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Bourbon Barrel Solar Eclipse
Kuhnhenn Brewing Company
- From:
- Kuhnhenn Brewing Company
- Michigan, United States
- Style:
- Russian Imperial Stout
- ABV:
- 18%
- Score:
- 95
- Avg:
- 4.33 | pDev: 8.78%
- Reviews:
- 18
- Ratings:
- Status:
- Retired
- Rated:
- Jun 16, 2020
- Added:
- Dec 23, 2012
- Wants:
- 185
- Gots:
- 23
This black ale brewed in 2009 has aged well. Full of roasted flavor and aroma, with hints of bourbon vanilla in the finish.
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Ratings by jegross2:
Reviewed by jegross2 from Illinois
3.64/5 rDev -15.9%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.75
3.64/5 rDev -15.9%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.75
Reviewing the Bourbon Barrel Solar Eclipse from Kuhnhenn Brewing Company out of Warren, Michigan.
Score: 85
December 2012 vintage bottle served in a Tyranena snifter and enjoyed on 01/25/13. Review is from iPhone notes.
Appearance: Tradional Russian imperial stout color with minimal head off the pour. Minimal lacing, below average retention. 3/5
Smell: A vanilla and booze bomb! Bourbon, brown sugar, oak, fudge and caramel too. Tiramisu? Has a dessert-like sweetness in the nose that reminds me of Scotty Karate. The nose is well integrated and bold. Very complex, but apparently sweet. 4/5
Taste: Chocolate, bourbon, light caramel and a LOT of perky spice. Was this aged in rye barrels? Plenty of booziness too, borderline fusel-esque at room temperature. Has a vanilla undertone, but where is the intense vanilla from the nose? Not as sweet as nose led on. 3.5/5
Mouthfeel: Medium bodied, no carbonation whatsoever. Boozy warmth and spiciness pair well. Very dry finish. 3.5/5
Overall: This beer is high in unashamedly high in ABV, but it is no World Wide Stout. Worthy of a tick, not worth seeking out. Kuhnhenn's American Imperial Stout was not barrel aged, but it was much better.
Cost: $8 for a 12 oz bottle.
Feb 08, 2013Score: 85
December 2012 vintage bottle served in a Tyranena snifter and enjoyed on 01/25/13. Review is from iPhone notes.
Appearance: Tradional Russian imperial stout color with minimal head off the pour. Minimal lacing, below average retention. 3/5
Smell: A vanilla and booze bomb! Bourbon, brown sugar, oak, fudge and caramel too. Tiramisu? Has a dessert-like sweetness in the nose that reminds me of Scotty Karate. The nose is well integrated and bold. Very complex, but apparently sweet. 4/5
Taste: Chocolate, bourbon, light caramel and a LOT of perky spice. Was this aged in rye barrels? Plenty of booziness too, borderline fusel-esque at room temperature. Has a vanilla undertone, but where is the intense vanilla from the nose? Not as sweet as nose led on. 3.5/5
Mouthfeel: Medium bodied, no carbonation whatsoever. Boozy warmth and spiciness pair well. Very dry finish. 3.5/5
Overall: This beer is high in unashamedly high in ABV, but it is no World Wide Stout. Worthy of a tick, not worth seeking out. Kuhnhenn's American Imperial Stout was not barrel aged, but it was much better.
Cost: $8 for a 12 oz bottle.
More User Ratings:
Reviewed by GreesyFizeek from New York
4.42/5 rDev +2.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5
4.42/5 rDev +2.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5
This one pours a dark black color, with no real head or lacing.
This smells like dark fruit, coffee syrup, chocolate fudge, oak, vanilla, and bourbon.
At 8 years old, this has basically no booze left at all, and we're left with oak spice and barrel leather, along with a big vanilla/chocolate sweetness, and lots of fruitiness - both from the base beer and probable fruity oxidation. There's a bit of smoke too, and some licorice.
