’s Vintage Ale was bottle conditioned. I decided 2008 might be “young” and only refrigerated two bottles (on the hope I’d want a second.) Four of the six pack are aging in my beer and wine cellar. The second one still sits in the ice-box.

Bitter, bland and really just not ready to be drank is how I’d have to describe it. I thought I’d gotten it too cold at first and let it warm up — that was no help at all, simply gave it a chalky after taste. I can see this beer maturing in 6+ months in the bottle, it reminded me of a belgian dubble I home brewed. That first bottle I opened after only putting the finished, bottled beer up for 6 or 7 weeks tastes like this — just not ready.

I’ll report back in a few months. We’ll see how it develops…