Bourbon County Brand Angel’s Envy 2-Year Cask Finish Stout
Goose Island Beer Co.

16.9 ounce bottle, drink by 10SEP28 stamped on the label. Served in a chalice, the beer pours dark brown/black with not quite an inch tan head. Head retention and lacing are both decent enough. I like the aroma, the brew smells like cherries, vanilla, earthiness, cocoa and some Port/dark fruit. Taste is similar to the aroma but with more of a kick, and there's also some dark bread, burnt/charred malt, bourbon and coffee flavors noticeable too. Good amount of barrel character. Mouthfeel/body is full, it's slick and a little syrupy with a moderate amount of carbonation. I liked this one a lot, worth a try if you get the chance but at the price point I can see why some people would pass on this.

 

(500 ml bottle, 15.5% abv, drink by 10SEP2028; purchased off shelf at Bottle Stop? a year ago... poured into a snifter)

L: dark brown liquid, ruby highlights... scant head on the pour... negative head retention and, of course, no lace... dead

S: molasses with a bourbon wash... vanilla dark chocolate crumb bar... bit of toasted, fresh oak later... caramel, espresso grounds... cordial boozy thread... leathery malt, carob bean... pretty bold, colorful nose... peanut-tinged roast accent... quite gloriously woody, robust, refined

T: BCBS but dosed hard with bourbon - wow, does the bourbon character dominate, whoa!... is the aging lending a subtle sherry note?!... ganache mid-tone... maltier as it goes, roastier too, but so smoothed over by the aging; aggressive elements blocky, bloated, but without their full sizzling edge... boy does the bourbon extraction coat the core... that sherry back note is undeniable; it just lacks enough gritty-sweet undertones (4.375-4.4)

F: relatively strident, stunning boozy top touch... greasy silky texture which delicately remains on the palate, sticking a little, while the booze washes away any contour... sedate acidity and char smoke tingling the inner pink

O: I just had their new Double Barrel Stout, and I feel this one is more medicinally boozy and lusciously but preciously layered, and more slow-sip worthy... blackened fatty (shell)fish might compliment this... needs acidity to play on its own... share-ready in a quiet space (2505)

Review: 2539
Name: Bourbon County Brand Angel's Envy 2yr Cask
Brewery: Goose Island Beer Co
Location: Chicago, IL
Style: Barrel-Aged Imperial Stout
ABV: 15.5%
Canned: 2023
Date: 19 January 2026
I enjoy imperial stouts finished in port barrels; I love the complexity they add to the beer. When I saw this beer was coming out, I had to find a way to acquire it. I did some trading, and I finally added it to my cellar sheet. I am serving it at 56 degrees in a tulip glass; the pour formed a foamy, quarter-fingered dark tan head with poor retention. The beer's color is inky black, with dark mahogany-red-brown hues, opaque, and charts at SRM 38. The quick dissipation left no lacing on the glass, and the liquid showed no visible head. The beer's overall appearance is average for this style, considering the high abv.
Prying the cap off, huge aromas of bourbon, port, and vinous notes. Swirling the glass, I took a few sniffs. I smell anise, toffee, caramel, char, alcohol, cherries, dark chocolate, medium-roasted coffee, vanilla, and earthiness. Nosing the glass again, I notice leather, molasses, light tobacco, dark roasted malts, bready, and raisins.
The first sip: crammed, packed barrel aging and port notes. The barrel flavors are bourbon, oak, char, and a light orange. Next sip: dark fruits, cherries, dark chocolate, medium-roasted coffee, molasses, caramel, and leather. After a few nips, I notice vanilla, raisins, light smokiness, dark-roasted malts, bread, and earthiness.
The mouthfeel is chewy and thick, with a smooth, warm finish. The low carbonation complements the barrel aging, coaxing you to keep sipping.
Final Impression: An Incredible beer to enjoy after a long weekend. The complexity and depth created in this beer are delightful. I have drunk several Imperial Stouts over the last 20 years, and this is at the top of those beers—a stellar offering, one of the best Bourbon County Stouts thus far.

