Proprietor's Bourbon County Brand Stout (2014)
Goose Island Beer Co.

 

 

 

5 oz serving tasted in a long stem glass from draft at Phase Three Brewing on March 14, 2021. A wonderfully complex beer that hits all the right notes. Barrel aging done right.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Had on tap. Despite having 5 years of age on it, this reminded me what BCBS used to be compared to what we have in the last 2 years' lineup. There is nuance not hit over the head with adjuncts in both smell and taste. There is tremendous depth and character in the feel from both the barrel and the underlying stout. Rye, coconut, bourbon, very expressive wood, vanilla, rich fudge, artful booze and char, cinnamon, and a kiss of nougat. Smooth, refined, sweet but not cloying at all, boozy but balanced. Incredible.

Lucky to try this, I was expecting a five year old bottle of bourbon county to be over the hill. This was nice. Great coconut flavor even though they used water. Sweet, spicy, and delicious.

Amazon beer. Tasted from bottle aged 5 years. Pours black with beige head. Aroma of cinnamon, spices, cocoa. Mouthfeel is sweet, sticky, chewy, thick goodness. Flavors of cinnamon, vanilla, rye spice, cocoa. Perfect BA adjunct stout.

Bottled 11/3/14; drank 12/23/16 @ the Yarchives.

Black/brown appearance.

Minimal khaki head; no lace.

Cinnamon, cream, fudge & faint coconut notes in the nose.

Medium thick, sticky mouthfeel.

Cinnamon & milk chocolate flavors up front; sweet cream notes on the finish. No booze heat. Marshmallow notes emerged as this warmed.

The cinnamon bite is a bit much for me, but this was an enjoyable dessert treat.

Viscous void black with a thin fizzy dark mocha blanket dying to nothing but a still oily surface.

Cinnamon is way more potent than I imagined, and it's also impressively chocolatey, especially on the nose. Coconut rides smoothly but faintly in the background, enhanced more by the barrel characteristics than its own contributions.

The barrel makes for a very mature and rich experience, while helping to avoid decadence. As you sit with it, the cinnamon mellows out, allowing notes of dark fruit, mild char and Tootsie roll to develop. Accents of crisply carbonated herbal cola characteristics contribute a lightness to the thick body, which finishes semi-sticky. The exhale is brownie crust and chocolate pie with a touch of vanilla whip cream.

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Years on down the line, it's worth noting that Goose brought a keg to FOBAB 2021 in order to promote a side by side with the new Fourteen, and it was just a musty, oxidized, cardboardy and pruney mess. We have exited the window in which this brew can shine. For all who haven't opened theirs yet, my condolences.

 

 

Ran into this whale for $50 bucks in 2017. Sat on it for 1 year. Absolutely amazing. World class all the way. Goose Island is still the best. I have tried other really great beers from Bottle Logic, Funky Buddha, The Bruery, 3 Floyds but GI Remains number 1. 2018 Regular BBCS was amazing for $10 a battle. Cant beat it. Variants are pricey but worth it.

 

 

A friend ans I were watching hoops on a cool Saturday. After a couple gaming reversals and a delicious 2011BCBCS we decided ti bring out a good one.

In a word this hums with cinnamon on the mouth front and back of the mouth . It has every aspect of an excellect bourbon barrel aged stout and the cinnamon. A little, not too much. About a perfect beer.

After over 4 years of cellaring: says it was bottled on 11/3/14

L- Pitch black coloration (even against the flashlight on my phone), very minimal brown head at pour which dissipates quickly

S- Rye whiskey, cacao nibs, faint cinnamon notes

T- Rye whiskey, dark chocolate, brown sugar, light cinnamon flavor, woody, boozy

F- Very smooth, slightly syrupy, mild viscosity, strong alcohol bite on the finish

O- Nice blend of chocolate and spices play well with the rye whiskey and woody components. Would like for the coconut to stand out a little more but that may have given way to the other flavors after cellaring. A nice entry in the Proprietor's series.

A: seeet coconut, Vanilla, reason, fig, a little molasses, Maple, and dark cherry with roasted oak. Exceptional

A:

F: nicely balanced with toasted coconut, Caramell, molasses, Maple, vanilla. Some dark fruit hidden within layers of sweet boozy oak.

M: Medium full body, well balanced and finishes even with lingering boozy oak, coconut vanilla and fig

O: One of the best bourbon county beers I’ve ever had. Unlike some of the 2014’s after 4+ Years, this one remains in excellent condition.Solidifies 2014 as one of my favorite years by far.

12/29/18 (Chicago): $9.94, 6 oz pour into round glass. Pitch black pour, sweet coconut aroma. Very smooth beer, bourbon blends well with sharp coconut and bourbon taste, excellent blend stands the test of time. Slight cinnamon noted as well. Very smooth creamy mouth feel, silky smooth. Overall outstanding pour, one of the best BCS pours I've had. Well done!

 

 

Pulled from the mystery wall at Prop Day and consumed almost immediately.

L: Dark black and moderately thick, with zero head
S: Super cinnamon, with a hint of oaky barrel
T: Awesome, lots of cinnamon, but just enough so it's not overpowering, with a little bit of coconut taste on the back end. The coconut is not the same sweet coconut flavor you normally get from coconut as an adjunct though, it's more of a subdued, smooth coconut. Nice booziness from the bourbon barrel too.
F: Perfect thickness, and I'm probably overrating the feel a little bit, but I just find it impressive that they nailed a great mouthfeel with this much cinnamon being up front. Most cinnamon-forward beers suffer a little on mouthfeel.
O: This one really lived up to its reputation. It's a shame I can't get more of this. Almost a perfect beer. In fact, I'm even pretty sure that it's even keeping me better hydrated than other beers with all the coconut water. Prove me wrong!

 

 

Finally got to try this variant. A friend was nice enough to open a bottle to celebrate his birthday and couldn't have been happier to be there and share the moment with him. Anyhow, the beer it self poured out dark black with a thin head on top. The smell of the beer is sweet but also inviting with the soft coconut aroma coming off of it. The taste of the beer still has plenty of coconut in there even after 4 years which is awesome. The feel of the beer is full bodied. Overall this one is a gem, definitely one of the best BCBS's out there.

 

 

 

 

The legendary Prop 14. Notes below. Tried to be thorough. Bottled 03NOV14 0931.

Nice motor oil pour, good weight. Not much lace, the tan head of foam slowly faded into nothingness.

Cinnamon, chocolate, roast nose. Balance is incredible, yet subtle at the same time. No tricks, just a very well balanced vanilla adjunct BA Stout.

Same as nose, subtle vanilla. Lingering roast malt and fudge. Subtle booze. Again, awesome balance. Nothing has fallen off at this point expect a coconut water presence.

The mouthfeel has a great weight, with a good carb level still present. Sticky, and buttery smooth.

 

 

The beer pours a Pitch Black with a thin khaki head that recedes immediately. It has low carbonation. The beer smells of fudge, charcoal, vanilla, cinnamon, bark, dark fruit, and a little bourbon. It tastes of cinnamon, fudge, vanilla, charcoal, dark fruit, with a hint of bourbon. The beer has a medium body, with good complexity. This was a great bourbon county beer, but not quite what it once was. Smoother but the coconut is completely gone.