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Bourbon County Brand Special #4 Stout
Goose Island Beer Co.
- From:
- Goose Island Beer Co.
- Illinois, United States
- Style:
- Oatmeal Stout
- ABV:
- 13.3%
- Score:
- 97
- Avg:
- 4.41 | pDev: 5.67%
- Reviews:
- 121
- Ratings:
- Status:
- Retired
- Rated:
- Yesterday at 01:21 AM
- Added:
- Aug 23, 2020
- Wants:
- 3
- Gots:
- 29
Bourbon County Special #4 Stout is an oatmeal stout variant of our original Bourbon County Stout recipe, also aged in bourbon barrels, that uses crystal oats to add a nutty character and a smooth mouthfeel. After barrel aging, we added Intelligentsia Coffee, both their cold coffee and single origin coffee beans from Ethiopia, called “Metad Buku,” to bring out a pleasant fruity coffee character. Lastly bourbon barrel-aged maple syrup from Bissell Maple Farm in Ohio is added which provides complexity to the nutty oats and coffee to round out the flavors, ultimately reminiscent of your breakfast ‘special’ at the local diner.
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Ratings by NeutroMan:
Reviewed by NeutroMan from Illinois
4.24/5 rDev -3.9%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4.25
4.24/5 rDev -3.9%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4.25
16.9 oz bottle, best by 14 Sep 22, into a snifter.
A: Black motor oil color and consistency. Minimal brown head vanished almost immediately.
S: Lot going on here. Chocolate-covered raisins, demerara sugar, fig, maple syrup.
T: Follows the complexity of the nose. Chocolate, dark fruits, and maple syrup are all there, but the coffee bitterness comes out more in the taste. Definitely hides its ABV - not really picking up much in the way of boozy alcohol warmth.
F: Medium bodied, actually a little thin and watery for the style and most other iterations of BCS.
Jan 01, 2022A: Black motor oil color and consistency. Minimal brown head vanished almost immediately.
S: Lot going on here. Chocolate-covered raisins, demerara sugar, fig, maple syrup.
T: Follows the complexity of the nose. Chocolate, dark fruits, and maple syrup are all there, but the coffee bitterness comes out more in the taste. Definitely hides its ABV - not really picking up much in the way of boozy alcohol warmth.
F: Medium bodied, actually a little thin and watery for the style and most other iterations of BCS.
More User Ratings:
Rated by moysauce from Illinois
4.46/5 rDev +1.1%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5
4.46/5 rDev +1.1%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5
When fresh, this one was excellent!
Mar 10, 2024Reviewed by Whyteboar from Michigan
4.23/5 rDev -4.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.25
4.23/5 rDev -4.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.25
Drank past the “best by” date but as far as I am concerned, it’s still very good.
Poured stout black with an impressive light brown head (for a BA stout that’s 3 years old) which left spotty lacing.
The aroma was very sadly lost on me. Stupid Covid.
The taste leads with maple syrup which coffee strives and fails to balance. Still freaking tasty, just not as well balanced as I expected.
The feel is properly viscous, really nice sipping beer. Wish I had many more.
Dec 10, 2023Poured stout black with an impressive light brown head (for a BA stout that’s 3 years old) which left spotty lacing.
The aroma was very sadly lost on me. Stupid Covid.
The taste leads with maple syrup which coffee strives and fails to balance. Still freaking tasty, just not as well balanced as I expected.
The feel is properly viscous, really nice sipping beer. Wish I had many more.
Rated by pathman from Ohio
5/5 rDev +13.4%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5
5/5 rDev +13.4%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5
02/05/23 bottle @ home
Feb 05, 2023Rated by LXIXME from New Mexico
4.18/5 rDev -5.2%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.25
4.18/5 rDev -5.2%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.25
Older bottle incorrectly stored (?) but still pretty dang good, I'd love to try a correctly aged bottle of this beer.
Nov 20, 2022Reviewed by mwilbur from Minnesota
4.59/5 rDev +4.1%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
4.59/5 rDev +4.1%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
Poured from 16.9 oz bottle into snifter. Stamped drink by 11SEP22…just in time.
