Beer lovers at Lodo’s Falling Rock Taphouse got to try a unique Colorado pairing Friday night when the staff from Oskar Blues brewery passed out samples of their winter seasonal, Ten FIDY imperial stout, as well as the same beer after it had been aged for three months in a barrel from Stranahan's Colorado Whisky.
Dubbed “The Battle of the FIDYs,” the tasting attracted numerous beer aficionados. The Ten FIDY, already a big beer with more than ten percent alcohol by volume, became even larger with the addition of the whiskey-barrel flavor, which gave it an immense, almost port-like character. Stranahan’s (a 2007 Westword Best of winner makes small batches of whiskey on Blake Street, just five blocks from Falling Rock, a 2008 winner.)
Oskar Blues (famous for its canned microbrews like Dale's Pale Ale) recently opened a new brewery in Longmont to handle its rapid growth. It plans to phase out Ten FIDY for the summer, but will likely bring it back. On tap for the warmer months is something creatively light, said one of the brewers on-hand for the tasting. (The brewery staff, incidentally, were sampling Odell Brewing Company’s new IPA and Hoegaarden when they weren’t drinking their own concoction; always good to know what brewers like.) Sadly, Falling Rock blew through the whisky-aged beer on Friday; hopefully, they'll bring it back another time. – Jonathan Shikes