This is medium bodied, and slightly syrupy, with a pretty low level of carbonation. It's definitely a slow sipper.
This is definitely on the other side of its peak, but it's still a tasty beer. The 18% is extremely well hidden - a vestige of lots of time in the bottle.
Jun 16, 2020This smells like dark fruit, coffee syrup, chocolate fudge, oak, vanilla, and bourbon.
At 8 years old, this has basically no booze left at all, and we're left with oak spice and barrel leather, along with a big vanilla/chocolate sweetness, and lots of fruitiness - both from the base beer and probable fruity oxidation. There's a bit of smoke too, and some licorice.
This is medium bodied, and slightly syrupy, with a pretty low level of carbonation. It's definitely a slow sipper.
This is definitely on the other side of its peak, but it's still a tasty beer. The 18% is extremely well hidden - a vestige of lots of time in the bottle.
Reviewed by maximum12 from Minnesota
4.65/5 rDev +7.4%
4.65/5 rDev +7.4%
Long overdue thanks to beerisheaven for sending me this bottle some time ago. Loved the base beer: what will this erratic brewery do with a fine brew tossed in barrels? Let’s find out. 12 oz. bottle, 2012 on the label.
Didn’t notice before, but the bottle is short-filled: I hope that didn’t impact the beer any, the liquid barely reaches the neck. Poured into my gold-filigreed Kuhnenn snifter (what the hell is a filigree anyways? I’ll look it up later), it’s heavy Metallica black, minimal carbonation. Nose is chocolate that’s been on a long bender: boozed up. Sweet booze about sums it up.
Solar Eclipse – Bourbon Barrel Aged is the booziest damn beer I’ve ever had; I almost coughed when it hit my throat. Pretty sure my 13 year old across the room would register on a breath test just from being in the same room with this open bottle. Wow. After my eyes clear a bit, I take another swig. Booze-soaked raisins back up the booziness, black licorice infused with booze, & the chocolate from the nose is strong but overshadowed. Bit of bitterness. Vanilla & bourbon start slow but build into a big, throat-tingling burn that makes my nipples harden. Mouthfeel is in the upper echelon of stouts. Thick, coating, satisfying, a beer to ward off the chill. Yet I could drink this like the sweat off Gong Li’s earlobes.
Well, this beer hit the inside straight. Elite mouthfeel, masterful use of the barrel, complex, but oh-so-approachable. Kicks ass, this is another elite beer, my second in less than a week. That never happens.
Sep 18, 2014Didn’t notice before, but the bottle is short-filled: I hope that didn’t impact the beer any, the liquid barely reaches the neck. Poured into my gold-filigreed Kuhnenn snifter (what the hell is a filigree anyways? I’ll look it up later), it’s heavy Metallica black, minimal carbonation. Nose is chocolate that’s been on a long bender: boozed up. Sweet booze about sums it up.
Solar Eclipse – Bourbon Barrel Aged is the booziest damn beer I’ve ever had; I almost coughed when it hit my throat. Pretty sure my 13 year old across the room would register on a breath test just from being in the same room with this open bottle. Wow. After my eyes clear a bit, I take another swig. Booze-soaked raisins back up the booziness, black licorice infused with booze, & the chocolate from the nose is strong but overshadowed. Bit of bitterness. Vanilla & bourbon start slow but build into a big, throat-tingling burn that makes my nipples harden. Mouthfeel is in the upper echelon of stouts. Thick, coating, satisfying, a beer to ward off the chill. Yet I could drink this like the sweat off Gong Li’s earlobes.
Well, this beer hit the inside straight. Elite mouthfeel, masterful use of the barrel, complex, but oh-so-approachable. Kicks ass, this is another elite beer, my second in less than a week. That never happens.
Bourbon Barrel Solar Eclipse from Kuhnhenn Brewing Company
Beer rating:
95 out of
100 with
131 ratings
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