Bourbon County Brand 30th Anniversary Reserve Stout
Goose Island Beer Co.

 

One of the best GI BCBS variants I've ever tried; complex but smoothed out at this age, full of bourbon and molasses, notes of licorice and vanilla, warm bourbon, oaky smoke, rich, smooth, brownies and dark fruits. Full-bodied and viscous, warming...a good sipper.

 

The beer pours a creamy light brown head that takes a while to dissipate. The beer itself is an opaque dark brown color with a nice sheen and liquid chocolate syrup texture. It looks pretty nice.

The beer smell is wonderful. It has a mixture of dark chocolate and vanilla following the bourbon note surrounded by oak that starts it all off. It also has a bit of alcohol piercing through it all.

The taste is wonderful! It has a strong yet muted dark chocolate and oak notes upfront and followed by the bourbon and vanilla notes. It finishes off with a cherry wood like note.

The feel is pretty good. It has a smooth and creamy texture that slightly hides its heavy body. It finishes slightly sticky. There is very little carbonation.

Overall, this is a delicious beer worth having and a perfect one to celebrate GI's 30th.

 

16.9oz bottle poured into a snifter.

A: Deep black color. Tight beige head forms well, but does dissipate into a thin collar in short order. Delicate, broken collars of lacing.

S: Bourbon forward on the nose, and perhaps a bit moreso than regular BCBS. Sweet, corny wash. Cola. Very big oaky pull with vanillins, coconut shavings, and oak itself. More cherry cola undercurrents. Smokey. Roasted malts are redolent of chocolate truffles, fudge, and blackstrap molasses. Caramel and cow tail candy.

T: Follows the nose with a lot of bourbon up front. Fresh, wet barrel taste. Corny sweet bourbon, caramel, fudge, char. Big woodiness and wood char. Dusting of brown sugar. Bourbon ball candy. Vein of cola and a subtle dark stone fruit, like sweetened black cherry. Back end reveals more malt complexity. Smokiness yields to blackstrap molasses and layers of fudge and truffles. These flavors trail into the finish along with some faint smoke and jerky.

M: As expected, the token richness and weight is present in body. Full, rich, thick, and coating. Very chewy. Creamy, but with a slight stickiness. Lots of warming alcohol and bourbon spice, but it doesn't ever seem to be in danger of passing into "hot" territory. Ample carbonation has a stiff prickle and enough carbonic bite to cut through and keep it from being too oppressive.

O: I didn't think it was possible to cram more bourbon barrel character into BCBS without crossing the line into "hot mess," but they've done just that. The bourbon flavor here is definitely more distinct, with more barrel proof goodness coming through, but again I will repeat- it never feels like it's too much and it always feels welcome and well considered. The blend is very nice. There are 4 different bourbons blended into this, and while it will be tough to pick out any single one (I swear I taste more Knob than anything, but in reality it is so hard to tell), it for sure tastes highly distinct from OG BCBS releases. The balance here does shift over to barrel just a little more than OG, with the huge roasty malt flavors losing a little ground but certainly still very much a factor. Worth a drink if you're a hardcore BCBS acolyte or a bourbon geek.

From a bottle. Pours a deep rich brown-black with a short collar of tan foam. The nose is malty and rich with a ton a whiskey smell. Lots of brown sugar, oak, whiskey, and dark fruit. Medium-full bodied and very easy drinking for 14+%.

 

10/14/23 bottle @ home

 

 

 

 

500 ml bottle into a snifter. Best by 7/27/27, had had 2/24/23.

Pours a dark brown, opaque, with no head and a few specks of cling. Aromas of bourbon, raisins, malt, caramel, oak, chocolate, some tobacco, light char. Similar flavors: bourbon, raisins, caramel, chocolate, malt, some tobacco, light vanilla and oak. Smooth, a solid full body, appropriately carbonated.

Has a really expressive barrel blend, with lots of well developed aromas and flavors. It’s the best of the BCS class of ‘22. Delicious.

 

Poured from the bottle into a snifter glass.

Look: Dark, minimal tan head
Smell: A muddled mess; some oak, licorice...not very enticing
Taste: Subtle notes of chocolate, hay, leather...not enjoying this
Feel: Thin, over carbonated
Overall: I'm usually a fan of the BCBS series, and was really looking forward to this - but for me, this was a bland, thin, over-carbonated and just not very enjoyable - especially with the $$$.

Appearance: Super black, small head fades quickly.

Smell: Rich dark chocolate, wood, booze.

Taste: Chocolate to start, very syrupy feel, switches into some booziness and barrel flavor before finishing with some more chocolate. Very mouth-coating.

Overall: A gift beer from a friend, I probably should have found some regular bcbs to try side-by-side. Very rich and thick, coating, the alcohol is still a bit hot. I enjoyed it but it probably would be better with a year or more to take some of the edge off.

 

L - Deep black with mahogany highlights and a dark tan head that dissipates quickly leaving behind a thin cap and minimal lacing
S - complex - bakers chocolate, pie crust, molasses, almonds, cherries, coconut, vanilla, rich bourbon, toffee, earth
T - Follows the nose - bakes chocolate up front and throughout intermixed well with pie crust, nuts - leaning towards almonds, dark fruit notes - cherries, some figs, molasses, toffee, vanilla, slight wood, finishes with sweet earthy bourbon.
F - Full bodied with light carbonation. Smooth, creamy, rich, soft
O - an incredibly well balanced and blended BBA

APPEARANCE
Pitch black body and a finger of tan head

AROMA
Classic Bourbon County. Chocolate, coffee, char, tobacco, huge bourbon, BIG pop of vanilla, hints of coconut, slight alcohol presence. Fantastic.

TASTE
Toch more booze on the taste, but not too bad. Getting a lot of dark fruits that weren't there on the aroma. Lots of sticky bourbon and tobacco

MOUTHFEEL
Thick and sticky. Does have some heat but it cuts into the sweetness of the bourbon. Some warmth on each sip.

OVERALL
I mean it's BCBS so it an elite barrel-aged stout. Is the 30-year version THAT much of an improvement? No, but it's still superb.