Top Sail Imperial Porter - Bourbon Barrel Aged (Brewmaster Reserve 2008)
Full Sail Brewing Company

Top Sail Imperial Porter - Bourbon Barrel Aged (Brewmaster Reserve 2008)Top Sail Imperial Porter - Bourbon Barrel Aged (Brewmaster Reserve 2008)
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From:
Full Sail Brewing Company
 
Oregon, United States
Style:
Imperial Porter
ABV:
9.85%
Score:
91
Avg:
4.08 | pDev: 10.05%
Reviews:
99
Ratings:
113
Status:
Retired
Rated:
Jul 07, 2015
Added:
Feb 02, 2008
Wants:
  22
Gots:
  3
Released February 2008

Label: "After its initial release in February 2007, Top Sail was aged for about 10 months in bourbon casks from Kentucky. Top Sail Bourbon Aged Imperial Porter has hints of chocolate, figs and oak. Cheers!"
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Ratings by JohnGalt1:
Photo of JohnGalt1
Reviewed by JohnGalt1 from Idaho

4.45/5  rDev +9.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5
22 oz picked up at the Boise Coop by Brenda .. She said it cost about $9... poured into my New Belgium snifter at slightly cooler than cellar temperature.

2 Finger brown head .... absolutely no light escapes even when held to a bare bulb... lacing drapes the glass.

Aroma is hugely complex ... chocolate.. bourbon.. vanilla .. mildly smokey.. I haven't even tasted it yet and the aroma has coated my nostrils.. in a good way... faint whiffs of caramel drenched dark fruit.

Flavor ... Anticipation is killing me ... Everything great about the aroma but throw in a big handful of bourbon soaked sweet cherries. Low carbonation adds to a very silky body... slightly carbonated cool coffee with a small pour of Kentucky finest. Fairly oaky with a resounding cherry vanilla profile.. The bourbon flavors can be a little overwhelming... chocolate and light roasted grain are sorta on the lower side given the massive nature of this brew... the body is very smooth albeit lighter than expected. Still fantastic but a little heavy on the bourbon side of things... I am sure will cellar like a champion.

This brew is a completely different animal than the regular Top Sail (and the regular is no slouch) ... It would be futile to try them side by side.. but maybe fun.

I like this one about 10x as much as the last bottle of Black Gold I had... Sorry to those that loved the BG, I would prefer a little stout with my bourbon (and I like good bourbon), but the BG was waaaay to much for me... out of balance for sure. The BBTS is awesome... one of the best beers I've had this year and I am assuming will only get better.. Now I just have to find the funds to really stock up on it before it's gone.
Feb 13, 2008
More User Ratings:
 
Rated: 3.75 by Kegatron from Pennsylvania

Jul 07, 2015
 
Rated: 4.06 by wethorseblanket from California

Jan 18, 2015
 
Rated: 3.4 by cfadams17 from Pennsylvania

Sep 19, 2014
 
Rated: 4 by zestar from California

Aug 02, 2014
Photo of Beerzebub
Reviewed by Beerzebub from California

3.55/5  rDev -13%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5
Cellared at 55 degrees F for about 6 years.

Dark dark brown. No head.

Smells like coffee, mild bourbon, vegetal hops, and - strangely enough - fresh cucumber. Not bad, but certainly odd.

Tastes like smooth roasty coffee, mild bourbon, and some earthy, slightly vegetal hops. Some nice flavors, but also something a little off. No explicit oxidized character, but seems to have lost some vivacity (not that I remember what it was like fresh).

Good creamy smooth texture.

Fairly enjoyable overall, but far from great. I agree with the last reviewer: aging this for 6 years was dumb.
Jun 12, 2014
Photo of stakem
Reviewed by stakem from Pennsylvania

3.64/5  rDev -10.8%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
Review from notes, I opened this up last month. Have I really held on to this beer for this long? Bomber into a snifter, the brew pours black in color with a skimpy tan head. Some spotty lace sticks to the glass but the head remains faint and a bit lacking.

The smell includes notes of raison and molasses. Some milk chocolate, oak and only a faint touch of booziness. Overall it doesnt smell too bad but is slightly muted. Considering how oxidized the flavor is, no oxy notes to be found in the nose.

The taste is quite oxidized with a flavoring not too far off from cardboard/paper. Raison and molasses with suggestions of earth and faint chocolate malt are an afterthought once your palate becomes accustomed to the oxidation.

