Bourbon Barrel Aged Impending Descent 2016
Ale Asylum

Had on tap. Honestly it didn't say the year, but whatever. The bourbon was actually pretty light on this otherwise heavy flavored stout. Smelled like a normal throwback american stout, lots of malt and some dark chocolate. Bourbon present on taste, but again almost above the rest of the flavors, like a guardian angel. Which when bourbon didn't come down to join the rest of the beer on sips the body felt a little watery

Slightly better than the non-barrel aged version. Sweet bourbon on the nose, slight dark chocolate, not much more on the nose. Flavour is a bit lacking, certainly there is a fair bit of bourbon and a light chocolate presence, but the body seems to lack any sort of oomph on the backend which is a bit disappointing. The underlying stout doesn't seem to come across here very much if at all.

 

 

22oz bottle, no date, 2016 version. Pours hazy black with a small sized khaki head. Smells of bourbon, oak, cocoa, vanilla, roasted malt, earthy hops, and dark fruit. The taste follows exactly with a little less bourbon/oak intensity. Some mellowness and subtle depth. Medium bitterness and dryness. A little alcohol comes though. Below average body and above average carbonation for the style. Overall, this is a pretty well done BBA RIS. It's well-rounded, drinkable, and has a nice barrel presence but could use some more intensity and body.

The initial nose on this was pleasant in that it was overpowering bourbon. It was a nice surprise because for whatever reason I didn't expect this kind of barrel character from this beer. The taste followed the nose in that the barrel presence was strong. Where this beer fell short though was in the thin mouthfeel and the fact that it was awfully one dimensional. I kept waiting for the base beer to come out more or for the barrel to offer some more complexity. But the fudge, chocolate and oak that you often can pick out from a great barrel aged beer was missing from this one. Glad I tried it but considering it was $20 for a bomber, it was not worth the price tag. I mean, just consider the fact that Central Waters sells their anniversary beers for $15 a bomber. That makes this an overpriced buy for just an okay beer.