XX Anniversary Blend by Jackie O’s Brewery: Twenty Years of Brewing, One Big Barrel-Aged Celebration

Some beers are meant to be cracked open on a random Tuesday night. Others deserve a little more attention. And then there are beers like XX Anniversary Blend from Jackie O’s Brewery, which practically demand that you slow down, find a comfortable seat, and give yourself some time to appreciate what’s in the glass.

Brewed to celebrate Jackie O’s twentieth anniversary, this barrel-aged blend brings together two of my favorite categories of big, bold beer: stouts and barleywines. At a hefty 14.8% ABV, this isn’t exactly a session beer, unless your idea of a session involves one carefully poured glass and absolutely nowhere to be for the next couple of hours. The brewery combines 16 barrels of single- and multiple-vintage stouts and barleywine-style ales to create a beer built around rich toffee, chocolate, and oak-derived vanilla character.

And honestly, combining stout and barleywine sounds like a pretty good way to celebrate two decades of brewing.

The Beer: XX Anniversary Blend

XX Anniversary Blend by Jackie O’s Brewery in a Revive Tumbler

Beer: XX Anniversary Blend

Brewery: Jackie O’s Brewery · Athens, Ohio

Description Notes: A blend of barrel-aged stouts and barleywine-style ales, created for the brewery’s 20th anniversary.

What makes this beer particularly interesting is that it’s not simply a stout with a little barleywine thrown into the mix, or a barleywine trying to borrow some of a stout’s personality. The concept is to bring together the characteristics of both styles and let them complement one another.

A good barrel-aged stout can deliver roasted malt, dark chocolate, and a deep, almost dessert-like richness. A good barleywine brings its own malt-forward character, caramel sweetness, dried-fruit complexity, and warming alcohol. Put them together, and there’s plenty of potential for a beer that offers something a little different from either style on its own.

The trick, of course, is balance. At nearly 15% ABV, a beer can easily become a boozy, syrupy mess if the individual elements don’t play nicely together. The appeal of a blend like this is seeing whether the barrel character, dark malt, and rich sweetness can come together as something cohesive rather than competing for attention.

A Toast to Barleywines

If you’ve read my recent review of #400 Barleywine by Boneshire Brew Works, you already know I’ve been giving barleywines some attention lately. And there’s a reason for that: I genuinely enjoy the style.

Barleywines are one of those beer styles that deserve more appreciation than they sometimes get. They’re big, they’re bold, and they don’t apologize for being either. They can deliver layers of caramel, toffee, dark fruit, malt sweetness, and alcohol warmth, with enough variation between brewers and vintages to keep things interesting. They’re beers that reward patience, and they’re often better when you take your time instead of treating them like just another can in the fridge.

That’s a big part of the appeal for me. I enjoy beers that give you something to think about while you’re drinking them. Barleywines have that ability to turn a simple beer into an experience, especially when barrel aging enters the picture.

And that’s where XX Anniversary Blend gets particularly interesting. Rather than presenting a barleywine on its own, Jackie O’s has brought it together with barrel-aged stouts. The result is an opportunity to explore the overlap between two styles that I think deserve a place in any serious craft beer enthusiast’s rotation.

My recent #400 review was a celebration of barleywine in its own right. This beer takes that appreciation in a different direction, pairing the style’s malt-forward foundation with the darker, richer character of barrel-aged stout. For someone who enjoys barleywines, that’s a combination worth exploring.

(See Beer Review: #400 by Boneshire Brew Works)

Drinking XX Anniversary Blend With the Revive Tumbler

Revive Tumbler featuring The Beer Thrillers logo with the XX Anniversary Beer from Jackie O’s Brewery

I’ll admit that glassware and drinkware can be an overlooked part of the beer-drinking experience. We spend plenty of time talking about the brewery, the ingredients, the ABV, and the flavors, but what we drink out of matters, too. The Revive Tumbler brings a different approach to enjoying a beer, particularly if you’re looking for a reusable, practical drinking vessel rather than reaching for a traditional pint glass every time. Since I haven’t verified the exact model and specifications of the tumbler featured on my Instagram, I’ll leave the technical claims aside. What matters here is that it was the vessel I chose for this pour. And with a beer as substantial as XX Anniversary Blend, the occasion is as much about slowing down and enjoying the experience as it is about what’s in the can. If you missed the original feature, head over to The Beer Thrillers on Instagram to check it out.

There is something fitting about pairing a twenty-year anniversary beer with a piece of drinkware that has its own story to tell. Craft beer has always been about more than just the liquid. It’s the people, the places, the equipment, the glassware, the conversations, and the memories that come along with it. The tumbler was part of this particular beer experience, and that’s reason enough to give it a mention.

(See the Tumbler Review)

What to Expect From the Pour

XX Anniversary Beer by Jackie O’s

The brewery describes XX Anniversary Blend with notes of rich toffee, supple chocolate, and oaky vanillin, drawing on the combined character of its barrel-aged stouts and barleywines.

That flavor combination makes sense for a beer like this. Toffee and caramel-like malt notes provide a rich foundation, while chocolate brings in the darker, roasted side of the stout. The oak-derived vanilla character adds another dimension, connecting the malt and barrel influences.

The interesting question with a blend like this is which side takes the lead. Does the stout provide the dominant impression, with its chocolate and roasted character? Does the barleywine bring more caramel, fruit, and malt sweetness to the forefront? Or does the barrel aging tie everything together into something that doesn’t fit neatly into either category?

That interplay is what makes anniversary blends appealing. They give a brewery the opportunity to draw on years of brewing experience and bring different beers together in a way that tells a larger story.

Of course, a beer’s published tasting notes are only part of the picture. Every drinker’s experience is different, and I won’t pretend to have detected specific flavors or mouthfeel characteristics in my own pour without recording those impressions. What I can appreciate about the concept is the ambition behind it: a celebratory blend that brings two substantial beer styles together rather than relying on a single barrel-aged stout to do all the work.

Final Thoughts

XX Anniversary Blend is a fitting concept for celebrating twenty years of Jackie O’s Brewery. Bringing together barrel-aged stouts and barleywine-style ales gives this beer plenty of potential complexity, and the 14.8% ABV makes it a clear candidate for sipping rather than rushing through.

For me, the barleywine connection is what makes this one especially worth discussing. As I mentioned in my recent review of Boneshire Brew Works’ #400 Barleywine, I’m a fan of the style. I like the malt-forward character, the richness, and the way a good barleywine encourages you to take your time. Pairing those qualities with barrel-aged stout is an intriguing variation on that theme.

And naturally, I enjoyed this one with the Revive Tumbler featured on my Instagram at @the_beer_thrillers. It’s another reminder that the craft beer experience doesn’t stop at the brewery door or end when the can is opened. The beer, the vessel, and the occasion all play their part.

Twenty years of brewing is worth celebrating. And if you’re going to raise a glass to that kind of milestone, a blend of stout and barleywine seems like a pretty good way to do it.

Cheers, everyone!

— B. Kline, The Beer Thrillers