Ise Kadoya Kado Labo 004 Dark Entries 1 : Background
Ise Kadoya Kado Labo 004 Dark Entries 1, and now breath, is a 13% barrel aged imperial stout from Ise Kadoya, based in Mie, Kansai. It’s part of their Kado Labo range of beers, though it’s unlikely that it’ll be released again in this format. At the time of writing, there are still bottled around for purchase, though make sure you have a rich benefactor behind you, because at almost ¥6,000 a bottle, these beers don’t come cheap.
To quote Ise Kadoya on this beer seems apt “First, we brewed the original Imperial Stout. Since we planned to age it in wooden barrels, we added a lot of oat malt and flaked oats to produce a wort with a high protein and glucan content to balance the tannins from the barrels and enhance the body and mouth feel, and then added lactose through a whirlpool.
We fermented it slowly for about a month, waiting for the profile of fermentation by-products to settle, and then filled the beer into bourbon barrels and aged it in bourbon barrels. After about half a year, we tasted several barrels that had been aged, and selected one barrel with the strongest chocolate and vanilla notes.
We transferred the beer from the barrel to two tanks. In one, we put five sliced vanillas from Comoros, and in the other, we put five sliced vanillas from Vanuatu. After soaking in the beer for seven days, we removed the vanilla and bottled the beer.”
Ise Kadoya Kado Labo 004 Dark Entries 1 : At A Glance
- ABV : 13%
- Style : Barrel aged imperial stout
- Hops : Hop flow
- Adjuncts : Comoro vanilla, milk sugar, sugar
- IBU : –
Ise Kadoya Kado Labo 004 Dark Entries 1 : Sale Information
- Availability : Limited
- On Sale : From August 2023
- Size : 750 ml
Ise Kadoya Kado Labo 004 Dark Entries 1 : Appearance
Pitch black colour with a deep tan head of bubbles that just left dirty streaks down the side of the glass.
Ise Kadoya Kado Labo 004 Dark Entries 1 : Aroma
Intense roasted black malts, light bourbon notes, with oak and vanilla present. Chocolate and coffee comes through as it warms up, with a touch of caramel just lingering in the back. Intense seems apt. A lot going on in the nose but let it warm up to really open.
Ise Kadoya Kado Labo 004 Dark Entries 1 : Taste
Full bodied and full flavoured. Vanilla has subdued along with the bourbon notes. Chocolate and coffee going on, with some oaky notes alongside a muted creaminess. It’s a sipper when it warms up as the alcohol heat comes through but it’s a warming sensation rather than a burning whiskey note.
Ise Kadoya Kado Labo 004 Dark Entries 1 : The Bottom Line
Wonderful. I shared this with friends but I could easily drink this by myself.
Ise Kadoya Kado Labo 004 Dark Entries 1 : Where to Buy
Ise Kadoya Kado Labo 004 Dark Entries 1 can be bought online at the following places:
