Bourbon County Brand Double Barrel Stout (2025)
Goose Island Beer Co.

16.9 ounce bottle, bottled on 21AUG25 stamped on the label. Served in a snifter, the beer pours dark brown/black with not quite an inch tan head that went away somewhat quickly. Small amount of lacing. Aroma is nice, the brew smells like roasted malt, bourbon, vanilla, raisin, dark chocolate and some nuts. For the most part the taste is similar to the aroma, but with the addition of some caramel, oak, molasses and coffee flavors. Good amount of barrel character here. Mouthfeel/body is full, it's syrupy and slick with a moderate amount of carbonation. It's boozy, but doesn't seem like it's 17.4% ABV either. I liked this one a lot, definitely worth trying especially if you like bourbon in your imperial stouts!

Pitch black stout pour, lighter brown head that settles slowly into a sustained cap. Big bourbon barrels with chocolate, vanillins, caramel, raisin and old leather in that order of intensity. Taste has just gorgeous barrels right up front, toasty and boozy the whole sip, chocolate, vanilins, caramel all star, the dark fruit, molasses and mellow undertone of anise support. Feel is boozy and rich, chewy and warm, yet dialed in showing off the barrel character. I will say it again, 2025 was the year bourbon county turned around and got back to doing what it does best

Fobab 2025.

 

L: Pours a thick oily black with a very small tan head that dissipates quickly and leaves no lacing on the glass.

S: The bourbon is very strong in the nose, almost to the point of rubbing alcohol, some chocolate and vanilla, with a hint of roast, but I feel like the alcohol dominates the nose more than it should.

T: Based on the nose, I expected the barrel aging to be dominant here, but surprisingly it isn't. A nice roasty chocolatey mix, with notes of caramel, vanilla. I like the taste a lot more than the aroma.

F: Big body, the mouthfeel comes off a lot like whiskey but I don't mind it.

O: Really good beer that is slightly brought down by its aroma.

4/5/26 - (Home) (Chicago, IL) Bottle Notes: Purchased at store temperature from Jewel-Osco on clearance for $22.77 including tax on February 5, 2026. Refrigerated until opening this morning. 16.9 oz bottled August 22, 2025 at 5:13 PM. 17.4% ABV, Bourbon County Brand Double Barrel Stout made with our friends at Heaven Hill. Imperial Stout Double Barrel-Aged in Heaven Hill Bottled-In-Bond bourbon barrels. Contains wheat. Perfectly aged, ever evolving. Brewed, Bottled, & Barrel-Aged by Goose Island Beer Company, Chicago, Illinois. (Too much to record here for everything written on the tube this bottle was held in).

Appearance: Black base, light white tan head lingers briefly before a fine bubble clings along the rim, with a few spots of continuously rising carbonation. 4.0

Aroma: Strong bourbon when I opened the bottle. A nice smooth bourbon about 10 & 20 minutes after opening. Not much else including the famous base. 4.0

Taste: Strong and somewhat harsh bourbon with light throat burn to start, but with a much broader experience than the aroma. The base comes through well, oak, dark roast malt, chocolate fudge and baker’s chocolate. Bourbon mellows over time, either due to acclimation or a proper warming. 4.5

Mouthfeel: Drinks strong as expected, with the double bourbon barrel aging treatment. Medium body, sustained slightly prickly carbonation. Sweetness came out after initial sips, but the bourbon fluctuates between smooth and harsh, settling in somewhat hot and mostly enjoyable. 3.75

Overall: This is as advertised. Strong barrel start to finish, liked it best about 15-20 minutes in, where the base was allowed to shine best before the bourbon barrel reclaimed an insurmountable lead. Glad I tried, but would prefer the standard or this year’s Proprietor if given an option at another bottle. Glad I tried, solid option for those seeking a very strong bourbon barrel BCBS. 4.0

What can you say about Bourbon County? This one is just plain excellent. It checks all the boxes that I want from the style. Roasty, toasted dark malt, boozy presence and burn. Slight syrupiness. They’re the origin of the species.

 

L - black with mahogany highlights with a tan thin head that dissipates quickly
S - chocolate, vanilla, oak, bourbon
T - Follows the nose - chocolate, vanilla, and oak intermixed throughout. Finished with a ton of oak and woodsie bourbon. Some molasses in there along with dark malts. Some char and dark fruits as well.
F - medium, leaning on full bodied with light carbonation. Smooth.
O - so far, this is the best of the 2025 BCBS batch and one of the better examples in the past few years.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Basically opaque pour and glass appearance; dark brown; thin head, primarily a light tan ring inside the glass, long-lasting and somewhat dense. Rich, dark nose; semi-sweet chocolate with a dab of booziness; a hint of unknown spiciness and tobacco. Nice taste overall; fairly rich chocolate tones with a prominent whiskey underpinning; earthy spices such as cinnamon and star anise. Heavy body; dense and semi-sludgy feel; sticky with a fine whiskey burn.

I like this beer. The Heaven Hill whiskey aspect pairs nicely with the base beer.

ABV: 17.4%; pouring temperature: 55.6 °F; bottling info: 21AUG25
Source: local purchase

 

 

(2025 vintage; purchased at Mr. Liquor... poured at 54 F into my St. Bernardus chalice)

L: foam fizzles out immediately, leaving no collar; very dark brown, nearly black liquid.... cleaned the glass after the first pour gone, and the head once again fizzled out

S: oatmeal cookie dust, bourbon barrel staves, ethanol spice, dark chocolate chips... vanilla spice candle... getting more toffee later, after starting to pick it up on the palate

T: chocolate chip liqueur, vanilla extract... nutty cookie malt at the back in the aftertaste... dark malt milk up front, the residual sweetness of which gets washed away and largely replaced by what almost feels like straight bourbon; as the booze vapes off, more toffee flavor lingers

F: medium+ bodied, attenuated with prejudice in the finish... hot booze steaming off mid palate in the aft, hot almost like chili spice... while it hits ya, it's super easy to drink, even with the relentless slow burn - the lack of residual syrup on the tongue helps

O: this is my actual 2,500th review; BA 2,500 at Monk's tomorrow... while it's one of their better BCBS variants, it drinks like a Louis XIII: refined, understated, and mellow, if not exciting or interesting (2,500)