If you fancy yourself a British Columbian craft beer drinker, there’s a good chance you’ve had your fair share of Blue Bucks.
The signature creation from Phillips Brewing in Victoria is one of the province's best-known craft beers, and it’s beloved by many for good reason.
The malt-forward brew with crisp northwest hops is well-balanced and highly drinkable, making it a popular choice no matter the time of year.
This week’s column is not about the classic Blue Buck, but there is a good reason why I’m talking about it.
Phillips just dropped the Barrel-Aged Blue Buck, a brand new creation that has, for obvious reasons, been in the works for quite some time.
“We've slowed it down and taken a little extra time to bring some extra magic out of the woodwork,” explains a social media post from the brewery.
Unfortunately, I can’t offer much input on the subject of this week’s beer column, because I have yet to try it.
Phillips just posted about the Barrel-Aged Blue Buck Friday afternoon, so this is more of a public service announcement to alert beer lovers that it’s out there.
As a result, I’m going to let the brewery do all the explaining this time around, but that's a good thing because they do a far better job of it than I ever could.
“Rested in barrels from our in-house distillery, Barrel-Aged Blue Buck is infused with a rich whisky character with aromas of sweet caramel, chocolate, vanilla and sherry,” Phillips says.
“It finishes dry with a lingering mild sweetness and warming whisky afterthoughts.”
I’ll be on the lookout for this one because I’m personally excited to try it, and if you feel the same way you should see it starting to pop up at BC liquor stores that sell craft beer bombers.
A bomber, if you’re unaware, is a 650 millilitre bottle, which is exclusively what you’ll find this new beer in.
Phillips’ Barrel-Aged Blue Buck comes in at 6% ABV, a full percent more than the original Blue Buck, with an IBU of 25 and SRM (beer colour scale) of 12.
Josh Duncan is the NowMedia news director and a craft beer lover. Reach him at josh@nowmediagroup.ca. His beer column appears every Saturday afternoon in this space.
