8.6

Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 8 | Flavor - 9 | Texture - 10 | Overall - 8.5

12oz bottle from Tavour. Near black pour, thin ring of tan head. Rich roasty malty aroma with traces of whiskey. Taste is roast malts, chocolate, notes from the whiskey barrels. Velvety smooth, luscious. Gentle warmth. This a beauty of a beer and worth its high scores.

8.1

Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 8 | Flavor - 8 | Texture - 6 | Overall - 9.5

Hoppin' Frog's flagship stout, aged on Heaven Hill barrels, the well-known bourbon from Tennessee. Bottle from Etre Gourmet. Medium sized, mousy, mocha-beige, opening and thinning head on a pitch black beer. Strong nose of 'fondant' chocolate, vanilla-scenting oak wood, toffee, damp wool blanket, quite obvious bourbon, ground hazelnuts, tawny port, bayleaf, gravy, soy sauce, mocha ice cream, fig compote, blood, fresh thyme, paprika powder, candied cherries. Sweet onset, candied dates and figs mingled with dried blueberries, softishly carbonated with a thick, oily to even syrupy body; intense, layered black-chocolatey and hard-caramelly malts with a toasted walnut bitterness and eventually quite outspoken coffeeish roastedness to it, even if the sweeter, more chocolatey-nutty aspect remains firmly in control, as in many present-day American style imperial stouts. This thick and mouth-filling black malt 'bed' handles the pronounced bourbon aspect perfectly, absorbing much of its sheer booziness and translating it into a pleasant, chest-warming glow - while releasing all the vanilla, oaky and whisky-like flavours associated with it. The bourbon does add a thyme- and pepper-like spiciness to the finish, while the wood remains elegantly tannic but clean. Classic American style barreled stout, ticking all the boxes of what one tends to expect from a bottle like this - and classic (or indeed, unsurprising) as it may be, this kind of beers still hit a sweet spot in me. Lovely, but pricey at least here in Belgium.

8.5

Appearance - 10 | Aroma - 8 | Flavor - 8 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 9

Tap @ Fermentoren, Aarhus. Pours thick black with a tall, creamy caramel brown head. Aromas; bourbon, Vanilla, coffee, caramel, chocolate and dark. Tastes of brown sugar and 'gunpowder'. Pretty wooden and dark chocolate. A top stout.

8.3

Appearance - 6 | Aroma - 8 | Flavor - 9 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 9

Bottle. Almost pitch black, quickly disappearing head. Oak, vanilla, molasses and dark chocolate in the aroma. Powerful sweet, yet deceptively drinkable beer with vanilla, chocolate, oak, caramel, hints of licorice and lots of dried plums. Full bodied, syrupy mouthfeel. Alcohol and tobacco showing up in the aftertaste. Low on carbon, but a quite delicious and complex beer indeed.

8.2

Appearance - 10 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 8 | Texture - 10 | Overall - 8

2015 Taster showing pitch black with a finger of latte colored foam. The nose shows medium intense notes of roasted malts, vanilla, and bourbon smokiness. The palate is full bodied and slick with mild carbonation. As expected, very smooth oatmeal mouthfeel. Strong bourbon forward vanilla with a mild espresso like bitterness on the finish with a bit of adzuki sweetness on the mid-palate that follows through to the end to tie it off. Comes together quite well but prefer without the barrel

8

Appearance - 6 | Aroma - 8 | Flavor - 8 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 9

Toranomon Hills tasting, thanks Jon! Dark brown without much foam there actually. Almost flat. Whiskey quite evident from the nose, booze and some coconut. Light alcohol bitterness, nice tingle. Taste has booze and some sweetness, oatmeal creaminess there as well I guess. Good bitter roast, some roasty linger with well balanced liquor character. Nice and quite complex.

9

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