Tempest Old Parochial was the first ever barrel aged beer I drank, and I featured it in my 12BeersOfXmas all the way back in 2013. We've both changed a lot in the intervening years, myself having transtioned into a brewing career and then out of a brewing career, so let's see if I enjoy it as much as I did back then.

The beer pours a dark brown with a very minimal head, and the aroma is overwhelmingly caramel and burnt sugar with just a sliver of the Scotch whisky barrel that this beer spent so long sleeping in. In the mouth it's more of the same, but this time the whisky barrel is not pulling any punches. The beer has a huge body and a sweet, whisky-esque finish that lingers all around your mouth.

This is a style of beer and a strength that should encourage sipping, but in my case I'm simply enjoying it too damn much.