This week, Crux Fermentation Project provided me with two of its recent beers: Tough Love Barrel-Aged Imperial Stout and Doublecross Dark Belgian-Style Ale.

The Tough Love is special because this year’s is the 10th anniversary edition of the beer; the barrel-aged version is part of the brewery’s Banished series, and naturally this year features some extras. Here’s the description from an email earlier this month:

Our tenth vintage of an annual favorite, this year’s Tough Love remains true to form. This special stout brewed with Blackstrap Molasses and Brewer’s Licorice was “Banished” to Kentucky bourbon barrels under controlled conditions for nearly a year. Rich overtones of dark roasted malt, oak-smoked wheat, and malted rye give way to delicate notes of velvety chocolate, vanilla, and dried cherries.

As for the Doublecross, it’s released in cans again this year (last year was the first time it was canned—previously, it had been bottled), with 11% ABV, making it Crux’s version of a Belgian Quadrupel.

I’ll have more to say on these soon!