 

 

BCBS Brand Two-Year Cask Finish Stout (2023) from Goose Island Beer. Single 16.9 fl oz bottle picked up at HEB #2, New Braunfels, TX, 13/11/25, $ 44.36 (including tax)/$2.62/fl oz. Reviewed 07/12/25, review 3651. Note that I use DD/MM/YY protocol.
“DRINK BY 10SEP28” on front label. Stored at home at 37 degrees F. Served at 57.0 degrees F in a hand washed and dried Jester King snifter. The final temperature is 60.6 degrees F.
Appearance – 4.25
First pour – Deep Amber (SRM 15), nearly opaque.
Body – Black (SRM 40), opaque. Under direct light, the same. When rear-lite, ruby at the bottom edge.
Head – Small (Maximum 0.8 cm, aggressive center pour). Biscuit and fizzy with short retention, leaving 0.05 cm broken bubble ring, with a small, pulsing center atoll caused by an upwelling of short-lived bubbles.
Lacing – None.
Aroma – 4.25 – Sweet bourbon, no hops, no malt, no alcohol (15.5% ABV according to the label).
Flavor – 4.25 – Begins slightly sweet with bourbon. Ends with hints of port wine. No dimethylsulfide or diacetyl. Slowly building gastric warming from the alcohol is noted.
Palate – 4.25 – Full: More syrupy than creamy: Soft but caressingly lively carbonation.
Style: Follows the scanty BA style description.
Final impression and summation: 4.25 I’m not a fan of beers aged in wine barrels, but in this case, I’ll make an exception, port being the only wine I actually enjoy (after college years of Boone’s Farm, Annie Bedsprings, and Mad Dog). Here the port barrels offer a finishing tang to offset the inherent bourbon sweetness. This bottle is two years old but has aged nicely.

Drank from a 1 pint .9 fl. oz. bottle purchased at Downtown Wine & Spirits, Somerville, MA
2023 vintage
Drink by: 10SEP28
Served in a tulip

First off, I have to comment on the packaging, which is incredibly ornate and dramatic. I know that a portion of the high cost of the beer is a result of this. As for the beer, it poured an oily and dense pitch black. As far as I can remember, this definitely looked thicker and darker than most of the other BCBS vintages and variants. A small, frothy, saddle brown head rose above the body, but it quickly dissolved. A few tiny dots of lacing trickled down the sides of the glass. As the beer was consumed, a wall of fine sediment coated the vessel.

The aroma was outstanding. It was super bold and complex and distinctly different from both the 2023 vintages of original BCBS and the Eagle Rare 2-Year variant. Fruity and sweet Port notes dominated initially. Dark chocolate covered cherries came to mind. Loads of brown sugar and dark fruit character too. Raisin and fig notes were apparent. There was a dense, savory quality as well. Boozy bourbon barrel notes were also detectable, but the bourbon presence was more subtle than I anticipated. As the beer warmed, the bourbon intensified. Vanilla was noticeable as well. Later, a savory charred raisin note appeared.

The flavor profile was fairly similar to the aroma. Super malty and robust up front. Nice melding of sweet caramel malts and rich roasted malt character. Boozy Port barrel notes came through strong here as well. Loads of dark fruit character. Raisin, fig and plum notes were apparent. There was a punchy bourbon quality and a big vanilla presence too. More roasted malt character, charred barrel and boozy heat on the back end and in the finish.

The mouthfeel was oily and slick but a touch thinner than most 15-plus percent ABV imperial stouts today. The liquid contained a fine, subtle effervescence that turned creamy and smooth on the palate.

While most BCBS pure barrel-aged variants are significantly pricier than the original offering, I usually find them only to be only marginally better. This Angel’s Envy 2-Year Cask Finish Stout however was notably different from any of the others releases and one of my personal favorites.

