Approaching the magic day where thousands gather in a Northwest Indiana industrial park to drink beers we brought from home and get bottles of a beer some of us may never drink. It’s Dark Lord Season!
As is tradition I like to weigh in on the barrel aged Dark Lord variants, both in how I think they’ll turn out, but also in terms of ranking them how I think their secondary value will come out. This years observations below.
2023 Barrel Aged Dark Lord Variant Ranking Predictions
- Marshmallow Handjee — Bourbon barrel aged Dark Lord with vanilla beans
- Sundae Thunderstorm — Bourbon barrel aged Dark Lord with coffee, cocoa nibs, and vanilla beans
- ChemTrailMix — Dark Lord aged in rye barrels with cinnamon + pink peppercorns
- Raspberry Diamonds — Rye barrel aged Dark Lord with freeze dried raspberries
- ‘Rrari Crochet —Port & Madeira Barrel aged Dark Lord with toasted coconut, freeze dried strawberries, vanilla beans, and cocoa nibs
- Naturally Upset — Dark Lord aged for two years in single malt whiskey barrels
Variant Breakdown Analysis
Reminder, these are predictions, not tasting notes. Tick them yourself and let me know how wrong I was @Ferowcious
Marshmallow Handjee — Bourbon barrel aged Dark Lord with vanilla beans
This is the undisputed king of Dark Lord variants since 2011. It’s consistency is relatively unmatched for having so many iterations come out of the Three Floyds Barrel Warehouse. This is really the king, and it hasn’t been recently challenged.
Sundae Thunderstorm — Bourbon barrel aged Dark Lord with coffee, cocoa nibs, and vanilla beans
I think Dark Lord is at it’s best when it leans on simple ideas that draw on concepts you’re already familiar with. One of the best variants of all time was 2016 French Vanilla Militia. Sundae Thunderstorm closely follows this ( the original, before they started using sweet wine barrels.) The only adjunct difference between FVM and Sundae Thunderstorm is the barrel, which was Armagnac in 2016 and Bourbon here. I think they’re going for a bit of an affogato vibe here and I think this will impress a lot of people. Handjee will always trade and sell high because of it’s reputation and reliability but I think this will be sneaky good.
ChemTrailMix — Dark Lord aged in rye barrels with cinnamon + pink peppercorns
Chemtrail first debuted in 2017 but has become a reliable staple in the stable of Dark Lord variants. You can count on it to be in the top 30% of variants from year to year. It rarely wows anymore but it is always a welcome pour if you’re able to snag some.
Raspberry Diamonds — Rye barrel aged Dark Lord with freeze dried raspberries
One of the best annual, reliable barrel aged beers in the Midwest is Clare’s Thirsty from Haymarket in Chicago. It balances tart raspberries, and a barrel forward chocolatey stout in great harmony. It doesn’t get an abundance of hype but after years of tasty releases it still is a great combo. I think Raspberry Diamonds has the chance to follow this. I think it’s less of a gamble than ‘Rrari Crochet. Dark Lord has a reliably great history of great output of variants that have came through Rye barrels, including ChemTrailMix, Hung Drawn & Quartered, and more. I expect good things here and would not be let down if this variant found its way into my bag at Dark Lord Day.
‘Rrari Crochet — Port & Madeira barrel aged Dark Lord with toasted coconut, freeze dried strawberries, vanilla beans, and cocoa nibs
The Ferrari debuted in 2019 in Port barrels. When it returned in 2020 it was done in Cognac barrels. After a hiatus, Rrari Crochet is returning via a combo of Port & Madeira barrels. These are notoriously sweet barrels for an already thoroughly sweet beer. I think it will be ok, but this barrel combo + these adjuncts will not yield a net improvement for what was a very impressive bottle with cognac in 2020.
Naturally Upset — Dark Lord aged for two years in single malt whiskey barrels.
We’ve arrived at the biggest question mark of 2023’s variants. Three Floyds Distilling has done a single malt whiskey in the past but it’s unclear if the barrels used here are theirs. They’re normally pretty vocal and inclusive of using their own barrels in some of the Dark Lord variants. The operative question here, is are the single malt whiskey barrels peated? There’s been poorly received scotch whiskey Dark Lord variants in the past. Could this be another? We’ll find out on Saturday, May 20.
Enjoy Dark Lord Day. Remember, you can’t drink enough water, but if you have the choice, the BA Water is best.
Koel Story Bro 