Monday night a took a trip to a Belgian beer bar in NYC for a special Brooklyn night. I had on tap Brooklyn Blast (Double IPA), Dark Matter (bourbon barrel aged brown ale), 2007 Monster Ale, and 2007 Black Chocolate Stout. In addition, Garrett Oliver and some other people from the brewery showed up and started pouring what they call "ghost bottles", stuff that was bottled but never made available for purchase. They poured bottles of the original 2006 test batch of Local 1, Local 1 aged on Riesling lees (what's left behind in the barrels after wine is made), Wild 1 (wild, bourbon barrel aged Local 1), and bottles of a new collaboration with an Italian brewery. They also had bottles of 1997(!) Black Chocolate Stout, but they brewery staff basically hoarded them for themselves
I came home and, despite being pretty drunk cracked a 12% maple bourbon barrel aged barleywine. Founders Nemesis 2009, despite being a year old, is still a bit boozy.
Last night I cracked a bottle of Hopslam when I got home from work (absolutely delicious) and then after dinner a bomber of Terrapin's Hoptaneous Combustion. It's a smoked double IPA and a fairly unique brew. They almost pulled it off, but the smoky finish blots out a bit too much of the hop flavor.
5 days after brewing my Double IPA has just about finished fermenting out. A couple more days and I'll be ready to add in the dry hops