This is medium to light bodied with a light amount of carbonation. Not terrible but certainly its better days are behind it at this point. Dont cellar a porter for 6 years...that was dumb.
Apr 03, 2014
 
Rated: 4.5 by LumpkinBrews from Colorado

Dec 30, 2013
 
Rated: 4.25 by Quafftastic from Virginia

Dec 10, 2013
 
Rated: 4.25 by Caleb from Colorado

Sep 15, 2012
Photo of staggerlee024
Reviewed by staggerlee024 from Oregon

3.97/5  rDev -2.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 4
A - Pours a deep black with little to no head or lace.

S - Oh Boy! Bourbonville here. The smell of the booze almost burns. A touch of roast and char. Really liking the smell.

T - Bourbon, Bourbon and more bourbon. It is hard to find anything else in this beer. There is some slight roasted notes, some char, sweet chocolate. But you really have to think about them. This is all bourbon all the way.

M - This is where the beer really starts to fall apart. As others have mentioned, this is incredibly thin. Nothing in the beer can stand up to the Bourbon. It is just too weak.

O - Not a bad beer overall. But falls short of other Bourbon Stouts in its class. Perhaps the issue here is that they used a porter instead of a stout. It is just so thin. I love bourbon barrel aged beers. I probably rated it higher than I should have based on that. I had this on the same day as the Abyss. They are the same price. Nowhere near in the same league. I will drink again. But not if there are other Bourbon Aged options available.
Mar 19, 2012
Photo of russwbeck
Reviewed by russwbeck from Virginia

3.58/5  rDev -12.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 4
Provided in a trade from doughanson way back when. Been holding onto this for no particular reason, and eventually having a 4 year old bourbon barrel aged porter became too enticing to hold on to any longer.

A: The pour is muddy and black, giving off about a finger of bubbly, fluffy, brown head that recedes rather quickly. A nice ring remains around the top of the beer, lacing nicely down the side of my Deschutes snifter.

S: A lot of chocolate and booze aromas wafting up from the dark liquid below. Dark fruits (I believe the bottle said to expect figs, which I think I'm smelling). Notes of bourbon, vanilla, and oak are all very nicely integrated. The aroma overall is deep and complex, but a bit too harsh on the booze.

T: Top Sail has aged well, but I think this might be on its way downhill. Some roast and dry dark chocolate are holding on to their last breathes, but booze, oak, and bourbon are beginning to win this war of flavor. A bit too focused on the barrel treatment, the taste is lacking additions from the base beer that are so important in a good bourbon barrel aged beer. Roast does take the cake on the backend, providing a little balance...just a little too late.

MF: A bit too thin, low carbonation, pretty dry finish, warming alcohol finish. I still enjoy drinking it, I just wish I had a few years ago.

O: For all its faults, Top Sail Brewmasters Reserve is still pretty good. I'm impressed this porter was able to still impart something to try and balance the additions from the barrel. It just falls a bit short. Overall, I would absolutely still recommend it to a friend. Especially the 2010 version.
Mar 15, 2012
 
Rated: 3.5 by ygtbsm94 from Utah

Jan 29, 2012
 
Rated: 3.5 by whartontallboy from New York

Jan 16, 2012
 
Rated: 4 by joshrosborne from Michigan

Jan 03, 2012
 
Rated: 4 by bespin15 from Washington

Dec 30, 2011
 
Rated: 3.25 by brandoman63 from Illinois

Nov 29, 2011
 
Rated: 4 by imperialking from Illinois

Nov 18, 2011
 
Rated: 4.25 by twowheelssoar from North Carolina

Nov 15, 2011
Photo of AgentZero
Reviewed by AgentZero from Illinois

3.95/5  rDev -3.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4
I don't remember who shared this, but thanks, drank at Sean's place.

A - Black beer with a small tan head. Stuck around for a bit and left some spots and slight lacing.

S - Decent barrel and bourbon comes through on the nose. A bit of roast and chocolate with bitter coffee note coming in on the end.

T - Pretty big for a porter, but I guess that's why it's called an imperial. A little hot, with some roast, coffee, chocolate, dark fruit, barrel, vanilla. Pretty nice meld of favors.

M - Medium bodied, moderate carbonation, a bit hot.

O - A pretty good beer. I think it's cooled a bit since the last reviews, but there is still a little alcohol burn.
Jun 06, 2011
Top Sail Imperial Porter - Bourbon Barrel Aged (Brewmaster Reserve 2008) from Full Sail Brewing Company
Beer rating: 91 out of 100 with 113 ratings