Brewery: BrewDog & Stone Brewing
Location: Fraserburgh, Scotland / Escondido, California, USA
Style: Black Belgian Style Double IPA
ABV: 8.6%
Version: Bottled
Source: Brewdog

I bought half a dozen bottles of Bashah – a collaborative project between Brewdog and Stone Brewing – back in October last year. I’ve been drinking them at roughly monthly intervals – I’ve polished off five so far – and have been hugely impressed with how much Bashah has improved in just half a year.

Some things never change: Bashah is inky-black – dark as the inside of a gargoyle – and pours with a big, frothy white head. The essential flavours, too, remained the same: coffee and treacle, with a hint of charcoal smoke.

But there are noticeable differences as well. Bashah #1 was quite dry with a very strong hop-profile (the IPA side of its heritage predominant) and just a hint of sweetness cutting through (from my notebook: “Odd balance. Needs to mature?”).

After six month in the bottle the profile has flipped right over. Bashah #5′s dominant flavour turned out to be one of liquorice sweetness, with the smokiness all-but faded and the hop profile much more muted. The mouth-feel had become noticeably richer and smoother as well; a progression I’d noticed on Bashahs #2 through #4 but which really got into its stride on #5.

Beer evolution in action: Bashah #1 was definitely a big-hopped IPA, although obviously much darker than you’d usually expect. Bashah #5 was closer to an imperial stout or strong porter. Pour a Bashah alongside a BrewDog Riptide and I honestly think you might be hard-pushed to spot the difference. It’s a lot more Belgian than it was to begin with as well, with the sort of depth and richness of flavour that’s associated with the trappist style.

Bashah #1 I wasn’t completely sold on. Bashah #5 I absolutely loved. Bashah #6 is going to sit at the back of the beer cupboard and won’t be seeing the light of day for another six months, minimum. Longer, if can manage to resist its dusky allure.

My advice: if you see a bottle of Bashah on the shelf, you should grab it, age it, savour it. You certainly won’t regret it.

Another couple of consignments have arrived and are waiting for me to cram them into the already over-full beer cupboard:

That’ll be six bottles of BrewDog / Stone collaboration Bashah (a Black Belgian Double IPA weighing in at an impressive 8.4% 8.6% abv) along with two each of BrewDog Nanny State and BrewDog Trashy Blonde, plus a couple of samples of Daas‘s Organic beers – Witte and Blond – courtesy of Daas PR person Pip. Cheers, Pip! Hoping to sample those this weekend, will post the Notes as soon as poss.

Here’s how the conversation went…

Jo: Honey?

Me: Yes, love?

Jo: You know how you said you weren’t going to buy any more beer for a while..?

Me: Um…

Jo: …on account of the beer cupboard being totally full…

Me: …um…

Jo: …and there being an overflow section that’s starting to colonise far end of the dining room?

Me: …yeah?

Jo: So why is there an email from BrewDog confirming the delivery of six bottles of their brand new Bashah Black Belgian Double IPA and a couple of bottles each of their new two-fingers to the Portman Group brew Nanny State and – the one BrewDog beer you haven’t actually tried yet – Trashy Blonde in your inbox?

Me: Cup of tea love? I’ve just put the kettle on…

There’s nothing for it, I’m just going to have to starting drinking twice as much. Sounds like a plan.