Viking Club No. 1: Rauch Geek Breakfast Aged In Maple Syrup Bourbon Barrel
Mikkeller ApS

 

Better than the general reviews IMHO. Needs to warm, certainly, for character to come to the forefront. A good deal of roastiness and a kiss of smoke. Some woodiness and subtle bourbon character - a caramel and vanilla note. Maple is there without adding a ton of sweetness. This is, still, a beer that sticks closer to roast and malt than sugar coated viscosity. The body for a 7.5% beer is creamy and the flavor lingers.

I'd call this more than the sum of its parts. Very good and in the spirit of breakfasty stouts, this fits the bill better than most in that it doesn't try to actually be a syrup laden meal, laying you out with double digit abv or diabetic shock.

This was decent, but there was almost no barrel character at all. A little hint of sweetness presumably from the maple syrup barrel, but no bourbon barrel characteristics at all. I would not have guessed this was barrel aged. A decent beer, but not worth seeking out.