Wolf of the Willows & Lark Distillery Imperial JSP

Style
Whisky Barrel Aged Imperial Smoked Porter
ABV
11.2%

In a world in which the release of barrel aged beers seems to be a weekly occurrence, The Barrel Exchange Project is a meeting of malts with a difference. The collaboration between Wolf of the Willows and Lark Distillery saw the Wolf brewers head to Tasmania to select six Lark barrels to be shipped across Bass Strait. Once they arrived in Cheltenham, within seven days the freshly emptied barrels were filled with an imperial version of the brewery's JSP and left to mature. When the beer was ready, those barrels were shipped back to Lark and - within another week - filled again with whisky. Both the whisky aged beer and the beer aged whisky have been released at the same time, so drinkers can try the two together and enjoy the interplay between beer, whisky and oak.

As far as the Lark Barrel Aged Imperial Johnny Smoke Porter is concerned, as ever with Wolf Of The Willows, it's beautifully presented – just more so – with the pipe-smoking, gold-flecked, besuited wolf of the label preparing you for what lies ahead. And that's something suitably deep and austere.

While we didn't pick up much in the way of the choc orange or citrus noted on the label, the promised vanilla, mocha, molasses and espresso are present along with plenty of choc fudge and lush caramel, creating a decadent, full and creamy cake like experience. Scott may have held back from proportionally ramping up the smoky character of the original JSP when creating the bigger base beer, but there's still a hint of peaty smoke and fruity whisky poking through, not to mention a whiff of the wolf's leather wallet, suggesting he means business.

Published October 10, 2018

Name
Wolf of the Willows
Address

39 De Havilland Road
Mordialloc
VIC 3195

Phone
For orders, please email orders@wolfofthewillows.com.au
Open Hours

Thursday: 4pm to 10pm
Friday: 3pm to 10pm Saturday: midday to 10pm
Sunday: midday to 6pm

Black Bad Boy Bao 2024 B
Pickled OnMarket

More from Wolf of the Willows

Wolf of the Willows Super Lemon Haze
Hazy Pale With Terpenes
5.2%
Wolf of the Willows Gelato!
Blood Orange Sour With Terpenes
5.2%
Wolf of the Willows King Louis XIII
West Coast IPA With Terpenes
7.0%
Wolf of the Willows Ginger Beer
Ginger Beer
4.0%
Wolf of the Willows Pineapple Express California IPA
California IPA with Terpenes
5.6%
Wolf of the Willows The Haze Has Spoken & West Coast Is The Way
Hazy & West Coast IPAs
Both 6.5%
Wolf of the Willows PUP Mid: Mango Pale Ale
Mango Pale Ale
3.2%
Wolf of the Willows x Original Pattern Latitude 37.8
West Coast IPA
6.2%
Wolf of the Willows Crisp Lager
Lager
4.2%
Wolf of the Willows Inner Vision Strata & Double Vision Microdosed
Single Hop Hazy IPA & Microdosed Hazy DIPA
6.0% & 8.0%
Wolf of the Willows Lark Imperial JSP V
Whisky Barrel-Aged Imperial Smoked Porter
12.4%
Wolf of the Willows x The Gospel Persistence III
Rye Whiskey Barrel-Aged Imperial Stout
12.0%
Wolf of the Willows First Chair
Coffee Breakfast Stout
6.0%
Wolf of the Willows Hawaiian Sour
Tropcial Fruit Cream Sour
6.2%
Wolf of the Willows Inner Vision III & Double Vision III
Hazy IPA & Double Hazy IPA
6.2% & 8.0%
Wolf Of The Willows Nitro Twins
Nitro Whisky Sour & Nitro Spiced Amber Ale
9.0% & 6.2%
Wolf of the Willows Aqua Boogie
Seltzer
All 4.0%
Wolf of the Willows Disco of the Dead II
Orange Sangrita Sour
6.0%
Wolf of the Willows Inner Vision II & Double Vision II
DDH Hazy IPA & DDH Hazy DIPA
6.2% & 8.0%
Wolf of the Willows Full Moon Party & Golden Hour In LA
Mango Pale Ale & Lo-Cal Lager
3.8% & 5.0%