 

this is really good, but it was also 50 bucks, which seems crazy for what it is, but the packaging has to be a big part of that, looks insane though, such a cool presentation, and in the ongoing quest to try all of these, it seemed like something i had to pick up when i saw it, 2023 vintage, shared with my brother, who has shared so many variants of this with me over the years. bourbon and port wine barrel aged, just like the whiskey itself, which is rad, and the second barrel treatment really does a lot for this, and man is this beer enormous. we pour it way too cold, its viscous, almost without head, murky dark brown and even with some sediment, little flecks of barrel char or something, both less carbonated and less cleaned up looking than i thought it would be, not visually as remarkable as the best versions of this. the nose is pretty fruity, especially when this is cold, the port treatment is obvious, big red fruits and berries on this, plum and prune, black cherry, even raspberry pushing through, some sweet and some acid too there, light winey tannins is play with all the oak too, some vanilla and bourbon, barrel char, espresso bean, roast, molasses, smoke, and brown sugar, this is pretty sweet right away, and its super strong, fusel and intense, over the top once it warms. the flavor is really good too, overly alcoholic and sweet, but there is a lot to like in this, and i think the bourbon and port both present as high end, super compatible, and they hit at different instances, bourbon earlier, port quite late, subtle walnut, milk chocolate, cigar, and dark soil to me here too. some real richness to the texture, totally palate coating and permanent, strong, even fire breathing hot, but its good, real good. boozy cherry, cask strength whiskey, and slightly oxidized dark grain, maybe this would have been a little tidier fresher, but it ought to be built to last awhile too. i like the fruit nuance on the finish, all the wood, and the fact pretty much have to trudge through this at a snails pace, a nice change of speed from our afternoon session, and a nice way to cap off a heck of a beer drinking weekend! not my favorite of these all time, it could be polished up a bit, but very good, and i think most willing to spend this kind of coin on one of these will find enough to like about it that they feel good about the buy, especially for those trying to catch them all pokemon style. the port makes it very distinctive, the maturity is insane, and this has already gone from a good beer to a good memory...

500ml bottle, best by 10SEPT28, poured into a stemless wine glass. Enjoyed on 03.12.2025, reviewed from Tasting Journal.

The beer pours a deep jet black color, thick and oily, a fizzy khaki head rises but offers little no retention nor lacing. The aroma is very nice, lots of chocolate, licorice, stone fruits, hot bourbon spirit, rich charred oak, caramel and vanilla. The flavors are nice, lots of chocolate, plums, cherries, more influence from the Port Barrel, licorice, tobacco, smoke, hot bourbon spirit, earthy oak, charred wood, sweet vanilla, brown sugar, and caramel. The mouthfeel is good, coating, thick medium body, very smooth and luscious with a silky finish that has a lot of warming spirit to it.

Verdict: A really nice barrel expression. The port finish adds some nice depth, feels very classically Angel's Envy, but it does draw out a more sweet and fruit forward version of Bourbon County.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Bottle. Tan head that fades. Dark brown, black color.

One of the more unique and enjoyable special variants. The port shows really well and works great with the base. Chocolate covered cherry flavor. Molasses, figs, caramel, dark fruits. Bourbon, oak, tobacco, charred barrel. Very fudgey.

They did a really nice job with this one. Excellent flavor, complexity, and drinkability.

 

Pours a dark cola brown and settles pure black in the glass with a substantial colored head that lingers a bit and leaves a nice ring around the body of the beer. Gorgeous imperial stout.

The nose is equal parts bourbon, dark cherry, rich milk chocolate cocoa, and roasty malt that is perfectly balanced and quite enticing.

The dark cherry and rich milk chocolate cocoa is what hits the palate first and is absolutely delicious, with the roasty malt keeping this big stout from being too sweet, and the barrel providing depth and warming at the back of the palate. Extraordinary flavor profile, IMHO.

The mouthfeel is rich and creamy, as expected. This variant picked up a lot of accolades last year, and rightfully so, because it is top tier world class, IMHO.