Score
7.19
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Beautiful bourbon, sweet, oak, cherries with tons of brownies in the nose. Lovely. The mouth is a bit too carbonated, nice chocolate, cherries and bourbon character. Would like stronger charred oak. Decent but not minding blowing
Thanks Gregg for sharing the bottle! Poured into a shaker showing pitch black with sparse latte colored foam. The nose shows pronounced notes of bing cherry and light notes of roasted malts. The palate is medium bodied and well carbonated. Light notes of cherry with a mid palate of light bourbon and a moderately intense bitterness.
22 ounce bottle into tulip glass, bottled in 9/2017. Pours dense pitch black color with a 1-2 finger dense and rocky tan head with awesome retention, that reduces to a nice cap that lingers. Dense soapy lacing clings around the glass, with a fair amount of streaming carbonation retaining the cap. Fantastic appearance. Aromas of big milk/dark chocolate, cocoa, coffee, black cherries, toffee, vanilla, bourbon, toasted oak, almond, and dark bread; with light notes of smoke, char, raisins/dark fruit, herbal, and roast/toasted earthiness. Damn nice aromas with great balance and complexity of roast/bready malt, cherries, and bourbon barrel notes; with great strength. Taste of huge milk/dark chocolate, cocoa, coffee, black cherries, toffee, vanilla, bourbon, toasted oak, almond, and dark bread; with light notes of smoke, char, raisins/dark fruit, herbal, and roast/toasted earthiness. Light roast/char bitterness, bourbon/oak spiciness, and fruit tang/tartness on the finish. Lingering notes of milk/dark chocolate, cocoa, coffee, black cherries, toffee, vanilla, bourbon, toasted oak, almond, dark bread, light smoke/dark fruit, and roast/toasted earthiness on the finish for a while. Incredible complexity, robustness, and balance of roast/bready malt, cherries, and bourbon barrel flavors; with an awesome roasted bitter/sweet and tart/tangy fruit balance; with no acrid, astringent, or cloying flavors after the finish. Medium carbonation and full body; with a very smooth, creamy, silky, velvety, and rich mouthfeel that is fantastic. Lightly sticky, chalky, tannic, tangy, acidic, and drying. Alcohol is very well hidden; a mildly increasing warmth, with zero barrel booziness lingering after the finish. Overall this is an amazing barrel aged fruited imperial porter! All around incredible complexity, robustness, and balance of roast/bready malt, cherries, and bourbon barrel flavors; very smooth and dangerously easy to drink for the big ABV. Perfectly balanced between porter, cherries, and bourbon barrel flavors. I found the base beer to be too bitter and drying when fresh, but smooths out over time. This is perfectly ready to go right at release. Plenty of barrel presence without the booze, with a much silkier/velvety mouthfeel from the barrel aging. A highly amazing offering.
Bottle - pours dark brown - Nose and taste of bourbon, black cherry, chocolate roast - medium body