Barrel Aged Chocolate Imperial Milk Stout
Saugatuck Brewing Company

12 oz can from the Michigan gastropub.

Given that i is described as "a dessert ɓeer", it might be harsh to call this overly sweet and overly boozy. It still seems that way to me even with that in mind. Moreover the flavor profile seems like a trainwreck of whiskey barrel, milk chocolate, and sweet berries.

Overall. The weakest of the 5 or so Saugatauk brews I've had from this series.

A- Pours like motor oil in terms of consistency and is a super dark brown....almost black in coloration....it seems clear enough for what its worth too. The carbonation appears to be plentiful, with a lot of fine bubbles rising and popping around the top ring of foam on the inside of the glass. The head is pretty much non existent, quickly going from a finger in thickness, into this ring I speak of and is caramel in color....the ring sticks around consistently however. The lacing is also pretty much gone and the only remnants are an oily/watery combo that clings to the inside of the glass. Overall it is nothing too special to look at but I'm sure this isn't the selling point either.

S- Oh I definitely smell the caramelized banana here, however, I find it to be of Club House extract and not an authentic aroma, but with that said, I'm sure it is not meant to be, as this is an added flavour. Underlying aromas of creamy chocolate ice cream, yeast, some deep dark roast malts, dark, almost burnt toffee and a finish that is somewhat Earthy dry woody barrel...hey!....maybe the bourbon barrel!

T- Well the flavors are what I was expecting.....full of banana pudding, chocolate creme, sweet cream ice cream, caramel richness, dark roasty chocolate malt richness, some slight bourbon barrel booziness....very dessert like and delicious! I think the best way I can describe this is that this tastes like a Banana milkshake from a local ice cream shop....they just know how to make shakes and the creaminess, along with some vanilla base and choco-banana syrup like sweetness...this is just like it....Saugatuck knows how to relay the flavours of what they are trying to convey to the masses.

M/O- The mouthfeel of this is most definitely full bodied and the carbonation is super smooth....this is quite the ultimate dessert type stout!! The drinkability is high even though the alcohol is rather high, being 10.5%....Im sure that after an hour I would be done (figuratively speaking), but in the moment, I'm quite happy with what I'm tasting here! Overall I would most want to have this one again and if I can find it I will just buy and enjoy it....I'm very happy to have had the opportunity to get this and review, and so far, the best of the three flavours (vanilla was great btw)....now to try the strawberry!