A: Pours a dark brown hue with 1/4 inch dark mocha head that quickly settles to a thin skim.
S: Dark roast coffee with cream, smooth dark chocolate, maple syrup, soft oats, subtle bourbon, and a nutty note.
T: Dark roast coffee, maple syrup, smooth dark chocolate, smooth sweet bourbon, nuttiness, oatmeal, and cream.
M: Medium body. Extremely smooth and silky feel. Layers of dark sweetness with mild roasty bitterness. Soft oat feel. Lingers nicely on the palate.
D: Extremely well balanced and a too easy to drink sipper at 13.3%. A superb variation!
Aug 30, 2022A: Pours a dark brown hue with 1/4 inch dark mocha head that quickly settles to a thin skim.
S: Dark roast coffee with cream, smooth dark chocolate, maple syrup, soft oats, subtle bourbon, and a nutty note.
T: Dark roast coffee, maple syrup, smooth dark chocolate, smooth sweet bourbon, nuttiness, oatmeal, and cream.
M: Medium body. Extremely smooth and silky feel. Layers of dark sweetness with mild roasty bitterness. Soft oat feel. Lingers nicely on the palate.
D: Extremely well balanced and a too easy to drink sipper at 13.3%. A superb variation!
Reviewed by SHODriver from North Carolina
4.5/5 rDev +2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
4.5/5 rDev +2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
A: Poured into a snifter to a black beer topped by a dense and slightly rocky finger of tan head which fades quickly to a collar around the edge of the glass with minimal lacing
S: Smells of coffee, bourbon barrels, dark chocolate, roasted malts and hints of maple
T: Taste is coffee up front with some hints of maple, nice bourbon barrel notes with oak, caramel, and vanilla along with some dark chocolate and roasted malts interwoven with some maple sweetness. On the swallow there's more coffee, maple, dark chocolate, oak, caramel, and vanilla.
M: This beer sits at the heavier side of medium on the palate. Carbonation is on the slightly effervescent side but it's fine while the beer has a drying finish due to the ABV.
O: Overall this is an excellent beer. Really good flavors and complexity along with some very nice balance. It's a little coffee forward which is fine, but there's still plenty of other stuff going on to keep things interesting. I'd like for this one to come back.
Jul 18, 2022S: Smells of coffee, bourbon barrels, dark chocolate, roasted malts and hints of maple
T: Taste is coffee up front with some hints of maple, nice bourbon barrel notes with oak, caramel, and vanilla along with some dark chocolate and roasted malts interwoven with some maple sweetness. On the swallow there's more coffee, maple, dark chocolate, oak, caramel, and vanilla.
M: This beer sits at the heavier side of medium on the palate. Carbonation is on the slightly effervescent side but it's fine while the beer has a drying finish due to the ABV.
O: Overall this is an excellent beer. Really good flavors and complexity along with some very nice balance. It's a little coffee forward which is fine, but there's still plenty of other stuff going on to keep things interesting. I'd like for this one to come back.
Reviewed by drdiesel9483 from Ohio
4.49/5 rDev +1.8%
look: 4.75 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5
4.49/5 rDev +1.8%
look: 4.75 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5
Look - Black and thick with a great tan head and even better tan thick rimming and sticky lacing
Smell -chocolate coffee maple roasted malts slight barrel
Taste -nice barrel slight roasted malts pretty good amount of coffee slight maple oatmeal
Feel -medium full body with a slight carb
Overall - if it was a little thicker and more barrel it would be just incredible, great balance
Jun 15, 2022Smell -chocolate coffee maple roasted malts slight barrel
Taste -nice barrel slight roasted malts pretty good amount of coffee slight maple oatmeal
Feel -medium full body with a slight carb
Overall - if it was a little thicker and more barrel it would be just incredible, great balance
Bourbon County Brand Special #4 Stout from Goose Island Beer Co.
Beer rating:
97 out of
100 with
328 ratings
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